Pond scum makes comeback via masters track stars
More than 10 years ago, I had a field day mocking a fad supplement called Super Blue Green Algae. The scientific name for this stuff is Aphanizomenon flos-aquae. Then a decade passed with no peep from the folks in Oregon hyping this “super food.” But at Orono nationals, W60 multi-eventer Kathy Jager of Arizona buttonholed me (and many others) about a supplement she was taking (and helping sell) called StemEnhance.
Kathy gave me some literature and a note that said, in part, “I recently have started using a product that has changed my life as an athlete. . . . This plant-based product is a natural anti-inflammatory and has eliminated all my arthritis joint pain and stiffness, plus has given me increased endurance and focus to be able to train at a higher level.”
Kathy isn’t the only masters star hyping this product. So is recent M65 mile record setter Frank Condon.
In a four-page “Health News” circular, Frank is quoted as saying: “I won four gold medals at the (Huntsman) World Senior Games, setting two World Games records. I credit my success to stem cell nutrition. I love stem cell nutrition and don’t miss a day. I introduced it to several other athletes who are now pain free.”
What is this great new product? Yup. Good ol’ Super Blue Green Algae. AKA pond scum.
Of course, the words “blue green algae” never appear in any of their promotional materials or fancy Web site.
The only clue comes in a PDF of the label of StemEnhance, which identifies the active (and maybe only) ingredient as Aphanizomenon flos-aquae.
Google StemEnhance and you’ll see a thousand variations on this pitch:
In the daily news we hear about stem cell research. And, while research into embryonic stem cells has been controversial, adult stem cell research has shown remarkable promise and is embraced by modern science. The most promising research shows that it is possible to enhance your body’s own production of adult stem cells.
So what’s not to like?
Well, SBGA still has its doubters.
Just add a few keywords (like dangers, risks, toxins) to a Google search of Aphanizomenon flos-aquae or Blue-Green Algae and you’ll get a different picture.
In this 1999 Canadian article we’re told:
There is also a growing contingent of blue green algae detractors. They say there are no positive benefits to taking the product, that any positive effects are psychosomatic and don’t warrant the risk of contamination. Worse, some say, blue green algae is addictive.
There are many reports of new blue green algae users experiencing symptoms like nausea, vomiting, tingling and flatulence. Supporters say that’s part of the detoxification process. Some scientists, however, interpret these side effects differently – as the possible first symptoms of nerve and organ damage.
Health Canada says, “Adverse symptoms from long-term use of these products (weeks to months) may not be obvious, but could range from a feeling of general malaise or gastrointestinal discomfort, to jaundice. Children appear to be more sensitive to these toxic effects, which are more likely to present as acute gastrointestinal symptoms (nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, etc.).”
Yuck.
But wait! It gets better!
Check out this 2005 article by Dr. Stephen Barrett titled “StemTech’s Dubious Claims.”
It is a devastating history of the product and critique of its claims.
Barrett’s bottom line: “A few studies — most of them done in laboratory animals — have shown that circulating stem cells from bone marrow can develop into a few other types of mature cells [11,12]. As far as I know, however, no study has demonstrated that increasing the number of circulating cells is safe or makes people healthier.”
Welcome back, pond scum.
Now go home.
7 Responses
Thanks for the update on pond scum Ken! I have been around long enough to see many of these supplements come and go. This one certainly sounds like something I can live happily without trying. Perhaps I am missing something but frankly the side effects sound like something I want to miss!
Ken,
As you know, I’m in the dietary supplement business, in my case Chinese herbs. This issue with blue-green algae is not unique to pond scum but has been visited upon many health maintenance products.
In the acupuncture business, because there is so little consumer awareness of legitimate standards of care or practices, it is easy to do what some of us call “MSU” which stands for “making stuff up”. Half the time, acupuncture students who don’t know any better themselves perpetuate misinformation that appears to have some mystical energy psycho-spiritual thing about “qi”.
The practitioners in China have a much more grounded approach to these things, though it is sometimes difficult for Western science to accept some of the concepts we work with. Still, with some very slight tweaking, “new medical discoveries” such as the immune system or going back a few hundred more years, the circulatory system were well understood back before even Jesus walked the earth, or water.
The key point to understand is that all medical practices are entrepreneurial in essence. This is not unique to dietary supplements that one should take the scientific or medical breakthrough d’jour and stick it into a bottle touting the effects of scientific buzzwords.
Look up “quantum” + health and you’ll see all the new devices hitting the market place that have some sort of alleged relationship to legitimate research in quantum physics, which many on the front lines will admit is still in the theoretical stages and no technology or practical insight has arisen yet.
Or, check out the best seller “The Secret” that espouses the theory that because quantum physics has discovered that the observer has an affect on the observed it MUST follow that if you hope and pray for something enough, it will manifest in the physical world.
Blue-green algae may have some medical benefits, however the claims are not based in research or clinical outcomes but marketing materials obviously. Until this product is compared to a placebo, testimonials are meaningless. In my own practice, if someone gets a lot better very quickly, I don’t pat myself on the back until the effect is maintained, because placebo effects don’t last.
What’s funny about reading “StemTech’s Dubious Claims” is that I believe the author is describing some interesting observations made in the past few years that (adult) stem cells can make their ways into neural tissues and take up functional residence there.
Why’s that funny? Because TCM (traditional Chinese medicine) has long described the functions of an internal substance known as “jing” as filling the bones and brain with marrow. So, the relationship between bone marrow and gray matter (central nervous system nerve substance) is clear. TCM even sees old age as a slow, steady depletion of this “jing” giving rise to brittle bones (osteoporosis) and “lacking spirit” or senile dementia.
Doesn’t that just rock? So are there herbs for this kind of jing depletion? Yep, quite a few, one of which has recently become the darling of the nutraceutical industry: go ji berries.
This Chinese herb “Gou Qi Zi” (Fructus Lycii now known as “go ji”) has been used for centuries for a variety of issues. It isn’t any new discovery, but because of market forces, “go ji berries” are now found in many supermarkets across the land. Fortunately, while the hype certainly falls short of the effects, they are nonetheless somewhat benign and safe. Not sure we can say the same of pond-scum.
and I thought the Emu oil was the cure all…I built up some awesome agility trying to extract the pure oil from the necks of the Emu…now it’s pond scum
Michelob Ultra has always worked just fine for me in the past. Guess I’m old school.
Ah ha – Chuck has it right – only my brand is Copper Mountain Ale – it has magical and mystical qualities. One bottle and I can leap tall buildings with a single bound, and just imagine what I could achieve it I took the cap off the bottle and drank the stuff.
In short, they have claims and supporters, and other people have concerns, but nobody has any facts.
Hell, that’s just more unanswered questions.
I don’t believe what I read without enough evidence, which is precisely why I am not joining you on your ‘conclusion’.
Nodding your head wisely as you trash a product is just as ignorantly destructive as nodding your head naively while you buy it.
But thanks for the info anyway.
Hang on – I dug deeper into the references of your last link “StemTech’s Dubious Claims” and the facts behind them are much more solid than the linked article presents. I missed that first time round. The facts are there. Apologies for the undeserved criticism.
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