I'm curious about this, too!

NAC offers some benefit for hearing loss under some (though not most)  circumstances. I took it for a few months (without success) for that and didn’t notice any GI effect.

I took NAC for a good long while because I was getting lots of upper respiratory infections. Didn’t seem to help the infections or GI tract.

Recently my doctor told me to be careful with any type of OTC or herb supplement. Both are considered drugs and you just don’t know what they do to your system. Unfortunately I learned the hard way. Unless my doc prescribes it, I take nothing.

@ytcrockpot posted:

Recently my doctor told me to be careful with any type of OTC or herb supplement. Both are considered drugs and you just don’t know what they do to your system. Unfortunately I learned the hard way. Unless my doc prescribes it, I take nothing.

I'm curious about the lesson you learned.  What supplement(s) did you find were harmful to your system? 

Supplements in general have three issues: They are not well tested regarding efficacy, purity, or safety. There is substantial variability between various supplements and manufacturers regarding this, so some supplements from some manufacturers are incredibly useful and reliable, and some are quite risky. The term “supplement” is, I think, misleading, since these aren’t generally dietary at all. These are often potent but unregulated drugs (and sometimes just placebos), and the information about them varies a lot in terms of trustworthiness. Anecdotes about harmful effects aren’t a great way to determine safety, any more than anecdotes about benefits are to determine efficacy.

@Scott F posted:

Supplements in general have three issues: They are not well tested regarding efficacy, purity, or safety. There is substantial variability between various supplements and manufacturers regarding this, so some supplements from some manufacturers are incredibly useful and reliable, and some are quite risky. The term “supplement” is, I think, misleading, since these aren’t generally dietary at all. These are often potent but unregulated drugs (and sometimes just placebos), and the information about them varies a lot in terms of trustworthiness. Anecdotes about harmful effects aren’t a great way to determine safety, any more than anecdotes about benefits are to determine efficacy.

That could be, but I still like to hear about people's experiences.

@Sara Marie posted:

That could be, but I still like to hear about people's experiences.

I agree. When science isn’t available we have no choice but to settle for anecdotes. The key is working through how poorly those experiences predict your own, and creating a *very* rough risk/benefit assessment.

@Scott F posted:

I agree. When science isn’t available we have no choice but to settle for anecdotes. The key is working through how poorly those experiences predict your own, and creating a *very* rough risk/benefit assessment.

Agreed.  Very rough. 

@Sara Marie posted:

I'm curious about the lesson you learned.  What supplement(s) did you find were harmful to your system?

Entyvio caused my liver enzymes to rise.
Now I’m followed by a hepatologist. I had to stop taking all my vitamins and any OTC meds until she could research ingredients.
Truly amazing how many of OTC & prescribed meds affect your liver. Until I had to stop everything, I didn’t realize how many pills I popped for different ailments.

Now I only take my approved calcium, vitamin D and budesonide. And occasionally 1 Advil when my joint pain is out of control.

YT Crockpot, it's ironic that the one officially tested drug, Entyvio, was the one that most likely caused your elevated liver enzymes. Prior to use of that med, you didn't have elevated enzymes.

Most supplements are a total mugs game. You have no idea if you are getting the floor sweepings, or some chemical from China.

Obviously there are some reputable ones of course, but there are so many interactions with regular drugs, and other supplements too, NOBODY can ever really be sure of anything.

Even now they are already saying higher levels of VitD3 can actually cause arterial problems, so its turning out possibly not to be the panacea folks thought it was in the first place. Plus you get load of idiots overdosing too.

rcrossco_1: Where are you getting your info on Vitamin D3? You state that "they" are already saying that higher levels of this vitamin can cause arterial problems. Please elaborate.

Some of the latest studies into long term higher supplementation, I thought that would be obvious.