FDA approval

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Is FDA approval that important?I know for health/safety reasons but do supplements,pills,let's say for weight loss,or herbal remedies,don't work because they are not FDA approved?

FDA (and USDA) is a joke.

We've got bovine growth hormones in our meats and milk and GMO products on our plates.

Aside from that, their approval often falls on products that are later recalled.

Some herbal suppliments are full of crap (and some even dangerous, depending on your medical history), and some are not.

Herbal suppliments get a bad rep mostly because of the idea that modern medicine is so much superior to medieval medicine. And that's true, if you're talking European medicine. Quite a bit of the health recommendations that came out of the East, however, have stood the test of time (tea used to be dismissed, but now we are seeing that tea has considerable health benefits).

As I said, though, not all herbal suppliments (including ones from the Eastern medicine) are created equal. One of the problems with herbal suppliments is that there are a bunch of companies that will just toss in whatever and call it a day. Others use herbal suppliments that are based on nonsense.

As far as weight loss goes? Go for Mary Enig, Sally Fallon (who often works with Mary Enig), or Jonny Bowden. Weight loss comes from your diet, not from pills you take.

Also keep in mind a couple of things: First, studies have shown that it's healthier to be overweight than at normal weight (NOT obese, mind you!). Second, we gain weight naturally as we age. This weight that we gain is important (not too much, though).

I bougth Alli pills(orlistat)and they worked.But they are unnecessary(if you want pills/supplements to help you).Why pay thtaat much for something that is a chemical when you can buy Green Tea extract of Acai or Carnitine or Omega 3 or some together that can help and are natural and cheaper and have other benefits too?Or for sleep aids.Many are not FDA approved but some herbal/natural/organic pills may help,or some tea may help but as always ''These statements have not been evaluated by FDA''.

p.s.I do the Zone Diet.It is good,works,i lost weight,i feel full even though i missed some food like bread,cereals,pasta,rice,potatoes....I don't want nor like to be slim,i don't want to be overweight but i like to be a bit built,not muscles,bodybuilding,that's not what i mean,but a bit built,if you get what i mean.

I don't know much about the Zone Diet, but kudos on cutting out grain (and potatoes).

Instead of green tea extract, why not just drink green tea?

It is true that some chemicals (naturally occuring and man-made) can help with weight loss, but on the whole, what matters is the food you eat... most of which will contain the chemicals mentioned. CLA (in grass fed beef, which the Zone Diet seems to support), polyphenols (in green tea), and others.

Seconded on FDA being a joke - the sh#t they let through is scary.
Also seconded the comment that weight loss comes from your diet, not from pills.

I place this motion before the assembly.

I would like to apologize. It's catechins in green tea that aid in weight loss (among other things), not polyphenols (Edit: Or, rather, a specific kind of polyphenols).

Regardless, though, the point is this: Drink green tea, become immortal.

In all seriousness, though, Jonny Bowden does an interesting thing: He brews a cup of tea using 5 cups worth of tea, then pours it into a one quart container, drinking it throughout the day. I imagine you'd probably have to let it steep longer than normal, but I did something similar back in college with some herbal infusions (Tension Tamer).

Last edited by MrLoony on 25 May 2011, 8:35 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I used to do that too, and I used to love Tension Tamer, but it's hard to drink because my cats go crazy over it.

Well it's been a long time to eat grain.I may eat very seldomly,when there are holidays/feasts,or a relative comes from abroad.

Well i don't like green tea by it self,only with other herbs(like jasmine,rose...),i don't like iced tea and now that it is summer it is too hot for me for hot tea to be enjoyable(which i don't like plain green tea anyway but with other herbs) and i may need many cups of green tea,while i get many,10 i think,with one capsule.

I have this capsules.i get it 45% discount from a colleague of my father in his job:

http://www.lef.org/Vitamins-Supplements ... nated.html

http://www.iherb.com/Life-Extension-Meg ... /7723?at=0

The thing is why pay that much for orlistat when you can get something cheaper and healthier?

Well, actually, people of the Ivory Coast drink hot tea during the summer. The reason for this is that it raises the body temperature, and so the difference in the person's temperature relative to the ambient temperature is less. As such, it's not as hot to them.

The things you learn in French class.

By the way, have you tried putting a bit of kosher salt into your tea? I find that the salt helps the flavor quite a bit.

Most people advise anywhere from 2 to 5 cups of green tea every day. 10 is a bit much. Also, the caffeine in green tea interacts with other chemicals in an important way.

There is a saying, "Less is more." I think it applies in this case.

Oh! And how are you getting your green tea? If it's in bags, that's probably why you don't like it (bagging companies usually use the cheapest tea grades they can get). Loose leaf tea is the way to go.

Well,my country is very hot in the summer.We even go as up as 45 points of Celsius.But i can easily drink the tea in an air conditioned room or iced tea.I buy both tea bags and loose,organic most of the time.But you know i am a perfectionist and i don't have the perfect temperature kettle(choose var temps) and the best water(i buy Highland Spring(Scottish)until i buy an ionizer)so i don't make now or a lot in the winter(i will buy of course a beautiful Cuisinart kettle)because you know i find it very boring to use the kettle in the gas all the time(except for milk-i drink a lot of cocoa) and i don't use the other electric kettle since they put water from the tap.So that's what i do.

p.s.Don't get me wrong i drink plain green tea too like sencha.Also in the summer hot tea is not as enjoyable as in winter,with the cold,woodstove,more bautiful geen nature,getting warm and all that.