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Supplement labels explained: %DV, IU and “proprietary blend”

%DV compares a serving with a US Daily Value, IU is the older unit beside mcg, and a proprietary blend gives one weight for many ingredients.

By Bravoora teamPublished 13 October 2026Sources checked 13 October 20268 min read

Serving size: every amount below is for one softgel.
Vitamin D in mcg with IU in brackets: 25 mcg is 125% of the US Daily Value of 20 mcg.
A proprietary blend: one total weight, heaviest ingredient first, no amount for each; † means no Daily Value.
Other ingredients: the softgel shell is gelatin, made from animal collagen.
On an EU label the same 25 µg reads 500% NRV, because the EU reference value is 5 µg.

A sample softgel label. The same vitamin D reads 125% DV in the US and 500% NRV in the EU; the blend gives one weight; the shell is gelatin.

Key takeaways

%DV compares one serving with the US Daily Value: vitamin D’s is 20 mcg, so a 25 mcg softgel reads 125%. An EU label compares the same 25 µg with a reference value of 5 µg and prints 500%.
US labels declare vitamin D in mcg and vitamin E in mg; IU may follow in brackets. For vitamin D, 1 mcg is 40 IU.
A proprietary blend gives one total weight and lists its ingredients from heaviest to lightest, without the amount of each; a symbol such as † means no Daily Value has been set.
“Other ingredients” is where the capsule shell, binders and fillers are listed, so it is where a gelatin softgel shows up.
Caffeine can come in as guarana seed or green tea leaf extract: a US label names the plant part, and inside a blend the amount is not stated.

The short answer

A US Supplement Facts panel gives each nutrient per serving with its %DV, the share of a Daily Value; an EU label prints %NRV against different reference values. Vitamin D is declared in mcg, with IU allowed in brackets. A proprietary blend shows one total weight, not each ingredient’s amount, and capsules and fillers sit under “Other ingredients”.

What does a Supplement Facts panel show?

In the US, a dietary supplement carries a Supplement Facts panel^[1]^[2]. It opens with the serving size, the amount the maker calls one serving, such as one capsule or two scoops. Each dietary ingredient follows with its amount per serving and, where a Daily Value exists, its %DV^[1]^[3]. The amount is of the nutrient itself: in “Vitamin D (as cholecalciferol) 25 mcg”, the 25 mcg is vitamin D, and the words in brackets name the form it comes in^[1].

Everything else is listed below the panel, under “Ingredients”, or under “Other ingredients” when some are already named in the panel^[4]. Every number in the panel is per serving, so two capsules double every line.

What does %DV mean, and why does an EU label say %NRV?

%DV, the percent Daily Value, is how much of a nutrient one serving contributes to the daily amount the FDA uses as its reference^[3]. For vitamin D the Daily Value is 20 mcg, so a softgel with 25 mcg reads 125%^[3]. A figure over 100% is arithmetic, not advice: it compares the serving with the reference, and says nothing about how much anyone should take.

An EU food supplement states each nutrient per portion recommended for daily consumption, and gives each vitamin and mineral as a percentage of the EU reference values^[5]. Those nutrient reference values are set out in Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, and vitamin D’s is 5 µg^[6]. So the same 25 µg reads 125% DV on a US label and 500% NRV on an EU one. Compare the amounts, not the percentages.

Where an ingredient has no Daily Value, the panel prints a symbol such as † or * in place of the percentage, with the footnote “Daily Value not established”^[2].

Why do mcg and IU both appear?

IU, the international unit, is the older way of stating some vitamins. US labels now declare vitamin D in mcg and vitamin E in mg of alpha-tocopherol, and the IU figure may follow in brackets, as in “Vitamin D 25 mcg (1,000 IU)”^[7]. Larger makers had to switch from 1 January 2020, smaller ones from 1 January 2021^[8].

The conversions are fixed. For vitamin D, 1 mcg is 40 IU, so 1,000 IU is 25 mcg^[7]. For vitamin E they depend on the form: 1 IU is 0.67 mg of natural vitamin E, printed d-alpha-tocopherol, and 0.45 mg of synthetic vitamin E, printed dl-alpha-tocopherol^[8]. EU labels use µg, the same unit as mcg^[6].

What does a “proprietary blend” tell you, and what does it hide?

A proprietary blend groups dietary ingredients under one name, “Proprietary blend” or a name the maker chooses, with the total weight of the blend on the same line^[1]^[2]. The ingredients follow in descending order of weight, heaviest first, but the amount of each is not required^[2]. Vitamins and minerals that have a Daily Value cannot hide inside a blend: they are listed separately, each with its own amount^[2].

