Only a few years ago, most people didn’t really need nutritional supplements—they got all the nutrition they needed as a result of normal eating habits. That’s changing quickly. Why? For starters, we tend to eat a lot of junk these days: processed food that contains very little nutritional value. This is particularly true for very busy people who work long hours and must often take advantage of fast food and “energy” bars to sate their hunger. That busyness is another factor which contributes to the new need for supplements—with all the extra hours we put in, and with all the running around that we do, we may need more nutrition. According to Harris Interactive Health Care News, nearly 70 percent of Americans fulfil that need with at least one daily supplement.
Wondering if you get enough nutrition from your diet? That really depends on a few factors! If you’re very active, or eat quite a bit of junk or fast food, you might talk to your doctor about augmenting your diet with some vitamins. If your life is a little more sedentary, or if you’re a more consistently healthy eater, you can certainly get by with taking a single multi-vitamin on your own. Do refrain from beginning a full regimen of nutritional supplements—it’s really not necessary.
In most cases, a person should only consume one multi-vitamin that provides anywhere between 35 to 300 percent of his or her recommended daily allowance (RDA) for most vitamins and minerals. Also, it’s important to choose a multi-vitamin that includes zinc, calcium, folic acid, and vitamins B6, B12, and E —these are all vitamins and minerals that are a little harder to come by in a normal diet. Do steer clear of multi-vitamins with a high level of iron, since an excess of this mineral can inhibit the absorption of other key nutrients. And speaking of absorption, always check a multi-vitamin’s label for compliance with the United States Pharmacopeia (USP) standard for solubility—you can’t absorb those vitamins and minerals unless the pill you pop dissolves properly!
Youth, gender, and the presence of food allergies are three more factors to consider when you assess your need for a more extensive battery of nutritional supplements. Teens face a triple threat to their dietary well-being, given that they’re often more active, they’re more erratic in their eating habits, and they’re obviously much more likely to be growing than the general population. Women, who generally must pay careful attention to reproductive and bone health, require more folic acid and calcium than males; a multi-vitamin is sometimes adequate to cover these two bases, and a physician may recommend a bit more. Many women believe that they must also compensate for iron-loss during their menstrual cycles, but again, there’s probably no true need for iron supplementation. Last, people who avoid entire food groups (like dairy, or carbohydrates), whether due to allergies or by choice, should definitely be taking nutritional supplements, and working closely with their doctors to monitor their own health and energy levels.
By Nicole Zillmer