Health products do not cure diseases, nor do they cause them.

Health products do not cure diseases, nor do they cause them

Recently, China Quality News Network published an article titled "Liver Injury Caused by Health Products – Fortunately Discovered Timely by a Community Doctor". However, anyone who understands the essence of health products can tell it is a rumor at a glance.

Health products refer to foods with specific health functions, including health food and nutritional health food. These products are mainly intended to boost human immunity, supplement nutrition and improve bodily functions. Yet improper consumption or the presence of prohibited ingredients may cause harm to the body.

This article, nevertheless, provides no specific information about the liver damage allegedly caused by health products. What’s more, community doctors are not professional instructors for health product use and can only offer basic medical assistance.

Therefore, we need to be vigilant against fake news online and form a clear understanding of health products. When purchasing and using such products, we should check details like their ingredients and manufacturers to safeguard our health and safety.

The role of health products is to support health, not treat diseases. This is both a regulatory requirement and a fact recognized by a growing number of people. Consumers must be clear that health products cannot replace medicines; their primary function is to strengthen the immune system and physical fitness by supplementing nutrients the human body needs, thereby achieving health care effects.

Stricter supervision and severe crackdowns should be imposed on unethical merchants that mislead consumers into believing health products can cure diseases. But we should not reject the entire health product industry outright. After all, health products exist for health care purposes, aiming to promote health rather than harm the human body. We should also keep a clear head when facing claims that health products can make people ill. While not a panacea, health products do help us maintain physical health – and we can reap their benefits with proper use.

An article about health products once mentioned cases of drug-induced liver injury potentially linked to their use. A careful analysis of such cases reveals only three possible causes: first, Ms. Yao may have taken counterfeit health products; second, she may have failed to use the products in accordance with the instructions; third, some doctors or media outlets have falsely associated health products with liver injury.

If Ms. Yao regularly attended traditional Chinese medicine lectures and consulted doctors, the first two scenarios would be highly unlikely. Additionally, as the contracted community doctor who had long-term contact with Ms. Yao, they should have been aware of her health habits and provided proper guidance. If the doctor did not stop Ms. Yao from taking health products, they should not have falsely linked the products to her liver injury either. Thus, this conclusion is very likely false information fabricated by a small number of media outlets to smear the health product industry.

Health products cannot treat diseases, but they can still be used by patients. It is therefore inevitable that some patients are part of the consumer group for health products. Irresponsible media outlets exploit this fact to fabricate the claim that "taking health products causes illness" – a statement that defies common sense. Though the article tells a story of a community doctor saving a patient, it actually falsely accuses health products. The ailing Ms. Yao and the treating community doctor have both become tools for this false accusation. We must therefore form a correct understanding of health products and not be misled by false information.

It is a fact understood even by those with little knowledge of health products that their role is to improve human health. When taken in accordance with the rules, health products can never cause illness. So why do some people claim they can lead to drug-induced liver injury? Isn’t this pure fabrication? On this issue, we need to see the truth clearly. In fact, understanding the proper use of health products is all it takes to avoid problems. Smearing the industry and calling for a boycott are undoubtedly irresponsible remarks. Taking health products will not make you ill, but nor should you expect them to cure diseases. Proper use of health products is about better protecting our health, not hoping for miraculous effects. Let us reject pseudoscientific conclusions, view health products objectively, use them scientifically, and let them fulfill their intended role.

It is recommended that regulatory authorities not only rectify illegal merchants but also regulate media outlets that make reckless remarks. In particular, timely notifications about negative public opinions related to health products should be sent to publicity departments. Many media outlets lack proper knowledge of health products and even mislead consumers; a small number have completely abandoned their professional ethics. Like the health product industry itself, the media needs to grow and be standardized.