Think Twice Before You Take These 10 Supplements
Wonder why the multivitamin or supplement
that works so well for your neighbor or family member doesn’t seem to do
it for you? The answer may be simpler than you think - it simply
doesn’t fulfill your body’s needs. If you’re tired of taking a handful
of vitamin pills that do nothing for your body, you’ll want to read this
article.
The fact of the matter is these 10 supplements are notoriously overused,
and most people really don’t have to include them in their daily
regimen. In fact, taking too much of some of them can be really harmful.
Vitamin A
Some vitamins are tougher to get from the
diet than others. When it comes to vitamin A, the risk of vitamin
deficiency is very low. Moreover, taking vitamin A through supplements
when your diet is already rich in this vitamin does more harm than good.
Taking too much vitamin A can lead to headaches, dizziness, blurred
vision, nausea, skin irritation, and joint pain. These symptoms can
linger for a few days because vitamin A is fat-soluble and can stay in
the fat cells of the body for a long time.
What does this all mean?
Here’s a quick explanation.
Vitamins come in two varieties - water-soluble and fat-soluble. Now,
this difference is very important for everyone to remember because
fat-soluble vitamins can build up in the body and trigger toxic
symptoms, causing a condition called hypervitaminosis. The risk of
getting vitamin toxicity from water-soluble vitamins is very low, as any
excess amounts are easily eliminated from the body through urine.
If you follow a Western diet, full of fresh
vegetables and fruit, your chances of getting a vitamin A deficiency
are extremely low.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C supplements are touted as a
popular cold medicine, but taking excessive doses will not make you
recover faster or prevent colds - according to a 2013 review article
that lists a number of experiments on the subject.
Generally speaking, getting the recommended 75 milligrams (mg) of
vitamin C for women and 90 mg for men is very easy. Just one orange or
red bell pepper contains more vitamin C than you need in a day. And
taking any more of it will just be eliminated from your body through
urine, so all those pricy vitamin C gummies and vitamins will literally
go down the drain.
Biotin
Those looking to strengthen their nails and
improve hair growth often turn to biotin supplements. Supplement
companies will quote studies conducted on alopecia sufferers with a
biotin deficiency who saw an improvement in hair regrowth after taking a
biotin supplement to market their products. But this evidence doesn’t
mean that biotin will be helpful for everyone who has thinning hair or
brittle nails.
As Ginger Hultin, a dietitian and nutritionist, pointed out to The
Healthy, “biotin, for example — unless there is an outright deficiency,
it’s not proven to help.” Therefore, taking biotin if you’re not
deficient in biotin won’t help regrow your hair. In fact, biotin
deficiencies are rather rare because it is abundant in many everyday
foods. Eggs, almonds, sunflower seeds, dairy, fish, broccoli, and
spinach are just some examples.
Moreover, remember that overdoing it with biotin harms the body, causing
stomach upsets, skin rashes, insulin release issues, and liver and
kidney damage. So it’s best to stay away from biotin supplements -
unless you’re truly deficient and were prescribed one by your doctor.
Most B vitamins
Like all of the nutrients we listed
previously, the eight B vitamins are necessary for everyone’s health.
Luckily, the majority of B vitamins, except for vitamin B12, can be
easily procured from everyday foods like chicken, fish, and fruit and
vegetables. Many grains are also fortified with B vitamins, which means
that you’re already getting a B complex vitamin supplement built into
your morning bowl of granola or a slice of whole-grain bread, even if
you’re vegan.
Overdosing on B vitamins can also be quite dangerous. For instance,
those who take excessive amounts of vitamin B6 can get neuropathic pain
in the nerves, and men who take too much of this vitamin, in particular,
have a higher risk of lung cancer.
There is no general recommendation to supplement any of these vitamins.
All that being said, B vitamin deficiencies are a little more common
than others, mainly in people who follow a vegetarian or vegan diet,
older adults, and pregnant women. A general blood test will be able to
show if you’re deficient in any B vitamins right away.
Vitamin E
Vitamin E oil can be safely used on your
skin, but beyond the topical use, medical experts are increasingly
telling laypersons to stay away from vitamin E capsules and focus on
food sources of vitamin E instead. This shift is spurred by recent
studies linking vitamin E supplements with an increased risk of cancer
and death, especially in men.
