| In the United States, according to Wikipedia, a | | | | fresh foods and getting supplements naturally |
| dietary supplement is defined under the Dietary | | | | when needed such as through salt. There are |
| Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 | | | | people who believe you can still get everything |
| (DSHEA) as a product that is intended to | | | | you need from food and that supplements are an |
| supplement the diet and contains any of the | | | | unnecessary expense. The latter belief is |
| following dietary ingredients: a vitamin, a mineral, | | | | becoming more and more scarce as more |
| an herb or other botanical (excluding tobacco), an | | | | doctors at such facilities like the Southern Will |
| amino acid, a dietary substance for use by people | | | | County hospital are recognizing that some people |
| to supplement the diet by increasing the total | | | | need to supplement their diet because they are |
| dietary intake or a concentrate, metabolite, | | | | not getting the necessary vitamins and minerals in |
| constituent, extract, or combination of any of the | | | | the foods they eat. |
| above. It must also conform to the following | | | | This article is not a proponent for or against |
| criteria: it is intended for ingestion in pill, capsule, | | | | supplements as that is still controversial at this |
| tablet, powder or liquid form not represented for | | | | point. If you can't figure out if you are in need of |
| use as a conventional food or as the sole item of | | | | supplements you may either see a specialist at a |
| a meal or diet labeled as a "dietary supplement." | | | | place like the Dwight hospital and get some tests |
| That covers a lot of territory with regards to | | | | or go see your personal doctor for a consultation. |
| supplements. | | | | People need different supplements and different |
| The regulations surrounding dietary supplements | | | | amounts of each of those supplements |
| regulate them as foods not as drugs. They do | | | | recommended. |
| not have to prove their safety of effectiveness | | | | So how do you determine what is safe and |
| prior to sales. The FDA can only take action after | | | | needed and what isn't? First, some supplements |
| a dietary supplement has been proven harmful. | | | | are recommended by conventional or allopathic |
| That means that you won't find them at the | | | | doctors, those with a M.D. or D.O. or their allied |
| pharmacy at the Watseka Illinois hospital but you | | | | health professionals and should be considered safe. |
| will likely find them at every Walgreens in front of | | | | Those supplements recommended by a |
| the pharmacy. There is a great deal of interest in | | | | naturopathic doctor and other professionals in the |
| the need for and the safety of taking | | | | complementary and alternative medicine fields are |
| supplements. | | | | also probably safe as these professionals have |
| It is not secret that when growing foods, the soil | | | | been trained extensively. Where it gets tricky is |
| often gets depleted of minerals if they are never | | | | when people try to self diagnose on what they |
| replenished. At one time, everything a human | | | | need. |
| needed for a healthy body was available by eating | | | | |