So a blend tells you what is in it, which ingredient weighs most and what the whole blend weighs. It does not tell you how much of any one ingredient a serving holds. The article on caffeine shows what that gap means for a day’s total.

What goes under “Other ingredients”?

Ingredients that are not dietary ingredients are listed below the panel: the capsule shell, binders and fillers^[4]^[9]. This is where gelatin appears when it makes the shell. Gelatin is made from animal collagen, usually from the skin and bones of cattle, pigs or fish; it forms many softgel capsules, and the label often does not say which animal^[10].

Allergens count here too. The US allergen rules apply to dietary supplements, sesame included since 1 January 2023^[11], and a fish or a tree nut must be named by its type, such as cod or almonds, not just as “fish” or “tree nuts”^[12].

Which ingredients carry caffeine under another name?

Guarana seed extract and green tea leaf extract carry caffeine without the word^[13]. A US label names the part of the plant a botanical comes from, which is why “seed” and “leaf” appear^[2]. An EU food supplement with added caffeine must say “Contains caffeine. Not recommended for children or pregnant women” and give the caffeine content per portion recommended for daily consumption^[6].

Inside a proprietary blend, a caffeine source has no amount of its own. That is a gap in the label, not a zero.

Supplement words in Bravoora’s data

The vitamin D3 guide reads “cholecalciferol” and “colecalciferol” as vitamin D3, and shows the amount in mcg or IU as the label prints it^[14].
The public dictionary files “beef gelatin”, “pork gelatin”, “fish gelatin”, “gelatine” and “gelatin” under animal sources, a group of 24 names^[15].
Its insect group holds the glazes used on coated tablets and sweets: “confectioner’s glaze”, “pharmaceutical glaze”, “resinous glaze”, “candy glaze” and “shellac”^[15].
The caffeine guide lists seven label names for caffeine and its sources: “coffee”, “guarana”, “green tea extract”, “yerba mate”, “kola nut”, “caffeine anhydrous” and “matcha”^[13].

Method: names from Bravoora’s ingredient guides and the public dictionary file (English edition), version 1.5.1 (built 1 October 2026), read on 13 October 2026^[13]^[14]^[15]. They describe which names the guides know, not what any product contains.

Which words on a supplement label matter most?

Serving size: the maker’s serving; every amount in the panel is per that serving.
%DV: one serving as a share of the US Daily Value. %NRV: the EU’s version, against its own reference values.
mcg and µg: micrograms, the same unit. mg: milligrams. IU: the older international unit, in brackets.
† or *: Daily Value not established.
Proprietary blend: one total weight, heaviest ingredient first, no amount for each.
Other ingredients: the capsule shell, binders and fillers, gelatin included.
d-alpha-tocopherol, dl-alpha-tocopherol: natural and synthetic vitamin E.
Guarana seed extract, green tea leaf extract: caffeine sources.

How do you read a supplement label in 30 seconds?

Read the serving size first, then count the servings you take.
Read each amount with its unit; between a US and an EU label, compare the amounts, not the percentages.
Read IU in brackets as the same amount in the older unit: for vitamin D, 40 IU is 1 mcg.
In a proprietary blend, note the total weight and the first ingredient; the amount of each is not on the label.
Read “Other ingredients” for the capsule shell and the allergen names, and look for guarana or green tea extract if you track caffeine.

How does Bravoora read a supplement label?

Bravoora reads each amount and unit as printed, per serving, and multiplies by the servings you take. A caffeine source inside a blend is shown with the line “the tub does not say how much”, never with a guessed number. The capsule and the other ingredients are checked against your profile: for a vegetarian profile, gelatin gives “Not for you”, and an emulsifier whose source is not stated gives “Heads up”. It sets no dose and no limit: those come from your doctor or dietitian. The methodology shows how it is tested.

Let Bravoora read the label with you.

Tell it once what matters: your allergens, your diet, the ingredients you watch. Every answer then shows the words it is based on.

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Scope and limits

This guide covers the labels of dietary supplements in the US and food supplements in the EU. It does not cover medicines, which carry different labels.

Sources were checked on 13 October 2026.

This is general label information, not medical advice. It gives no dose and no limit: your doctor or dietitian sets those.

Frequently asked questions

Is a %DV over 100% too much?

The label does not say. %DV only compares one serving with the Daily Value; whether an amount suits you is a question for your doctor or dietitian.

Why does my vitamin D say 25 mcg (1,000 IU)?

US labels declare vitamin D in mcg and allow the older unit in brackets. For vitamin D, 1 mcg is 40 IU, so 25 mcg and 1,000 IU are the same amount.

Can I find out how much of each ingredient is in a proprietary blend?

Not from the label. A blend lists its total weight and its ingredients in order of weight, so you know which one weighs most, but the amount of each is not required. You can ask the maker.