NUTRITION 21 ANNOUNCES QVC-RELATED LEGAL MATTERS

PURCHASE, NY, April 16, 2004 –Nutrition 21, Inc. (Nasdaq: NXXI) announced that the Company and the Federal Trade Commission are discussing whether the Company should have any liability for weight loss advertising claims that were made on QVC, Inc. for the Company’s Lite Bites® products.  The FTC has sued QVC in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania for these claims and for claims made on QVC for other products, and QVC has in the same lawsuit filed a Complaint for damages against six parties including the Company.  The Company is evaluating the Complaint filed by QVC.  The Company discontinued the Lite Bites product line in 2003.

About Nutrition 21

Nutrition 21 is a nutrition bioscience company using pharmaceutical quality research to substantiate the health benefits of nutritional supplements.  It holds 24 patents for chromium compounds and their uses, and 11 other nutrition patents.  The Company’s proprietary technologies focus on chromium picolinate and its relationship to insulin resistance, a condition implicated in type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity and depression.  Nutrition 21 markets ChromaxÒ chromium picolinate, the leading chromium ingredient used in supplements.  The Company is developing its first branded product, DiachromeÔ, for people with type 2 diabetes intended to be marketed through healthcare channels.  More information is available at www.nutrition21.com, www.chromax.com, www.diachrome.com.