LiveLongAgeWell

Anti-Aging Supplements

The American Medical Association AMA) has issued a report about hormones promoted on anti-aging websites. These include such products as Human Growth Hormone (HGH), DHEA, and testosterone, and they are sometimes available through online websites, or at many stay-young clinics around the world. HGH is one of the most popular, and the AMA states “evidence suggests long-term use can present more risks than benefits”. I agree. The research regarding this product, in particular, is turning more and more negative. I would be very suspicious of anything you take by mouth and especially injections, even of  “natural” products, that promise to keep you young.

Zinc Nasal Products and Loss Of Sense of Smell

Speaking of natural, one of the most popular over-the-counter products sold to prevent and treat the common cold is Zicam spray, and the active ingredient is the metal zinc. Here’s a glowing report from 2003 citing research showing that if you start Zicam within 48 hours of the onset of a cold, your symptoms can be cut by 50%. Now it turns out that the makers of Zicam have received over 800 reports of partial or complete loss of the sense of smell, often permanent. The company has settled 340 lawsuits regarding the product, and many more will be filed. Fortunately, the company has withdrawn many of their products from the market. “Natural” doesn’t mean effective, nor safe. Some of them are, but most probably are not, and like Zicam, can be found to be harmful years later when serious side effect reports roll in. Most are not regulated by the FDA. Buyer beware, even for “natural” over-the-counter products.

Vitamin D and Dieting

Here’s another possible benefit of what is currently the “hottest” vitamin, that is, vitamin D. (You can search on this blog to see the various recent reports.) The latest research, just presented at the Endocrine Society Annual Meeting in Washington, showed that people who had a higher vitamin D blood level before dieting lost a significantly greater amount of weight during their diets than people with lower vitamin D levels, and the higher the level, the greater the weight loss. This doesn’t prove that if you take vitamin D, you will lose weight. More research will be done to see if taking vitamin D supplements allows you to lose weight more successfully.  While there is no proof at this point, vitamin D in reasonable doses is considered safe, so if I was trying to lose weight, I would make sure I was getting enough of this vitamin, either through sunshine, diet (especially fatty fish, such as salmon), or supplements.