Vitamins, supplements and various forms of medication are a part of our everyday lives. The supplement industry is worth billions of dollars if not more-and is representative of how dependant many people are on their supplements.
With all of this money being spent on supplements and vitamins one would think that the general health of the population would improve in response, but this is just not the case. The problem is that many companies out there take advantage of their customers through various means, one of the most common ones being fillers used in supplements.
Why Are Fillers Used in Supplements?
Companies use fillers in their products for one simple reason: its saves them money. In most cases manufacturers will use excess cellulose and other fillers that are necessarily harmful to us, but that doesn’t mean that they aren’t being deceptive.
Even worse some companies use fillers than can be potentially harmful to us, short changing us while doing us harm at the same time.
For these reasons it is important to know what goes in to your supplement. While you can’t be 100% sure of how safe any supplement is, there are a few things you need to look out for which can easily identify a product as one that you want to avoid.
What Additives Should I Avoid in My Supplements?
1-Artificial Colors
Artificial colors have been linked to various different health problems. Most commonly are ones related to hormonal problems and hyperactivity. Some are even linked to various forms of cancer, even more reason to avoid artificial colors.
These artificial colors are added to supplements and vitamins simply to make them look more appealing to a potential customer. These artificial colors are not only unnecessary, but can potentially cause serious health problems as well.
This has to do with how these artificial colors are made, and from which material that they are derived from. Many of these colors are made from petroleum, which is a form of crude oil. This material contains things like heavy metals and other contaminants which are extremely harmful to our health.
2-Hydrogenated Oils
Many types of vitamins contain hydrogenated oils, the same kinds of oils we look to avoid when it comes to our diet. These oils go through a process where they are highly processed, and the end result is that they are bad for our health.
These oils are the same ones used in bakery products which are extremely bad for our health. These oils are dangerous to our cardiovascular health in particular, in that they increase triglycerides in the blood, increase LDL or “bad” cholesterol levels in the blood and cause nervous system problems as well.
You are taking vitamins and supplements to improve your health, so do yourself a favor and avoid products that contain hydrogenated oils as fillers.
3-Lead and Mercury
Heavy metal contamination is another potential problem you can face when trying to find a good vitamin or supplement. Determining this can be difficult as well, as no manufacturer is willingly adding these toxins to their products.
Some of the products we use are definitely contaminated with heavy metals, which really comes down to where your supplement is sourced from. Keep in mind that many of these ingredients found in supplements are sourced not just from your home country, but from around the globe.
Sadly not every country has the same standards when it comes to their foods, some with little to no regulations at all. This means that your vitamins or whatever supplement can be taken from a plant or herb which was grown in contaminated soil.
If this is the case, the plant will uptake these harmful metals along with the nutrients it needs to survive, like the ones found in your multivitamin.
The way you can combat this is to try and find out where your supplement is sourced from, which can be extremely difficult itself. Make sure to look for companies who back their products with guarantees to give yourself an extra layer of protection.
You should also do some research as to what sources are the best for your vitamin or supplement. For example if you are someone who is looking to get more omega 3 fatty acids in their diet, opt for krill or algae as opposed to fish.
Certain fish oils are derived from larger fish species such as tuna, which is a predator high on the food chain. Metals and other toxins tend to accumulate more so in these larger predatory species than they do in krill or in algae, so opt for those choices instead.
