- Majority of the supplements
that are sold in the grocery store
are complete marketing fads.
They come in shiny bottles
with health claims that are questionable,
and they entice buyers into believing
that if you take those supplements
you're gonna feel like a better human being.
- People, unfortunately, are wasting an awful lot of money
on supplements that they don't need.
And the ones that you could argue you do need,
frankly, they're cheap.
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- The supplement industry
is a multi-billion-dollar industry.
There's no studies to recommend
that these supplements are actually helpful.
All we know is occasionally we get these instagram models
and influencers holding up these bottles,
saying, "You should take this because I take it."
So there's no research behind it.
There's no standardization,
and so, you don't really know exactly what you're getting.
But to name a few, collagen, bone broth,
protein powders, let's see, probiotics.
We have had, you know, the probiotic industry
is a billion dollar industry,
and there's now evidence that probiotics
could actually be harmful.
So my suggestion is,
when it comes to supplements, be careful.
It's not just expensive, it could be dangerous.
- If you stay up late at night,
and if you're looking at all these infomercials
of how, you know, this blue jellyfish supplement's
going to expand your brain,
and you're gonna be a genius tomorrow
if you start eating it, there is no data to that.
There's really no support. - There's no data.
- I think that the supplement industry
is a thriving industry because it's another pill
for an ill-approached, short-term band-aid approach,
and an approach that appeals to a lot of people
because they love a quick-fix solution.
- It's amazing to me that we never learned
from the snake oil salesman.
I mean, collagen powder's ridiculous.
The idea that you're gonna eat collagen powder,
it's gonna get broken up by digestion,
come together as collagen in your face?
It's completely nonsense.
There's so many, and you know,
some of them we have placebo control trials with.
And a lot of patients take biotin for their hair and nails.
In placebo control trials,
thing is no different than placebo.
I don't know, people are more interested in marketing
than they are in, or anecdotal, you know, there's all these.
Your best friend's now selling supplements,
and your best friend swears that their hair
got voluminous with their supplements.
It's so ridiculous.
- The supplement industry is unregulated,
and unfortunately I think buyers
are convinced over and over and over and over again
to purchase shiny objects that don't actually do anything.
- And they're not addressing
the root cause of problems in the first place.
So, people thinking that they're just gonna
take this magic pill, it's not gonna work.
You have to address the cause
of whatever health struggle a person is experiencing.
- We know from certain vitamins,
just because you take it as a single nutrient,
so it's out of context of food,
can sometimes promote disease.
There might be a risk taking vitamins
if you don't need them.
- Some people spend hundreds of pounds
on all sorts of pills, and it's mostly expensive pee.
Having said that, I think some people
do benefit from a nutritional analysis,
and having a look at their diet
to make sure that they're getting
all they need from the foods that they're eating.
- So, in terms of supplements, or vitamins,
or minerals that have not been shown
to be efficacious to the population at large,
what I would say is the fact that their studies
have not really reported a strong benefit
of multivitamins across the board,
and all the various supplements for altering disease states.
So, it's not something I recommend
unless someone is not eating a diverse food array.
- There's a lot of bad advice when it comes to supplements.
First, there are people who wanna sell you
the whole drugstore worth of things,
so you've gotta take this, and that,
and all kinds of supplements which you really don't need.
You need vitamin B-12.
If you're not getting sun,
you might need vitamin D, but that's about it.
- The supplement industry is massive,
and there are so many supplements
that are being promoted that people
generally don't need to take on a regular basis.
Some important considerations, however,
would be to make sure that you're getting
an adequate source of iodine in your diet,
either through C vegetables or through a supplement.
And then there are some supplements
that can be helpful for patients with certain conditions.
Like you know, cumin or turmeric based supplements
can be helpful in pain relief
for people fighting certain diseases.
But generally, if you look
at the breadth of the supplements,
and I've actually had patients come see me,
and I ask them to bring their supplements,
and they bring a roller bag,
a carry-on bag full of supplements,
or two garbage bags full of supplements,
and they're spending thousands of dollars
a month on supplements.
And they all ask me, they say,
"Dr. Stoll, what supplements should I take?"
And I say, you know what, let's just zip that up,
and I'm gonna tell you what to eat first,
and then we'll determine if you need
any supplements secondary.
So, I generally recommend people start with food,
start with the healthiest living food that you can consume,
make sure you're covering yourself
for any significant deficiencies.
And then you know, there are a few supplements
that can be individual-specific,
or disease-specific that can be added on.
But you know, the real source of health,
and vitality, and restoration comes from food first.
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