14) "AS YET UNPROVEN" SUPPLEMENTS
i) Other "Panaceas"
The Federal Government has been hoodwinked into investing over two and a half billion dollars over ten years into research into "alternative medicines and therapies", "herbal remedies" and "natural or holistic remedies". Not one of these studies has shown any health benefits from any of these treatments. So much for saying that not enough research has been done to know whether or not these remedies work.
Lots of "research" has been done in Europe that shows that olive oil is a panacea that will cure everything that ails you. However, objective research by unbiased researchers has shown that olive oil is better than saturated fat but not as good as flax seed oil and canola oil, it is not a panacea. Grape seed oil and rice bran oil are two other oils for which there is no double blind multi-center statistically significant research which supports their supposed health benefits and they are oils which are loaded with calories, just like any oil. Garlic oil is another area where there is apparently no meaningful research support. Objective research by reputable universities has consistently found no health benefits from garlic in any form. Again, use olive oil, grape seed oil, rice bran oil and garlic if you want, just understand there doesn't appear to be any statistically significant double blind multi-center research supporting the position that these items are some sort of magic pills.
The same holds true for ginseng, ginger, ginkgo and green tea. All of these "supplements" were native to China, where some people still actually believe blue eyed men are wizards (the author is blue eyed and it was down right embarrassing at some points when he visited China). "Natural", "herbal", "holistic", "naturopathic" remedies all claim that they have "been used for thousands of years in China" to treat what ever. SO WHAT? Cinnabar has been used as an "herbal remedy" for disease in China for thousands of years; it is pure concentrated mercury sulfide and is poisonous with long term usage. Like any heavy metal compound it builds up in the body over time and ultimately will kill you. Simply because something has been in use for thousands of years doesn't mean it is good for you. The same individuals who are avoiding fish for the infinitesimally tiny amounts of mercury those fish contain will claim that "ancient" remedies (such as mercury containing cinnabar) are worthwhile because they have been used for thousands of years.
Chinese men, even well educated, consume huge amounts of shark fin soup and tiger bone powder as an aphrodisiac, which is contributing to the world wide decline of these great beasts. Objective research has actually shown that another Chinese herb, Ginkgo, increases insulin resistance and hurts persons with type 2 diabetes. Recently a newspaper article said that research in Japan "has shown" green tea to be of benefit in preventing heart disease. Articles like this are of great interest to the public and they sell newspapers and magazines. It doesn't mean the research has any validity. The research in question was not rigorous, multi-center, unbiased, statistically significant prospective research. It was a large retrospective study. And it had a huge confounding factor. In Japan drinking tea is a ritual, a very relaxing slow ritual. Individuals who have the time to sit and leisurely consume ten or more cups of green tea per day are very likely, as a group, to have much lower stress levels (and possibly higher incomes) than individuals who can only drink rushed cups of coffee. And stress levels are known risk factors for a host of ailments, including diabetes and heart disease. So it is not surprising that consuming green tea can be correlated to a longer life span in Japan.
Other "remedies" such as "Hodia" and "Acai Berries" have also been recommended for weight loss, with literally millions of dollars being spent each year to promote their use (including promotions on such shows as Oprah). There are a huge number of pills that claim to give a person weight loss: Lipo6X, The 72 Hour Diet Pill (a diuretic, this can make you very sick!), Leptorexin, Liponesta, Xyphedra, Testoripped, 5-HTP, Formaline, Perfect 10, Thermopure, Anoretix, Lipovox, Ephedrasil, Adipex, Fastin, Hardcore, Sensa, Adios, Slimthru, Slendex, Cuur, Deep, Phentramin D, Hydroxycut, Stacker, Dietrine......... the list goes on and on. Billions of dollars are wasted each year in the United States on these types of diet pills. There is no statistically significant multi-center unbiased research we could find supporting that any of these products actually help weight loss. "Alli" is one over the counter drug that does promote some limited weight loss by blocking the digestion of fats. But it is of only limited effectiveness and has some nasty side effects.
Arthritis is also common in diabetics. MSM, glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate, and other supplements that supposedly help arthritis are nothing more than boiled down amino acids, salts and sugars commonly found in meat and in cartilage. Jello™ gelatin is just as effective (or more properly stated; "just as ineffective") as it has the same basic chemical make-up as MSM, glucosamine and chondroitin sulfate. "Testimonials" are what is called "anecdotal evidence" and are not meaningful research. Meaningful research has shown that the amount of weight loss incurred while taking supplements is directly related to the cost of the supplements. If an individual is paying fifty cents a day for weight loss supplements they are less likely to lose weight than if they are paying ten dollars a day for weight loss supplements, even if the supplements are chemically identical. The mind is a very important part of weight loss programs.
