Several scientific reviews have shown daily multivitamins to have a weak effect on preventing heart attacks and improving cognition. Instead of taking one pill that can't possibly fit every person's daily requirements, it’s recommended to supplement specific deficiencies or needs.
If you're worried about a particular health problem, pay no attention to your diet, or are always dieting, then search for the common vitamin weakness, and look at your diet.
Millions of people swear by vitamin supplements. But many are wasting their time and some could even be harming themselves, argues Dr Chris van Tulleken. In November 1912 a party of three men and 16 dogs set out from a remote base in eastern Antarctica to explore a series of crevasses many hundreds of miles away.
Looking at individual studies won't determine if vitamin supplementation is good for you. They're scientifically dense and the conflicts of interest can be very hard to spot.
If you are healthy, and have a modern balanced diet, taking multi-vitamins and high-dose antioxidants may shorten your life.
There’s no evidence to support antioxidant supplements for primary or secondary prevention of diseases.
Beta-carotene and vitamin E seem to increase mortality, and so may higher doses of vitamin A.
Antioxidant supplements need to be considered as medicinal products and should undergo sufficient evaluation before marketing.
The functions of minerals and vitamins are understood largely by their deficiency diseases so there’s no certainty what they all do or how they interact.
Antioxidants soak up toxic, chemically-reactive by-products of metabolism called free radicals. These free radicals, left unchecked, can cause damage to DNA and may be linked to cancer.
Your body's immune system fights infections by using free radicals to kill bugs. Several of the minerals and vitamins in excess can cause damage.
Image: Thinkstock The widespread belief that most dietary supplements are effective and safe simply isn't true. A few supplements show limited, possible benefits for people with heart disease. But some popular ones don't-and others may be dangerous. Every day, about half of all American adults swallow a dietary supplement-a vitamin, mineral, herb, amino acid, or other substance.
Pharmaceuticals undergo extensive testing to prove they're effective and safe before they can be sold, but dietary supplements can be sold without proof of claims, effectiveness or safety.
Because of the potential risks and unclear benefits of supplements, most doctors advise against them. However, doctors often recommend specific vitamin and mineral supplements to their patients, such as calcium and vitamin D to prevent osteoporosis and iron for people with iron deficiency.
Consider only single-ingredient supplements. Multi-ingredient supplements make it hard to identify which substance is having an effect and they are more likely to be adulterated with banned drugs.
Tell your doctor about any supplement you take, so they can check it will interact with any of the medicines you're on.
About 25% of adults over age 50 take a supplement to improve their brain health. While these products promise benefits like enhanced memory and greater attention…
Most pills are a combination of vitamins and minerals, along with omega-3 fatty acids.
Scientific studies show the natural forms (like fish in case of omega-3 fatty acids) contain the real benefits, and popping supplements do not have the same effect.
Vitamin E supplements can help to a limited extent but high doses can increase the risk of a hemorrhagic stroke.
Vitamin B supplements are only to be used if one’s normal diet is not enough for them, or in case of a deficiency.
Taking time to do some exercise and having a plant-based diet is a better long term health solution.
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