Medical Supplements and Pascal's Wager: Why Millions of Americans Waste Money on the Smoke-and-Mirrors Industry
Two weeks ago, TCO warned about what appears to be rampant waste in the land of medical supplements (see Part I here). Today we focus on how providers use fear to sell product.
For $28 billion, what do Americans really receive when they buy one dietary supplement or another? In most cases the results are negligible and potentially harmful. So why do so many people buy into this craze of taking a myriad of supplements that too often have replaced eating well and exercising often? Many would respond: “Well what’s the harm in trying?” It is a medical, modern version of Pascal’s Wager. (Pascal reasoned, “Why not believe in God, just to be safe? There is nothing to lose for an incorrect believer and everything to lose for an incorrect nonbeliever.”) Applying Pascal to supplements, the argument goes: Well, why not take these supplements to be safe? It could prevent ailments X, Y and Z.
Why not? What if? It’s all just based on a house of fear. Spending $8.00 on a bottle of garlic tablets in hopes that it may lower cholesterol levels condones lousy scientific research, wastes money and potentially harms the user. And wait until you see how quickly the price adds up. The National Institute of Health (NIH), the U.S. Government’s national medical research agency, published a study definitively declaring garlic in any form does not reduce blood cholesterol in patients with moderately high baseline cholesterol levels, and yet it is still a $77 million industry.
The truth is many of the manufacturers hire their own team of scientists. I repeat: they hire the scientists. Of course these “researchers” aren’t going to bite the hand that feeds them by publishing honest results, results that are inconclusive at best. Instead they use tiny sample sizes and no placebo control group—whatever it takes to skew the results in favor of their clients. It’s like having Greg Anderson, Barry Bonds’ personal trainer and close friend, administer his steroid tests. Guess what, Barry, you tested clean again. Go hit a few more into McCovey Cove.
Are you a victim of this industry capitalizing on your hopes of good health and preventive efforts? Supplements are not regulated by the FDA and thus they are not being held accountable for false advertising and dubious research. While it is unlikely that many supplements do physical harm to the body, much better to devote time and money to healthy eating and maintaining an active lifestyle.
John Cloud, writer for TIME Magazine, took 3,000 supplements over five months, all while undergoing frequent medical checkups. He spent a whopping $1,200 and ended up with negligible health effects at best (see article here). What irked him the most was that his doctor could not even explain one of his positive changes: a 46% increase of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. The doctor hypothesized a couple reasons why it could have increased—one of which was not even related to taking the supplements—but with the supplements containing so many ingredients, it is impossible to pinpoint which causes what. And that’s just how the supplement producers and sellers want it: “We can’t say for sure what caused what… so why not buy a few, just in case?”
While Pascal’s Wager may justify why one should attend weekly services (no harm done; evade eternal damnation), this does not apply to supplement use. I would rather spend my money where I can see definite results—supporting a healthy lifestyle—rather than an industry based on spotty scientific research and questionable advertising.
Are you the victim of supplements? Have you been harmed by using them, or fallen prey to online misrepresentations of their benefits? Contact us at info@berklawdc.com or (202) 232-7550 and we would be happy to discuss potential recourses.
Assisted by Arezu Hadjialiloo
Steven N. Berk has over twenty years of litigation experience spanning both the private and public sectors. His practice ranges from representing Fortune 500 Companies, to consumers. Steven is based in Washington, D.C. and founded Berk Law in May 2009....
