To say nutrition stores are popular would be a dramatic understatement. Many nutrition shops have earned multimillion dollar fortunes for their proprietors thanks to the popularity of muscle supplements that claim to be able to increase lean muscle mass. But, do you really need these supplements? Honestly, you can go a long way with out them. Here's why:

Muscle building supplements can put a major dent in your wallet. Sure, some of these supplements can be helpful but do you really need to invest the $70 a bottle for some of them? Honestly, such an investment is not necessary.

Many of the muscle supplements on the market are unnecessary expenses as their active ingredients can be acquired naturally. Creatine and protein can all be found in simple, natural food sources. Why pay extra for muscle building supplements if you can just eat a (lean) hamburger and get the same results?

A number of muscle supplements are loaded with calories to the point where they pack on a lot of unnecessary fat. For your muscles to look impressive, you need to be defined. Packing fat on your frame undermines this goal.

There are supplements that will damage your kidneys in relatively short order. You body can only process so many grams of protein or deal with so much liquefied powder. When you overdo it, you can damage your internal organs. Why take this risk when it is so unnecessary?

Some of the muscle building supplements released on the market turn out to be far harmful to people's health than initially realized. In the late 1990s, there were a number of muscle supplements that worked quite well. The reason they worked quite well was because they were little more than modified versions of the drug GHB. These muscle supplements also came with many of the enormous side effects GHB was known to cause which is why they are now illegal.

On the flipside, there are a number of oddball muscle supplements that flat out do not work. This is nothing new. In the early 1900s, beer was sold of a muscle builder! Needless to say, those that dramatically increased their beer intake did not develop muscles. They developed a lot of fat thanks to the sugar and carbohydrates in the bottles. While no one is pushing beer as a muscle gaining supplement, they are scores of ineffective products on the market that will do little more than waste your time and money.

Muscle supplements have their positives and negatives. Ultimately, the question becomes whether or not you really need them. Quite honestly, the answer is no.