Study Shows 25% of Dietary Supplements Tested Contain Steroids, Banned Stimulants

Click Here for Fox News Article Link

Did you see this in the news? A good friend of mine pointed it out. If you haven't checked out the study, follow the link above.

Does it surprise me? Absolutely not.

Does it surprise you? Hope not.

Dietary supplements can have a wonderful contribution to our diets for better health and wellness (as well as increased performance and better recovery for those who desire it). Unfortunately, as the industry is still quite unregulated there are some consistent and serious issues that we all need to be aware of as consumers.

In truth, I believe the greater issue to be the quality control issue. I mean, let's be honest...how many of us can look at a bottle of powder or pills and be able to make an educated judgment? Nobody. It's not like looking at the difference between a hamburger from Burger King and a Steak from Outback...that's an easy call. But since companies who make supplements are not required under the DSHEA of 1994 (click link for overview and associated information) to do their own quality control (and aren't regulated by the FDA to do so), unless there are serious health concerns noticeably connected to a product...nobody will ever test it and therefore not know if what it says is in it is actually in it.

Now, back to the Steroids issue. While the greater and more common issue is the quality control problem, the steroid (and perhaps unhealthy) ingredient issue is still prevalent. This study looked primarily at "testosterone boosters," but it also looked at popular energy enhancement products and weight loss products. And let it be known...it wasn't just the "testosterone boosting" products that were the offenders here.

So the issues here are not only that manufacturers may be taking the shortcuts and not putting in ingredients that work are not pure enough, but also that they may be putting in things to make their work...but work in ways that are generally UNhealthy. Nice deal, huh? Steroids are only one example of this.

Many of my readers/clients/etc. often ask why I always harp on the "Advocare" issue so much. Well...here it is. This IS the reason. The only way to know whether the products are safe and effective is if the company is doing the research with quality scientists and doing the quality control themselves. Advocare does it. Truth be told...most other companies don't. Do some other products work? Yep. So don't hear this as a rebuke of all other companies. It's not. There are more companies out there doing research and quality controlling their products. But there simply aren't enough yet. There aren't enough companies who have the character and integrity as does an Advocare.

Have we ever had a professional, college, or Olympic athlete get a "positive" or even false positive (for banned substances) from taking our products? Not one. In over 14 years.

Are we on the NFL's banned list of companies? Nope.

Do our athletes get paid for taking our products (or, heaven forbid...saying they take our products for the endorsement money but not actually doing it). Nope.

So while this certainly isn't intended to be an advertisement for Advocare, it almost can't be helped. Now you know why I choose only Advocare. I simply don't trust other companies enough with the health of my clients, friends, or family. Don't be misinformed or under-informed about the issues here. If you are going to utilize supplements, get some that work. If you don't choose Advocare, that's fine. But make sure to choose wisely and choose a company that has the integrity to do it right!