More than 15M Americans take these 6 supplements – even though they can cause liver damage

These issues may be difficult to process.

A new study from the University of Michigan estimates that 15.6 million American adults regularly consume herbs and foods that may be toxic to their liver.

The six supplements are turmeric, green tea, ashwagandha, black cohosh, garcinia cambogia and red yeast rice.

“We had no idea that so many people were taking these supplements,” Dr. Alisa Likhitsup, assistant professor of medicine and lead author of the study, published this week in JAMA Network Open.

These supplements seem to be most popular among older, educated white women who want to reduce arthritis, fatigue and menopausal symptoms.

About 9,700 adults were surveyed between 2017 and 2020 about their supplement use in a 30-day period.

Among the selected group, turmeric was the most popular (3.46%), followed by green tea (1.01%), ashwagandha and black cohosh (0.38%), garcinia cambogia (0.27%) and red rice products (0.19%).

70% of garcinia cambogia users say they take the supplement for weight loss, while 90% of those taking red yeast rice do so to try to improve heart health.

Millions of people around the world use supplements every day to improve overall health, strengthen the immune system and treat minor ailments. Additive sales in the US exceeded $150 billion last year.

More than 80,000 of these items – such as multivitamins, minerals and vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids and calcium products – are available in stores or online.

Researchers have noted that hepatotoxicity, or liver damage caused by drugs, is increasing, and supplements are responsible for 20% of these cases in recent data. They only accounted for 7% two decades ago.

The study authors said that the botanical products most commonly involved in these conditions include turmeric, kratom, green tea and garcinia cambogia., leading to “severe and potentially fatal liver damage.”

Dosage and frequency of use were not specified in the new study.

Research shows that the majority of supplements have ingredients that are clearly stated on the label. However, it is estimated that 5% to 12% are herbaceous, complex plants with many plant species.

Liver toxicity-induced chemical analyzes show frequent inconsistencies between product labels and observed ingredients.

“In a previous study, we found that there was a lot of misinformation about some of these products,” explained Dr. Robert Fontana, Michigan Medicine hepatologist, professor of medicine and senior author of the study.

He added: “We did a chemistry test and found a discrepancy of about 50% between the ingredients stated on the label and what they actually are, which is very alarming. ” “If you buy a supplement and it says it has a certain ingredient, it’s really a toss up whether that’s true or not.”

Researchers say frequent mislabeling, as well as a lack of government regulation and insufficient medical research on supplement use, make these products very worrisome.

They hope that doctors ask patients if they take supplements and think about their effects.

“We’re not trying to raise an alarm,” Fontana said. “We’re trying to raise awareness that the supplements people are taking and buying have not been tested or proven to be safe.”