In his new book “Do You Believe in Magic?: The Sense and Nonsense of Alternative Medicine” author Dr. Paul Offit takes on the alternative medicine industry. The Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia pediatrician writes about the unregulated vitamin and supplement industry, celebrity doctors, and the potential dangers of products marketed as ‘natural’. In regards to vitamins he says “People think of dietary supplements as natural, benign and helpful. People don’t think of them as drugs”. Although there are vitamins and minerals that are helpful to take as supplements, such as folic acid before and during pregnancy, there are some that may cause harm at high levels. One study found that smokers who took beta carotene had a higher risk of lung cancer than those who didn’t take the supplements.
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Learn more about alternative medicine at the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM)
