Growing up, it was part of my daily routine to eat breakfast, and take a multivitamin before heading off to school. Nowadays, that vitamin is not a part of my routine, so does that mean I am in danger of vitamin deficiency? The answer is, of course, no–apparently that single vitamin was not the last line of defense between me and scurvy. What is the point of these multivitamins then, and how relevant are they to health?
At the most basic level, vitamins are organic molecules and essential micronutrients needed for proper cell functioning and metabolism. For example, Vitamin A can work as an antioxidant, and assist in visual acuity and immune function; Vitamin D is used for calcium absorption, and differentiation of macrophages; Vitamin K is used for blood coagulation and bone calcification, and so on and so forth for other the essential vitamins. A significant deficiency in any of these vitamins could have disastrous results for some of the functions they are involved with. For example, as I listed earlier Vitamin K is used in bone calcification, so a deficiency could lead to bone disorders (Shenkin, 2008). The good news is that if you are a typically healthy individual with a well-rounded diet, there is a good chance you are not in any danger of a Vitamin K deficiency- or any other vitamin for that matter.
Data collected between 2003 and 2006 by the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHNES) demonstrated that about half of the United States population over 50 regularly consumes multivitamins, demonstrating the prevalence of consumption for these vitamins (Kamangar et al., 2012). In randomized studies over the past couple decades, results have shown that multivitamins taken regularly by typically healthy individuals do not have any significant impact in preventing maladies such as heart disease, cancer, and stroke. In fact, several subsequent trials similarly found that regular vitamin supplement intake has no real beneficial or harmful impact on the subject’s long term health status (Kamangar et al., 2012).
All of this is not to say that vitamin supplements are unnecessary-if you were informed by a healthcare practitioner that you could benefit from vitamin D, for example, then by all means fulfill your prescription. Instead, perhaps consider saving those few dollars that would have gone to restocking the inconsequential multivitamins on your shelf.
References:
Kamangar, Farin, and Ashkan Emadi. “Vitamin and mineral supplements: do we really need
them?.” International journal of preventive medicine vol. 3,3 (2012): 221-6.
Shenkin, Alan. “Basics in Clinical Nutrition: Physiological Function and Deficiency States of
Vitamins.” e-SPEN, the European e-Journal of Clinical Nutrition and Metabolism, vol. 3, no. 6, 2008, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eclnm.2008.06.008.
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ReplyDeleteInteresting insights Miranda! I think it's also important to consider the fact that not everyone uses vitamins in the manners listed above, and they are very useful in nutritionally deficient individuals or certain medical situations. For example, an individual who may have an unbalanced diet (whether by intention or by a lack of nutritional outcomes) would certainly benefit from vitamin supplementation. Furthermore, I found an article that talks about the reduction of serious birth defects in women who take pre-natal vitamin supplements (Oh et al., 2020). I make these points not because I disagree with the purpose of your post, because I agree that the average individual does not need supplemental vitamins. However, I think that in the future it's important for us to educate individuals about the benefits of vitamin supplements when appropriate. Someone who may need supplemental vitamins (and not know it) could see the presented data and form an impression that vitamin supplements are a waste of money. This would be extremely unfortunate if this individual's provider was to recommend they begin taking vitamin supplements, as refusal based on their pre-conceived notions could result in a negative outcome to their overall health.
ReplyDeleteOh, C., Keats, E. C., & Bhutta, Z. A. (2020). Vitamin and Mineral Supplementation During Pregnancy on Maternal, Birth, Child Health and Development Outcomes in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Nutrients, 12(2), 491. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu12020491
This was a super interesting post Miranda, and I loved your comedic personal connection! As someone who also had a mother (I’m assuming she was the one making you take the vitamins) that insisted on vitamins growing up, I can definitely relate to choking down that awful, chalky, “orange-flavored” Barney Rubble every morning with my equally gross cow’s milk, (what a combo). Over the last couple of years in conversation with my friend Allie who is in pharmacy school, I have come to realize the only effective way to get your vitamins and nutrients is through your diet. In an article I found online by Johns Hopkins Medicine, the pros and cons of taking vitamins and dietary supplements are discussed and ultimately a conclusion is drawn as to that there is really no benefit to taking them, other than to continue lining the pockets of big-pharma execs (Johns Hopkins Medicine, 2021). Although, the article does mention that pregnant women should/can take folic acid supplements if they are not getting enough folic acid from their diets, in order to reduce the risk of neural tube defects in babies (Johns Hopkins Medicine, 2021). On the contrary, the article does also mention that beta-carotene and vitamin E supplements can be especially harmful in high doses (Johns Hopkins Medicine, 2021). Hope I could offer some additional insight and we can continue to bond over our childhood trauma of flintstone vitamins.
ReplyDeletehttps://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/wellness-and-prevention/is-there-really-any-benefit-to-multivitamins