23,000 people a year have to go to the emergency room because of dietary supplements! Creatine, weight loss products, muscle gain products – all of the above. Its not a regulated industry and there are not even the most rudimentary testing requirements.
Its no secret that I dislike supplements. My first experiment with a tame supplement (creatine) nearly ended in disaster because it was tainted with heavy metals but fortunately my doctor discovered it during a routine blood test. Ever since then I have been on a campaign to discourage everyone from using supplements.
Seriously, its not worth it for the minuscule gains offered by untested supplements. If you want to lose weight faster, do 10 more minutes of cardio a day. If you want to gain muscle faster, then workout harder.
Hydroxycut is typical of the supplements that most commonly send people to the emergency room. The stimulants in it slightly increase the metabolism but the side effect is heart palpitations and other cardiac problems. Both Hydroxycut and Jack3D have been recalled because of life threatening side effects.
