How healthy are dietary supplements?

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How healthy are dietary supplements?

 

Sales of dietary supplements are rocketing, but their drain on plant

and animal life makes them a bitter pill for Lucy Siegle

 

Lucy Siegle

Sunday February 17, 2008

Observer

 

http://lifeandhealth.guardian.co.uk/print/0,,332520454-118447,00.html

 

It is a wonder most of us don't make a rattling sound as we walk

around, such is the penetration of the dietary supplement industry.

From St John's Wort to exotic cure-alls, globally, 300m of us now pop

one pill or another every day.

The 'ethical' demographic is something of a sitting duck here.

Historically, vitamin pills have been a mainstay of health food shops,

and vegetarians and vegans are under particular pressure to supplement

their diets because of their 'restricted' menus.

 

Despite this important audience, the BUAV (British Union for the

Abolition of Vivisection) reports that 'cruel and unnecessary tests

are being driven by the country's growing infatuation with both super

foods and health supplements', with non-medicinal tests on animals

rising to 4,000 procedures last year.

 

But, increasingly, our yearning for 'natural' means plant-sourced

supplements. As well as concerns over harvesting, processing and food

miles, regulators grapple with all kinds of variables. According to

biologist Massimo Maffei, 'There's the presence of potentially toxic

pesticide residues, and purity concerns, such as the potential for

contamination with bacteria and fungal growth.'

 

Because of the threat of pesticide residues in supplements (visit

www.consumerlab.com - one of the few websites to analyse supplements),

many pill poppers take the organic route, and the Soil Association now

certifies a number of organic supplements (www.ethicalvitamins.co.uk).

 

But I worry about sustainability in general. Many supplements are

trend-driven, so if 300m westerners suddenly decide an Amazonian plant

is the ticket to shiny hair, it could spell ecological disaster.

Exploitation of a limited botanical resource can involve raiding an

indigenous community's plants and lead to a loss of erosion control.

According to Leland Cseke, author of Natural Products from Plants:

'The largest number of plant species occur in developing countries

that do not have the resources for conducting an extensive screening

of their national biodiversity.' Increasingly, 'ethical' companies

spot this and put the emphasis on farming.

 

Perhaps we should also brace ourselves for the nutraceuticals soon to

appear in a range of 'fortified foods', including isoflavones from soy

or anthocyanins from berries. According to Michael Pollan, author of

In Defence of Food, nutrients such as beta-carotene and folic acid

don't seem to offer the same health benefits in supplement form as

they do in carrots and whole grains. So, pop fewer pills and eat more

vegetables. (At www.thinkvegetables.co.uk you can find out what's in

season and its nutrient content.) Perhaps they should be marketed as

vege-nutraceuticals, or similar.

 

lucy.siegle

 

guardian.co.uk © Guardian News and Media Limited 2008

 

 

Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance.

Confucius