Supplements That Are Risky to Take

Consumer Reports is flush with success after ‘outing’ Toyota models with faults responsible for some lethal crashes.  In their September 2010 report they’ve turned their attention to dietary supplements, reminding readers that the FDA has very limited powers in regulating their sale.  For instance, supplement manufacturers have no obligation to show their products are safe and effective.  Consumer Reports lists 12 supplements that carry health risks to the heart, liver, and kidneys, according to the Natural Medicines Comprehensive Database (NMCD).  This database lists common medical uses for 54,000 supplements, but you have to purchase any real information on effectiveness and safety, and it’s not particularly cheap. 

The 12 “dirty dozen” supplements selected by Consumer Reports based on NMCD information are the following:  aconite, bitter orange, chaparral, colloidal silver, coltsfoot, comfrey, country mallow, germanium, greater celandine, kava, lobelia, and yohimbine.  These are, in fact, ingredients of many other named supplements, and you have to read the label carefully to see if one of the more dangerous ingredients is included.  For instance, asthma weed, corynanthe, heartleaf, blackwort, slippery root, coltsfoot, creosote bush, and zhi shi each contain one of the 12 suspect ingredients.  

If you’re looking for more information on dietary supplements (especially these 12 riskier ones), you should see the Consumer Reports article (subscription required!).  Or you can read a good summary online, from Medical News Today.