The risk is the highest in people who take extremely high amounts of
vitamin E - up to 400 International Units (IU) while the daily
recommended intake is 22 IU. Luckily, vitamin E is very abundant in most
nuts, seeds, cooking oils, and even vegetables like pumpkins, peppers,
and avocados, so getting enough of it from foods isn’t a challenge at
all.
Calcium
Calcium is essential for strong and healthy
bones, but getting this nutrient from supplements may actually be
harmful. "The newest research indicates that calcium supplements may not
actually get into the bone as desired, and instead can calcify arteries
and soft tissues, increasing your risk of heart disease," said Dr.
Lorraine Maita, a diplomate of the American Academy of Anti-Aging and
Regenerative Medicine to Prevention.com.
It’s also known that calcium supplements can lead to kidney stones in
people at risk of this condition. Therefore, it’s so much safer to
receive all the calcium you need from dairy, fish, beans, almonds, or
even leafy green vegetables or broccoli.
Iron
Iron is another type of mineral supplement
you should never start taking on your own, as it can be quite dangerous.
Excessive intake of iron through supplements can create grave health
effects. Even a minor overdose of iron leads to constipation or
digestive issues.
But long-term overconsumption of this metal can damage the heart,
trigger cirrhosis in the liver, and even contributes to certain cancers.
So it’s highly advised to never start taking iron supplements without
your doctor’s recommendation. And besides, it’s much safer to increase
your iron levels through foods like dark chocolate, lentils, beef,
chicken, beans, or even oysters.
Zinc
Like
Like vitamin C, zinc is often considered to boost the immune system,
which is why some zinc supplements now come in the form of a nasal
spray. However, the Mayo Clinic warns that taking such nasal sprays with
zinc can lead to a permanent loss of smell, so please avoid these
completely. According to a recent review study that encompasses 28
trials, zinc doesn’t ease or prevent the symptoms of a cold, but it can
slightly shorten the duration of the symptoms.
Although zinc is essential for everyone and has a plethora of health
benefits, most adults get enough zinc from their diets.
Antioxidant Blends
Antioxidants are pretty amazing, but excessive amounts of them can
increase the risk of heart disease, and cancer, and they can mess with
certain medications too. The problem lies within the supplements
themselves, as manufacturers pack in extremely high doses of
antioxidants in each pill, significantly more than you’d ever be able to
take from natural sources. As the famous saying goes, the dose makes
the poison.
If you want to experience all the anti-inflammatory benefits of
antioxidants, it’s much better to get them from a variety of natural
sources, such as fruits, vegetables, or even “guilty pleasures” like
coffee or dark chocolate.
Iodine
Back in the 1990s, iodine tablets and iodized salt were recommended for
people all across Europe and the former USSR. The reason behind this was
not the low iodine soil content in these areas of the world. It was the
Chornobyl Nuclear Disaster, in the aftermath of which thyroid cancer
risks have skyrocketed. Iodine supplementation was used to help prevent
this life-threatening condition.
And this grave example from history only goes to show that blanket
iodine supplementation recommendations are not made lightly. In fact,
taking too much iodine can cause an underactive thyroid, also known as
hypothyroidism. Other symptoms of iodine toxicity are headaches, an
upset stomach, and a runny nose. Medical experts warn that you should
never take iodine supplements without your doctor’s recommendation.
Multivitamins
A multivitamin a day keeps the doctor away, right? If only things were
so simple, then doctors would have recommended them to all of us. Yet,
you rarely catch doctors taking multivitamins themselves, let alone
recommending them to clients. The rare exceptions are some patients who
have severe digestive issues like Crohn’s disease, or Celiac. Not only
are multivitamins underregulated, so you never really know what they
contain, but they also often contain heavy metals that our body only
needs in trace amounts. Taking excessive amounts of such metals like
nickel, copper, and chromium with your multivitamin makes them deposit
in your tissues. In fact, some researchers even link such heavy metal
deposits in the brain to dementia.
The bottom line is, like any other aspect of your health, nutrient
supplementation should be matched to your body, lifestyle, and
individual needs. A tailored approach where your specific medical needs
are met will be the best for your short- and long-term well-being.