Do you really need to take multivitamins?
IN order to optimally complete its daily tasks, the human body requires a variety of complex vitamins and minerals, and these are generally provided by a balanced diet. But as more people become fixated on achieving better health, taking supplements where there is a nutrient gap in their diet is thought to be a quick fix. Even people who eat balanced meals have been known to take supplements in a bid to be on the safe side.
Dietician and nutritionist Jenelle Solomon says the intended use of multivitamins is for supplementation only.
“Multivitamin supplements contain vitamins and minerals. The intended use is to supplement the diet where necessary, as opposed to making it a whole food substitute. This means that if you are consuming foods as outlined as part of a healthy diet, there is no need for them.”
She noted, however, that some people, because of their lifestyle, cultural, religious choices or pre-existing medical conditions, do not consume foods from the essential food groups and would therefore need these supplements.
For example, a person who does not eat meat because of their religious convictions will resort to B12 vitamins, calcium and iron to supplement the need.
Solomon was quick to point out, however, that getting the essential vitamins and minerals directly from the source is always best.
“A point for consumers to take into consideration is that whole foods are a better source of complete nutrition, because these foods normally contain more than just one particular nutrient, hence they offer more than just one specific health benefit. On the other hand, a particular supplement provides a particular vitamin or mineral. Take for example beans — they are high in fibre, contain protein, B vitamins, iron, zinc and magnesium.”
She said the downside of taking multivitamins increases when people begin to treat multivitamins like a nutritional insurance plan — chucking down several tablets a day. This results in overdosing, which introduces the exact thing you were trying to prevent — medical complications.
“When taking supplements, it’s easy for people to overdose because it almost becomes second nature to just swallow a pill. And it is important for these people to look for signs of toxicity associated with taking these — for example, weakness, lethargy, headaches and depression. There are also specific medical conditions that could be brought on with overdosing on specific vitamins and minerals.
These include the following:
•Vitamin E supplement overdoses may increase your risk of heart failure as well as premature death.
•Overdosing on vitamin A can be bad for your bones.
•Too much vitamin B-6 may cause nerve pain and seizures.
Solomon said that before you choose or use multivitamins, if you believe you must or if you have conditions which require you to, you must seek guidance from the appropriate health care professional to minimise the possibility of negative health consequences.