Hugh Downs has heavily endorsed on the internet a program which will apparently cure anything which ails you by harnessing the production of nitric oxide in the human body. The products are based on research by a Doctor Ignarro. Per Wikipedia, Ignarro worked with Herbalife (the large producer and marketer of herbal remedies) to develop "Niteworks", a dietary supplement supposedly designed to boost the body’s own production of nitric oxide, and later became a member of the company’s Scientific Advisory Board. Ignarro endorsed this product in exchange for a royalty agreement reported to have earned his consulting firm over $1 million in the first 12 months. Ignarro also promoted Niteworks' ingredients in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, where, as a member of the National Academy of Sciences, he can submit papers without review, and furthermore without disclosing his financial interest to the publication. After Ignarro's ties to Herbalife were revealed, the journal issued a correction to the article, citing Ignarro's undisclosed "conflict of interest." The main ingredient in his supplement is apparently L Arginine, an amino acid which has not been shown by any meaningful research the author could find to be of any benefit for anything. In any case, it is a common constituent of all protein, so why it would be needed as a supplement is somewhat of a mystery.
Herbalife is probably the largest distributer of herbal remedies. Herbalife's 2007 world wide full-year revenue increased 14% to $2.2 billion, from $1.89 billion in 2006. Weight-control products accounted for more than 60% of sales. Its principal products are Formula #1 (a meal-replacement protein drink mix), Formula #2 (an herbal tablet), Formula #3 (a multivitamin/mineral tablet), and Thermojetics, a weight-control system that includes herbal tablets. The numbered formula products were originally marketed as components of Herbalife's Slim and Trim Program. Today the program is called Herbalife Cellular Nutrition Health and Weight Management System, and some of the ingredients are different.
In March 1985, the California Attorney General had charged Herbalife with violating California's consumer protection laws. The suit charged that early editions of the Herbalife Official Career Handbook made illegal claims that various herbal ingredients were effective against more than seventy diseases and conditions. Although most of these claims were deleted in subsequent editions of the handbook, the company had not replaced the original pages sent to distributors with the revised pages or asked these distributors to destroy them. Similar testimonial claims had been made in the company's cable television broadcasts. The suit also charged that Herbalife had been operating an illegal pyramid scheme. The case was settled in 1986 when Hughes and the company agreed to pay $850,000 and to abide by a long list of court-ordered restrictions on claims and marketing practices.
Just before a Senate hearing on Herbalife, Cable News Network aired a four-part report which revealed that Herbalife's supposed "research laboratory" was a conference room that housed a large table and books on herbs, located at one of Herbalife's factories. An Herbalife representative told a CNN interviewer, "We employed hundreds . . . even thousands of Ph.D.s in the research program for our products." But when asked who they were, he replied, "Why, the research papers that are published and printed that we have access to on our computer." The adverse publicity caused Herbalife's income to drop sharply, but the company survived, expanded into many foreign countries, and is now a publicly held corporation. The claims have been toned down and several potentially toxic ingredients have been removed.
Herbalife is actually a rather unique marketing organization. The website "Rob Cockerham's Investigative Report" had a 2006 letter on it from an individual who had been recently interviewed for a position with Herbalife:
"Wanted to let you know that I really appreciated the great report you wrote about Herbalife. The company had recently spoken with me about a fairly senior position (not a distributorship) at their Los Angeles headquarters, and afterwards I felt silly for even talking to them.
I had a weird feeling when I discovered that >70% of the product is not re-sold, but consumed by the distributors themselves. It also doesn't take a genius to do the Herbalife math... $2 billion in annual sales divided by 1 million 'independent distributors' is only on average $2,000 per year of revenue per distributor... no way anyone can seriously consider this to be a legitimate business. The biggest surprise was when several company managers admitted their products were over-priced and far inferior to anything you could purchase at retail. I saw some of the products myself (didn't personally try them) and completely agreed... they're pretty bad. Their packaging is poor even for 1980's standards, and their leading item (Shapeworks) is a powdered shake that requires a blender to mix it -- who wants to deal with the mess and inconvenience when there's so many better shake alternatives on the market.
After my meeting I saw your article and everything completely made sense. I felt dirty. I immediately said I was no longer interested in the position, and they should look for someone else. I only wasted a few hours of my time, and even then I was annoyed. I really feel bad for the people who got sucked into becoming distributors and lost a lot of their hard earned money. Good work on this report -- I hope it is able to help anyone even considering having some form of relationship with this company."
If one has money to burn on treating diabetes, a better investment than purchasing herbs and other "miracle cures" would be to buy bison meat, venison, or good fish such as trout and salmon. These are excellent sources of omega 3 oils and omega 3 oils are definitely beneficial for anyone.
Another panacea with mixed reviews is the concept of eating only "natural" or "organic" foods. It sounds like a good idea on the surface but there is no meaningful research which supports it. And if you add the requirement that the food be "natural" or "organic" to the list of requirements for a successful diet, then the choice of foods gets really tiny.
Current Chapter: 14) "AS YET UNPROVEN" SUPPLEMENTS
a) Introduction
b) The Good and the Bad
c) Vitamins and Antioxidants
d) Calcium and Dairy Intake
e) Potassium
f) Phytonutrients, Catechins and Flavonoids
g) Cinnamon
h) Herbal Supplements
i) Other "Panaceas"
j) Alcohol and Coffee
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