Gentle Reader,
This week Dr. Chaney concludes his analysis of the article titled “10 Surprising Dangers of Vitamins and Supplements” in the September 2012 issue of Consumer Reports. The article consists of 10 warnings about the potential dangers of food supplements.
The first six of those were at least partially true, but they pertained to such a small portion of the food supplements in the market that they were almost meaningless. See the blog for 9/13.
Last week I posted Dr. Chaney’s response to the seventh warning: that heart and cancer protection are not proven. It is, he tells us, very difficult to unambiguously prove that any intervention prevents heart disease or cancer in a primary prevention setting. “In fact, recent studies have shown that you can’t even prove that statin drugs reduce heart attack risk in a primary prevention setting.”
Dr. Chaney argued that the authors seemed to suggest “that supplements have been proven not to be effective in reducing heart disease and cancer risk – and that they might even increase the risk.” Check with last week’s blog to see how he refutes that insinuation.
#8 you could choke on supplements. “Really?” Dr. Chaney sounds indignant. “That’s true of anything you swallow. But let’s put it in perspective. The FDA says that has occurred a total of 900 times over the past five years – and only a few of the cases were serious enough to require a Heimlich maneuver. Most cases of choking on supplements were easily resolved by a second swallow or little extra water.” My poor husband, Chuck, choked on his vitamins more than once and they came up instead of going down. It didn’t keep him from taking a hand full with the next meal. A slurry of a protein smoothie helps when you have a hard time swallowing. But to warn people away from supplements because they might choke?! For heavens sake.
#9 Some natural products were anything but. Are you really surprised? In most cases you can figure that out just by reading the label.
#10 you may not need supplements at all. The authors state that “If you are already getting the recommended amount of nutrients by eating a variety of fruits, vegetables, cereals, dairy, and protein, there’s little if any additional benefit from ingesting nutritional supplements”. Dr. Chaney agrees with this statement, as do I. However, what the authors did not point out was that the USDA tells us that only 5% of the US population actually eats that way.
In conclusion, “Consumer Reports is very good when they are testing consumer products or surveying customers about their satisfaction with consumer products. They are less reliable when they start to venture into areas of health and nutrition. Because this is not an area of their expertise, they are easily misled by the urban myths that abound in the field of nutrition. They do not have the expertise to examine the literature
themselves and evaluate whether or not the urban myths are true. So just take their nutritional advice with a grain of salt.”
Perhaps when looking for supplements to help with managing arthritis pain, muscle soreness, the effects of osteoarthritis and spinal stenosis, plantars faciatitis, Bell’s Palsey or the effects of menopause, you scour the web. Be sure to take a look at the Shaklee website. Nearly every product has a label and an article about its properties and benefits.
Next week, The Landmark Study, what the University of California School of Public Health concluded after looking at the health of people who had supplemented with Shaklee vitamins contrasted with those who took regular multivitamins and others who took none.
It’s your turn: Comments, please. Do you rely on Consumer Report for major purchases? How do you experience “Urban Myths”? Do you fall for them? Dig deeper? Pass them on? We’d love to hear from you.
Shop my page for the most reliable way to prevention along with a healthy diet and plenty of exercise.
Fondly, Betsy
Be Well, Do Well and Keep Moving
BetsyBell’s Health4u
206 933 1889 1 888 283 2077
betsy@hihohealth.com
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in the post, we need develop more strategies in this regard, thanks for sharing.
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Hi, Francesca, I look forward to looking at your website and welcome any future comments from you. Be well, Betsy
Thanks for your comments. Interesting ideas about actual avocados, etc on your hair. I just use the Shaklee hair products called Pro Sante (US only, or Canada, sold person to person). Betsy
I love the fact that the Shaklee supplements have nothing artificial in them. Taking Shaklee supplements is like eating food. Your body recognizes the nutrients as food as takes them in. Watch this video at http://www.TirednoMore.com. Thanks for your comments. What are you doing now that you are not a PT any more? Betsy
This is straight of the American Medical Association Website.
The latest on vitamins and minerals
Research on some popular vitamins and minerals reveals just who should be taking supplements and why. Findings include:
Everyone should be taking a multivitamin.
Women of childbearing age should take a multivitamin that includes 400 micrograms of folic acid to help prevent neural tube defects in infants.
People older than 50 and those of any age who don’t eat meat or dairy products should take a supplement of Vitamin B-12. From 10% to 30% of older people may be unable to absorb enough vitamin B-12 from food. The current recommended intake is 6 micrograms per day, but there is a low potential for toxicity at higher levels.
Well-constructed studies have not proven that large doses of vitamin C can fight colds or prevent heart disease and cancer. But some evidence suggests that it could work in concert with vitamin E and other nutrients in preventing eye diseases and lowering heart attack risk.
