Should I Take Vitamin And Mineral Supplements?

I am very happy to find others are also urging caution when it comes to vitamins and minerals. There may be health consequences of overdosing on vitamins and minerals. Caution is the right description and in some cases, certain supplements should only be taken under a doctor’s supervision.

A distinction often not explained is whether a supplement is water-soluble or fat-soluble. Most vitamins that are water-soluble are the safest as the excess that is not needed is passed from the body and does not build to toxic levels that create health concerns. On the other side, fat-soluble vitamins do build to toxic levels and excesses of these do create levels that can become toxic, cause severe illness and sometimes, but rarely, even death.

The best advice I can share with you is to do your homework before taking vitamins and minerals, and this includes multivitamin supplements. Do you know what foods are fortified and with what vitamins and minerals. This is an area that many people forget about and often overcompensate as a result.

How do you determine if you need supplements? This is one time that you seriously need to consider getting a referral to a registered dietitian (RD). Make sure they know that this is a consultation for vitamins and minerals. Most medical insurance will cover this, but if in doubt, call the medical insurance company and ask. They may have a suggestion or even be able to give you a referral to one they respect. Medicare does cover this for the people on Medicare.

Then before your appointment, you will need to do your homework. List the foods that you eat daily and do this for several weeks. List foods that you do not like and won't consume so that the RD will have alternate foods. Do not be afraid to say that you won't eat something if the RD suggests this. Do not let them bully you into saying that you will eat something. It may be that this will be the key to knowing that a particular vitamin may be needed as a supplement. If you are not fond of certain foods, decide whether you can eat them once a week or only once a month. And then, live up to this.

Then use these URLs to lookup and read information about vitamins, minerals, and even drug information if needed. Do not read part of the topic, but read to the end of the vitamin or mineral to find the conflicts with medications. Also note that it may say to only take them under the supervision of a knowledgeable healthcare provider or doctor. This is wise advice and should be followed.

http://www.umm.edu/altmed/Supplement.htm

http://www.umm.edu/altmed/Herb.htm

http://www.umm.edu/altmed/

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginformation.html

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/healthtopics_d.html

http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/minerals.html

http://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/everyone/basics/vitamins/

http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/minerals.html

http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/multivitamin-mineral.html

http://lpi.oregonstate.edu/infocenter/vitamins.html

The above are sources I use for information on vitamins and minerals. There are other sources if you use your search engine and want additional information on a particular vitamin or mineral. The sources above are more complete that many I have found. Be healthy, but know whether you need additional vitamins and minerals before spending money on these.

Just Diagnosed and In a Panic? Part 2

People may get tired of my stating this as some form of this is used in every blog I write about herbs, supplements, vitamins, minerals, and natural remedies. Until people realize how important this is, and how deadly ignoring this can be, I will continue to write this. I am a patient and not in the medical profession.

Because of some of the problems, and the fact that many people will not read labels, or follow their doctor's instructions, I feel compelled to say this for all non-medical subjects.

The following information is for your reading and is not a cure. I am not endorsing any herb, supplement, or natural remedy. At best, many have short-term benefits only until your body gets what it is missing, with a few exceptions.

WARNING! This is important!!! If you are taking supplements or anything not prescribed by a doctor, please make sure that the doctor is informed. Some supplements and natural remedies, when taken with oral medications and/or insulin can cause hypoglycemia, have toxic effects, or even cause death.

It is important that everyone maintain a list of every herb, vitamin, mineral, supplement, and home remedy you are taking and give a copy to your doctor (and do indicate anything new since the last visit). I am aware that many people do not feel this is important, but the consequences for persons with diabetes can have severe medical implications. If you have other medical problems plus diabetes, this may even be more critical.

One statement I get from the naturalists or homeopath followers is what I take is natural and found in nature - the doctor does not need to know. Wrong! Even natural herbal remedies can cause problems when used with prescribed medications. In the USA, not all are manufactured under the Food and Drug Administration's specifications, and some may not be quality checked. They can often have ingredients not mentioned on the label, and some even have chemicals added that when combined with prescriptions can cause severe reactions.

Vitamins: Vitamins can be very beneficial and sometimes are not emphasized enough. Vitamin D, Vitamin B12, and several others are critical if you are on some oral medications. Talk to your doctor about them. Metformin is an example as it can deplete the B12 and additional may be needed. If you have been on Metformin for a long time, your doctor should be testing you for B12 levels. Another issue is some lifestyles can be short of B12 and Omega-3's. See my blog here. I encourage people to find the lifestyle that is comfortable for them. The big caution here is understanding the nutritional needs to avoid problems.

Minerals: This should be divided into two groups, supplemental and trace minerals. WARNING, taking minerals should always be done under a doctors supervision to avoid problems with prescription medications and toxicity. Many people take too large a dosage of trace minerals for too long a period and this can lead to toxic side effects.

Some people avoid all the problems because they are consuming the right fruits and vegetables in quantities that have the vitamins and minerals in sufficient quantities. Talk to your doctor about doing the necessary tests. Most will not need to be done on a regular basis and most U.S. medical insurance companies will cover the tests on a yearly or longer basis. They will cover testing more often if problems are found.

Make sure the doctor covers the test results and gives you a copy for your records.

Part 2 of 3.  To read Part 1 and Part 3 of this blog, click on the links.