Are health care products effective when taken “in a package”? , "Sudden Death Prevention Package" Hot Sale

Recently, the "sudden death prevention package" has been highly praised on social platforms. Many bloggers claim that after taking the "sudden death prevention package", people become more energetic and are no longer afraid of getting up early to exercise or staying up late to work.

The reporter noticed that most of the so-called "sudden death prevention packages" promoted online are composed of health products such as coenzyme Q10, fish oil, lutein, vitamin D, vitamin E, and B vitamins. In fact, none of these health products have the effect of "preventing sudden death" when taken alone, and there is no evidence that taking these health products in a package can prevent sudden death. "Preventing sudden death" is just a new term coined by merchants, and the ultimate goal is to sell health care products.

On social platforms, various “sudden death prevention packages” are highly praised.

Specifically, Coenzyme Q10 is used clinically as an auxiliary treatment for myocarditis or heart failure, but there is no evidence that it can prevent myocardial infarction, myocarditis, or sudden cardiac death. The only health functions of Coenzyme Q10 health food approved in my country are "antioxidation" and "enhancement of immunity". The so-called "Guardian of the Heart", "Improve Heart Vitality", "Strengthen the Myocardium" and other slogans are all fabricated by merchants and should not be used by consumers. Gullible.

Fish oil is mainly extracted from marine fish with high fat content and is rich in unsaturated fatty acids. The main functional component is omega-3 unsaturated fatty acids. Omega 3 has two important members - DHA and EPA. DHA, commonly known as brain gold, can promote the intellectual and visual development of infants and young children, and also has important health care effects on adults. EPA, also known as vascular scavenger, plays a certain role in promoting the metabolism of saturated fatty acids in the body. But fish oil has little to do with sudden cardiac death, and its function cannot be deified.

Lutein is the most important pigment that forms the macular area of ​​the human retina. It is a substance that must be used for retinal imaging and has a protective effect on the retina. Lutein can reduce the damage to the macula caused by light and oxidation, thereby protecting the macula. It is often used clinically to prevent macular degeneration and age-related macular degeneration caused by high myopia. However, lutein cannot prevent or treat myopia, nor can it control the rate of myopia progression.

Vitamin D can promote the absorption of calcium; vitamin E is an antioxidant; and B vitamins are indispensable substances in the metabolism of sugars, fats, proteins, etc. in the human body. These vitamins are also not associated with sudden cardiac death.

Li Shuguang, a professor at the Nutrition and Food Hygiene Teaching and Research Section of the School of Public Health of Fudan University, said that health foods such as coenzyme Q10, fish oil, lutein, and vitamin D do not have direct, effective, and confirmed functions and effects in preventing sudden death.

The popularity of the so-called "sudden death prevention package" reflects that some consumers currently have certain misunderstandings about health foods. This is mainly due to information asymmetry and the lack of identification ability of some consumers. Nowadays, there is a mixed bag of false information on the Internet, especially about health and wellness. Today it is a "sudden death prevention package", tomorrow it may be a "myocardial infarction prevention package", etc. Consumers need to master the principles and methods of identification. In this regard, Li Shuguang gave the following two suggestions:

First, check whether the information publisher is a formal media or a mainstream media. Regular media do not mix too many commercial interests when producing popular science content, and they also have strict review procedures. However, self-media popularization of science is often done for the purpose of bringing goods, and it is more likely to lead to phenomena such as fake science popularization and genuine sales of goods, no professional reviewers, and no principled bottom line. If there are purchase links for related products on its homepage, comment area, and display window, it can basically be judged that it is selling goods. Then there is a question mark as to whether the so-called "personal testing" and "popular science" content it publishes is objective and true.

Second, when browsing popular science content published by self-media, pay attention to whether the person’s real name is true and has a research background related to medicine, nutrition and health. Only with relevant professional background and profound knowledge accumulation can we produce relatively accurate science popularization content, and most of the so-called "science popularization" has the shadow of commercial propaganda.

Also note that even a real name may be a made-up identity. If consumers find that a self-media has stolen someone else's identity for authentication, they can actively report it to the platform.

In fact, preventing sudden death does not require spending money. Maintaining a healthy lifestyle, having a reasonable diet, regular sleep patterns, and exercising regularly are the panacea for preventing sudden death.