What they are, usefulness, consumer protection and side effects
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The athlete's body is in conditions of precarious homeostatic equilibrium where a correct diet can affect performance and recovery times.The billionaire business of dietary supplements is based on these simple considerations.
Becoming an athlete has never been easier, the false myth of supplements
Considering the enormous stress to which an athlete's body is subjected (training, competitions, etc.), integration becomes in many cases a necessity aimed at covering the shortcomings of a diet that must respond to too many compromises.
We are talking about athletes, professionals who carry out particularly intense workouts and who are constantly followed by experts able to recommend the type of supplementation really necessary, according to the physical conditions and the discipline practiced.
Today apparently it takes very little to become athletes, doctors and sorcerers:
a few sessions in the gym or a bit of jogging have become sufficient excuses for taking food supplements;
since everyone is an expert and advises the other which supplements to take probably there are more doctors and nutritionists around than we thought;
since it is no longer necessary to carry out medical examinations to ascertain the real needs of the organism, probably those who recommend them have supernatural skills
Many people are attracted to dietary supplementation because they think it can guarantee them well-being and vitality, or in any case help improve their sports performance. But are they really sure of it or do they simply let themselves be carried away by a false enthusiasm?
The "fake" alibi of supplements
Natural substances
Choose a supplement at random, in all probability you will read on the package that it is a product based on natural substances normally present in the body.
So? In the common imagination a natural substance would be preferred because it has no side effects. And what is more natural than water? Well, try drinking 15 liters a day and let me know if it is really free of side effects!
The too crippled, you don't need a degree to understand it. Unfortunately, however, the mirage of the "magic" supplement attracts many people, especially those who have little desire to sweat and who are constantly looking for the ideal shortcut to effortlessly reach their goals. Nobody thinks that an excess can be as harmful as a defect.
False scientific studies
Supplement companies are constantly looking for the best way to enhance their products and what could be better than scientific research that highlights their beneficial properties?
Carrying out a study is not that difficult, just hire a group of researchers and report the results on advertising flyers. What is much more difficult is to obtain an official validation of the study. Unconfirmed data is worth less than the paper on which it is written as there is no evidence of its veracity.
The properties of substances
Here is the reasoning that would justify the use of a particular supplement: since substance x slows down the processes of cellular degeneration, taking it regularly can combat the effects of aging. Isn't it logical? And now follow this reasoning: since water is essential to irrigate the fields, increasing the amount of water per cubic meter will result in better quality products. Logical no? Try watering your flowers 5 times a day and let me know if they will grow more luxuriant!
A drop in the ocean
Those who believe they are benefiting from supplements should ask themselves at least three questions:
do i really need it?
are they dangerous for my health?
are they really effective?
On the last point we must not create too many illusions. Assuming that the product brings some benefit and that there is a real need, the improvements will still be modest. intertwined in order to guarantee the stability of the system. Some significant improvement can be obtained only if there is a weak link in the chain and if the integrator acts on that element. In any case it is a drop in the middle to the sea, a bit like redoing the nose of a very ugly person, it certainly won't become beautiful after the surgery.
Beware of scams
Numerous cases of proven contamination of dietary supplements have been discovered. In many cases these are potentially toxic processing residues or doping substances added in small doses to increase the effectiveness of the product.
As far back as 2001, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) analyzed the products of 215 different suppliers in 13 states. The results of the study showed that 14.8% of the samples were contaminated by doping substances not declared on the label.
States
No. of supplements tested
No. of "positives"
% of "positives"
Holland
Austria
GB
USA
Italy
Spain
Germany
Belgium
France
Norway
Swiss
Sweden
Hungary
Total
31
22
37
240
35
29
129
30
30
30
13
6
2
634
8
5
7
45
5
4
15
2
2
1
-
-
-
94
25.8%
22.7%
18.9%
18.8%
14.3%
13.8%
11.6%
6.7%
6.7%
3.3%
-
-
-
14.8%
11 different androgenic anabolic steroids were found, mainly precursors of testosterone and nandrolone:
23 samples contained nandrolone and testosterone precursors
64 samples contained testosterone precursors
7 samples contained nandrolone precursors
Positive product names have not been published
The opinion of those who support the usefulness of supplements
Some time ago on rai one in a Bruno Vespa broadcast a doctor was invited who openly took sides against food supplements. The comment of the owner of a supplement shop near home was: "That doctor is ignorant on the subject, the pharmaceutical companies will have given him a Ferrari, supplements are useful, better to prevent deficiencies than to cure them, but there are too many interests. middle". And then as an example he tried to explain to me that if everyone took alpha lipoic acid there would be far fewer cases of diabetes and the pharmaceutical companies would lose a lot of money.
But in your opinion, if the international pharmaceutical giants started producing and marketing supplements, how long would it take to wipe out the small supplement companies born in recent years? If they don't produce them, giving up a very profitable business, there will be a reason. Perhaps they prefer to save face rather than commercialize substances whose usefulness remains to be proven.
Supporters of supplements speak instead of a "conspiracy theory" according to which the "intensive use of supplements would not receive the approval of the international scientific community simply to favor the gigantic economic interests of the pharmaceutical industries.
Many people spend a lot of money and pay a lot of attention to the intake of food supplements and supplements whose composition, efficacy and safety are not always sufficiently controlled.
This happens at the expense of a "correct diet which is:
certainly effective in improving performance,
certainly harmless and indeed positive for general health,
certainly less expensive,
perhaps less complicated.
Branched chain amino acids in food Vs branched chain amino acids in supplements
We close the article trying to answer the question with which we opened it: "Are supplements useful?" The answer is positive, but only in particular circumstances; do not expect miracles, do not overdo the dosages and do not take them if we do not really need them (this must be established by a professional also on the basis of any contraindications).
