So Many Vitamins, So Little Time
Truths and Myths About Dietary Supplements
By BROOKE JACOBSEN and SUSAN WAGNER
July 4, 2008=97
Last year Americans spent $22.5 billion on dietary supplements, taking
everything from a standard multivitamin to fish oil for the heart to
magnesium for healthy bones. But how do we know which vitamin pills we
need and which we don't? And at what doses do the risks outweigh the
benefits?
Dr. Eric Rimm at the Harvard School of Public Health sat down with
ABC's Medical Editor Dr. Tim Johnson to discuss some of the more
talked about vitamins, how much of them we should be taking and
whether too much can be detrimental to our health.
In a field filled with controversy, most nutrition experts agree on
one thing: food, not pills, is still the best way to get essential
micronutrients. Our bodies seem to process the vitamins in food
better. And people who eat a healthy diet =14 getting at least five
servings of fruits and vegetables each day, along with whole grains
and lean proteins =14 get the vitamins and minerals they need.
Unfortunately, these days most Americans are falling short of that
goal. But reaching for a vitamin pill should not be the first step
toward solving that problem, Rimm says. "A supplement is called a
supplement because it's supposed to be supplementing a healthy
lifestyle," he said.
If your diet is just average, here's Rimm's advice: "Get yourself off
the average diet and move to a healthier diet, and exercise three
times a week."
Your A-B-C's
A diet that includes breakfast cereal, juices, dairy products and
fruits and vegetables means you're probably getting plenty of vitamin
A. Most of our vitamin A comes from a precursor vitamin, beta
carotene, found in the orange and red vegetables that we eat. And our
bodies are smart enough to make just the right amount. That's why
hardly anyone needs to take a vitamin A pill. In fact, excess amounts
of vitamin A in our body can be worrisome, Rimm said.
Another vitamin we hear about lately =14 because it's been added to our
packaged food, cereals and grains =14 is folate, a water soluble vitamin
B. Folate is im****tant for a developing fetus because it can reduce
neural tube defects. That's why the United States as well a number of
other countries fortify the flour supply with folate. Folate also has
been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease. But according to Rimm,
most healthy people do not need to take folate supplements. "We are
already getting more folate just from having hamburger buns and bread
with our sandwiches," he said.
Vitamin C is often taken in megadoses by people to fight colds and
relieve stress. But while taking vitamin C in excess doesn't seem
terribly dangerous, it's also not beneficial. The biggest thing it
gives you is expensive urine, Rimm says. "People who take a lot don't
use it and just get rid of it," Rimm said.
A Miracle Pill?
Recently, vitamin D deficiency has become a hot topic. Studies find
that 40 percent of Americans don't get enough vitamin D, commonly
known as the sun****ne vitamin. And vitamin D deficiency has been
linked to cancers and heart disease. Because most people are staying
out of the sun or using sunblock, and because we simply can't get
enough vitamin D from the foods we eat, Dr. Michael Holick, director
of the Vitamin D, Skin and Bone Research Laboratory at Boston
University School of Medicine, recommends that all adults and children
take a vitamin D supplement of 1,000 units every day.
Vitamin E was once considered the miracle vitamin pill, but new
studies have tempered that enthusiasm. It was thought that vitamin E
was the wonder drug for heart disease, but it turns out that for
patients already being treated with blood cholesterol medication and a
blood pressure medication, adding a vitamin E supplement does not
appear to be helpful. Now gene studies are helping identify which
individuals are deficient in antioxidants, and according to Rimm, "for
those people who are susceptible to oxidation, taking vitamin E is
beneficial for lowering the risk of heart disease."
What about the newly popular supplements like fish oils and omega-3
fatty acids?
Rimm said for people with heart disease and those at risk for heart
disease consuming enough fish or taking a fish oil supplement is
definitely beneficial. And even for healthy people, Rimm stresses the
im****tance of having fish in your diet. Rimm said that one to two
servings per week should do the trick. He suggested salmon, tuna and
shrimp for additional omega-3 fatty acids.
So what's the bottom line? According to the experts, eat a healthy
diet, but a generic multivitamin is a good nutritional safety net, and
don't forget to add 1,000 units of vitamin D. Rimm reminds people to
watch their weight, exercise and stop smoking. It's still the best way
to stay healthy.
Copyright =A9 2008 ABC News Internet Ventures
URL: http://abcnews.go.com/Health/story?id=3D5304089&page=3D1
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