Category: supplements

The Food Industry Wants the Public Confused About Nutrition

The Fairness Doctrine example shows the extent to which purveyors of unhealthy products will go to keep the truth from the American public. About five years ago, Denmark introduced “the world’s first tax on saturated fat. After only 15 months, however, the fat tax was abolished,” due to “massive” pressure from farming and food company…


Saw Palmetto—A Possible Herbal Treatment for Various Health Conditions

Common Names: saw palmetto, American dwarf palm tree, cabbage palm Latin Names: Serenoa repens, Serenoa serrulata, Sabal serrulata Background Saw palmetto is a shrublike palm native to the southeastern United States. Historically, it was used for a variety of conditions, including disorders of the male and female reproductive organs and coughs due to various diseases. Currently, saw palmetto is promoted as…


How to Use Melatonin Safely

Melatonin overuse has become a very common phenomenon in the United States. In a recent interview with the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), Judith Owens, MD, MPH, director of the Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders at Boston Children’s Hospital, said an increasing number of children are taking melatonin. Some pediatricians recommend melatonin to…


4 Steps to Choosing the Right Calcium Supplements For You

Calcium can help build strong bones and help the heart, muscles, and nerves to function properly. This mineral is one of the important elements in the human body. In the human body, 99 percent of calcium  exists in bones and teeth in the form of bone salt (called bone calcium), and 1 percent exists in…


Any Fiber Is Good Fiber, Just Get More of It

Which kind of fiber supplement is right for you? It doesn’t really matter, researchers say. That huge array of dietary fiber supplements in the drugstore or grocery aisle can be overwhelming to a consumer. They make all sorts of health claims too, not being subject to FDA review and approval. So how do you know which supplement…


What Everyone with Type 2 Diabetes Should Know about Magnesium

If you have type 2 diabetes and you don’t know whether you are magnesium deficient or if you are getting enough magnesium in your diet, then keep reading. It’s been confirmed in a recent World Journal of Diabetes report that most people who have type 2 diabetes have low magnesium, and since this mineral has a key role in blood sugar (glucose) control,…


Does Vitamin D Aggravate Dementia? New Research Faces 2 Controversies

Vitamin D is a health supplement that many people take regularly, but a recent study found that one type of vitamin D may exacerbate Alzheimer’s disease. In light of this finding, how should we supplement vitamin D correctly? Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has complex mechanisms, of which much is still unknown. For instance, vitamin D deficiency…


How Potassium Helps to Treat High Blood Pressure

STORY AT-A-GLANCE Nearly half—47 percent—of all Americans have high blood pressure, costing about $131 billion each year in direct medical costs Many who have hypertension don’t have it under control, which affects your microvascular system, triggering damage to your eyes, kidneys, heart, and sexual performance By ensuring that you have enough potassium in your daily…


Taking Vitamin B May Be Ineffective for 2 Kinds of People: Here’s How to Fix It

Vitamin B complex is commonly used as a supplement to boost energy. However, some people feel sleepy after taking these vitamins, and that could be a warning sign. Watch Out for 2 Warning Signs People often work long hours under a lot of mental stress, which causes the body to consume a large amount of…


Pump up the Iron

Why is iron so crucial to our bodies? “We need adequate iron to produce hemoglobin and myoglobin, an essential part of red blood cells that carries oxygen throughout the body,” says Julie Stefanski, RDN, registered dietitian nutritionist and Spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition & Dietetics. Stefanski says low levels of the mineral can leave…