Approximately three out of five Americans are taking dietary supplements, and similar ratio can be said for Europeans and Asians.
Variety of supplements exists – nootropics, muscle building pills, weight loss, vitamins and many others.
Most supplements do work as advertised, but did you know that there are still some potential hidden dangers for these products?
There are thousands of fake supplements on the market that are not just made of synthetic agents, but they even contain toxic substances that are harmful to your health.
Read on and learn what substances to avoid when choosing the right supplement for your health.
An Overview on Fake Supplements
Supplements are far more different from prescription drugs as they claim to have natural, herbal substances instead of synthetic chemicals found in prescription drugs.
Though supplements often have no therapeutic claims, most of these products do give impressive results. This is also the reason why the supplement industry is a “recession-proof” market.
But not all supplements are transparent and honest to their customers. There are products that have questionable substances in their formulas due to the prevalence of side effects and ineffectiveness (1).
I detailed some of the worse supplements that are proven to cause side effects here.
Enter Fake Supplements!
Unlike prescription drugs such as Phentermine, which is a doctor-prescribed obesity treatment aid, fake supplements often presents similar characteristics.
You can easily tell if a supplement is a fake product. One reason is its low price. So cheap, people are enticed into buying them without thinking about possible health consequences.
Also, these products commonly have high number of questionable positive reviews. They are mostly found in Amazon and eBay, so better watch out for these knock off products.
Toxic Substances to Look Out for
Below are some of the most harmful and toxic chemicals that are widely used as either supporting or coloring agents in supplements.
If you find any of these substances in your favorite supplement’s formula, then stop taking the product and find yourself a more safer supplement.
Remember that most of the ingredients above may also work positively to some people as they can stimulate the overall capacity of the supplement. But most of the time, these substances trigger adverse effects.
So better have these agents in mind than sorry!
Sibutramine
A popular anti-obesity chemical a few years back due to its powerful stimulating effects. It is used to increase metabolism and energy levels.
According to reports (2), sibutramine has been proven to give negative effects to digestive tracts, heart, and also help worsen insomnia, nausea and triggers seizures.
Experts suggest that this substance also increases your risk of heart attack, stroke, anxiety and many other undesirable side effects.
Despite these risks, sibutramine can still be found in vitamins and supplements around the globe. But some countries such as the UK, have already banned this chemical for good.
Artificial Colors
Have you ever noticed the following agents on your supplements?
- FD&C Blue No. 1
- FD&C Blue No. 2
- FD&C Green No. 3
- FD&C Red No. 3
- FD&C Red No. 40
- FD&C Yellow No. 5
- FD&C Yellow No. 6
These are the synthetic food colorings found in most supplements. And they are all approved by the FDA.
There are numerous reasons why these artificial colors are used. One is to provide color to colorless foods and agents. The other reason is to offset color loss due to light, air, and extreme temperature exposures.
Most of these artificial colors have no ill-effect on adults but they do give adverse reactions to children’s behavior, especially Red No. 40 (3).
Red No. 40 has been linked to hyperactivity effect on children and some organizations are urging the FDA to ban this artificial colors in vitamins.
After all, these artificial colors truly serves no function at all other than making your supplement more attractive.
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)
Love fish oil supplements? If this sounds like you, then beware of high polychlorinated biphenyls levels (or simply known as PCBs) on some fish oil supplement brands.
PCBs are chemicals that are synthetically developed by scientists and used as insulation, coolants and lubricants in capacitors, and other electrical hardware. It was first banned by the US in 1979 after they were linked to cancers.
People use fish oil supplements as they are rich in EPA, DHA and omega-3 fatty acids, which all have been shown to reduce the risk of heart attacks and stroke.
However, recent studies (4)suggest that some fish oil supplements in the market have excessive levels of PCBs, which of course are not good for your health as it increases your risk of developing certain types of cancers.
Plus, some of the fish oil brands also have other contaminants such as lead and mercury. So, do you still want to ingest fish oil supplements?
Hydrogenated Oils
Thinking that you avoided hydrogenated fats by passing on the margarine? Well, think again! Your supplements have these toxic substance too.
Hydrogenated oil is a good source of trans fat, which by now you probably know is quite harmful to health (5).
Consuming high trans fat foods increases low-density lipoprotein (bad cholesterol) while reducing your high-density lipoprotein (good cholesterol), which puts you at high risk of coronary heart disease.
So why then supplement manufacturers use hydrogenated oils to their diet pills? Well, the simple answer is to lower manufacturing costs and increase shelf life.
What’s worse is that, most of these companies hide hydrogenated oils in their ingredient list and is commonly presented as “soybean oil“.
