Reliable Sources: Know Your Supplements

Reliable Sources: Know Your Supplements 

Being in the field of nutrition, working through my internship experience, and even just personal experiences in general, I received questions regarding various supplements, programs, or diets that people are interested trying because they read a blog about it or someone they know lost a certain amount of weight while following that regimen.

            This has opened my eyes to the scary world of dieting that is today. There is so much mixed information and literature out on the internet and social media that promotes these products or diets without any evidenced-based science to support them.

            Terms like “Clinically Proven” are used to support the product or diet and to many people that sounds convincing enough that this product is going to be beneficial to them and help them achieve the weight loss they are hoping for. Just because terms like “clinically proven” are used, does not mean that that product is regulated by the Federal Drug Administration, or FDA. Nutritional supplements are minimally regulated by the FDA, causing question as to what are you actually putting into your body. Regulation helps keep consistency in production and keeps unsafe, harmful products out of the development of health supplements.

            I recently had an encounter where an individual asked me about a product and whether or not it would be worth investing in. Simple enough, I asked what the product was called and googled it. Immediately, search results for this product emerged, including blog posts about it and positive reviews about the possibilities after taking this product. This is what we typically see when searching for supplements, making it really convincing that it will be beneficial to us. For me my next step in investigating this product was to look into evidenced-based research revolving around the product. Being in the health science field, I am knowledgeable that this is something important to consider when taking a health supplement, however, many people stop investigating after reading a convincing blog post. Research studies that investigated into this product could not provide supported evidence that this product actually worked, and even found suggestive evidence that the product may actually cause symptoms that you were trying to avoid by taking the product to begin with. That’s scary. This product was also not approved by the FDA, meaning it is not regulated. That’s scary.

            This was just one product I looked into for one person. There are so many other products out there, that so many people are looking to take or are already taking that could actually be dangerous to their bodies. Searching deeper into that product and finding no supportive research on it took me only a few minutes, but it was because I knew what to look for and where to look for it, otherwise, I would’ve likely have been just as convinced as anyone else.

Key things to look for when looking at supplements:

·      Are they FDA approved?

·      Is there evidenced-based information supporting this product?

You should always be aware of what you are putting into your body, and do your best to find scientific support information on supplements you are interested in taking. If you have questions, talk to your local registered dietitian. They can help answer questions regarding nutrition-related supplements so that you can be knowledgeable of products you are taking or may desire to take.

-EB

References:

The American Cancer Society. (2019). FDA regulation of drugs versus dietary supplements. https://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatments-and-side-effects/complementary-and-alternative-medicine/dietary-supplements/fda-regulations.html

U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (2019). Dietary Supplements. Retrieved from https://www.fda.gov/food/dietarysupplements/