What You Must Know Before Taking Supplements
In today’s age where we as consumers are bombarded by so many attractive advertisements aimed at making you buy the next miracle supplement promising to improve your health, achieve weight loss, give you beautiful skin and hair, increase your energy level, and even reduce your pain. It is difficult to resist jumping onto the bandwagon when others are already raving about its benefits and efficacy. However, before you do that the next time, let’s take a step back and ask ourselves whether any of these are too good to be true, or harbour any unknown side effects.
The Consumer Reports organization, with the help of a panel of doctors and researchers, has reported that multiple supplement ingredients that are found in health supplement products sold online and in drugstores are potentially detrimental to our health. These risks include organ damage, cancer, and cardiac arrest. The severity of such risks often depends on your overall health situation like pre-existing medical conditions, and other factors like the dosage you are using, and the period of time that you have been consuming the supplement.
On top of that, it is also important to be aware of the potential of supplements’ interaction with prescription and over-the-counter medications, for example, cholesterol-lowering statins and blood-thinning drugs like aspirin and warfarin.
Supplement Ingredients You Should Avoid Or Use With Care
The Consumer Reports organization has concluded the following in their study mentioned above :
INGREDIENT | CLAIMED BENEFITS | RISKS |
Caffeine Powder Also called: 1,3,7-trimethylxanthine |
Improves attention, enhances athletic performance, weight loss | Seizures, heart arrhythmia, cardiac arrest, possibly death; particularly dangerous when combined with other stimulants |
Green Tea Extract Powder Also called: Camellia sinensis |
Weight loss | Dizziness, ringing in the ears, reduced absorption of iron; exacerbates anemia and glaucoma; elevates blood pressure and heart rate; liver damage; possibly death |
Red Yeast Rice Also called: Monascus purpureus |
Lowers LDL (“bad”) cholesterol, prevents heart disease | Kidney and muscle problems, liver problems, hair loss; can magnify effect of cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, increasing the risk of side effects |
Aconite Also called: Aconiti tuber, aconitum, angustifolium, monkshood, radix aconti, wolfsbane |
Reduces inflammation, joint pain, gout | Nausea, vomiting, weakness, paralysis, breathing and heart problems, possibly death |
Chaparral Also called: Creosote bush, greasewood, larrea divaricata, larrea tridentata, larreastat |
Weight loss; improves inflammation; treats colds, infections, skin rashes, cancer | Kidney officinale Relieves cough, heavy menstrual period |
Germander Also called: Teucrium chamaedrys, viscidum |
Weight loss; alleviates fever, arthritis, gout, stomach problems | Liver damage, hepatitis, possibly death |
Greater Celandine Also called: Celandine, chelidonium majus, chelidonii herba |
Alleviates stomachache | Liver damage |
Kava Also called: Ava pepper, kava kava, piper methysticum |
Reduces anxiety, improves insomnia | Liver damage, exacerbates Parkinson’s and depression, impairs driving, possibly death |
Lobelia Also called: Asthma weed, lobelia inflata, vomit wort, wild tobacco |
Improves respiratory problems, aids smoking cessation | Nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, tremors, rapid heartbeat, confusion, seizures, hypothermia, coma, possibly death |
Methylsynephrine Also called: Oxilofrine, p-hydroxyephedrine, oxyephedrine, 4-HMP |
Weight loss, increases energy, improves athletic performance | Causes heart rate and rhythm abnormalities, cardiac arrest; particularly risky when taken with other stimulants |
Pennyroyal Oil Also called: Hedeoma pulegioides, mentha pulegium |
Improves breathing problems, digestive disorders | Liver and kidney failure, nerve damage, convulsions, possibly death |
Usnic Acid Also called: Beard moss, tree moss, usnea |
Weight loss, pain relief | Liver injury |
Yohimbe Also called: Johimbi, pausinystalia yohimbe, yohimbine, corynanthe johimbi |
Treats low libido and erectile dysfunction, depression, obesity | Raises blood pressure; causes rapid heart rate, headaches, seizures, liver and kidney problems, heart problems, panic attacks, possibly death |
Summary
Many people are keen to keep fit and healthy, and also willing to invest in the right supplements that help them to achieve their goals. However, it is also wise and critical to invest a little time to read the ingredient list of your supplements, do your research periodically to stay well informed, and ensure your supplements contain ingredients that provide sufficient health benefits to justify any risks that may be present.