Do You Need to Take Vitamin Supplements?

Do You Need Vitamin Supplements?

Many people have gotten in the habit of taking a multivitamin or a vitamin supplement every day. They may have read about the benefits that certain vitamins provide and felt that it was something they needed more of. 

But unless you’re in a small minority of people, taking those, sometimes expensive, vitamin supplements aren’t doing you much good at all. Vitamin supplements were first designed to help balance out a diet that was lacking in certain nutrients and vitamins. They weren’t designed for healthy people that enjoyed a modern, balanced diet. 

At best, most people who eat a regular modern diet are getting very little from the vitamins they also consume. Most of the vitamin comes from the food we eat and is absorbed in the intestine walls as we digest our food. 

Taking vitamin supplements after we’ve had a balanced meal, as most people who take vitamins do, is like carrying an umbrella in the middle of a storm. It may provide a tiny bit of help, but not much. 

People Who Can Benefit from Vitamin Supplements

There are certain medical conditions that people may have where vitamins are beneficial, but the main groups of people who should take vitamins are pregnant women and the elderly. 

Pregnant women need folic acid, iron, calcium, vitamin D and DHA. And while these are all available in the foods we eat, they’re vital for a pregnant woman, and most doctors prescribe prenatal vitamins. 

The elderly may have problems chewing and digesting food, and they also have trouble absorbing vitamin B12. People over the age of 50 should take vitamin B12 supplements to ensure they’re getting enough.  

But for people who aren’t among these groups and eat a balanced and healthy diet of fresh green vegetables and a healthy protein source, taking vitamins can be like throwing money away.