Vitamins - Worth the Cost?

[Walt34]

Quote:

Originally Posted by braumeister Brewer's yeast should always be taken in its most natural form, as the product of a good brewery.

I like your style of thinking.

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tangomonster ... Ideally, I think it's best to get vitamins and minerals from food, but that's not realistic for lots of people. ...

Why not?

-ERD50

[Helen]

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Originally Posted by tangomonster And a part of me believes that there must be something to a multi-vitamin because I recently tested with high levels of B-12 (my multivitamin provides over 100% of this) and there is no way I could have reached these levels on my own with my diet (vegan; most vegans are deficient in B-12).

Thanks for sharing this. I haven't eaten red meat or poultry since 1976 and last year I went vegan. I have been supplementing with Emergen-C powder packets from Costco.

I think I will ask my doctor to test me for B-12 when I go in for my annual physical in January.

[tangomonster]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ERD50 Why not? -ERD50

Because most people eat the standard American diet, for whatever reason (preference, lack of time or interest in cooking or seeking out proper nutrition). Aren't French fries the #1 veggie most people eat? And how many people cook their own food rather than just eating out or heating up processed food? Even though they insist on big "gourmet/professional" kitchens, they still don't want to cook (or eat well)...

[Nemo2]

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Originally Posted by ls99 A fellow I knew,used to say, you do know what fish do in water? He was single malt afficionado.

Wow, you knew W.C. Fields?

[Amethyst]

Even if you eat only "healthy" foods (and what are those healthy foods, anyway? Just read the various dietary threads on this forum to get totally confused on that score!) unless you are also very active, you may not be able to consume enough nutrients without gaining weight. A petite elderly woman might need only 1,500 calories a day.

Amethyst

Quote:

Originally Posted by tangomonster Because most people eat the standard American diet, for whatever reason (preference, lack of time or interest in cooking or seeking out proper nutrition). Aren't French fries the #1 veggie most people eat? And how many people cook their own food rather than just eating out or heating up processed food? Even though they insist on big "gourmet/professional" kitchens, they still don't want to cook (or eat well)...

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ERD50 Quote: Originally Posted by tangomonster ... Ideally, I think it's best to get vitamins and minerals from food, but that's not realistic for lots of people. ... Why not? -ERD50

Quote:

Originally Posted by tangomonster Because most people eat the standard American diet, for whatever reason (preference, lack of time or interest in cooking or seeking out proper nutrition). Aren't French fries the #1 veggie most people eat? And how many people cook their own food rather than just eating out or heating up processed food? Even though they insist on big "gourmet/professional" kitchens, they still don't want to cook (or eat well)...

A couple things - first, you changed the goal posts from your original statement. I questioned your statement that getting vitamins from their food is 'not realistic for lots of people'. What is realistic to achieve is different than what 'most people are doing'.

That's like saying it isn't realistic to LBYM since many do not.

Second, I really don't know just how deficient in vitamins and minerals a typical diet is, or what it would take to augment it. As others have said, just what is a 'healthy' diet? And does adding vitamins and minerals in pill form really help, or does the benefit come from the food that contains those vitamins/minerals?

-ERD50

[bjorn2bwild]

Without a strong preference for mashed yeast and alfalfa sprouts (Annie Hall), vegans and some vegetarians on an unsupplemented diet are at risk for B-12 deficiency. Also vitamin D if they live in a northern climate and/or are sun shy.
The typical american diet is fotified with vitamins.

[tangomonster]

ERD, you're right---I shouldn't have said it's not realistic---it's a very realistic goal and worthwhile endeavor to get good nutrition. What I should have said is that most people don't seem to be setting optimal nutrition as a goal and/or striving to achieve it....

[Khan]

I used to take large amounts of vitamins and other supplements. After a lot of reading, have stopped as they ran out. Think I will keep up with the daily senior multiple.

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by tangomonster ERD, you're right---I shouldn't have said it's not realistic---it's a very realistic goal and worthwhile endeavor to get good nutrition. What I should have said is that most people don't seem to be setting optimal nutrition as a goal and/or striving to achieve it....

OK, I'd go along with that, with the caveat that I don't think we have a good handle on what 'good nutrition' is.

-ERD50

[galeno]

No. Vitamins are not worth it. Get your vitamins from FOOD and from the SUN (if you can).

Regarding "optimal nutrition" I say go 80/20. Eat right 80% of the time and eat "wrong" 20% of the time.

"Optimal nutrition" tastes yucky.

[obgyn65]

I would only follow AAFP's recommendations regarding vitamins.

[ls99]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nemo2 Wow, you knew W.C. Fields?

Did not know it was his line.

Eh, so he used it without giving credit. Shocking I tell ya.


By the way my favorite W.C. Fields line: Step aside boy, you draw flies!

[Damienqwerty]

I eat bee pollen. It has every nutrient, mineral phytonutrient, fatty acids etc in it. Research it's composition. It has everything the human body needs all in organic form. Also it's cheap as dirt. I buy 5 lbs a time for 50 bucks then Freeze it. If you not allergic to it and want every supplement on your shelf all at once in a natural way I'd say its the best you can do. It makes me feel like superman

[aja8888]

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Originally Posted by Damienqwerty I take bee pollen....... It makes me feel like superman

Better check to see if your are growing a set of wings and a stinger...

[REWahoo]

Does it give you a buzz?

[Rich_by_the_Bay]

Quote:

Originally Posted by REWahoo Does it give you a buzz?

A stinging but bumbling response.

[NW-Bound]

I used to take only a baby aspirin a day and nothing else. Recently, while recovering from surgeries and not having my usual diet, I took a multivitamin pill to make sure I had enough and that was it. Not a vegan, but I normally eat huge amounts of vegetable. My salad plate often looks like what you would feed a family of four. It is not for health reasons as much as I need it as a non-caloric filler to satisfy my voracious appetite and not gain weight (BMI of 23 as I speak).

My mother-in-law is a vegan and my wife gets her some B-12 to make sure she is not deficient. Recently, out of curiosity I looked at the label, and holy mackerel, each pill supplies something like 1000X the recommended daily requirement! I asked my wife if she knew if this was really needed. So, we switched to something that was a mere 100X the requirement.

One of my relatives had vitamin D deficiency that caused her a lot of health problems, until her doctor figured this out. She had been avoiding the sun, and did not spend enough time outdoors. How could one expect vitamin D deficiency in a young person in a place where the sun shines 99% of the time? Obviously, if she had taken a multivitamin pill a day, it would save her from much misery and expenses too.

[zinger1457]

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Originally Posted by bjorn2bwild Also vitamin D if they live in a northern climate and/or are sun shy. The typical american diet is fotified with vitamins.

I live in Arizona and golf (walking) at least 3 times a week and during my last blood test my vitamin D was low so the Doctor told me to start taking vitamin D supplements. I've read conflicting reports about the effects of sunscreen and Vitamin D absorption but even those of us in the sunny south need to be on the watch.