Tuesday, February 5, 2008

The Truth About Dietary Supplements*

*The information for this article was provided by the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter

Everyone is always looking for something to help them either improve their health or reduce the risk of disease and injury. Dietary supplements are extremely popular to achieve these goals. However, there is a lot of misinformation about dietary supplements and most people do not really know the truth about what they are taking or how effective it is to help them to achieve their goals. In 1994 the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act was passed by federal legislation, which removed dietary supplements from FDA control. This means that manufacturers can suggest almost anything on their packages, regardless if they have any proof of safety or efficacy. This is why it is important to be educated about dietary supplements to make sure you are not putting your health at risk by taking them. The UC Berkeley Wellness Letter (one of the most respected wellness letters in the nation), has made a chart of the safety and effectiveness of dietary supplements. This section is designed to help you make intelligent decisions when you are deciding if you should start using a dietary supplement. This section discusses the more popular dietary supplements. For more information about dietary supplements, please call the UC Berkeley Wellness Letter at (800) 829-9170. The information in italics represents the conclusions of the Wellness Letter about the particular dietary supplement.

(1) Beta Carotene (safe and effective)

Claims & Benefits: Prevents cancer and heart disease and boosts immunity.

What To Do: Do not take if you are a smoker-studies suggest an increase in lung cancer risk for smokers taking these pills. Beta carotene is plentiful in yellow, red and deep green vegetables and some fruits and are beneficial in this form.

(2) Calcium (safe and effective)

Claims & Benefits: Prevents or slows osteoporosis.

What To Do: Women over 50 (postmenopausal) and men over 65 may need supplements if they do not get 1,500 milligrams a day from food. Should be taken at meals and be combined with an exercise program-especially weight-bearing exercises, such as resistance training or walking. Calcium should also come from dietary sources, such as low-fat or fat-free milk and many leafy greens.

(3) Creatine (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Improves athletic performance.

What To Do: Creatine is an amino acid that is naturally produced in the body. Some studies show short-term boost for muscle strength for young, highly trained subjects. Meaningless for casual exercisers or players. A solid training program is more effective for this population.

(4) DHEA (Dehydroepiandrosterone) (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Slows aging, prevents chronic diseases, cures some cancers.

What To Do: DHEA is a human hormone. DHEA may have powerful positive or negative effects-it is too soon to know-there is not enough research to know yet. Additionally, what you get in the health food store may not be DHEA, so be cautious and consider not taking this supplement.

(5) Echinacea (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Cures colds, boosts immunity.

What To Do: Inconsistent evidence of benefit. Products on the market are unstandardized. Prescribed in Germany for colds and flu. Little known about toxicity.

(6) Ephedra (may be harmful)

Claims & Benefits: Weight control, herbal “high,” decongestant.

What To Do: The active ingredient, ephedrine, is used in many decongestants and asthma drugs. Ephedrine raises heart rate and blood pressure and is dangerous for those with diabetes, high blood pressure and heart disease. The FDA has proposed restrictions. Used in so-called “herbal phen-fen” pills for weight loss, but may be dangerous.

(7) Folic Acid (safe and effective)

Claims & Benefits: Prevents certain birth defects, heart disease and possibly some cancers.

What To Do: There is solid evidence for all of these claims. All women capable of becoming pregnant should get 400 micrograms of folic acid a day from a supplement in addition to what they get from food. Other people who do not eat well-balanced diet containing fruits, vegetables, fortified grains and cereals should also consider taking a multivitamin containing folic acid.

(8) Garlic Pills (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Lower blood pressure and blood cholesterol and prevent stomach cancer.

What To Do: There is no clear evidence that garlic pills are beneficial. No one knows which element in garlic is beneficial, if any. Eating garlic cannot hurt, but it might help, so feel free to eat as much as you like.

(9) Ginkgo Biloba (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Improves blood flow and circulatory disorders and prevents or cures absentmindedness, memory loss and dementia.

