Everyone encounters placebo effect. A great example is coffee. Most people feel energy from coffee while drinking it, but the caffeine should take at least 20 minutes to take effect.
I agree that business and medicine is a complicated subject. People fear the pharmaceutical industry because of this very conflict. However, these supplement industries are making millions too!! People need to remember that.
That is why evidence based medicine from the most nonbiased sources is always the best.
As a doctor, I will make decesions in that manner. Some supplements work, others do not. However, no one should hide behind always saying "big pharmaceutical companies are the problem.....so I will only take supplements" Just be evidence based. Just because something is big pharm does not mean I will prescribe it... but if a study shows it saves many lives from multiple sources, then that is the scientific way of going about it.