Food supplements that have high toxicity

Food supplements are the component of food apart from the main component of food. Carbohydrates, proteins and lipids are the major component of food whereas vitamin and minerals are the major supplements of food. These are essential for the life. Excess amount of those supplements and deficiency of those supplements can give rise to several disease conditions such as osteoporosis and anemia.

Here, the main concern is the toxicity which can be due to food supplements. Sometimes those toxicity of food supplements can lead to death as well. Therefore, it is very important to have a good knowledge on toxicity of food supplements.
There are several main groups of food supplements which can be considered:
• Vitamins and co-vitamins
• Essential minerals
• Essential fatty acids
• Essential amino acids
• Glyconutrients
• Phytonutrients

Definition of dietary supplements is;
As defined by Congress in the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act , which became law in 1994, a dietary supplement is a product (other than tobacco) that
• is intended to supplement the diet;
• contains one or more dietary ingredients (including vitamins; minerals; herbs or other botanicals; amino acids; and other substances) or their constituents;
• is intended to be taken by mouth as a pill, capsule, tablet, or liquid; and
• is labeled on the front panel as being a dietary supplement.
It is very important to know the safety level of dietary supplements.Scientists use several approaches to evaluate dietary supplements for their potential health benefits and safety risks, including their history of use and laboratory studies using cell or animal studies. Studies involving people (individual case reports, observational studies, and clinical trials) can provide information that is relevant to how dietary supplements are used. Researchers may conduct a systematic review to summarize and evaluate a group of clinical trials that meet certain criteria. A meta-analysis is a review that includes a statistical analysis of data combined from many studies.