Tag Archive for: supplements

Changes in Supplement Use

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I take dietary supplements, and so do most of the people I know. We’re not alone. Using data from the NHANES data in 1999 and 2012, researchers compared how many people used supplements and what type of supplements they used (1).

Close to 38,000 subjects were included in the study. The percentage of people using supplements remained fairly stable over the time span at 52%; what changed was the types of supplements people took. Multivitamin-multimineral (MVMM) dropped 6% from 37% to 31%. There were some increases: vitamin D supplementation (other than from MVMM) increased from 5.1 . . .

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The Bottom Line on Green Tea Extract

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The Consumer Reports article on “15 Supplement Ingredients You Should Always Avoid” included green tea extract powder on the list. Paula and I have used it for a number of years, so I wanted to check out the research behind the potential health issues they claimed could happen to people who regularly use green tea extract powder as part of a supplement plan.

The problem is that the authors didn’t list any references. They had a document that listed their board of experts, the stores they shopped, and a list of criteria they used to select the ingredients; they . . .

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Supplements You Should Avoid

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The second Consumer Reports article about supplements was “15 Supplement Ingredients to Always Avoid.” The best place to begin is with the list so here it is:

Aconite
Caffeine powder
Chaparral
Coltsfoot
Comfrey
Germander
Greater celandine
Green tea extract powder
Kava
Lobelia
Methylsynephrine
Pennyroyal oil
Red yeast rice
Usnic acid
Yohimbe

Along with the list, there was a column that gave claims and benefits of each along with a column of hazards ranging from mild irritation to death. To me, most of the items on the list were herbs I’ve never used and . . .

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Are Supplements Making You Sick?

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Consumer Reports has been a go to source if you wanted to find out about purchasing a good automobile, toaster, oven, or other household product. Years ago they added health to their repertoire, including dietary supplements. In July they published a series of articles on the dangers of supplements. I’m going to talk about two of the articles this week.

The first article was provocatively titled “Supplements Can Make You Sick.” It began with a sad story about a premature baby, went on to talk about the dangers of using “unregulated” supplements that can contain illegal substances and even . . .

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Drinking Your Phytonutrients: The Bottom Line

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To finish this series, I’ll briefly cover two recent research studies on coffee and tea, and then give you the bottom line and a recipe.
 
Research
Green Tea and Neuronal Mitochondria
The mitochondria are the powerhouses of the cells, and that includes brain cells. When they operate at peak activity, they provide our brains with the energy for learning and memory. The downside is that they produce many free radicals in the process, and if we don’t have antioxidants to quench those free radicals, it can cause a decline in mental function. Researchers have recently . . .

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The Dark-Chocolate Study: The Problems

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After Thursday’s memo, you’ve got to be wondering what could be worse with the dark-chocolate study than its misleading conclusions. I’m going to examine the process the author explained in his faux study to show how that applies to many research studies from legitimate health research.

Not enough of the right expertise
There was no input from a nutrition expert that I could find. The author used a physician to do the study and collect the data. Even though the purpose of the study was to prove that eventually something will be statistically significant . . .

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Question Time: The Scoop on Poop

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Spending the past two weekends on the road, I got asked a lot of questions, and in some cases, I’m asked the same questions several times. This week, I’m selecting the top three questions and answering them for everyone. Let's begin with this question: how many bowel movements per day are normal?

The question came from people who were concerned they’re eliminating too many times or not enough. I know some television doctors and websites talk endlessly about bowel movements; not to be indelicate, they talk on and on about frequency, color, floating or not, and . . .

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The Big Chill: Immune-Boosting Supplements

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Getting ready for cold and flu season, let’s turn to dietary supplements that may help keep your immune system strong. Dozens of supplements are promoted to strengthen the immune system, but let’s stick to what I know works based on the research and my experience: echinacea, garlic, and vitamin C.

Make sure you read this first before you go to the amounts of each supplement to take below because in this case, close enough is. Don’t obsess about the difference between 200 mg or 250 mg, and if I say 300 mg three times a day, don . . .

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Extracts vs. Foods: Tomatoes, Lycopene, and CVD

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In today’s look at foods versus extracts, researchers examined a series of studies on the effects of whole-tomato products versus the phytonutrient lycopene on markers of cardiovascular disease (CVD).
Tomatoes vs. Lycopene
Researchers reviewed well over 100 published studies that used either tomatoes (both raw and cooked) or the phytonutrient lycopene (1). Their objective was to see whether the whole food or the extract was more effective in reducing markers for CVD such as blood pressure, inflammation, and serum lipids. Based on a medical model of treatment and results, they felt the research was underwhelming on the effects . . .

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Dietary Supplements: More Scary Headlines

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In Thursday’s message, I talked about a recent study on the stimulant DMBA found in pre-workout dietary supplements. While I think there’s reason for concern with this untested product, I also think the headlines are deceiving: “Untested Stimulant Found in Dietary Supplements” and “Potentially Dangerous Stimulant Common in Diet Supplements.” The headlines suggest that DMBA or AMP citrate can be found in a lot of different dietary supplements. That’s a blatant misrepresentation of the truth, and it begins with the use of the phrase dietary supplement.

If you’re about to run to see if your . . .

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