Caution taking supplements?

[willow14]

I'm sure this has been asked before but I couldn't find any specific threads. I'm considering starting a supplement/protein drink from Herbalife but am nervous that it will cause a false positive on my uds. I don't know of any research that says it will affect my test, but this program has made me nso leery to take anything. I think many of us feel this way.

Have any of you had any luck with supplements that are safe to take during monitoring? Just curious. Part of me wants to just err on the side of caution & not risk it, but I figured it didn't hurt to ask. Thanks everyone :)

[catsmeow1972, BSN, RN]

I would not risk it. There are all sorts of things in all sorts of supplements. In the real world, they are completely innocuous. In monitoring land, not so much. If you are wanting to do nutritional supplements, stick with straight multivitamins or single vitamin supplements. Just my opinion.

[SpankedInPittsburgh, DNP, RN]

I take protein powder before working out but its just the cheap stuff from Costco. So far so good. Never thought to be paranoid about that. Till now anyway

[crazin01]

(somewhat related)

Awhile back, I had bilateral carpal tunnel release done laparoscopically; both minor, out-PT surgery center. I took quite a few supplements, to promote healing and counteract the damage done. I sent the list to case manage. I was basically just being paranoid, (case managers words) because they were sick of hearing participants express concern over UDS giving a false positive.

Could you send case manager a complete ingredient list? And then you're butt would be covered..

[catsmeow1972, BSN, RN]

.......just being paranoid, (case managers words) because they were sick of hearing participants express concern over UDS giving a false positive..

Heh, well with the *they" being collective as we are all over the country, if they are tired of us worrying about false positives, maybe they should either develop better testing or stop threatening us with eternal damnation when something is off.

[SpankedInPittsburgh, DNP, RN]

Amen CATS Amen. When you see the dizzying list of things they test for without taking into account your supposed drug of choice and the things that can cause a false positive you have to wonder if the people subject to this are paranoid or just plain scared with good reason. As far as the case managers being sick of participants anything. Who Cares??? That's why they get a check every two weeks

[ruby_jane, BSN, RN]

What's in the Herbalife? If it's got Ma Huang (Chinese ephedra) that's a stimulant and I don't know I'd risk it without fully disclosing to the powers that be. If it's just green tea/some other caffeine source...I'd probably still do what the others suggested.

[catsmeow1972, BSN, RN]

My concern with stuff like Herbalife is that I am not sure that is required to list all of its ingredients and also that since like Mary Kay and all those other Pyramid type marketing schemes, the quality of those maybe unknown ingredients might not be so great....I think you'd be walking a very fine line and taking a huge risk.

Remember Monitoring-Istan is a completely foreign country. Nothing makes sense and very little is fair.

[SpankedInPittsburgh, DNP, RN]

True supplements are almost wholly untested and unregulated. Who knows what's in that stuff? Unfortunately can't we say the same for almost anything else we may put in our body. I don't know how they make or what the ingredients are in most of the things I ingest. I just eat or drink them and hope like hell nothing is in there that will cause a false positive. I started vaping a couple months ago to help quit smoking (it worked) and I was scared to death that that would make me positive for something especially after reading that one lady stated that it made her test positive for ETG. According to the label there is no ETOH in vape juice but do I really know? Dijon Mustard??? Who knows??? Once again a paranoid and depressing existence.

[RickG85]

I take a pre workout I get from Walmart and protein shakes and drink energy drinks and I've never had a positive drug screen, I've had over 30 UDS' so far. Yes there are false positives but they're actually fairly rare. The tests they use are very specific and confirmed via even more specific methods. The main false positive would be for alcohol/etg. You hear of some people.having false positives on dipstick screens but those are usually proven negative using more specific methods. Just be aware of the ingredients and you should be fine. The only suggestion I have is to stay away from any supplement that says "ephedra powered".

[catsmeow1972, BSN, RN]

Energy drinks are mostly caffeine and to be sold on the open market (Red Bull, Monster, etc.) have to list all thier ingredients. Protein powders, protein drinks, same thing. Any kind of pre-workout supplement at wal mart ditto. When you get into the stuff at places like GNC, you've got to start reading labels because you can edge over into the ephedra and other things that while okay in the real world will do god-knows-what to a drug test. Anyone remember the original ‘Jacked3D'?

I would still be very wary of stuff like Herbalife where you just can't be quite sure of the contents. If you're interested in medication assisted weight loss, see your doctor. There are medications out there that assist with that that overlap what we are generally allowed to take in these programs. Obviously the amphetamine type stuff is a no go but there are others that are supposed to have good results.

[willow14]

Thanks everyone for your responses. I'm going to err on the side of caution at this point and not risk the Herbalife. I'll check into some of the other options listed you guys provided. I am kind of looking for something to give me energy/endurance during exercise also.

Nathan08T, what is the pre-workout drink you get from Wal-Mart? I might go.check it out sometime.

Again, thanks everyone for your insight. I appreciate having others who understand the stress this program causes me daily. 22 months to go, as long as I do everything right :)