Following all the latest news on vitamins could be a full-time job. Actually, what the average consumer needs to know about vitamins is surprisingly straightforward
New studies and claims about vitamins are published daily, and many
seem to contradict each other. What does an average consumer really need to
know about vitamins?
“The fairly simple answer is, not much,” says Paul Thomas, EdD, RD, scientific
consultant with the National Institutes of Health Office of Dietary
Supplements. Almost everyone can benefit from taking a supplement with calcium
because most people don’t get as much as they need through their diets — 1,000
mg a day for adults, increasing to 1,200 mg after age 50. Thomas notes that
some vitamins become especially important at certain times in a person’s life.
Pregnant women or women who may become pregnant should be certain to get enough
folate, or folic acid, a B-complex vitamin — 600 units a day, rather than 400.
And as you age, you should probably take a daily supplement to get additional
B12, he suggests.
“You don’t have to become an expert or learn all the intricacies of
all the vitamins — because you can't,” adds Dr. Thomas. There’s simply too much
information to try to remember.
What you need to do is eat a healthy diet, selecting recommended
foods based on the USDA guidelines. Because few of us consistently eat a
well-balanced diet, Thomas says taking an over-the-counter multivitamin, even a
store brand, is a good idea. “It’s sort of like an insurance policy that covers
all your bases,” he explains.
Vitamins and Healthy Living: Not as Easy as A, B, C, and D
Maintaining a balance of the vitamins we need is
important yet tricky. While vitamins work together in the body to ensure our
health — the most obvious being the way vitamin D aids in absorbing calcium —
the interaction between vitamin supplements and prescribed medications can
cause health problems. For example, calcium can interact with some
pharmaceuticals, limiting the body’s ability to absorb the prescribed
medication. So whenever your doctor gives you a new prescription or changes
one, it’s important to discuss all of the vitamin and mineral supplements
you’re taking to avoid any potential problems.
Vitamins and Healthy Living: Is Taking More Better
For people who have a healthy diet, taking a multivitamin according
to package directions won’t trigger a vitamin overdose. But Thomas warns, “You
run into trouble if you take vitamins and supplements where the dose is very
large.”
Some people take large amounts of supplements — hundreds or
thousands of times more than the recommended amount — to treat or prevent
illnesses or diseases, in effect treating vitamin supplements like drugs.
“That’s different from taking them to get the recommended amount,” Thomas
cautions.
Using supplements as therapy should be done only with a doctor’s
guidance, as side effects and complications can and do occur. As an example,
Thomas points to niacin, or B3, which in very high doses can harm the liver.
However, in many cases niacin is a good drug for reducing statin levels, he
adds.
Even some very familiar advice isn’t yet proven medical theory,
Thomas notes: “When you look at the use of large doses of vitamin C (to combat
colds), the evidence to date is kind of murky.”
To evaluate any supplement as a medical treatment, consider the body
of evidence supporting any health claims and seek information from a
pharmacist, dietitian, or your family doctor. “The folks who sell supplements
probably aren’t the best sources of information,” Thomas says.