Vitamin supplements promise to boost your health, energy, and longevity but do they actually work? Despite their popularity and a global market worth billions, research shows that most supplements offer little benefit to those with a balanced diet. While our bodies do need essential vitamins and minerals, they’re required in small amounts, and overconsumption can lead to serious health risks- including seizures, coma, or even death. We break down the science behind supplements, the controversy around their effectiveness, and why food might be your best source of nutrients.
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Health | Lifestyle | Multivitamin Supplements | Medicine | Eating Habits | Diseases | Firstpost | World News | News Live | Vantage | Palki Sharma | News
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Want glowing skin, glossy hair, better sleep, longer life? Why don’t you take a vitamin supplement? If you have heard this advice before, you’re not alone. From doctors to Tik Tok influencers, everyone is recommending supplements. And you can choose what kind. Pills, injections, gummies, even cutesy patches. Together, they make up a multi-billion dollar global market. In 2022, it stood at 48 billion. 48 billion multivitamins. By the end of this decade, it is poised to reach $85 billion. But can multivitamins really hack your health? Should all of us be taking them? To understand this, let’s go back to basics. Our bodies need different kind of nutrients. Carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals. And these last two vitamins and minerals are called micronutrients because we need them in small amounts. But they’re important nonetheless. For instance, we need vitamin C for a healthy immune system. We need vitamin A for good eyesight and skin. As for minerals, we need calcium for stronger bones and magnesium for good muscle function. So, vitamins and minerals are crucial. But the problem is our bodies do not make them. We get them from food, from a healthy diet. And we already know this. But not many of us eat healthy food. So, enter supplements. They promise to bridge the gap to satisfy some of our nutritional needs and sometimes they do. There is evidence that popping multivitamin pills can help. Studies have shown a slightly lower risk of cancer and heart disease, a big reduction in cognitive decline. Some even show slower aging. And yet supplements are a controversial topic because for every study that shows you the benefits, there are many more telling you the complete opposite. For instance, research also shows that multivitamins do not improve heart health, do not reduce the risk of certain cancers, and make no difference to your lifespan. Plus, if we consume too much of them, there are big risks. For instance, if people take too much vitamin D, they can suffer from seizures, coma, and even death. Excess of vitamin A can cause blurred vision, nausea, dizziness, even coma and death. So, supplements can be a dangerous proposition. And this is not because all supplements are bad, but because their dosage is often incorrect. So people end up mega dozing, overdosing. Maybe because they do not know when to stop or because they buy tainted, unregulated products like the ones often pushed on social media. They can contain 500, even 1,000% of the recommended allowance. So coming back to the original question, do you really need vitamin supplements? Again, the answer is complicated. After all, science is still debating the benefits and sometimes things can go very wrong. So, there is no one right answer. But here’s what you can do. First, unlearn the myths. We have all heard that vitamin C can cure a cold or that overdosing on it can save you from cancer or heart disease. None of which is true. This theory has been debunked. So, do your homework. Secondly, talk to a do doctor whom you trust. Too many of us take too many supplements. Look at the numbers. In India, 71% people take supplements. In the US, 74%. In Australia, nearly half the population. But a majority of us do not need them. Because if if one thing if there’s one thing that science is clear on, it is this. Supplements help, but only in specific cases like with vegans, pregnant or older people, and in limited doses. For most of us, a healthy diet is the answer because it is more than sufficient. It gives us all the nutrients we need. Plus, it works fast because vitamins from food are absorbed more easily, which is why multivitamins have a nickname, expensive urine. So simply put, not enough is known about many supplements. Their risks, their benefits, or their correct dosage, and what’s on the packaging can be very different from what’s inside the product. So always check with your doctor, use caution, and know that there is no magic pill for good health. [Music]
