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Oct 05, 2009 -- Supplements are the unregulated Wild West of medicine
Are you among the two-thirds of Americans who takes dietary supplements -- as in vitamins, herbal products or those miracle remedies you see on bad late night TV?
Clark himself takes two chewable vitamins everyday. Executive producer Christa takes certain supplements such as magnesium. Associate producer Joel, however, doesn't take any supplements.
A recent Dow Jones report suggested people can experience kidney failure and liver failure because the contents of some dietary supplements are not regulated closely enough. A survey from the National Institute of Diabetes finds that roughly 10 percent of people with liver problems developed them from taking herbal remedies.
Another word of caution: Be sure to tell your doctor about any dietary supplements you take. That information will help him or her be aware of any possible drug interactions with prescriptions you may be taking.
There's a big fight about whether or not the feds should have stricter standards for dietary supplements. There is essentially no oversight of what goes into dietary supplements. The closest thing to any kind of oversight is an accredited body called the United States Pharmacopeia (USP).
So in essence, this is the Wild West and you've got to be careful with what you put in your body -- especially with the claims you see on late-night TV. Clark is stunned by the number of ads he sees for what he'll euphemistically call "evening activities." Know that you are being conned by the actors. The product may not harm you, but it will harm your wallet.
Unfortunately, Clark won't be able to answer any questions submitted via commenting. If you have a question, please try posting it to our message boards.
Clark is good at what he does but wrong on this. And it's a shame he uses late night infomercials as his example of vitamin sellers. Eat well, exercise , and take supplements. It's a small price to pay for good health. Prescription drugs have a far worse track record of safety then any supplement on the market
conspiracy much?
The "medical field", dario? Paranoid conspiracy aside, there isn't any such thing as the "medical field." The tensions between doctors, nurses, pharma, and government are practically nearing the level of armed revolution. Heck, even doctors are at each others' throats. All the diseases you listed are easily and plainly attributable to an aging population and/or better screening, diagnostics and record keeping. Clark wasn't "bashing" herbals and vitamins. He was just saying the same thing he generally says: buyer beware. Get your vitamins and herbal supplements from reputable places. Don't automatically go for the lowest price in this case!
FDA IS GOOD?
I constantly hear that everything we use should be regulated by the FDA. i personally feel that the FDA is under the heel of the very manufacturers that it is supposed to monitor. How many horror stories have we heard about various prescription drugs that the FDA has approved that later were found to be damaging and even killing people? Viox comes to mind but ther are many others.The FDA only wants people to have drugs that can be patented and bring billions of dollars to the giant chemical companies. Big Pharma's profits are worth more to them than our health. Since the FDA came to power we have had hemorrhaging growths in such sicknesses as Diabetes, Autism, Obesity, Artheritis, Osteoporosis, Cancer, and many others. And, don't forget the "New-fangled" diseases such as Legionaire's Disease, AIDS, Flesh-Eating Disease and many others. I am 70 years old and I take NO prescription nor non-prescription drugs although 80% of the people my age do. I haven't been to a doctor since I had an eye problem (he said I was getting old!)more that ten years ago! I work a 40 hour week. I take various vitamin and herbal supplements and I do not want ANY governmental CZAR to tell me what I can or cannot do to protect my health. I know that the medical establishment (Doctors, hospitals and drug companies) consider me to be a "deadbeat" because they make $00.00 off of me, but I DON'T CARE! I think it is a shame the way that the medical field makes so much off of people's suffering instead of seeking ways to alleviate such suffering. I like to listen to you Clark, but PLEASE butt out! I don't want to hear you bashing products that are not sold by BIG PHARMA any more! If you don't like them than DON'T take them!
Diet Supplements Bad
I used Hydroxycut for a few months in 2005 around age 31. I had been doing my regular workout routine for about 2 years after not working out since high school. I just couldn't stop eating a lot, and even though I was losing some weight it wasn't enough so I decided on this product. When I first started taking them it was amazing, I had so much energy I didn't even take my 1/2 hour afternoon nap anymore. After about 2 weeks I noticed the following symptoms at a much lower level, but after 2 months of use I began to have severe spasms in the muscles around the heart for hours at a time along with nausea and heartburn. The only thing different in my routine was the Hydroxycut, even though I had already been taking it for 2 months. I then began to have chest pains after working out followed by the spasms, so I decided to quit the Hydroxycut. The first few days were hell, the symptoms continued plus I felt much more sick and I couldn't sleep. But after the 4th day I was back to normal. Since then I have never taken a dietary supplement and I have never had any of those symptoms again.
Supplements
While it would be ideal for everyone to get all the nutrients they need from their food, that isn't possible any more. Years of over-farming and artificial fertilizer have depleted the soil our food is grown in. If the nutrients aren't in the soil, the plants cannot take them up, and they won't be in the food. Studies have shown that, for some vegetables, you would have to eat 5 times (or more) the amount of the vegetable grown today to get the amount of nutrients that were found in the vegetables grown 50 years ago. Using high-quality vitamin and mineral supplements is the only way to ensure that you get enough nutrition to stay healthy. But taking cheap and/or artificial supplements won't help. A couple of chewables from a drug company for whom artificial vitamins are a sideline is useless. Take good quality natural source supplements from a reputable manufacturer whose entire business is focused on supplements to stay healthy.
Supplements
I used to be a big supplement fanatic a couple of years ago. I agree that the supp industry needs to be somewhat regulated, as there are lots of hardcore supps that are borderline crack-like.
I always stick with the basics: A daily multi-vitamin, 4-6 grams of fish oils daily, and an occasional protein powder drink. That being said, nothing beats wholesome, nutritious food.
