Thyroid supplements can be risky
US researchers say over the counter thyroid support dietary supplements are not completely safe as they contain risky levels of thyroid hormones.
A wide range of supplements are available in the market that claim to support or improve thyroid function without posing potential harm to consumers.
According to their packages some of these products only contain herbal ingredients while others are filled with dried, ground-up thyroid gland from pigs or cows.
To test the safety of these over the counter products, Dr. Victor Bernet and colleagues at Mayo Clinic randomly studied 10 brands of thyroid supplements found in the US market or sold online to find if they contained any thyroid hormonal substances.
The chemical analysis of the products revealed that nine of them contained an animal thyroid hormone and only one product had no T3 or T4 hormones.
Findings also showed that the amount of thyroid hormones in the pill or capsules varied widely and often exceeded the doses found in prescription thyroid medication.
The study results have become a source of concern because thyroid hormone is only intended to be used in prescription medication as they can cause significant health issues, like an increase in heart rate, heart irregularities and palpitations, nervousness, and diarrhea, Dr. Bernet warned.
”These hormones have effects throughout the body, which is why they are controlled," he noted adding that the risky supplements do not give most people the results they seek, such as weight loss or less fatigue.
”The amount of thyroid hormone a normal person would have to take to lose weight would be dangerously high and there is no evidence that use of thyroid hormone effectively treats fatigue when used in people without actual hypothyroidism,” the lead author cautioned.
The study suggested more effective monitoring of the contents of over-the-counter thyroid support supplements and warning patients about the potential health risks of those products.
Source: presstv.ir
