Holiday Supplements Can Haunt Your 2025
Dec 26, 2024
Holiday Supplements Can Haunt Your 2025
The holiday season brings plenty of subtle little changes that most people are probably blissfully unaware of. The first change comes from changing body weights. Research published in JAMA found that people will gain about 0.65% of their body weight over the holiday period. So, someone who is 185lb will sneakily gain 1.2lb just over the Christmas period alone without even realizing it. Sadly, this excess often sticks around, as do many other habits. One of these relates to supplements, and a paper in BMC Public Health found people are more likely to take higher and more frequent doses of dietary supplements, like vitamin C and D, over the cold and flu seasons, typically autumn and winter. An increase in supplement use to address wellness concerns, or perhaps support weight loss from the holiday indulgences, might do a body good but if you’re taking poor-quality supplements, you might be doing more harm than good. If you are an athlete, military service member, or first responder hidden drug contaminants in your holiday supplements can put your career at risk.
Variable Quality and Hidden Drug Contaminants in Dietary Supplements
Most people believe that if a supplement is sold, it must be safe and of decent quality, but this is simply not true. People who know this best are athletes who probably take a few more supplements than the average person. Sadly, a paper in Frontiers in Sports and Active Living analysed anti-doping rule violation (ADRV) data from Norway over an 18-year period and discovered that 26% of athletes blamed supplements for failed drug tests and 14% of them were able to prove it. Think about that for a second, 15-25% of anti-doping resources are being spent not rooting out dopers, but accusing innocent athletes who inadvertently used a banned substance. The global Olympic anti-doping system is suggested to spend around $300 Million annually, so that’s $45-75 Million potentially being spent accusing innocent athletes. This is unacceptable as the mission of anti-doping is protect sport and the health of athletes. When it comes to general consumers and supplement quality control there are also significant issues to consider, this time when it comes to label claims. Over the last several years, NOW Foods has taken it upon themselves to test a variety of products and brands for label claims and has exposed the concern that many fall far short of meeting label claims, and the FDA has been paying attention. It seems there is a massive discrepancy between what people think they’re getting and what they’re really getting in dietary supplements. Subpar supplements are not likely to give you the support you are looking for, but they can also pose a serious risk especially to drug tested professionals like athletes, first responders, or military service members.
Time of Excess
The holidays are usually a time of well-deserved excess after a long year. To this effect, there’s a surge in supplement use as we try to counteract the winter colds, but we’re also taking more supplements than ever in general and they make excellent stocking stuffers. Data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey shows that over 70% of U.S. adults take more than one dietary supplement daily, with around 40% of users maintaining this habit for over five years. That’s a lot of supplements. Now imagine getting or giving a gift where you think you know what’s in the package, but you don’t really know. One study showed that as many as 40% of sports supplements don’t contain the ingredients listed on the label. That’s a lot of question marks to consider with your holiday supplement gift giving, or getting.
Third Party Certification Helps Protects Athletes and Consumers
Whether you’re giving supplements as a gift or taking them yourself, third-party certification will help guide you to some of the best quality product options on the market. We’re taking more supplements than ever and without independent verification of product quality you could be taking a supplement that doesn’t contain what is claims on the label, or worse yet is hiding undeclared ingredients or drug contaminants that could jeopardize your health or career. For athletes and health-conscious individuals, choosing products verified by third-party certification adds an extra layer of security that is essential to peace of mind. It tells the consumer that an independent party has evaluated the quality control process to ensure what’s on the label is genuinely what’s in the product, nothing more and nothing less.
How BSCG Certification Protects Your Health and Integrity
If you’re looking for a gold-standard gift, then choose a supplement with the gold standard of approval. BSCG sets the highest standards in third-party certification with rigorous testing protocols covering drug testing and quality assurance. BSCG’s Certified Drug Free program meticulously screens supplements for an industry leading 500+ banned substances in sport and other prescription, OTC or illicit drugs including those prohibited by WADA and other sports organizations. This level of scrutiny isn’t limited to drug-tested athletes or military personnel. Anyone who takes supplements deserves the best and will benefit from knowing they’re free from contaminants that can harm health or impact eligibility in competitive events. BSCG also offers the BSCG Certified Quality program, an annual certification that conducts testing to verify label claims, check for environmental contaminants like heavy metals, pesticides, and microbiological agents and screens for more than 500 drugs. All programs include an initial Good Manufacturing Practice GMP compliance review. Don’t let your holiday stockings be filled with questionable dietary supplements. Choose third-party certified supplements and start 2025 with supplements that will treat you right from brands that are focused on quality and have your best interests in mind.
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