No Deaths From Vitamins: Supplement Safety Yet Again Confirmed by America’s Largest Database

by Andrew W. Saul, Orthomolecular Medicine News Service
January 30, 2021

(OMNS Jan 30, 2021) The 37th annual report from the American Association of Poison Control Centers shows zero deaths from any vitamin. Supporting data is in Table 22B, p 1508-1518, at the very end of the report published in Clinical Toxicology. [[1] It is interesting that it is so quietly placed way back there where nary a news reporter is likely to see it.

Furthermore, there were no fatalities from amino acids, creatine, blue-green algae, glucosamine, or chondroitin.

There were no deaths from any homeopathic remedy, Asian medicine, Hispanic medicine, or Ayurvedic medicine. None.

There were no deaths from herbs. This means no deaths at all from blue cohosh, echinacea, ginkgo biloba, citrus aurantium, ginseng, kava kava, St. John’s wort, valerian, yohimbe, ma huang/ephedra, guarana, kola nut, or yerba mate.

On page 1508, a single death is attributed to an unspecified “Other Single Ingredient Botanical.” The obvious uncertainly of such a listing diminishes any claim of validity.

On the same page, a single fatality is attributed to an “Energy Product.” The Orthomolecular Medicine News Service considers these items to be over-the-counter drugs. They are improperly classified as dietary supplements.

Throughout the entire year, coast to coast across the entire USA, there was not one single death from a vitamin. If vitamin supplements are allegedly so “dangerous,” as the FDA, the news media, and even some physicians still claim, then where are the bodies?

(Andrew W. Saul is Editor-in-Chief of the Orthomolecular Medicine News Service, now in its 17th year of free publication. He is also a member of the Japanese College of Intravenous Therapy, the Orthomolecular Medicine Hall of Fame, and is author or coauthor of twelve books. He has no financial connection whatsoever to the supplement or health products industry.)

Reference:

Gummin DD, Mowry JB, Beuhler MC et al. 2019 Annual Report of the American Association of Poison Control Centers’ National Poison Data System (NPDS): 37th Annual Report. Clinical Toxicology 2020, 58:12, 1360-1541. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1080/15563650 or https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/15563650.2020.1834219

Nutritional Medicine is Orthomolecular Medicine — Orthomolecular medicine uses safe, effective nutritional therapy to fight illness. For more information: http://www.orthomolecular.org

Find a Doctor — To locate an orthomolecular physician near you: http://orthomolecular.org/resources/omns/v06n09.shtml

The peer-reviewed Orthomolecular Medicine News Service is a non-profit and non-commercial informational resource.