Quote:
Originally Posted by snafu
2nd, as mentioned, poor/no regulations and too many are from offshore. There is the potential to ingest something dangerous.
|
This is not so much with vitamins but with herbs and other supplements. Thanks to Congress, they are totally unregulated and are allowed to sell pretty much anything. I'm appalled that this continues to go on. They don't have to prove they are safe. They don't have to prove they are effective. They don't even have to prove that the tablets actually contain what they say they contain.
I love when a patient tells me (as happened just the other day) that she doesn't want to take the prescription med I'm recommending because she's concerned about side effects and will instead treat herself with herbal remedies. The prescription has been extensively tested and studied and is produced in a tightly controlled environment. The herbal remedy is a crap shoot.