Lately, news about the dangers of vitamin and herbal supplements has been coming so fast it's difficult to keep up.

In May, Hydroxycut weight-loss products were recalled after they were linked to dozens of cases of liver damage, jaundice and other related medical problems. In one case, a 19-year-old died from liver failure after taking the supplement, according to the Food and Drug Administration. Lawsuits were filed last week.

Earlier this month, three brands of Zicam Cold Remedy products were pulled off the market after dozens of users lost their sense of smell. The FDA reported it had received 66 reports of people losing their sense of smell since 1999. The manufacturer, however, had not forwarded 800 similar reports because it believed it was not required to do so.

Last week, the leader of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency urged the National Association of Attorneys General to take action at the state level to stop tainted and steroid-related supplements from being sold.

Travis Tygart, CEO of the agency charged with ensuring the safety of athletes and the integrity of Olympic competition, said scientific studies have shown 25 percent of supplements made in America contain steroids and 11 percent contain stimulants.

Those results are similar to those of ConsumerLab.com, which were aired in an in-depth report by The Associated Press in the Journal Star on June 10. Dr. Tod Cooperman, president of the lab, said one-quarter of the supplements it has tested over the past decade had some problem.

Some of the supplements contained contaminants, Cooperman said. Others had ingredients that exceeded safe limits. Some contained real drugs, such as Viagra.

Some failed to contain the specified dose of the label ingredients.

"There's at least 10 times more hoodia sold in this country than made in the world," Dr. Mehmet Oz told the AP.

The reason for the lack of testing and quality control is that 15 years ago, Congress loosened restrictions on supplements. They can go straight to consumers without

prior testing and approval. The FDA can take action only after consumers complain.

Some defenders of supplements contend that "Big Pharma" is behind the bad publicity. And it's true that approved medicine and drugs also have produced negative reactions. But at least they must be warned about possible side effects.

Consumers should do themselves a favor and connect the dots.

Anyone blithely popping supplements with the conviction they are improving their health without risk of harm might just be fooling themselves.