Do Nutritional Supplements Actually Work?

26 Nov

Written By Leke Asong

Introduction to dietary supplements

I remember revealing to a GP colleague a few years ago that I was practising functional/lifestyle medicine.

It was a no-brainer for me. I had cured myself of longstanding gut symptoms using its principles.

Moreover, there was a huge category of patients the conventional medical approach wasn’t helping.

Surely, he too had seen this category as well… Unexplained aches and pains, brain fogged patients, tired all the time, and so on.

“There is nothing wrong with them”, he replied. “I just send them to the pain clinic”.

When I tried to explain how the model worked and mentioned supplements, I heard the usual reply “supplements don’t work!”

Ah well….

This got me thinking: Where did the notion that supplements don’t work come from?

First of all, let’s answer the question:

What are dietary supplements?

Dietary supplements are vitamins, minerals, or herbs taken in order to enhance health.

This is the main reason some of our foods like cereal (don't ask), flour, salt, and so on are fortified.

The rationale for taking supplements is that due to over-farming the nutritional content of the soil and hence plants are diminished.

Irrespective of the veracity of this claim, what many like my own GP friend don’t realise is that vitamins and minerals are used in traditional practice.

Let’s start with vitamins:

Vitamins

Vitamin B9, also known as Folic acid.

Folic acid is given to pregnant women to help the proper development of the brain and spinal cord.

Without folic acid, the risk of spinal cord deformities like spina bifida increases.

Folic acid is also given to patients who take the immunosuppressant methotrexate (Methotrexate reduces folic acid levels in the body)

Vitamin B12

Another example is vitamin B12 (Cobalamin), routinely prescribed for those with low B12.

A low vitamin B12 can cause lethargy and nerve pain, among other symptoms.

A high-quality B12 supplement I recommend is Liquid B12 Methylcobalamin by Metabolics.

Another high-quality B12 supplement is Garden of Life Kind Organics Methylcobalamin B12 Spray.

Vitamin B1

Alcoholics are prescribed vitamin B1 (Thiamine) due to malnutrition.

A high-quality B1 vitamin is Ecological Formulas - Allithiamine.

Vitamin D

A relatively popular example is Vitamin D.

A vitamin D test is sometimes requested for patients who are tired all the time.

When levels are low, vitamin D tablets are prescribed.

Vitamin K

In cases of excessive thinning of the blood due to too much warfarin, vitamin K is prescribed to reverse its effects.

Minerals

Now let’s look at minerals:

Iron

The most typical example is probably iron, which is prescribed in cases of iron deficiency anaemia.

Magnesium

In the emergency department, the relaxing mineral magnesium is used to stop abnormal heart rhythms intravenously, while magnesium sulphate is used for asthma attacks.

Lithium

And if you are diagnosed with bipolar disorder (manic depression), the mineral lithium is the drug of choice.

Still believe supplements don’t work?

As you can see, vitamins and minerals do have wide uses in traditional practice from mild deficiencies to extreme circumstances like emergencies.

This revelation, therefore, shifts the argument to maybe supplements only work in certain cases.

While this might sound plausible, it is worth pointing out that only a few years ago knowledge about vitamin D and magnesium deficiencies in the conventional setting was unheard of.

However, this has been common knowledge in the complementary medicine world for years.

In essence, my argument here is this is a matter of education.

My conclusion is not speculation either, as it has been shown that there is a clear lag between the medical sciences and the practice of medicine.

I predict in the years to come, knowledge about various vitamin and mineral deficiencies will become common knowledge.

Find out more about nutrition and supplements

Book a gut health consultation with Dr. Leke, one of the UK’s leading gut health experts. Or if you have questions before booking, you can schedule a free 30-minute call first.

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Herbs

Ok, so vitamins and minerals work, but what about herbs? Aren’t they just plants?

Hold that thought…

What many don’t realise is that many modern pharmaceutical drugs are synthesised isolates from naturally occurring substances.

In other words, a particular substance or more, thought to be the active ingredient in a particular herb, is isolated and produced chemically in a lab.

Here are a few examples:

Willow tree bark

The bark of the willow tree is a source of salicylates, used in the synthesis (production) of the drug Aspirin.

Cinchona tree bark

The cinchona tree bark is the source of Quinine, the anti-malarial drug.

Curcumin from turmeric

Curcumin from turmeric, which has been used for thousands of years is now getting lots of attention and is probably the most studied herb, with over 5000 papers alone published.

Echinacea

A commonly known herb which has powerful chemicals possibly beneficial for preventing colds.

Peppermint

Commonly used for irritable bowel syndrome (IBS)

Oregano oil

Oregano oil for its antiparasitic properties.

Mushrooms

Many antibiotics including Penicillin, statins, and some anti-cancer drugs are derived from fungi (mushrooms).

I once attended a College of Medicine conference that focused on herbs and natural healing.

Here, the world-renowned herbalist Professor Kerry Bones mentioned the herb Boswellia as a brilliant natural anti-inflammatory.

He joked about using paracetamol as a placebo, alongside it for pain control in his clinical trials on arthritis.

So, nutritional supplements work, but not all the time. Why?

Wrong self-diagnosis

Firstly, this is to be expected to a degree, as most people buy supplements based on erroneous self-diagnosis.

In other words, the supplement they are taking might not be indicated for the ailment in question.

Not all supplements are created equal

Secondly, we have the extremely important issue of quality.

Not all supplements are created equal-In fact, there is huge variation in the quality of supplements.

This is a huge problem in the supplement industry, which is not generally as regulated as the pharmaceutical industry.

Poor quality supplements are one of the reasons people discard them, with the fallacious conclusion that complementary/alternative medicine does not work.

That said, there are some supplement companies that manufacture supplements to the highest standards possible.

These companies pride themselves in quality and screen their products for heavy metals, pesticides, and other contaminants.

A high-quality supplement costs a bit more, but you get what you pay for.

If you are unsure about a supplement, write to a company and ask for a certificate of analysis.

If you don’t get a reply, run like Usain Bolt.

The good news is complementary/alternative medicine is gaining popularity all over the world, with Harvard Medical School offering courses in integrative medicine.

Alex Laird runs a medical herbalist clinic at the Whipp’s Cross Hospital dermatology department.

Patients are given two choices to manage their condition: The traditional approach or complementary approach. Many now chose herbs to manage their conditions, and with great success, I must add.

I have started seeing letters from some pain clinic consultants recommending turmeric (curcumin), magnesium, and even cannabidiol (CBD) oil for chronic pain sufferers.

Conclusion

So, as you can see, supplements definitely work to complement health.

They are used in both traditional and complementary medicine circles.

However, due to the varying quality of supplements, choose wisely to get the best out of them.

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