Sodium Benzoate
This chemical is formed by combining two compounds – benzoic acid and sodium hydroxide. Curiously, this man-made agent is authorized as a food additive and can be found in numerous beverages and foods (6).
Sodium benzoate is highly toxic to human health and should be avoided especially those who are prone to asthma and allergies.
Some experts even suggest that this chemical can contribute to leukemia (blood cancer) when combined with vitamin C.
So if you are taking vitamin C, then simply look at your vitamin and see if it contained sodium benzoate.
Dinitrophenol
This substance is quite a popular one among weight loss experts due to its ability to significantly increase energy levels and burn fat.
It works by making your cells efficient at producing energy, but instead sourced it from food which is then being converted into a waste and then passed from the body.
However, recent study by National Health Institute (7) shows that dinitrophenol isn’t just weight loss effective, but it is also effective in giving acute toxicity to your health, while increasing your risk of death.
Other reported side effects include nausea, lethargy, cataract and many others.
Fluoride
If you want to prevent tooth decay, then simply take fluoride supplements. But actually, fluoride can be found in numerous foods and even in water.
While this substance is not harmful to us, the synthetic form of fluoride does.
Experts from National Health Institute (8) suggest that excessive use of fluoride can result to numerous adverse health effects.
One reason is that, synthetic form of this substance is likely carcinogenic. This means that it will increase your risk of certain cancers.
Another important reason why you should stay away from synthetic form of fluoride is its potential risk of bone damage.
Magnesium Silicate
Believe it or not, magnesium silicate is used as anti-caking agent in supplements.
Yes, the same substance that has similar composition as asbestos and commonly found in deodorants, is also a cheap filler in most dietary supplements today.
Magnesium silicate (9)is known to cause lung issues when inhaled and is also suspected to cause cancers.
Other Substances to Look Out for
There are other substances that are not completely dangerous but can also be harmful if taken in large doses.
Minerals such as chromium, iodine, iron, fluorine, manganese, selenium, zinc, and some vitamins, can be lethal if consumed in high amounts.
The FDA only recommend that you take only the clinical dosages required for these substances.
And aside from lead and mercury that was mentioned above, other heavy metals and chemicals are found present in most dietary supplements today. This include cadmium and arsenic, both of which presents similar risk as PCBs.
Lastly, almost all supplements in the market has additives to create the desired form, color, weight and taste.
Such additives that can also be harmful in large doses include magnesium stearate (stearic acid), which is a flowing agent, and silicon dioxide (for added weight).
Other additive agents that are considered toxic include carnuba wax, titanium dioxide and methylcellulose.
Conclusion
Make sure that you avoid the list of toxic substances above and rest assured that your supplement is safe and more effective.
Remember that these agents are quite abundant in various health products, and not just in supplements. Liquid form supplements are more likely to contain these aforementioned substances, so be warned.
Additives, fillers and anti-caking agents are used to give you a better-looking supplement. They may cause mild side effects especially if taken excessively. But generally they are quite safe to most adult users.
To have a safe supplementation, you are encouraged to consult your doctor first before you take any form of health supplements or vitamins.
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References:
Finding Potentially Unsafe Nutritional Supplements from User Reviews with Topic Modeling
by: Ryan Sullivan, Abeed Sarker, Karen O’Conor, Amanda Goodin, Mark Karlsrud, and Graciela Gonzalez
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6391886/
Sibutramine Effects on Central Mechanisms Regulating Energy Homeostasis
by: Joao R Araujo, and Fatima Martel
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3286846/
Synthetic Food Colors and Neurobehavioral Hazarads: The View from Environmental Health Research
by: Bernard Weiss
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3261946/
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs): Routes of Exposure and Effects on Human Health
David O Carpenter
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16700427/
The Negative Effects of Hydrogenated Trans Fats and What to Do About Them
by: Fred A Kummerow
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/19345947/
Effets of Sodium, A Widely Used Food Preservative, on Glucose Homeostasis and Metabolic Profiles in Humans
by: Belinda Lennerz. Scott B Vafai, Nigel F Delaney, Clary B Clish, Amy A Deik, Kerry A Pierce, David S Ludwin, and Vamsi K Mootha
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4289147/
2,4-Dinitrophenol (DNP): A Weight Loss Agent with Significant Acute Toxicity and Risk of Death
by Johann Grundlingh, Paul I Dargan, Marwa El-Zanfaly, and David M Wood
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21739343/
Toxicity of Fluoride: Critical Evaluation of Evidence for Human Developmental Neurotoxicity in Epidemiological Studies, Animal Experiments and in Vitro Analyses
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7261729/
Re-Evaluation of Calcium Silicate (E 552), Magnesium Silicate (E 553a(i)), Magnesium Trisilicate (E 553a(ii)) and Talc (E553b) as Food Additives
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7009349/
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