Supplements: What to Take and What to Trash

Approximately 80% of Americans take over the counter supplements. I recommend calcium, vitamin D3, omega 3 fatty acids and a multivitamin to many of my patients and as a mother, caregiver and health care advocate, I am obligated to check on the quality of products. I subscribe to Consumer labs, www.consumerlabs.com, and for a reasonable fee, they provide lists of products that they have tested for quality. Consistently, 30% of supplements are “not approved” for one of three reasons:

1) Less of the ingredient than claimed
2) Too much of the ingredient (above recommended limit)
3) Contaminated due to poor manufacturing practices or lack of quality controls during production

Third party testing has found lead in calcium, mercury in fish oil, chalk fillers and “bed pan” vitamins. The later name came from the nurses who knew which brands did not stand a chance of being digested.

We are often told that our supplements should not contain fillers, binders or artificial colors. A pharmacist friend told me fillers and binders come under the names rice flour, xanthum gum, corn starch, lactose and other sugars. Coatings and artificial colors may include acrylic resin, (yuck like the nails?), titanium dioxide, and iron oxides.

A do it at home test for bed pan vitamins: get a glass of warm water and add a little vinegar. Drop in your vitamin and if it does not dissolve in 15-30 minutes take it to the trash.

The other source that I use is Nutrisearch Comparative Guide to Nutritional Supplements written for health care providers, www.nutrisearch.ca. Warning, this is not an easy read for most. Of course, the limitation to all third-party testing is the number of supplements on the market because they cannot all be tested.

If you have a great resource please share the information with me. This week I am inviting you to clean out your pantry and send me the brand and names of your supplements! I will do your research and let you know what to take and what to trash.

be well,
Caroline Abruzese Read the rest of this entry »