[Applause] as a young child my parents told me to take vitamin c to protect me from coughs and colds and i just took them as i got older i became curious and started to look in to dietary supplements i found out in 2020 roughly a third of the uk population consumed dietary supplements a figure 19 higher than the survey carried out in 2019 i was stunned to discover how many of us were taking supplements and how they could be doing us more harm than good so what are dietary supplements dietary supplements are products intended to supplement our diet such as multivitamins omega-3 turmeric protein green tea calcium and many more supplements can either be prescribed or bought over the counter the world health organization the who reports that deficiencies in iron vitamin a and iodine are the most common around the world especially in children and pregnant women it also estimates that more than 2 billion people suffer from micronutrient deficiencies globally with the development of supplements doctors can make sure such deficiencies and their effects can be controlled or eliminated and this is great people with certain medical conditions such as malabsorption syndrome pregnant women and those with restrictive diets can also benefit from prescribed supplements today i'm going to focus on the supplements you can buy over the counter the supplement market is booming the us is the leading country in terms of sales in the global dietary supplements market followed by china and germany the worldwide supplement market was estimated at 140 140.36 billion dollars in 2020 and it is expected to reach 151.85 billion dollars by the end of 2021 but most people who take supplements don't have a deficiency a recent poll showed that 86 of americans take dietary supplements yet only 21 percent have a confirmed nutritional deficiency does this not worry you perfectly healthy people taking tablets that they do not need why why are dietary supplements so popular firstly most people especially young people like me are more health and fitness focused than ever before and more of us are trying to take control of our health using supplements secondly social media many doctors believe the constant need to improve our performance stems from the unrealistic body images found on social media there is a lot of incorrect information about supplements online and people tend to believe what they read there's no shortage of doctors on the internet talking about how marketers prey on our insecurities and sell products with unproven claims thirdly convenience more and more people are opting for supplements because because of their busy lifestyle it's easier to pop a pill in your mouth compared to getting your five a day people are becoming complacent that a healthy diet is not really essential and that supplements will resolve health issues how many of you take dietary supplements without finding out whether you have a deficiency how do you know they benefit your health how do you know you're not taking too much so let's look at some of the issues with dietary supplements well despite common belief dietary supplements cannot prevent chronic disease or death american studies from the national cancer institute the national institutes of health and the national center for biotechnology information all show supplements can either increase decrease or have no effect on chronic disease or death hence they have no significant impact studies show most vitamins and minerals found in supplement form are actually harder to absorb than those found in natural foods also natural foods contain a variety of nutrients which work together in absorption another major concern is that overdosing of supplements can be toxic a study by a medical center shows an overdose in iron can cause nausea an overdose in vitamin a can cause hair loss and too much vitamin d can lead to abnormal heart rhythms finally supplements are not regulated dietary supplements are not medical products and according to the uk government's food standards agency the fsa they cannot exert a pharmacological immunological or metabolic response in the body and some supplements can even interfere with other medications the fsa states that most supplements are regulated by the food law and not by the medicines and healthcare products regulatory agency the mhra even the united states food and drug administration the fda regulates supplements as food and not as drugs does it not worry you that supplements are not properly regulated let me share a few heartbreaking stories with you a man in australia bought a few protein shakes in his effort to lose weight believing there was no risk associated with them after only five protein shakes he was admitted to hospital and the doctors found out that the green tea extract in the shakes was the most probable cause of his ill health they feared he would only live for two weeks he ended up needing a liver transplant in 2018 a man in the uk needed an urgent liver transplant after taking green tea pills pharmacologist dr ian musgrave found that live liver cells in green tea extract died after 48 hours this proves that the green tea was the cause of the liver failures so why don't all countries properly regulate supplements as medications why don't we have laws in every country to to prevent supplement overdose why don't we promote healthy eating instead of supplements it's time dietary supplements are properly regulated around the world many doctors and dietitians agree that we do not need to depend on dietary supplements unless you really want expensive urine supplements can be used to top up nutrients and this can be done safely under medical supervision without the proof of positive health benefits there is a strong case for spending your money on something packed with nutrients and proven to be good for you quality fresh food according to the nhs a healthy balanced diet can provide all the required nutrients that our body needs to function normally and the who reports that a varied balanced diet protects us against many chronic non-communicable diseases such as heart disease diabetes and cancer supplements cannot replace a healthy lifestyle i personally have stopped taking supplements and i am focusing on a balanced diet the only tablet that i need is my ipad so let's embrace a healthy diet and let's not rely on supplements you