Column #88

We’re all exposed to commercials depicting active people having worry-free fun because of their new meds or supplements. Yet in spite of the fine print or soft-voiced overlays warning of various side effects, millions of people decide to cure health issues with drugs or supplements while ignoring side effects. Are you also ignoring side effects?

Most of us ignore at least some potential side effects. That’s because all prescription and over-the-counter drugs, vitamins and minerals, herbal and dietary supplements, laxatives, cold medicines, antacids, foods and drinks have side effects.

Dosage is always an issue for anything we put in our bodies. A water overdose can kill us. Doctors know certain combinations of drugs cause problems but they don’t know how every medicine interacts with every other medicine. Two or more “healthy inputs” can react with each other reducing or increasing their impact or causing additional health issues including cancer. Some inputs kill both good and bad cells. Because of differing degrees of overall health, immunity, and diet, individuals can react differently to the same treatment.

There can be side effects from treating injuries, bacteria, viruses, and poisonings. But often in life-threatening situations, patients opt for the treatment and possible cure rather than certain death.

When it comes to chronic diseases most options rarely involve short-term life or death issues. That’s because nearly all chronic diseases are caused by a poor diet that can date from preconception to the present. Obviously the long-term consumption of improper foods has subtle side effects that can kill or maim.

Most people seek drugs and/or supplements for cures without changing their diet. Others change their diet and also opt for drugs and supplements. But unless health-conscious consumers fully understand what they’re doing, they may create undesirable side effects even though there is noticeable improvement in their chronic diseases. That’s because introduced supplements can complicate their health in other ways. For instance, certain vitamin overdoses are toxic.

So how are we going to get the diet right?

The answer is to consume only foods that provide the appropriate density, diversity, and balance of required nutrients for properly addressing all of the body’s multiple metabolic pathways. This means every food which deviates from this biologically required centerline produces side effects that vary from hardly measurable to major.

Scientists who chemically analyze foods claim the best are green leafy vegetables such as kale and spinach. But even those foods have minor deficiencies such as lacking Vitamin D. On the other hand, grass-fed animals have all of the green leaf nutrients, vitamin D from the sun, plus their bodies synthesize many essential nutrients humans also require. Therefore, the flesh of grass-fed animals is the finest, most perfectly balanced food for addressing multiple pathways.

Drugs and supplements address specific metabolic pathways which increase the odds of side effects. So a diet of selected vegetables and grass-fed meats provides the safest method of addressing chronic diseases. It’s a rare individual who understands and takes this to heart. Unfortunately, most who choose food to improve their health have side effects from consuming advertised “health foods” that actually dilute the best foods in their diet. Are you one of them?

To your health.

Ted Slanker

Ted Slanker has been reporting on the fundamentals of nutritional research in publications, television and radio appearances, and at conferences since 1999. He condenses complex studies into the basics required for health and well‑being. His eBook, The Real Diet of Man, is available online.

Don't miss these links for additional reading:

Strange but True: Drinking Too Much Water Can Kill by Scientific American

Side Effects: Causes and Types by Medical News Today

Drugs, Herbs and Supplements by MedlinePlus U.S. National Library of Medicine

This Is What Happens When You Overdo It On Vitamins from Prevention.com