Vitamin E’s early promise for preventing heart disease has dimmed recently, although many researchers have not given up on possible health benefits. Evidence from observational studies suggests that at least 400 IUs are needed per day for optimal health.
Adequate vitamin D ensures that the body absorbs and retains calcium and phosphorus, both critical for building bones. Those who can’t get enough from the sun should be taking a supplement.
Calcium is universally recognized as a nutrient vital to preventing osteoporosis. But some observational studies show that the risk of prostate cancer increases with a higher calcium intake. The U.S. Office of Dietary Supplements advises that men keep their daily calcium intake below 2,500 mg per day.
Sources: Harvard School of Public Health, U.S. Office of Dietary Supplements
Dear Cheri, Thank you so much for this. I know others will appreciate it. Interesting how far we have come in the last 25 years with even the medical association suggesting, recommending, certain supplements. Makes our job easier. Now the question is, which supplements actually make a difference in your body? Betsy
Hi Betsy; I am so appreciative of your wonderful blog; you inspire and educate and I love it!
I have always perused Consumer Reports for my big purchases, like appliances and cars, and depend on un-biased studies/opinions. The area of vitamin supplementation has baffled me for years, however.
I’m 60 yo, and have been taking vitamins regularly for 20 years, and recently I’ve begun to question this decision. I’ve looked at it as a sort of health insurance program for my body, but frankly, I really don’t know if they are valuable. I’ve spent lots of money on “prescription” vitamins; bought less expensive over-the-counter brands; bought from the local health food store more expensive brands, etc. etc., and come to the conclusion that I still don’t know! If I don’t take my vitamins, I feel no ill effects, or no difference in how my physical body feels and moves (except darker urine). I eat well; fruits, vegies, lean meat. If my blood does not indicate a deficiency in Vit. D, do I really need to be taking it? These are the type of issues I now question.
Dear Monica, What a thoughtful question you have posed. I can offer two responses. 1st I was not taking any supplements when Jayme Curley introduced me to vitamins and I made my first purchase of a multi, B, C, Calcium, Alfala and Herb Lax (because of chronic constipation) and the Soy Protein Powder. That was 1985 and my health changed dramatically from chronically sick with upper respiratory infections to none, plus other healthy responses I have mentioned. So I don’t have the experience of switching brands and noticing a change. 2nd Since then, Shaklee’s supplements and the blood of Shaklee users were part of a big study conducted by the University of California School of Public Health (called the Landmark Study) and Dr. Gladys Block, lead researcher was blown away by the results. Now the control group had taken a multi for 20 years, but not a whole plethora of supplements, like the Shaklee users. In some ways it was not a fair comparison and her conclusion, while impressed by the healthy marker levels of so many measures, was that more comparitive studies needed to be conducted to conclude that the Shaklee supplements were more effective than brand X. They just didn’t have data for an across the board comparison, you know, fish oil brand x vx. fish oil Shaklee brand.
Coming myself from a strong alleopathic background (father MD and mother nurse), I knew what my body was experiencing but retained a skeptical questionning approach. I visited with two differenct chiroprators who muscle tested me for my supplements, taking each one individually and questioning my body as to if, how many and how often. Most recently I have had my blood and urine analized by Dr. Richard Brouse, a chiropractor/nutritionish with an impressive resume and list of lectures, publications and videos, including a nutrition course which I have taken. It is based on his recommendation that I continue to supplement at the present level.
Short of investing in his Build a Better You program which runs around $600 for complete analysis and recommendation, you might consider stopping everything for 90 days. It taken 90 to 120 days for the blood to be completely new. Take a careful self analysis of how you feel and then trying the Shaklee supplements little by little, self monitoring to see how you feel. We offer a money back guarantee for all the Shaklee products. The company stands behind that.
Based on the reports of others who have run out of their Shaklee and bought something else, they can feel the difference. I just had a woman call me who lost her distributor to say that the Multi she bought doesn’t smell good. Shaklee’s multi smells like food, the Alfalfa smells fresh. There is a difference. The company’s research is all about bioavailability, does the substance get into the blood stream. Can you measure that. Dr. Shaklee used to say “give the cells the nutrients they need and let them self select.” If you’d like to explore the Landmark study further, here is the website. http://www.landmarkstudy.com/
I wish you the best of health. If I can help take the mystery out of this, I’d be honored. although, ultimately it is a mystery.
Be well, Betsy
Thank you for another good artilce about Essential Vitamins and Their Sources | . Where else could people get this kind of information in such a perfect manner of writing? I have a meeting next week, and I am trying to find such information.
God help me, I put aside a whole aftenoron to figure this out.