One study of more than 1, heavy smokers published in had to be terminated nearly two years early. Compared to placebo, 20 more people were dying every year when taking these two supplements. Over the four years of the trial, that equates to 80 more deaths. But, according a review from that noted the conclusions of 27 clinical trials assessing the efficacy of a variety of antioxidants, the weight of evidence does not fall in its favour.
Just seven studies reported that supplementation led to some sort of health benefit from antioxidant supplements, including reduced risk of coronary heart disease and pancreatic cancer. That left another 10 studies that found many patients to be in a measurably worse state after being administered antioxidants than before, including an increased incidence of diseases such as lung and breast cancer.
Linus Pauling was largely unaware of the fact that his own ideas could be fatal. In , before the publication of many of the large-scale clinical trials, he died of prostate cancer.
But did it contribute to a heightened risk? Dosing up on vitamin C does not even help us fight the common cold Credit: Alamy. Ever since Harman proposed his great theory of free radicals and ageing, the neat separation of antioxidants and free radicals oxidants has been deteriorating.
It has aged. Antioxidant is only a name, not a fixed definition of nature. At the correct dose, vitamin C neutralises highly charged free radicals by accepting their free electron. But by accepting an electron, the vitamin C becomes a free radical itself, able to damage cell membranes, proteins and DNA. Although such simplifying of complex biochemistry is in itself problematic, the clinical trials above provide some possible outcomes.
Antioxidants have a dark side. We now know that free radicals are often used as molecular messengers that send signals from one region of the cell to another. In this role, they have been shown to modulate when a cell grows, when it divides in two, and when it dies.
Without them, cells would continue to grow and divide uncontrollably. We would also be more prone to infections from outside. When under stress from an unwanted bacterium or virus, free radicals are naturally produced in higher numbers, acting as silent klaxons to our immune system.
In response, those cells at the vanguard of our immune defense — macrophages and lymphocytes — start to divide and scout out the problem. If it is a bacterium, they will engulf it like Pac-Man eating a blue ghost. It is trapped, but it is not yet dead. Nutritional therapy, when properly used, can achieve results that drugs cannot, because nutrients are essential components of the cellular information network.
An excellent example is omega-3 fatty acids. Thirty years ago I pioneered the therapeutic uses of omega-3 fatty acids in my research, scholarly writing and teaching of medical faculty. Seeking to educate the wider public about the importance of omega-3's and other dietary fats I made them a cornerstone of my first two books Superimmunity for Kids and, Power Healing, Use the New Integrated Medicine to Cure Yourself.
Omega-3 fatty acids are found in fish, flax seed , walnuts, sea vegetables and leafy greens. The most potent omega-3's, EPA eicosapentaenoic acid and DHA docosahexaenoic acid are used by the cells of your body to make powerful chemicals that help to maintain normal cell function under conditions of stress.
Knowledge of the benefits of omega-3 fats provides an alternative strategy for controlling inflammation that is both natural and potent. The basic idea is to increase your body's levels of DHA, the omega-3 fatty acid your body uses to make these beneficial chemicals. Remarkable results in reducing inflammation can be accomplished by dietary changes and nutritional supplementation.
Increase consumption of foods that contain omega-3 fats mentioned above and decrease consumption of foods that interfere with the anti-inflammatory effects of omega-3 fats, such meat, and oils, spreads and dressings made from corn, sunflower, soybean, safflower or cottonseed oil, substituting olive oil and flax oil instead.
This simple approach had allowed people in research studies with severe rheumatoid arthritis to decrease their use of anti-inflammatory drugs. A vast amount of scientific research has been published in prestigious medical journals on the therapeutic use of nutrition. Now it is time to put all of that essential knowledge to work. Making nutrition a cornerstone of everyone's healthcare has been my longstanding goal and is the first step in real healthcare reform.
Moving from a system based on treating symptoms to a system for achieving optimal health will enable healthcare to achieve its true potential. How does your doctor feel about nutritional supplements, either as alternatives to drugs or as a way to decrease drug side effects?
Leo Galland, M. In , a lower court ruled that ephedra could be used in small doses. Some weight loss products can cause severe damage to your kidneys, liver, and other vital organs.
Hydroxycut products were banned and recalled in because of reports of serious adverse reactions, including hepatitis and jaundice. One person who took these fat-burning supplements died; another required a liver transplant. Fenfluramine, one of the two active ingredients in the off-label diet drug Fen-Phen, was recalled in the late s after the drug was linked to cases of heart damage and lung disease.
Sibutramine, a prescription drug sold as Meridia, was withdrawn from the market in after a clinical study indicated that the drug could increase the risk of heart attack or stroke. According to the National Institutes of Health, s ibutramine was originally prescribed as a long-term appetite suppressant and weight management solution. The manufacturer voluntarily stopped production after Meridia was associated with evidence of cardiovascular damage.
The FDA maintains a list of tainted weight-loss products so consumers can be aware of ones they should stay away from. Because the manufacturers did not list these ingredients on their product labels, consumers would have no way of knowing that they were ingesting products like these:.
The best way to ensure your safety is to consult a healthcare professional before you take any weight loss supplement. Someone with an eating disorder may not be concerned about the dangers of dietary supplements. In an obsessive drive to lose weight, an individual with anorexia or bulimia is likely to abuse diet supplements in the following ways:.
They can have serious effects on health. The Food and Drug Administration says many diet pills are not even legal, even ones you can find on store shelves. Many diet pill products can be tainted, contaminated or contact stimulates, which can cause major health problems or death.
Experts at the FDA tested some of the diet products and found 70 percent of them to be tainted with controlled substances, seizure medications, prescription drugs and drugs not approved in the U. Other warnings from the FDA include:. In terms of losing weight, there is no magic pill.
At CHLA, we encourage parents to help their children e. They will provide guidance on healthy foods and programs. Before starting any weight loss program for your child, check with their doctor first. If you find your teen is using any kind of diet pills or powders, it is important to get your child off the pills or power as soon as possible. For teenagers as well as adults, the safest and most natural way to be healthy and have a healthy body weight is to maintain a healthy diet and exercise regularly.
Your pediatrician can help with this. Your role as a parent is helping your child stay on track and encourage a healthy lifestyle.
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