Is Food Supplement Safe? (A Closer Look 3)

This article identifies the remaining “declared unsafe” ingredients found in food supplements per peer-reviewed research conducted in the United States.

• Germanium, used for pain, infections, glaucoma, liver problems, arthritis, osteoporosis, heart disease, HIV/AIDS, and cancer, but linked to kidney damage and death.

• Greater celandine, used for upset stomach, irritable bowel syndrome, liver disorders, detoxification, and cancer, but linked to liver damage.

• Kava, used for anxiety (and is possibly effective, according to Consumer Reports), but linked to liver damage.

• Lobelia, used for coughs, bronchitis, asthma, smoking cessation, but linked to toxicity, with overdose linked with fast heartbeat, very low blood pressure, coma, and possible death.

• Yohimbe, used as an aphrodisiac, for chest pain or diabetic complications, depression, and erectile dysfunction (and possibly effective, according to Consumer Reports), but linked to high blood pressure and rapid heart rate at usual doses and at high doses linked to severe low blood pressure, heart problems, and death.

Beware of excessive amounts.

One of my “inaanak” came by not for her Christmas aginaldo but for my expert opinion and advice on a vitamin supplement she has been taking. The vitamins are U.S.-made. I found the vitamins basically safe except for the excessive amount of vitamin A that is included as an ingredient. Vitamin A is one of the non-soluble vitamins. It is good for the eyes and the skin. It is also good for the lungs, more especially in children. However, our body needs just a few amount of vitamin A. It is stored in the body and is not excreted in the urine. Excessive amount of vitamin A in the body can lead to chronic vitamin A poisoning. Read labels and do some research.

In another story shared by a Tennessee man who took a supplement and suffered from diarrhea, joint pain, hair loss, lung problems, and had his fingernails and toe nails fall off; detailed study on his case and an inspection of the supplement he has taken, concluded that the manufacturer had more than 200 times the labeled amount of selenium and up to 17 times the recommended intake of chromium.

I once worked as a physician in a can-making factory. I remember the slogan posted on the machinery line. It says: “Safety first.” It goes true with food supplements.