{"id":5753,"date":"2023-07-18T23:23:17","date_gmt":"2023-07-18T16:23:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=5753"},"modified":"2023-07-18T23:23:17","modified_gmt":"2023-07-18T16:23:17","slug":"pre-workout-supplement-labels-can-be-misleading","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/?p=5753","title":{"rendered":"Pre-Workout Supplement Labels Can Be Misleading"},"content":{"rendered":"<p> <script async src=\"https:\/\/pagead2.googlesyndication.com\/pagead\/js\/adsbygoogle.js?client=ca-pub-3711241968723425\"\r\n     crossorigin=\"anonymous\"><\/script><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p> <span class=\"drop-cap__first text-dropcap \">M<\/span>y husband is a general skeptic of vitamins and supplements, but a few times a week, he takes a pre-workout supplement powder that I like to call the \u201cpink stuff.\u201d Mixing half a small scoop with a glass of water creates a drink that tastes like pink lemonade and gets him fired up to hit the gym and, supposedly, get the most of his workout (whatever that means).<\/p>\n<p>Recently, it occurred to me to ask him, \u201cDo you actually know what\u2019s in the pink stuff?\u201d Because <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/new-supplements\/\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/new-supplements\/\">just like the supplement industry as a whole<\/a>, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says it \u201cdoes not have the authority to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fda.gov\/consumers\/consumer-updates\/fda-101-dietary-supplements\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.fda.gov\/consumers\/consumer-updates\/fda-101-dietary-supplements\">approve dietary supplements for safety and effectiveness<\/a>, or to approve their labeling, before the supplements are sold to the public.\u201d Meaning, that what supplement makers put in their bottles, and what the label says is in their bottles, is totally up to the supplement makers themselves. Unsurprisingly, this results in a lot of supplements\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamanetworkopen\/fullarticle\/2706496\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamanetworkopen\/fullarticle\/2706496\">not actually containing what those labels claim<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>A\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamanetworkopen\/fullarticle\/2807343\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/jamanetwork.com\/journals\/jamanetworkopen\/fullarticle\/2807343\">new study<\/a> has found that the most cutting-edge products in the sports performance category of supplements are no different\u2014with potentially dire consequences. Of the 57 performance supplements that were tested, the contents of only 11 percent were true to the labels, while the remaining 89 percent either didn\u2019t contain the listed ingredients, or contained them in doses varying from 0.02 percent to 334 percent of the labeled quantity. Meanwhile, 12 percent of the products contained ingredients that have been banned by the FDA.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cConsumers were as likely to get an FDA-prohibited drug off the stimulant instead of getting an accurate amount of the ingredient listed on the bottle,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/connects.catalyst.harvard.edu\/Profiles\/display\/Person\/21925#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/connects.catalyst.harvard.edu\/Profiles\/display\/Person\/21925#\">Pieter Cohen, MD<\/a>, a Cambridge Health Alliance professor and a study co-author, says.<\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content \" style=\"\" data-module-init=\"related-content\" data-module-immediate=\"\" v-cloak=\"\">\n<div class=\"related-content__wrapper \" v-cloak=\"\" :class=\"{'is-loaded':isLoaded}\">\n<p> <span class=\"inline pr-6 text-seafoam-dark\">Related Stories<\/span> <\/p>\n<p> <related-content class=\"related-content__links\" parent-article-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/pre-workout-supplement-labels\/\" current-title=\"Taking a Pre-Workout Supplement? You Might Not Be Getting the Ingredients You Think You Are\" current-image=\"pre-workout-supplement-1.jpg\" v-on:parsely-posts-loaded=\"onPostsLoaded\" start-date=\"2023-01-18\" tag=\"div\" inline-template=\"\" url=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/pre-workout-supplement-labels\/\" secret=\"w5ztterVB03LGZJLfXS0hf3EvQBuFFIWew9hmVQxthU\" apikey=\"wellandgood.com\" limit=\"3\"> <\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"related-content__card mb-[10px] sm:mb-[20px]\" :class=\"{'related-content__card--full':posts.length === 1}\" v-for=\"(post, key) in posts\"> <a v-on:click.prevent=\"trackLinkGA($event, key)\" :href=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/pre-workout-supplement-labels\/post.url\" data-url-source=\"related-content\" class=\"related-content__link\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"\"> <\/p>\n<div class=\"related-content__card--image bg-tan\" :style=\"{ backgroundImage: 'url(' + post.image_url + ')' }\"> <img :src=\"https:\/\/www.wellandgood.com\/pre-workout-supplement-labels\/post.image_url\" :alt=\"post.title\"\/> <\/div>\n<p> <\/a>  <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> <\/related-content> <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>The study, published in the <em>Journal of the American Medical Association<\/em>, analyzed performance supplements that advertised themselves as \u201cpre-workout,\u201d \u201cmetabolism boosting,\u201d \u201cfat burning,\u201d \u201cbodybuilding,\u201d and other claims. The researchers honed in on these supplements in particular because they contained five buzzy and relatively new plant-based ingredients serving as \u201calternative botanical compounds for sports enhancement\u201d to the banned stimulant ephedra. Essentially, supplement makers are beginning to advertise botanical ingredients\u2014R vomitoria, methylliberine, halostachine, octopamine, and turkesterone\u2014that will get you juiced for your workout like a stimulant.