Friday, 26 March 2010

Dietary Supplements - are dangerous?

Surcharges apply to all products that can complement our healthy diet. This includes vitamins, minerals, amino acids, digestive enzymes, probiotics, herbs, glandular extracts and dietary fibers, etc.

The consumption of dietary supplements has increased every year. While many people believe that food supplements to improve their health or prevent some diseases, some consumer groups orDoctors warn that food supplements can be dangerous. So, the question arises: are dietary supplements really dangerous? Unfortunately, the issue is not a simple answer.

Food supplements are due to their broad definition, of thousands of different products. In 2004, Consumer Reports includes 12 potentially dangerous dietary supplements. Many of them are products of plants. Some of these herbs arehave been used by herbalists for hundreds of years and are considered safe. However, if the active ingredients in these extracts consumed in pure or concentrated and are for a longer period, which can be dangerous for some people.

Many dietary supplements such as vitamins and minerals are safe and can complement what is lacking in our diet. However, overdose benign supplement can be dangerous. For local news, a woman was reported to histwo girls, mega dose of vitamin A for a long time, thinking that the contract is good for the eyes. Both were suffering from acute liver failure and save another needed a liver transplant for their lives. Vitamin A is not dangerous, but mega-doses of vitamin A is hepatotoxic. In this case, ignorance is very dangerous!

The quality of food supplements is important. The presence of contaminants such as heavy metals, drugs and toxic substances can have Full benign dangerous. An example is the presence of toxin microcystin in blue-green algae food supplements. Microcystins are natural toxins of certain strains of blue-green algae, liver damage and outcome of liver cancer in May. According to research conducted by Health Canada, only one strain of blue-green algae, spirulina is free of microcystins that spirulina is harvested from controlled ponds. Most of the non-blue-green algae SpirulinaContaminated> are complemented by microcystins, including exploitation of natural lakes. The daily consumption of dietary supplements would put this beyond the authorized amount of absorption of microcystin by Health Canada and the WHO.

Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) is another important factor for the quality and safety of dietary supplements. Food producers in order to ensure compliance with the GMP standards are testedThe identity of raw materials, the construction of a control unit of the expiry date of the quality of the finished product has a good record in the series and written procedures, and hire staff, to include training and monitoring of GMP. This practice may have the ability to batch to batch variation in strength, composition, purity and quality of finished products.

In summary, although most dietary supplements are safe when consumed in the labelConsumers are encouraged to learn before taking these supplements. What are the functions of these supplements and how long should I be among them? If they are provided by reputable manufacturers in accordance with good manufacturing practice? Do not consume more than the recommended dosage, unless supervised by a health professional. If you are pregnant, breastfeeding or suffer from pre-existing health conditions, you should see a further precautionwith your doctor or dietitian.