What do you think about 'dietary supplements'?

We've all seen the ads. Like this one I made up: you buy this stuff made from ferns grown only on the south side of a mountain in Tibet. It cures mental fatigue, fallen arches, baldness and constipation. On TV, the people, who supposedly took this stuff are dancing, singing, climbing mountains, river rafting, and sky diving.
We probably all take vitamins,. Yet, on TV, there's all these "wonder" supplements, which supposedly cure everything. What do you think about 'dietary supplements'? Are they real or just TV hype?
 

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Not sure about what you're referring to, but I take a range of balanced vitamins and minerals daily. From those, I feel — well — more balanced. I also do not get sick pretty much ever. And when we got Covid, I didn't feel all that bad, and it didn't last that long.
 
Supplements are not subject to FDA regulation, there is no oversight as to potency or effectiveness. That said, I do buy a few mainstream supplements like vitamin C, B complex, and magnesium.
 

I think that they are some of both. Some plants have healing capabilities that have been known and used for centuries, and many of the medications that we use have been derived from those same plants.
Take aspirin as an example. The healing ingredient comes from the white willow tree, and people used the bark of the white willow for pain.
Once scientists had discovered what the substance in the willow was that helped stop pain, they were able to use that and make the little pill we call Bayer Aspirin.

Probably, most of the advertisements for some of these plant supplements are either made up, or not based on anything verifiable, and by the time the plant is processed and sold as a supplement, it may have lost any healing properties that it actually did have.
 
Herbal medicine has been around for approximately 60,000 years and been documented for the last 5,000 years.

Ancient Chinese and Egyptian papyrus writings describe medicinal uses for plants as early as 3,000 BC.

Herbs are very potent and can also cause side effects and potentially harmful interactions with other supplements or medications that you may be taking.

• Echinacea. ...
• Goldenseal. ...
• Garlic. ...
• Neem. ...
• Pau D'Arco. ...
• Manuka Honey. ...
• Oregon Grape. ...
• Ginger.

Conventional and traditional medicines are basically new. They are considered modern medicine and only been around for a few centuries.

Many modern medicines are made from herbs. Pharmacist change its molecular structure so it can be stabilized and patented. The patent is what makes the largest amount which can be therapeutically tested for FDA approval.

I use a variety of medicinal sources successfully.
 
Yeah those kinds of ads I don't pay any attn to. I take simple things like iron and calcium along with my daily vitamin. I may hafta add B12 to my supplements because of my Metformin.
 
I take several. How much good they do is hard to say, but I credit one or two for keeping my A1C at the mid fives, where it has always been for years.
 
I take a few supplements daily like PABA which is good for my arthritis, Collagen which holds me together and Taurine which helps my mood and sleep patterns. :giggle: :giggle:
 
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These are all the supplements that I take/eat. Five pieces of fruit everyday. They are, banana, pear, apple, clementine and nectarine. In addition we eat a lot of fresh fruit salads for desserts, mainly berries like strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, raspberries and so on. I like plums too.
Apart from the health benefit, fresh fruit stifles any desire for sweet treats like chocolate and sugary things. It's been a lifetime habit and the best benefit has been weight control. Today I am just seven pounds heavier than I was at my wedding fifty-five years ago.
 

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