A lot of people try to live healthy lifestyles and for them, this means much more than just constructing a good diet and getting plenty of exercise. Various nutritional products, vitamins and supplements also play a big role in active people’s lives, especially athletes. The benefits are great and speak for themselves, but people often forget about the harmful effects they can cause. But how exactly supplements pose a threat to your health?
Raw food supplements. Photo taken from Rawpowders.
A recent study showed, that more than 20000 people in America ended up in emergency departments because of the consumption of health supplements. That is a surprisingly big number, considering the fact that supplements are supposed to improve your health.
Abuse of various weight loss products made up 25% of all ED visits and posed a great health threat, especially for women. Men on the other hand suffered from products, dedicated for bodybuilding and sexual enhancements. Energy boosting products, which are supposed to keep you concentrated made up one tenth of all the ED visits.
Adults aren’t the only ones suffering from incorrect use of supplements. Many children and babies often suffer severe allergic reactions to the supplements because of extreme dosages of supplements, caused by ingestion of vitamins without supervision of an adult.
Although incorrect use or abuse of supplements, which cause life threatening experiences is quite rare, the use of various unnecessary supplements, such as dietary products is on the rise. They are easily accessible by the public and don’t require prescriptions and irresponsible advertisers show them as an alternative to various drugs. Because of that, people choose supplements instead of necessary drugs and create an ever bigger risk to their physical and even mental health.
But what should you know and do before taking a supplement? The first and greatest tip is to try and avoid the new products on the market, because no testing is required to start selling them, so using a new, untested drug might be very dangerous. Some dietary supplements can be beneficial for your. By interacting with receptors in your organism, molecules cause a positive psychological change, but for the same reason it can create unwanted side effects, such as increased blood pressure, dizziness, nausea, irregular heartbeat or digestive problems.
Before taking any supplements, everyone should know as much about it as possible: make sure it is tested and has been proven to be effective and harmless. Approach a new product with caution and self care. Pay extra attention to safety labels on the packaging. If you’re having any doubts, consult with your pharmacist or doctor to make sure that particular supplements will not cause any harmful effects, especially in use with other drugs or supplements. If you show even the slightest symptoms after consumption of a supplements, stop taking it and consult with your doctor as fast as possible.
