Do we really need health food stores?

There is scant evidence for the use of any of the agents sold over the counter as supplements. Of course, many are expensive, so they must be good for something, right? Basically, NO. Since they are sold as food supplements and are not regulated by the FDA, any and all claims can be made, as long as a disclaimer is attached. In short, if the products make you feel good (or better) it is most likely due to the placebo effect, rather than a true effect of the product. (Of course, you have less money in your pocket…)

I take geranium petal extract, hibiscus, rosemary, dandelion, and rose water for health. I feel great, and when I pee, I experience the fresh scent of potpourri.

Society is making us insecure in our own skin, scams which people absorb as “instant shedding weight” cures. The producers of these products see the need for satisfying the consumers needs and profits from the advertised fat reducers. No, our world can live without health food stores but the demand for overcoming obesity and ‘retouched photos desires’ are at a high.

Thanks. I know my sister has benefited from taking an enzyme supplement. She has lost 25 pounds. Hopefully it is more than just a placebo effect.

In a free market the customer determines if you need it. If people are willing to buy then there is a need. Supply and demand.

@Judi. Perhaps. But, in my opinion, and the opinion of many others, supplements and alternative medicines are nothing but the modern equivalent of snake oil. A free market allowed snake oil to be sold in the past, and now, the same things aren’t just sold, but marketed as alternatives to western medicine, with absolutely no proof of efficacy. Caveat emptor.

And pharmaceutical companies would have you pay way to much for patented drugs when natural remedies work just as well or maybe even better. Best example I can think of is hormone replacement therapy. Women are taking synthetic hormones to the cha ching of drug companies suffering side effects and being miserable when they could be taking bio-identical hormones which can’t be patented and can’t make anyone rich, and don’t have the horrible side effects. Why don’t doctors prescribe them? Because they are owned by the drug companies. They are trained to find a pill to fix things. My doctor was happy to prescribe bioidenticals after I suggested it, but it wasn’t his first thought.
Western medicine has not been around nearly as long as Eastern medicine. We should not be so quick to dismiss it’s healing merritts.

Health food stores are more than supplements and vitamins. What kind are you talking about? If you’re talking about stores like GNC, then I agree. They seem pointless. If your diet is lacking something, then vitamins certainly are a good idea. For example, I’m a vegetarian so I take iron supplements and I have a friend who cannot eat dairy products so I imagine a calcium supplement would be good for her.

However, actual health food stores as opposed to stores that just sell pills and dietary supplements are very beneficial. I prefer to eat organic food and general grocery stores don;t tend to have a good array of organic and healthy food.

Eastern medicine is an oxymoron. Why would anyone put their faith in therapies that were developed thousands of years ago before any knowledge of physiology, biochemistry, pharmacology, receptor biology, molecular biology, etc. is beyond me? Just because it is “old” doesn’t make it “better”. Most people who derive “benefit” from these treatment likely do so because of the placebo effect, and perhaps this was the genius of prior generations.

I ask, when next you encounter a life threatening infection, let me know what you decide to choose… the bark of a tree, or a clinically tested, proven, broad-spectrum antibiotic? I wonder…

Health food stores are the shit. Trader Joes is awesome. Its not like all they sell are those stupid pills. I go there for organically grown food and Virgils Root Beer(greatest root beer EVER)

Where else are you going to get herbal boner enhancers and White Rhino tusk?

yess, I love how they always have juice bars. And they are so healthy and filling.

Anything that gets us away from the Standard American Diet can only help.

Personally, I think things like homeopathics are useless, but “health food” also means things like fresh vegetables, whole grains, and other things not stuffed with dyes and preservatives. This is the stuff we should be eating.

@shilolo ; That’s like saying ‘Why listen to old people, their wisdom doesn’t matter anymore because we have invented the car.” Wisdom gained over Milena has value. I am not saying that everything is beneficial, but I am not ready to discount every solution ancient civilizations have come up with simply because they were not discovered in modern laboratories.

health food stores such as a vitamin store are good and natural alternatives for aliments such as headahces or insomnia. I take a womans multi-vitamin for destressing and its quite good as i grind my teeth when i sleep.

Stores like GNC are good only for gym junkies and post-exercise shakes and food. I like to have a protein shake or bar after working out as it replaces lost protein and encourages my body to work off the fat and carbs.

Homeopathics are good, but not for everyone. Me personally, I think they are wonderful and has helped me where modern medicine couldn’t. Feel free to give it a try but if you dont like it, don’t be obliged.

~Looks like shilolo didn’t take his St. John’s Wort.

I agree with shilolo about “older isn’t better”. There are a lot of things “western” medicine treats very well—mostly everything. However, there are some things it really doesn’t: bowel problems, certain types of allergies, and sometimes chronic pain.

Am I above putting some arnica on my ankle as I pop some advil? Nope. Would I apply a poultice of comfry leaf to a broken foot? Nope.

Yes, it may be placebo effect, but does that matter? It’s like the study that came out last year that showed that generic drugs don’t perform as well as name-brand drugs—if you think they won’t.

btw, airborne and echinacea don’t do anything.