The Vitamin Myth: Perils of Supplementation
Enough Is Enough: Stop Wasting Money on Vitamin and Mineral Supplements, is the conclusion of Dr. Eliseo Guallar M.D., DrPH. But when it comes to supplements this statement is not just the isolated sentiment of Guallar, it is also the title of his well-reviewed 2013 editorial published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.
A few days ago, FRONTLINE released a documentary targeting the multibillion-dollar supplement industry. The documentary highlights the potential dangers consumers face, the industry’s lack of regulation, and fraudulence. It is safe to say that most people in America know the FDA does not oversee the regulation of supplements; in fact makers of supplements do not have to prove their products actually work or are safe for human consumption unless a particular ingredient is introduced to the public for the first time.
The documentary begins with the fiasco of a supplement known as B-50 by a small-scale company called Purity First. In short, some time after being marketed consumers started exhibiting and reporting side effects such as hirsutism in females and gynecomastia in males. After investigations, it was found that the gelatin capsule housing the B-50 contained two forms of anabolic steroids presumed to be the culprit of the observed effects. The product was pulled from the market six months after. Paul Offit M.D., author of the 2013 Do You Believe in Magic?, and pediatrician at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia had concerns of his own and carried his own independent testing. Rickets is a condition seen in children deficient in vitamin D; it causes weakening of the bones leading to bilateral leg arching. Given that premature babies cannot be exposed to sunlight and thus synthesize their own vitamin D, a supplement is often given. In America many dairy products are fortified with vitamin D to avoid cases of rickets. What Offit found is nonetheless worth mentioning. He emailed the companies requesting them to provide a certificate of analysis by an independent third party, he states that ninety percent never answered his request, but the ones that comply managed to send analyses, which prove to be dangerously faulty. In the documentary Offit and his team provided the example of aqueous vitamin D and found that while the supplement’s label stated the product contained 400 IU (international Units) per 1 ml of solution, their findings showed as much as 203% in every ml of solution. That is to say the supplement contained approximately 800 IU per 1 ml, double the amount.
To the layperson more might seem as better, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth. Take the example of Kyäni, this spur of the moment company sells a product by the name of Kyäni Sunset, which the label claims to have gamma (10%) and delta (90%) tocotrienols (vitamin E), the product contains 100 mg of vitamin E and fails to give a percent daily value. According to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) only alpha tocotrienol is recognized to meet human requirements, the other forms (beta, gamma, and delta) have been subjected to less research. The NIH recommends 15 mg of vitamin E daily to meet the nutritional requirement of nearly all healthy people. Thus you can see that by taking a single Kyani Sunset pill one can easily be overdosing by 660% more of the recommended amount. Vitamin E is essential to healthy cellular membranes and though the liver excretes most of its research concludes that excess vitamin E is clearly and definitively linked to prostate cancer in males.
In one of my previous blogs I discussed antioxidants and their role in health. It is true that people who consume fruits and vegetables tend to be healthier and live longer. The problem is when we double, triple, or quadruple the necessary amounts, that’s where we cross the line. Offit explains the satiety principle stating that our stomach is of a certain size for a reason. Take the example of Airborne, one chewable tablet contains 1000 mg of vitamin C, to obtain that same amount from a food source you will have to eat 7-8 cantaloupes or about 20 oranges, the human stomach is simply not meant to take that much. This is not to say that megadosing on vitamin C can lead to kidney stones. It is simple, do not assume that more is better.
Just to fire up this debate even more, studies have shown that many herbal supplements from large producers like Walmart, GNC, Walgreens, Target, and others came up with even worse results. DNA evidence showed that many contained rice fillers, houseplants, asparagus, and other compounds not labeled yet the only thing missing was the actual product. In light of the criticism and pressure to change Nature’s Way is among the pioneers of DNA bar coding.
Even if a product offers quality and the appropriate quantity the question of whether they work remains open. The industry is yet to carry large studies comparing their products to placebos to verify efficiency. There is no reputable studies to claim any benefit and the studies that do exist say the stuff doesn’t work, so we are back to square one. As a consumer be aware of words like: supports, promotes, enhances, boosts, etc. These words are medically meaningless. Another area of concern is the synergistic effects certain supplements might have with prescription drugs. If you are on a medication regimen, consult with your physician whether you should take a certain supplement, if you have any deficiency your doctor might only recommend a single vitamin supplement rather than a multivitamin.
Without burdening the reader with much detail in this blog the admonition is clear: be mindful when considering dietary supplements. Do not put your trust in companies where there’s a lack of oversight, instead opt to eat more fruits and vegetables, in the long run you will be glad you did. I hope this blog sparks your interested to research the topic of supplements more fully, always looking for information on sources that are trustworthy and reliable. Recently I reviewed the “literature” of Viva Vitamins after a friend told me about this company. There was nothing interesting about it, but what I did notice is that all of the articles I read were written by the same author some Gene Bruno from Huntington College, who is a “Nutritional Supplement Formulator” and franchisor of several West Coast based chain of vitamin stores. So you tell me, is that a reliable source of information? I personally don’t think so.
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Important note: by clicking on the title of this blog you can shuttle yourself to Dr. Guallar’s 2013 “Enough Is Enough.” Hope you enjoy it!
Best,
MC