PURCHASE, NY and PITTSBURGH, PA — December 19, 2006 - Nutrition 21, Inc. (NASDAQ: NXXI) and General Nutrition Corporation (GNC) announced today that they have settled the patent litigation between the companies presently pending in federal court in Texas.  Specific terms of the settlement were not disclosed, except for GNC’s acknowledgement that the three patents in the litigation are valid. 

The litigation centered around Nutrition 21’s claims that GNC was inducing infringement of Nutrition 21’s patents (U.S. Patent Nos. 5,087,623; 5,087,624; and, 5,175,156), by advertising and promoting certain products containing chromium picolinate for the uses covered by Nutrition 21’s patents.  These patents cover methods of administering chromium picolinate to reduce hyperglycemia and stabilize serum glucose, increase lean body mass and reduce body fat, and prevent undesirable high levels of blood serum lipids. 

“We are pleased that we were able to bring this matter to a successful conclusion and believe the settlement will be of benefit to both companies,” stated Paul Intlekofer, President and CEO of Nutrition 21.

Joe Fortunato, GNC’s President and CEO, stated, “I believe we have reached a successful and amicable settlement that allows us to put this litigation behind us.”

GNC, headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pa., is the largest global specialty retailer of nutritional products, including vitamin, mineral, herbal and other specialty supplements and sports nutrition, diet and energy products. GNC has more than 4,800 retail locations throughout the United States (including more than 1,000 franchise and more than 1,200 Rite Aid store-within-a-store locations) and franchise operations in 46 international markets.

About Nutrition 21

Nutrition 21 is a nutritional bioscience company and the maker of chromium-based and omega-3 fish oil-based supplements with health benefits substantiated by clinical research.  The company markets Chromax® chromium picolinate, http://www.chromax.com/, which is the most-studied form of the essential mineral chromium.  Chromax, a supplement for healthy and pre-diabetic people that promotes insulin health and helps improve blood sugar metabolism, cardiovascular disease, control carbohydrate cravings and fight weight gain, is now available through food, drug and mass retailers nationwide.  Nutrition 21 also developed and markets Diachrome®, http://www.diachrome.com/ , a proprietary, non-prescription, insulin sensitizer for people with type 2 diabetes.  It is available in select drug retailers nationwide.  Nutrition 21 holds 33 patents for nutrition products and uses, 23 of which are for chromium compounds and their uses.  The Company is the exclusive importer of Icelandic fish oils, including omega-3 fatty acids, which are manufactured to pharmaceutical standards and sold under the Iceland Health® brand, http://www.icelandhealth.info.  More information is available at http://www.nutrition21.com.

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