"A recent study reported something very impressive: A decade after the end of a randomized clinical trial, the benefits of dietary supplementation not only persisted, but seemed to be getting bigger. So why are we not talking about this more? "Read more...
"In reality, there is very little evidence to support the consumption of vitamins and supplements. Studies have consistently found, for example, that multivitamins provide no clear health benefit." Read more...
The multibillion-dollar supplement industry spews many dubious claims, but a new study suggests that some nutritional supplements, including omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D, may boost the effectiveness of antidepressants.
A “sizable and growing number” of inpatients are receiving probiotics, according to a survey of 145 US hospitals.
A daily multivitamin/mineral supplement can help fill nutrient shortfalls “without concern for its long-term safety”, says a new review paper from Germany.
Supplement manufacturers should not be offering 100% of recommended dietary allowances (RDA) in vitamin and mineral supplements, Danish research highlighting the risk of overdose has warned.
"Ah, one of the most common questions I'm asked when a new client starts up with me: "Should I take any supplements now that I"m working out?" With the supplement industry raking in tens of billions of dollars annually, one would think that there must be at least SOME brand or SOME type of supplement one should take to enhance one's performance in the gym."Should You Take Supplements?. Peter Weintraub. Huffpost Healthy Living. February 26, 2016. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/peter-weintraub-/should-you-take-supplemen_b_9321690.html
A recent study determined that 56% of a sampling of 164 food supplements for weight loss contained active pharmaceutical ingredients (API). These adulterants ranged from pharmaceuticals that have been taken off the market because of toxicity to antidepressants. According to the results of this study, it is obvious the poor manufacturing processes for weight loss supplements and the need for better quality control.
“There may be evidence that some botanicals in their pure state have medicinal effects,” Cohen says. “But consumers need to realize that what they’re purchasing in a bottle is completely different from what an ancient herbalist would have used, making it extremely unlikely that these highly processed products are going to confer any of the theoretical health benefits—even if they’re made from the plants they say they are.”
The notion that food consumers are more committed to transparency than are supplement users is not borne out at the retail level, experts from two natural channel retailers say.
"Fifteen year olds are not only able to buy over-the-counter dietary supplements from a sampling of health food stores across the country, the staff at those stores actually went so far as to recommend certain products, despite labels reading "for adult use only.""
"Although dietary supplements are often touted for their health benefits, they may in fact increase your cancer risk, especially if taken in high doses, according to a new analysisof previous research."
"In a study to be presented at the annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research, Dr. Tim Byers of the University of Colorado’s Cancer Center found that people who took “more dietary supplements than needed tend to have a higher risk of developing cancer,"
"Calcium supplementation of more than 800 mg/day is associated with an increased prevalence of age-related macular degeneration (AMD), especially in older individuals, according to a cross-sectional study of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) data."
"The constituents of herbal dietary supplements continues to be a point of confusion and contention among those viewing the industry from the outside and was identified as a key point of industry vulnerability during a session of a recent science conference held at the University of Mississippi. From a clinician’s point of view, what’s actually in these products?"
"Supplements of vitamin D during pregnancy may increase birth weight and length of newborns, says a new systematic review and meta-analysis of 13 randomized controlled trials.'
