Should we take a multivitamin every day? & bull; hello healthy

Multivitamins are considered by many to prevent heart disease, cancer, decreased brain performance, and also improve health. However, is this assumption correct? The answer can be yes or no. It really depends on how to use a daily multivitamin. Many researchers prohibit the use of multivitamins too often and for a long time, but until now many people ignore it.

You know that antibiotics should not be taken for a long period of time. Why? Because over time the body will become resistant to antibiotics. If antibiotics have such side effects if used too often, of course multivitamins are not much different.

Impact of multivitamins if consumed too often

Taking a multivitamin all the time may sound like a way to help cover your basic nutritional needs, especially if your diet doesn't meet the proper daily nutritional value. However, regularly getting excess vitamins and minerals can be dangerous for you. Please note that most vitamins contain 100% or more of vitamin A, vitamin C, iron and calcium. Too much vitamin C or zinc can cause stomach cramps, nausea, and diarrhea. Too much selenium can cause hair loss, indigestion, fatigue, and mild nerve damage.

According to Johanna Dwyer, a senior research scientist from National Institutes of Health's Office of Dietary Supplements, Vitamin D, calcium, and folic acid are three nutrients that you often get too much of. Taking too much vitamin D can cause serious heart problems.

Moreover, in an editorial journal Annals of Internal Medicine entitled " Enough is Enough: Stop Wasting Money on Vitamin and Mineral Supplements , "Researchers from Johns Hopkins Hospital reviewed some of the evidence regarding supplements, namely:

An analysis of studies involving 450,000 people found that multivitamins did not lower the risk of heart disease or cancer.
A study that tracked the mental function and multivitamin use of 5,947 men over 12 years found that multivitamins did not reduce the risk of mental decline, such as memory loss or slowness of thinking.
A study of 1,708 heart attack survivors who took high-dose multivitamins and a placebo for 55 months, ended up experiencing heart surgery and death at similar rates in both groups.

How to take a multivitamin safely?

1. Put food as the first priority

"Nutritionists recommend food as a top priority, because food provides a variety of vitamins, minerals, and also other dietary factors that are not found in vitamin or mineral supplements," explained Penny Kris-Etherton, a nutrition lecturer at Pennsylvania State University's College of Health and Human Development .

For example, he points out that food provides many bioactive compounds and dietary fiber that are not normally found in supplements. And, some supplements do not allow for the full absorption of the vitamin.

"When taken on an empty stomach without food, some of the fat-soluble vitamins are not absorbed as well as when the supplements are taken with foods that provide fat," Kris-Etherton says.

2. Multivitamins are only complementary

If diet is the key to getting the best vitamins and minerals, then supplements are a complement to your diet. For example, if you've been doing your best to eat a healthy diet, but are still feeling deficient in some places, then a multivitamin supplement can help. You are advised to use supplements if a health professional has recommended them to you.

"Supplements will generally provide 100% of all the daily needs of vitamins and minerals in the body," said Kris-Etherton. "Therefore, many nutritionists would agree that supplements can be taken if nutritional needs are not met by a diet based on a healthy diet."