So-called ‘healthy’ supplements, like herbal viagra, could sicken or kill you

Herbal viagra could leave your whole body stiff — as in dead.

Yohimbe, which claims to treat erectile dysfunction, depression and obesity, was among 15 supplements that Consumer Reports identified Wednesday as having side effects that can seriously sicken or kill users

in gruesome ways, including organ failure, cancer and cardiac arrest.

In terms of yohimbe, an independent panel of doctors and dietary supplement researchers found that it can raise your blood pressure, cause rapid heart rate, as well as increase the risk of seizures, liver and kidney damage, heart problems, panic attacks and death.

More than 90,000 vitamins, probiotics, minerals, herbs, botanicals and a growing list of “natural” substances crowd drugstore shelves today, but there’s little evidence to prove they have any real health benefits.

The Annals of American Medicine even told shoppers to “Stop Wasting Money on Vitamin and Mineral Supplements” in a 2013 report that ruled there is no evidence to support the idea of supplements having positive effects — and in fact, some were harmful.

The new Consumer Reports study adds injury to the insult.

Another substance the researchers red-flagged was green tea extract powder, which is sold as a solution for weight loss.

Instead, the study found the extract powder is more likely to cause dizziness, exacerbate anemia and glaucoma, raise a user’s blood pressure and heart rate, or cause liver damage and death.

 

They also suggest avoiding caffeine powder, a supplement craved by those hoping to focus their attention, improve athletic performance or lose weight. The chemical has been linked with seizures, heart arrhythmia, cardiac arrest and possibly death, especially when paired with other stimulants.

The risk and severity of these side effects depends on factors like pre-existing medical conditions, how much of the ingredient is taken and for how long it was taken. These also interact adversely with prescription and over-the-counter drugs.

Since consumers typically do not clear supplement purchases with a pharmacist or doctor, they are not warned about the risk of complications — such as taking over-the-counter caffeine pills with coffee.

In fact, the report revealed supplements don’t need to be approved by the FDA before they’re sold, and the facilities that they are made in are not subject to the same close regulation as those of pharmaceutical companies.

The Council for Responsible Nutrition, the leading trade group for the supplement industry, responded to Consumer Reports that its products are well-regulated and that most are safe.

But even their president and CEO Steve Mister admitted that, “There is a small minority of products that do contain ingredients that shouldn’t be in there. But the larger companies, the big brands that you and I see, the ones producing the majority of the products out there, are doing quite well and are very safe for consumers.”