People pride themselves on popping pills, especially when labeled as “nutritional supplements.” Don’t ask me why. But, just as I’ve reveled in swallowing nine shots of tequila in a dank, Mexican bar, American’s are proud to pop pills. I’m not sure which is worse. But, if I had to bet, I’d say “pill pride,” especially when it comes to nutritional supplements.

Thumbing the remote looking for UFC, I came across something appalling – more so than watching grown men bash each other’s skulls in. It almost made me gnaw into my black leather wrist band.

In a recent article for Early to Rise, popular science writer Loren Cordain, Ph.D (false Paleolithic Diet promoter) once again asserts that, “In the 1950s, when scientists were first unraveling the link between heart disease and diet, they found that saturated fat raised blood cholesterol levels and increased the risk for coronary heart disease. Dietary sources of saturated fat, such as fatty domestic meat, were deemed unhealthful, and rightly so.”

I may be a perfect candidate for psychiatry.

When I quit my job as a medicinal chemist, I was fat and had a lot of ideas for monetizing it. The most lucrative involved swindling other fat people into buying a “fad diet” via the promise that they would, “Never have to diet or exercise again.” I’d starve, get some contrived “before and after pics,” and post online…But, I would have probably ended up killing myself out of the shame that comes with being a crook. Plus, it’s already been done. It’s called the “hCG Diet.”

Did you hear the one about the blockbuster drug which failed to increase lifespan, as proven by Big Pharma’s own research studies? Probably not.

Vitamin D hype has everyone swallowing the “sunshine vitamin” like Oprah swallows fat loss scams. Scared of cancer? Eat vitamin D. Can’t get into your skinny jeans? Eat vitamin D. Got diabetes? Eat vitamin D. Tired of your wife yelling at you for watching too much Celebrity Apprentice? Eat vitamin D.Nobody is immune from “D” hype. Famed nutrition gurus from around the world have been pushing vitamin D on the masses. Thankfully, I’m not a nutrition guy. The thought of spreading wishy-washy advice with a cute trendy smile makes me nauseous. I enjoy solitude, research and more solitude. So much that I don’t even carry my cell phone, just a bad attitude. And that’s why I’m a chemist, because I enjoy sleuthing for real answers behind the hype, especially when it comes to “pills.”

A snake bite can kill you fast. Once bitten, it’s only a matter of minutes before breathing becomes difficult. Known to be "hemotoxic," venom attacks hemoglobin, which is responsible for carrying oxygen. If not treated, suffocation sets in. It’s scary. But, there’s something else just as risky, and it’s more common than a snake bite: tainted nutritional supplements.

You don’t have to dig deep to know that modern day medicine is risky.  You can learn this watching True TV’s hit show Operation Repo – A Levitra ad recently taught me that a drug induced erection may be accompanied by blindness.  That’s serious.  My college roommate used party drugs that were more fun – with half the side effects – and he had to buy them illegally.  This prescription drug threat has pushed many toward nutritional supplements.  When writing my book, Over-The-Counter Natural Cures, I learned first and foremost that in their search for alternatives, too many people are falling for supplement fallacies that could be hazardous to their health. 

This entry has been posted as part of "Prevention Not Prescriptions" Tuesday hosted by The Kathleen Show.

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