nutritional supplements

Question 1

what are some types of dietary supplements?

Answer 1

• vitamins and minerals
• unofficial vitamins and minerals
• natural oils
• natural substances (getting around needing a licence)
• enzymes
• amino acids / derivatives
• food supplements
• slimming products

Question 2

what are unofficial vitamins and minerals?

Answer 2

no evidence to show the body needs it, or the person needs more of it

Question 3

why’re dietary supplements not needed to be controlled under the medicines act?

Answer 3

as they are classified as foods, so only the food law applies

Question 4

what can’t you do if you do not have a MHRA license?

Answer 4

you cannot make medicinal claim or relate treatment to a disease.

Question 5

vit A, C, E and selenium: is there evidence for a decrease in mortality?

Answer 5

although they have antioxidant effects, there is no evidence that it decreases mortality rate.

Question 6

high doses of vitamin B6 can lead to what?

Answer 6

neuropathy (damage to nerves outside brain and spinal cord)

Question 7

why do some supplements have an upper dose limit?

Answer 7

not enough research into levels of toxicity caused by doses

Question 8

why can’t vitamin A be taken by pregnant women?

Answer 8

detrimental effects to the foetus:

teratogenic

Question 9

vitamin A recommended dose?

Answer 9

not safe upper limit fro vitamin A.

acute toxicity with one dose, higher toxicity with higher doses.

Question 10

vitamin A is taken for bone health, why s the ironic?

Answer 10

in post menopausal women, taking a dose of vitamin A can increase ht chance of hip fractures which is the opposite of what they take the vitamin for>

Question 11

what does the Co-enzyme Q10 supplements and why is it put into skin creams?

Answer 11

it is an unofficial vitamin.
protects cells from ageing by preserving mitochondrial function.
this maintains ATP production. (the body’s spark plug’)

Question 12

why does oral Co-enzyme Q10 not have an effect

Answer 12

no evidence that taking it orally will have any effect, as won’t get to the mitochondria.

Question 13

what is Choline (CDP-choline) used to treat?

Answer 13

liver disease, dementia, pregnancy, body building as it is required for synthesis of acetylcholine.

Question 14

why do some people need to take oral amino acid supplements?

Answer 14

people can be lacking in amino acids (amino acids of animal origin)
people can lack the enzyme to convert or absorb the amino acid.

Question 15

why do you do the heel prink test on babies to see if they have PKU build up?

Answer 15

baby’s brain development is impaired.

specialised diet needed so need to reduce protein intake and take amino acids as a supplement.

Question 16

why do vegetarians especially have to take amino acid supplements?

Answer 16

you need to have the some amino acids from the diet as we can’t make all the ones we need.
if you are vegetarian, you need to have a good mix of proteins in you r diet to get all the amino acids you are missing.

Question 17

what is creatine and what is it used for?

Answer 17

it is a non essential Amino acid.
it is a short term energy supply in your skeletal muscle.
you can then maintain your energy for a longer time.

Question 18

what is a potential negative effects of probiotics?

Answer 18

could improve colon growth but could increase colon cancer growth

Question 19

probiotic, effect on your colon?

Answer 19

maintain a healthy level and growth of colonic bacteria. if you have pathogenic bacteria in your colon, if would cause an infection.

Question 20

what is the role of Benecol, Flora proactive etc?

Answer 20

help reduced plasma cholesterol
absorbed actively from GI tract.
the stand ester prevent the cholesterol from being absorbed
however consumed cholesterol doesn’t really have a huge effect on the plasma cholesterol levels.
have to consume a lot of benevolent to have an effect.

Question 21

what is the effect of taking fish oils?

Answer 21

can reduce risk of cardiovascular disease.includes omega 3.

good evidence for reduce of CVD.

Question 22

who needs dietary supplements?

Answer 22

most at risk and people that can’t absorb due to disease. (could be due to drug interactions, age, diet or disease)