Is taking health supplements not as effective as seeing a doctor? Research confirms: Relying on "2 ingredients" to lower cholesterol may lead to "more misfortune the more supplements are taken"
Do health supplements have limited effect on lowering cholesterol? The effectiveness of “1 drug” measured in research is outstanding among the others
Health foods on the market that claim to “lower cholesterol” may be far less effective than people expect? Dr. Qian Zhenghong, director of the Liver Disease Prevention and Treatment Center of Keelung Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, shared in a social post that according to a medical report in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC), blood lipid-lowering drugs are far more effective in lowering cholesterol than six common health foods. Specific Supplements can even cause an increase in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL).
The study was initiated by the Cleveland Medical Center in the United States, and a total of 199 subjects participated. The research team divided them into 8 groups and randomly asked the 8 groups of subjects to take 5 mg of coronal, placebo, 2400 mg of fish oil, 2400 mg of cinnamon, 5000 mcg of allicin, 4500 mg of turmeric, and 1600 mg of plant sterols every day. and red yeast rice 2400mg. The purpose is to compare the changes in blood fat and side effects of each group before and after one month of treatment.
After a 1-month randomized clinical trial, the results are as follows:
Changes in low-density lipoprotein cholesterol: Guanzhituo showed the largest decrease (37.9%), followed by red yeast rice (6.6%), plant sterols (4.4%), fish oil (3.4%), and placebo ( 2.6%), turmeric (1.3%). It is worth noting that allicin (+5.1%) and cinnamon (+0.4%) actually caused an increase in LDL cholesterol.
Changes in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol: both coronal and allicin increased by 3.4%, followed by placebo (3.1%), red yeast rice (2.5%), fish oil (2.4%), and turmeric (1.4%); however, plant sterols (-4.0%) and cinnamon (-2.3%) caused a decrease in HDL cholesterol.
Changes in triglycerides: The decrease in triglycerides was still the largest (19.3%), followed by allicin (5.4%), fish oil (5.0%), and placebo (1.4%); however, plant sterols (+1.3 %), cinnamon (+8.3%), turmeric (+0.3%), and red yeast rice (+4.1%) caused an increase in triglycerides instead of a decrease.
Dr. Qian Zhenghong said that according to the research results, there were no serious side effects in each group, and the impact on liver and kidney functions was also minimal. Red yeast rice and plant sterols had the most minor side effects (28%), while the other groups had between 12-20%, mostly gastrointestinal discomfort.
Is taking health supplements not as effective as seeing a doctor? Relying on 2 health supplements to lower cholesterol may cause “the more supplements you take, the worse it will be”
Dr. Qian Zhenghong further pointed out that in clinical treatment of hyperlipidemia, 10 mg of rosuvastatin is usually prescribed. However, this study used a low dose of 5 mg of rosuvastatin, and the result still “easily beat” the other six health foods. The dosage of the health food in the study is not low, and the product names are fully explained in the article, which can be regarded as meeting the definition of “straight-ball showdown”.
In addition, according to research data, specific health foods still have the effect of improving blood fat. Among them, the best performance in reducing “low-density cholesterol” is red yeast rice (reduced by 6.6%), followed by fish oil (reduced by 3.4%); The most unexpected thing is that garlic and cinnamon not only do not help reduce low-density lipoprotein, but also reduce high-density cholesterol. It can be said that “the more supplements you take, the worse it becomes.”
Dr. Qian Zhenghong said that this study revealed that taking health food may still have its limitations and may not be a long-term plan for improving cardiovascular health. However, this study still has shortcomings such as a short experimental time, a small number of samples, and low ethnic differences. Moreover, many people do not take health foods for a single purpose, so the results may be regarded as a reference before purchasing health products. , allowing the public to have a reference and reasonable expectations when choosing health products, so as not to spend money that is ineffective and harmful to the body.
Finally, Dr. Qian Zhenghong emphasized that when dealing with high blood lipids, it is still recommended to adjust the diet first. Less sugar, less oil, and less alcohol are all indispensable. If the results after improving your diet are not as good as expected, you should not reject taking medicine. Judging from the above-mentioned research results, treating hyperlipidemia through medicine is still one of the safest and most effective methods based on current medical evidence.
Further reading:
Can’t meet cholesterol level? 8 “blood-vessel-clearing foods” to help lower bad cholesterol