What To Do: Ginkgo biloba is prescribed in Germany and France for circulatory disorders. Ginkgo shows promise against claudication (leg pain due to obstructed blood flow, often caused by atherosclerosis). A recent study suggests there are limited benefits for some Alzheimer's patients. There are currently no proven benefits for others though. Additionally, the products on the markets are not standardized, so you do not know the purity of what you are buying.

(10) Ginseng (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Improves athletic performance, fights fatigue, cures cancer and heart disease.

What To Do: There is no evidence that ginseng does anything, though it has been used for thousands of years as a cure-all and energizer. The ginseng plant contains pharmacologically active elements, but they vary from one type to another. Many of the products available on the market do not contain any ginseng.

(11) Lysine (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Cures cold sores (herpes)

What To Do: There is some evidence that 1,000 to 3,000 milligrams daily might head off recurrences of cold sores, but such high doses may be dangerous. Lysine should not be taken over long periods. Prescription drugs are available to help with cold sores and they are effective, but they can be very expensive.

(12) Melatonin (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Promotes sleep, counters jet lag, improves sex life, etc.

What To Do: Melatonin is a human hormone. There is promise that melatonin may be effective as a sleeping pill. However, it may have serious side effects. Further research is needed to determine the safety and efficacy of melatonin.

(13) Multivitamins/Minerals (safe and effective)

Claims & Benefits: Used to compensate for a poor diet.

What To Do: Unfortunately, no supplement can compensate for a poor diet. However, a daily multivitamin/mineral pills a good idea for the elderly or others who may have specific nutritional deficits (for example: young women who do not consume enough folic acid).

(14) Vitamin C (safe and effective)

Claims & Benefits: Prevents or cures colds and may help prevent cancer, heart disease and cataracts.

What To Do: Vitamin C is a powerful antioxidant that may protect against chronic disease. This is not a cold cure, but it can reduce the symptoms of a cold. Ideally, you should get as much vitamin C from produce-natural foods, that contain other beneficial substances. You can also take 250 to 500 milligrams daily as a supplement.

(15) Vitamin E (safe and effective)

Claims & Benefits: May help prevent cancer, heart disease and cataracts.

What To Do: Vitamin E is another powerful antioxidant, but it is not plentiful in foods, except vegetable oils, nuts, and seeds. You can take 200 to 800 IU (International Units) of vitamin E daily as a supplement.

(16) Zinc (safe and effective)

Claims & Benefits: Cures/shortens colds; relieves prostate symptoms; slows/prevents macular degeneration (an eye condition that can cause blindness)

What To Do: There is no convincing evidence that zinc lozenges prevent or relieve colds. Zinc is not recommended for prostate problems and the effect of zinc against macular degeneration are weak.

(17) St. John's Wort (safe and effective)

Claims & Benefits: Alleviates depression.

What To Do: Preliminary evidence shows efficacy against mild forms of depression. This should not be taken as a diet drug or with prescription antidepressants.

(18) Glucosamine & Chondroitin Sulfate (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Halt, reverse or cure arthritis.

What To Do: Probably harmless, but these do not cure arthritis. Glucosamine may reduce pain for some people, but do not substitute these supplements for conventional treatment.

(19) Chromium Picolinate (benefits unproven)

Claims & Benefits: Builds muscle, prevents and cures diabetes and promotes weight loss.

What To Do: Chromium is an essential mineral, but deficiency is rare in the United States. There is no evidence that chromium picolinate supplements perform as claimed, promote weight loss or benefit healthy people. There is some evidence that they may harm cells. People with diabetes should only take this with the recommendation of their doctor.

(20) Coenzyme Q-10 (safe and effective)

Claims & Benefits: A cure-all, prevents heart disease.

What To Do: This is an interesting antioxidant; it may be effective against heart failure. Talk to your cardiologist if you have heart disease and you are interested in taking this dietary supplement. It is expensive and the benefits for young people are not yet proven.

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