6 Things To Know About Supplements
Supplements are everywhere! You can find some to give you energy, help you sleep better, get “super hair”, and even improve your sexual health! The global dietary supplement is a huge industry too with an estimated 152 BILLION of revenue in 2021.
Though supplements are relatively easy to acquire - you can purchase them at your local drug store, Target, or your favorite influencer’s website - they are not harmless and need to be taken with a few things in mind.
This blog serves as an introduction to dietary supplements. To understand the principles we apply to understanding supplements, we first need to understand how we got here!
Dietary supplements, in a sense, have been around for thousands of years. If you think about the botanicals and herbs that ancient apothecaries would mix together, those qualify as supplements (minus a few of the labeling requirements!) that we use today.
First of all, dietary supplements are not regulated in the way that prescription medications are….so what does that mean? To understand that, we first need to understand the role of the FDA.
The FDA is responsible for regulating products that affect the public’s health. This includes pharmaceutical products (which are the most heavily regulated), medical devices, cosmetics and food products.
And according to the FDA, prescription drugs are for treating, preventing, mitigating, diagnosing or curing a disease while dietary supplements are for nutrition purposes only. So, that gives you a hint on the differences. If we are looking at a medication to treat a disease, then we need proof that it actually treats that particular disease. But in the case of dietary supplements that are their for nutritional purposes only. The regulation are going to be similar to that of food.
For a medication to come to market - it has to go through three stages of clinical trials and submit loads of paperwork supporting the safety and efficacy of the drug. They need to know how the drug performs in different groups of people and what side effects to expect.
Lastly, what IS a dietary supplement? A supplement is a vitamin, mineral, amino acid, herb or botanical that is intended to fill a need in the diet.
The FDA regulates dietary supplements like they do food. Manufacturers have to follow a set of guidelines that are enforceable upon inspection.
The FDA does not require companies to prove the safety and efficacy of a product before it goes to market like they do for prescription medications.
Vitamin and supplement companies have to adhere to certain labeling requirements. For example, supplements are required to have “these statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration”. They also have to include storage requirements, dosing requirements and “this product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease”. Basically, companies are not allowed to claim that they will cure your heart disease but they can say something like “for prostate health”.
Because they aren’t regulated, what’s on the label may not be what you are getting. This is why it’s important to buy from a trusted, reliable source. To verify quality, you can check third-party websites like ConsumerLab.com or NSF International.
Always always talk to your healthcare provider about potential drug interactions. Some supplements interact with blood thinners, antidepressants, etc.. and some may impact your hormones. For example, I know a post-menopausal women who did not know that her supplement was estrogenic until she had labs. This can be dangerous! And some supplements such as ginseng or ginkgo biloba can increase your risk of bleeding - you wouldn’t want to be taking those before a surgery.
Just because you can buy it without a prescription, does not mean it is without risk. Tylenol is responsible for 50,000 emergency room visits each year and 450 deaths. Stick to the package labeling and don’t go above the recommended dosage.
Supplements are a billion dollar industry! Don’t get caught up in the latest fad. Instead, do your research and talk to your provider about the right fit for your needs.
What supplements do you recommend? Let me know here!
Have a bad reaction? The FDA keeps tabs on this and you can report it here.