As the number of people striving for the body beautiful increases, so does the range of pills, powders, supplements and medicines promising to help people lose weight or gain muscle. Every shopping mall seems to have at least one shop dedicated to health and fitness supplements and many more shops offer these products alongside healthy foods. Worldwide, these supplements are a multibillion-dollar industry.
Yet they are also an industry with very little regulation and even less understanding from consumers. This was highlighted this week when The National reported that the banned weight-loss pill Oxy Elite Pro was still available under the counter at some stores in Dubai.
The pill, marketed as a fat burner, is said to boost workout performance and was popular with those trying to lose weight. But several countries have banned the organic compound, 1,3-dimethylamylamine, which is linked to cardiovascular problems and heart attacks.
Oxy Elite Pro may be banned, but the wider issues of supplements remains. It is not that these weight-loss and fitness pills and powders are inherently dangerous, but that they are rarely used properly. Walk into any supplement store and the shelves are packed with powders and meal-replacement bars and shakes that promise enhanced performance. But how necessary are these protein shakes? How many are too many? And what about combining supplements with other supplements?
With prescribed medicines, doctors and pharmacists have to take into consideration other medicines that a patient is taking. But with supplements, there is no such oversight. Young men, those who aspire to lose weight or gain muscle, can easily be influenced by the image of glamour and strength that surrounds these supplements and feel that they need to take protein shakes or powders several times a day. That, combined with exercise and other medicines or supplements could elevate blood pressure or heart rates to dangerous levels. There have been numerous cases of people suffering heart attacks linked to excessive use of supplements.
The answer is not regulation but education. Parents, spouses and family members need to be aware of the potential dangers. And those who take such pills and powders need to know that they are not without their risks. Too much of anything can be bad for you.
Jigra
Starring: Alia Bhatt, Vedang Raina, Manoj Pahwa, Harsh Singh
The biog
Fatima Al Darmaki is an Emirati widow with three children
She has received 46 certificates of appreciation and excellence throughout her career
She won the 'ideal mother' category at the Minister of Interior Awards for Excellence
Her favourite food is Harees, a slow-cooked porridge-like dish made from boiled wheat berries mixed with chicken
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Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
Women & Power: A Manifesto
Mary Beard
Profile Books and London Review of Books
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ICC T20 Rankings
1. India - 270 ranking points
2. England - 265 points
3. Pakistan - 261 points
4. South Africa - 253 points
5. Australia - 251 points
6. New Zealand - 250 points
7. West Indies - 240 points
8. Bangladesh - 233 points
9. Sri Lanka - 230 points
10. Afghanistan - 226 points
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
The specs: Volvo XC40
Price: base / as tested: Dh185,000
Engine: 2.0-litre, turbocharged in-line four-cylinder
Gearbox: Eight-speed automatic
Power: 250hp @ 5,500rpm
Torque: 350Nm @ 1,500rpm
Fuel economy, combined: 10.4L / 100km
BRIEF SCORES:
Toss: Nepal, chose to field
UAE 153-6: Shaiman (59), Usman (30); Regmi 2-23
Nepal 132-7: Jora 53 not out; Zahoor 2-17
Result: UAE won by 21 runs
Series: UAE lead 1-0
The Specs
Price, base Dh379,000
Engine 2.9-litre, twin-turbo V6
Gearbox eight-speed automatic
Power 503bhp
Torque 443Nm
On sale now
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
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Directed by: Craig Gillespie
Starring: Emma Stone, Emma Thompson, Joel Fry
4/5
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
APPLE IPAD MINI (A17 PRO)
Display: 21cm Liquid Retina Display, 2266 x 1488, 326ppi, 500 nits
Chip: Apple A17 Pro, 6-core CPU, 5-core GPU, 16-core Neural Engine
Storage: 128/256/512GB
Main camera: 12MP wide, f/1.8, digital zoom up to 5x, Smart HDR 4
Front camera: 12MP ultra-wide, f/2.4, Smart HDR 4, full-HD @ 25/30/60fps
Biometrics: Touch ID, Face ID
Colours: Blue, purple, space grey, starlight
In the box: iPad mini, USB-C cable, 20W USB-C power adapter
Price: From Dh2,099
Pathaan
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