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cManufacturers are promoting [these ingredients] as potentially the next emerging thing,\u201d Dr. Cohen says. \u201cWhat we try to do with a study like this is get ahead of the problem before these ingredients get incorporated into thousands of different workout supplements.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And the problem is real: In a 2015<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nejm.org\/doi\/full\/10.1056\/nejmsa1504267\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.nejm.org\/doi\/full\/10.1056\/nejmsa1504267\">\u00a0study done by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a> Cohen says a disproportionate amount of the 23,000 supplement-related emergency room visits were linked to performance supplements.<\/p>\n<p>With this new study, researchers were not actually testing for the safety or efficacy of the botanical ingredients; the aim was to see if supplements were accurately labeled. However, \u201ceven if they&#8217;re accurately labeled, that does not mean they&#8217;re safe, and does not mean they&#8217;re effective,\u201d Dr. Cohen says. \u201cThe manufacturers are permitted to include a countless number of these kinds of plant-derived ingredients. And it does not mean that the FDA has checked out that these are safe to use or will help any workouts.\u201d<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>&#8220;Even if they&#8217;re accurately labeled, that does not mean they&#8217;re safe, and does not mean they&#8217;re effective.&#8221; \u2013Pieter Cohen, MD<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>But if you were hoping to get your hands on a supplement with these ingredients, you\u2019re probably out of luck there, too: 40 percent of the supplements did not contain any significant traces of the listed ingredients. Meanwhile, another 49 percent <em>did<\/em> contain the ingredients, but at wildly incorrect doses, ranging from barely any to over 300 percent of the listed amount. That dosage matters because the effectiveness and safety of supplement ingredients are tied to the amount. Too little, you won\u2019t see much effect. Too much, and\u2014in the case of a stimulant\u2014you could be straining your body\u2019s cardiovascular system, which can be fatal.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Cohen gives the example of caffeine: A cup of coffee is perfectly safe, while a teaspoon of powdered caffeine <a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Health\/pure-caffeine-teaspoon-powder-fatal\/story?id=38688979\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Health\/pure-caffeine-teaspoon-powder-fatal\/story?id=38688979\">can actually kill you<\/a>\u00a0(which is why the FDA has\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.fda.gov\/news-events\/press-announcements\/fda-warns-companies-stop-selling-dangerous-and-illegal-pure-and-highly-concentrated-caffeine\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.fda.gov\/news-events\/press-announcements\/fda-warns-companies-stop-selling-dangerous-and-illegal-pure-and-highly-concentrated-caffeine\">told companies to stop selling powdered caffeine<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome companies are just putting some fancy names on the label, and then selling nothing, so it&#8217;s just a waste of money, but that shouldn&#8217;t cause any health risks,\u201d Dr. Cohen says. \u201cOther companies are like, well, let&#8217;s do whatever we can to try to get the consumer to feel like they&#8217;re getting a better workout, or feel like there&#8217;s something potent in this product. So you might do that by giving a big dose of caffeine and then by using stimulants that are not approved by the United States.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Of the five FDA-banned substances found in the supplements that were tested, one is a drug available in Russia, three were stimulants previously available in Europe, and one has not been approved for use in any country. (One product even contained four different FDA-banned substances.)<\/p>\n<p>So what can you do if you&#8217;re looking to get a pre-workout boost via a supplement? The best recourse is to stick to protein shakes, creatine, and\/or amino acids, since they tend to be less risky, says Dr. Cohen. Otherwise, you want to make sure your supplements are certified by independent testing bodies, like the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.usp.org\/verification-services\/verified-mark\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.usp.org\/verification-services\/verified-mark\">USP<\/a>\u00a0or\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.nsf.org\/consumer-resources\/articles\/supplement-vitamin-certification\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" referrerpolicy=\"no-referrer-when-downgrade\" data-vars-event=\"body text\" data-vars-click-url=\"https:\/\/www.nsf.org\/consumer-resources\/articles\/supplement-vitamin-certification\">NSF<\/a>\u00a0certifications.<\/p>\n<p>As for the pink stuff? It turns out it\u2019s NSF-certified. Phew.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<div data-type=\"_mgwidget\" data-widget-id=\"1675549\">\r\n<\/div>\r\n<script>(function(w,q){w[q]=w[q]||[];w[q].push([\"_mgc.load\"])})(window,\"_mgq\");\r\n<\/script>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>My husband is a general skeptic of vitamins and supplements, but a few times a week, he takes a pre-workout supplement powder that I like to call the \u201cpink stuff.\u201d Mixing half a small scoop with a glass of water creates a drink that tastes like pink lemonade and gets him fired up to hit &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":5754,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5753","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-health"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5753","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=5753"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5753\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/5754"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=5753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=5753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/loudhdtv.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=5753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}