New study finds dietary supplements cause 23,000 ER visits a year in the US
- 8 years ago
WALTHAM, MASSACHUSSETTS — A new study by the U.S. federal government discovered that weight loss and energy boosting supplements cause more than 20,000 emergency-room visits a year, the New York Times reported.
The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, first tracked emergency room visits at 63 hospitals in the U.S. over 10 years, then analyzed those ER visits in which a dietary supplement was implicated. It found that there were about 23,000 emergency-room visits per year linked to dietary supplements, and that more than a quarter of them occurred among people aged 20 to 34.
Roughly 10 percent, or about 2,150 cases yearly, were serious enough to require hospitalization.
Symptoms included, among others, severe allergic reactions, heart trouble, chest pain, nausea and vomiting, and were tied to dietary supplements including herbal pills, amino acids, and vitamins, which, according to medical experts, are often adulterated with toxic chemicals.
Unlike prescription drugs, dietary supplements marketed for weight loss and energy do not have to be approved by the FDA before they are sold to consumers, and do not have to carry any safety label nor a list of side effects.
Under a 1994 federal law, dietary supplements are considered safe until proved otherwise.
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The study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, first tracked emergency room visits at 63 hospitals in the U.S. over 10 years, then analyzed those ER visits in which a dietary supplement was implicated. It found that there were about 23,000 emergency-room visits per year linked to dietary supplements, and that more than a quarter of them occurred among people aged 20 to 34.
Roughly 10 percent, or about 2,150 cases yearly, were serious enough to require hospitalization.
Symptoms included, among others, severe allergic reactions, heart trouble, chest pain, nausea and vomiting, and were tied to dietary supplements including herbal pills, amino acids, and vitamins, which, according to medical experts, are often adulterated with toxic chemicals.
Unlike prescription drugs, dietary supplements marketed for weight loss and energy do not have to be approved by the FDA before they are sold to consumers, and do not have to carry any safety label nor a list of side effects.
Under a 1994 federal law, dietary supplements are considered safe until proved otherwise.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Welcome to TomoNews, where we animate the most entertaining news on the internets. Come here for an animated look at viral headlines, US news, celebrity gossip, salacious scandals, dumb criminals and much more! Subscribe now for daily news animations that will knock your socks off.
Visit our official website for all the latest, uncensored videos: http://us.tomonews.net
Check out our Android app: http://bit.ly/1rddhCj
Check out our iOS app: http://bit.ly/1gO3z1f
Get top stories delivered to your inbox everyday: http://bit.ly/tomo-newsletter
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