Summary
A recent report from the Institute of Medicine recapitulates what many critics have been saying for a long time: dietary supplements are unregulated, untested, and have little or no quality control. Still, people continue to buy them. Although it is natural and even praiseworthy that the government wants to help keep people safe, we have to recognize that Americans are a free people, and can make decisions for themselves concerning their health.
Original source:
http://www.usatoday.com/news/opinion/editorials/2005-01-12-edit_x.htm
Details
The new dietary guidelines for an increasingly flabby nation, out Wednesday, take a tough line on couch potatoes.
Most Americans lead sedentary lives and choose their food poorly, consuming far more calories than they need even as they may be failing to get adequate nutrition, the guidelines say.
The document goes on for more than 70 pages but can be summarized in four words: Eat less.
Controlling overall calories, not just a diet fad, such as curbing carbohydrates, is the key --- plus a minimum of 30 minutes of moderate exercise like brisk walking or energetic gardening every day.
The bad news for the exercise-averse: Many will need at least 60 minutes daily to prevent weight gain, and people who've lost weight may need up to 90 minutes most days to keep it off.
For a nation in which two-thirds of the population is overweight or obese, the government's prescription is far less alluring than the siren song of diets that promise success without sacrifice.
But the sad truth is that losing weight is hard work.
For those who find the government's intake and exercise guidelines too daunting, the dietary supplements that promise weight loss or other health benefits are an appealing alternative.
The institute said what has long been obvious: Supplements should be required to meet the same standards of effectiveness and safety as conventional medical treatments.
But thanks to the industry's political clout, Congress has shielded it from regulation while hundreds of people have been killed and thousands made ill by its products.
Will Congress now heed its doctors' advice on
supplements?
About the author: Mike Adams is a natural health author and award-winning journalist with a passion for teaching people how to improve their health He is a prolific writer and has published thousands of articles, interviews, reports and consumer guides, and he is well known as the creator of popular downloadable preparedness programs on financial collapse, emergency food storage, wilderness survival and home defense skills. Adams is a trusted, independent journalist who receives no money or promotional fees whatsoever to write about other companies' products. In mid 2010, Adams produced TV.NaturalNews.com, a natural health video sharing website offering user-generated videos on nutrition, green living, fitness and more. He also launched an online retailer of environmentally-friendly products (BetterLifeGoods.com) and uses a portion of its profits to help fund non-profit endeavors. He's also the founder of a well known HTML email software company whose 'Email Marketing Director' software currently runs the NaturalNews subscription database. Adams also serves as the executive director of the Consumer Wellness Center, a non-profit consumer protection group, and regularly pursues cycling, nature photography, Capoeira and Pilates.
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Tuesday, January 18, 2005
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