The Big, Bogus Business of Marketing
Vitamins and Supplements
Herewith I risk making two groups of people mad: those who absolutely swear that their vitamins and vitamin supplements make them feel better / shorten or prevent colds / put a spring in their step / prolong their life / make them generally healthier; and those who produce and/or market vitamins and vitamin supplements, whether in good faith or knowingly not.
| Making people mad is regrettable collateral damage. My goal is to reach people who are open to facts so they can quit wasting money on not improving and possibly worsening their health. The vitamin and supplement industry is one of our nation’s oldest and most successful scams. It is immensely profitable, not because the products are needful or deliver the promised benefit, but because the public has been duped into believing they are and do. | An instance of great information shared via comedy |
Unless your doctor has diagnosed a vitamin deficiency and prescribed a specific supplement, the dollars you spend on vitamins enrich your urine but not your health. Worse, supplements can harm your health. (Note that I said “unless your doctor prescribes.” That is, a bona fide medical doctor. As in, a medical school graduate who has completed all internship and residency requirements. Which is to say that chiropractors, naturopaths, acupuncturists, and well-meaning friends and relatives don’t count.)
No need for me to go on when you can just as well click the PLAY arrow on the video (above, right). Don’t be put off by the fact that it’s from Comedy Central. The information is solid.
No need for me to go on when you can just as well click the PLAY arrow on the video (above, right). Don’t be put off by the fact that it’s from Comedy Central. The information is solid.
| Want to dig deeper? Click on these links to the highly readable, medically reliable Science-Based Medicine blog: | “Should I Take a Multivitamin? Harriett Hall, MD: “You can find all sorts of studies and speculations suggesting that various supplements are good for you, but when you stick to rigorous science, the evidence just isn’t there ...” Read Dr. Hall’s post by clicking here. Another Negative Study of Vitamins Steven Novella, MD: “It’s difficult for people to come to a bottom-line conclusion – should they take vitamin supplements or not ... Well – it’s complicated. But there is large body of research to help inform our decisions about vitamins. Now, the largest study to date has been published ...” Read Dr. Novella’s post by clicking here. “Safe” Dietary Supplements Can Land You in the Emergency Room David Gorsky, MD, PhD: “When the analysis was done, on the basis of 3,667 cases identified in the database, Geller et al. calculated an average of 23,005 emergency room visits for adverse events related to supplements and further estimated a 2,154 yearly hospitalizations ...” Read Dr. Gorsky’s post by clicking here. | “Prenatal Multivitamins and Iron: Not Evidence-Based Harriet Hall, MD: When I was pregnant, I obediently took the iron pills and prenatal vitamins prescribed by my obstetrician. And I prescribed them for every pregnant patient I took care of as a family physician. I never questioned the practice. It seemed intuitively obvious … I have long since learned that even the most reasonable assumptions can be wrong … Read Dr. Hall’s post by clicking here. The One Thing You Need to Know Before You Detox Scott Gravura, BScPhm, MBA, RPh: “Detox” is a legitimate medical term that has been co-opted to sell useless products and services. It is a fake treatment for a fake condition. Real detoxification isn’t ordered from a menu at a juice bar, or assembled from supplies in your pantry. Real detoxification is provided ...” Read Dr. Graruva’s post by clicking here. |
RSS Feed
