Beware of these 6 supplements that can damage your liver

This news can be difficult to process.

A new study from the University of Michigan estimates that 15.6 million American adults regularly take herbal and dietary supplements that could be potentially toxic to their liver.

The six supplements are turmeric, green tea, ashwagandha, black cohosh, garcinia cambogia, and red yeast rice.

“We were not aware that so many people were taking these supplements,” Dr. Alisa Likhitsup, a clinical assistant professor of medicine and lead author of the research, which was published this week in JAMA Network Open.

These supplements appear to be most popular among older, educated white women who seek them to relieve arthritis, fatigue, and menopausal symptoms.

Nearly 9,700 adults were surveyed between 2017 and 2020 about their supplement intake over a 30-day period.

Among the group surveyed, turmeric was the most popular (3.46%), followed by green tea (1.01%), ashwagandha and black cohosh (0.38%), garcinia cambogia (0.27%), and yeast rice products. red (0.19%).

70% of garcinia cambogia users say they take the supplement for weight loss, while 90% of those who take red yeast rice do so to improve heart health.

Millions of people around the world consume supplements every day to improve overall health, boost immunity and treat minor ailments. Supplement sales in the US topped $150 billion last year.

Over 80,000 of these substances—such as multivitamins, minerals and vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, and calcium products—are available at retail outlets or online.

The researchers noted that hepatotoxicity, or drug-induced liver damage, is on the rise, with supplements accounting for 20% of these cases in the most recent data. They were responsible for just 7% two decades ago.

The study authors said the botanicals most commonly involved in these cases include turmeric, kratom, green tea extract and garcinia cambogia., leading to “potentially severe and even fatal liver damage”.

Dose and frequency of use were not determined in the new study.

The study shows that a large proportion of supplements have well-defined ingredients on the label. However, about 5% to 12% are complex botanicals with many ingredients of plant origin.

Chemical analyzes prompted by liver toxicity show frequent discrepancies between product labels and detected ingredients.

“In a previous study, we found that there was a major mislabeling of some of these products,” explained Dr. Robert Fontana, a Michigan Medicine hepatologist, professor of medicine and senior author of the study.

“We carried out analytical chemistry and found a 50% discrepancy between the ingredients declared on the label and what they actually contained, which is quite alarming,” he added. “If you buy a supplement and it says it has a certain ingredient, it’s basically a coin flip as to whether it’s true or not.”

Researchers say frequent mislabeling, along with a lack of government regulation and insufficient medical investigation into supplement use, make these products a major concern.

They hope doctors will ask patients if they are taking supplements and consider their effects.

“We’re not trying to create alarm,” Fontana said. “We’re just trying to raise awareness that the over-the-counter supplements that people are taking and buying have not been tested and not necessarily proven to be safe.”