Composition, dangers… Ten questions to understand everything about food supplements

Europe 1 4:42 p.m. November 2, 2021, modified at 4:42 p.m. November 2, 2021

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Against stress, for weight loss, on sleep ... Food supplements are everywhere, but how to choose them?

To find your way around the profusion of ever more attractive products for consumers concerned about taking care of them, Adélaïde Robert, journalist at

and Camille Schirlin, engineer, have collaborated to develop a dossier on these increasingly consumed tablets, capsules and gums.

In it, published in the monthly and detailed on Europe 1, Tuesday, they take stock of the best practices to adopt when one is tempted to take them.

How many French people are fans of food supplements?

“There is one in two French people, according to the National Syndicate of Food Supplements, who has already consumed food supplements. It concerns a lot of people and food supplements against stress and sleep have been on the rise in recent years. Covid-19, we can expect it to increase, especially since food supplements are very often consumed more in winter. "

But what is the difference with medication?

"The drug status is very different. A drug must show its effectiveness and its safety. The food supplement, it simply needs a declaration to the DGCCRF (the repression of fraud), which is less a guarantee of security. "

What is generally found in these products?

"There are many plant extracts. The concern being that for plant extracts, there is little certainty about their effectiveness. Often, magnesium is also found, to fight against stress, which is often associated with vitamins B, especially vitamin B6. "

Should we favor a simple or complex formulation?

"We have found in fact that there are many products that have heavy formulations with a lot of different ingredients, which is not a guarantee of quality and effectiveness. On the contrary, what we have observed is that we will rather recommend simple formulations of which we know the effectiveness of the active substances that make up the food supplement and from which we can avoid the risks of side effects or drug interactions. for sleep, based on melatonin, we will instead recommend the simplest formulations possible, with only melatonin and with a dosage of one milligram. "

Does the file identify bad practices?

"We often find supplements with a large cocktail of ingredients and different active substances, which is not a guarantee of quality. What we also find is that there are supplements that have dosages of active substances a little too high, as for example for melatonin, when it is dosed at 1.9 milligrams per day, that is a lot, since it is at the limit of the drug (2 mg). it is to completely cancel its natural secretion. There are risks for some people and the warnings are not indicated all the time. Melatonin-based supplements are not recommended for people with epilepsy, suffering from diseases inflammatory, for pregnant women, children, etc. "

Is it advisable to favor natural supplements?

"It does not change anything. This is what emerges from the test: some manufacturers play a lot on the natural marketing side, plant, etc. In the end, it does not change the composition of the product at all."

What substances should I avoid?

"In the products that we analyzed, we saw that some had selenium and this is often highlighted enough. However, there are not really any authorized claims on stress, for selenium. can be dangerous because there are interactions, for example, for people who are on anticoagulant treatment. We penalized supplements that contained selenium, tryptophan and arginine, because they are still substances that are at risk and serious health risks. It is better to avoid them because the warnings are not always sufficient in relation to the composition. "

What is the essential precaution to adopt before anything else?

"What we recommend is to take food supplements with the advice of your doctor because magnesium, a priori, does not pose a problem. The only concern is that it is poorly assimilated. and that there are side effects. "

Why should you limit your consumption?

"You should not mix food supplements either because sometimes there are active substances in two types of food supplements. There is therefore a risk of overdose. By dint of putting B vitamins everywhere, you can have too much. You have to be careful not to combine food supplements, not to combine food supplements and drugs and be careful according to the pathologies you have or the risk factors. "

Where should I buy them?

"They should be bought rather in drugstores or organic stores. On the internet, the DGCCRF or other European bodies show that there are supplements that are fraudulent. There are real dangers in buying on the internet."