To get better health, millions of people take multivitamins. But, is it safe? Should You take multivitamins every day?
Here we will find out why multivitamins matter, how to pick the best one, and how to avoid potential problems from dietary supplements.
Multivitamins: Fills Nutrient Gaps
Without vitamins and minerals, a balanced diet is not possible. If you eat right every day, health trouble will be few. When we compare recommendations for vitamin and mineral intakes to actual consumption, many Americans do not even come close to getting what they need for several nutrients.
According to the Dietary Guidelines of Americans 2005, adults are often deficient in:
- Calcium
- Magnesium
- Vitamin A
- Vitamin C
- Vitamin E
Vitamin Deficiency: Who’s more at Risk?
Nutrient deficiency can be problematic for a person, especially for a woman in their childbearing years, strict vegetarians, and elder people.
For example, iron deficiency in the childbearing years may lead to anemia. Too little folic acid very early in pregnancy increases the risk of neural tube defects in developing babies. And vitamin B12 deficits, responsible for irreversible nerve damage and faulty cognition, are more likely in people who avoid animal foods and in people over age 50, whose bodies are often less efficient at absorbing vitamin B12.
Health experts suggest multivitamins as a way to maintain diets low in nutrients. But, they warn that multivitamins are dietary supplements, not substitutes for healthy eating. Multivitamins don’t fulfill the requirement of all beneficial compounds for wellness like phytonutrients, and fiber, that is found in plant foods. They are also deficient in fulfilling the daily requirement of calcium and other important vitamins and minerals.
If you are thinking about only taking multivitamins to give all the health benefits, don’t fool yourself, For maintaining overall health, you should take a balanced diet, get regular physical activity, and have good sleeping habits.
You can say, multivitamins are a minor component of good health, but worthy ones.
Can Multivitamins Curb Chronic Disease?
Don’t risk multivitamins to keep you free of heart disease, cancer, and other chronic illness. in a report, it is concluded that more research is needed before suggesting multivitamin use to intervene against disease in healthy, non-pregnant people.
However, other studies contradict earlier findings and conclude that every adult should take a multivitamin daily as a safe and inexpensive way to optimize health. Other studies also tell the connection between multivitamin use and well-being, too. In a study on women, it is found that those who took multivitamins for 15 years or more significantly reduced the risk of colon cancer as compared to those who took multivitamins for less time.
Another study also found that taking a multivitamin daily reduced the risk of a first-time heart attack in a group of Swedish men and women aged 45 to 70.
Who Should Avoid Multivitamins?
If you’re being treated for cancer, or have a history of cancer, talk with your doctor before taking a multivitamin. Dietary supplements could affect your cancer treatment. They act as fuel to the growth of cancer cells by providing the extra nutrients they need to reproduce.
If you doubt whether a multivitamin is right for you or not, talk to your doctor or a dietician/nutritionist.
Multivitamins: What To Look For
There may be different thoughts on multivitamins’ capacity to curb the chronic condition. However, if you are thinking of taking multivitamins supplements daily, how do you decide which one is best for you?
Eating a balanced diet rich in whole grains, fruits, vegetables, legumes, and lean protein sources every day may fulfill the daily value for a wide array of nutrients. Daily values, listed on food and supplement labels, help you determine how a serving of food or supplement fits into the nutrient needs of a 2,000-calorie eating plan.
When you are choosing a multivitamin, pay the right attention to the following to maximize the benefit and minimize risk.
- Vitamin A: Invest in a supplement with beta-carotene and mixed carotenoids, your body converts them into Vitamin A on an as-needed basis. Excessive vitamin A as retinol is detrimental to bone and liver health.
- Iron: Men and post-menopausal women should take an iron-free multivitamin/multimineral preparation unless their diet is very low in iron-rich foods, including meat and fortified grains. Iron may accumulate in the body and cause organ damage.
- Folic Acid: Women in their childbearing years need 400 micrograms of folic acid (100% of the DV) every day to help prevent neural tube defects in the first month of pregnancy.
- Vitamin D: is essential for calcium absorption and may play a role in cancer prevention. Health experts suggest you need more vitamin D than a multivitamin and your diet provide, especially if you have dark skin, are overweight, or spend little time outdoors in the summer months.
- Vitamin E: in recent studies, some safety concerns had shown with high doses of vitamin E, or doses over 600-800 IU daily.
- Vitamin C: The DV (Daily Value) or RDA is low for vitamin C, so picking a multivitamin with approximately 250mg of C per day makes sense for this important and safe vitamin.
