At the national level, ministerial guidelines on food supplements contain a number of provisions regarding the intake of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, dietary fibre and probiotics. Even herbal products and derivatives with a beneficial effect, that were included among the products subject to ministerial notification via Circular No. 2 of 25 November 2004, fall within the definition of "dietary supplement".

The definition of permissible levels of intake for vitamins and minerals is still in progress at the Community level, while there is still no harmonized references regarding the use of other nutrients and other substances.

The regulations that apply to the marketing, advertising and the sale of supplements are different from those applied in the case of medicinal products. Food supplements are regulated by the Legislative Decree n. 169 of the 21st of May 2004, implementation of the directive 2002/46/EC. However, this decree has undergone some updates and intersects with other legislative measures and national guidelines governing certain aspects of this sector.

Dietary supplements cannot be considered "dietetic" as they are not designed to meet nutritional needs or special physiological condition. Their use is intended to improve nutritional intake, provide substances of nutritional or trophic protective effect and improve the metabolism and physiological functions