I'd be interested in hearing people's thoughts on taking vitamin supplements. Do you think they really help at all/make a difference in health?
I've read where they don't really even get absorbed into your body to do any good. I've been taking a multi-vitamin for the past couple of years. I can't really say whether they do any good or not. I have at times gone a couple of months without taking them and see no difference. But maybe it's just subtle difference that is beneficial over years?
I've taken the less expensive kind that mass retailers sell (Walmart, Target etc) and the one's I've been taking for the past couple of years are from the brand that makes the prostate supplement I have dh taking. My thought process has been this: this supplement he has been taking got rid of his prostate cancer! Obviously it works and obviously whatever this company is putting in their supplements must be effective, so I started buying their women's 55+ multivitamin. This vitamin costs me about $230 a year. (Dh's prostate supplement costs about $365 a year and I am not stopping that one)
For info, in case anyone is wondering, the brand is New Chapter. I haven't seen them in stores, but several online places (even Amazon) like VitaCost, sell them as well as you can get direct from New Chapter.
Am I just wasting $230 a year? Could this $230 be better spent on something else, healthwise, that would be more beneficial? Would I be getting just as much benefit (if I even am) by just spending $37 a year on a cheaper multivitamin.
For comparison, there does seem to be quite a bit of difference in what is in something like OneADay multivitamin compared to New Chapters, which also has some various organic herbs for digestive and hormone support.
One A Day:
New Chapter:
I'm the type of person that needs to see tangible results (like with dh's prostate supplement from New Chapter) and I've never felt like I've gotten anything out of vitamins, when I have tried taking them over the years. I know there are people that take all kinds of supplements and swear by them. If that's you - what benefits are you experiencing? I just feel like I am kind of wasting my money and really only getting some psychological benefit, where I think it must be helping me.
I take a few different New Chapter vitamins and I'm relatively healthy so I like to think they are working. If you suffer from any inflammation, (which almost everyone does) I can highly recommend Zyflamend. (Can be found at Amazon or most Health Food Stores) I had the beginning stages of arthritis and a bout with trigger finger. It was recommended to me and it worked. Within a month, the trigger finger released. Now after a few years taking it, I have little to no joint pain or swelling anywhere.
ReplyDeleteThe Zylfamend Prostate is the one dh takes. We certainly swear by that one!
DeleteI have hesitated to mention this, but my Dh also got a prostate cancer diagnosis about the same time as your Dh, and then his also went away. His dr told him for some reason men who had Covid were having this happen. He said he had multiple patients like this. He had no explanation, but Dh has been fine with every test since.
ReplyDeleteDiane
Dh didn't get Covid until after he had his prostate cancer diagnosis. I had put him on that supplement and 4 months later when he had his next biopsy it was gone. Dr had no explanation other than to say sometimes one biopsy will show cancer and another won't, due to the samples being in different areas. How then is that very helpful that they catch the cancer? But also his last visit they did an MRI of his prostate and that also said no cancer present. I'm glad your dh's went away, too!
Deleteinteresting about covid and prostate cancer. I had covid in July . 3 weeks after lot of swollen lymph nodes went to dr and i have a rare lymphoma angioimmunoblastic tcell. I have had three chemo treatments so far pet scan this week to see where cancer is or if any improvement. I feel it was related to the covid. I wonder if there is a vitamin that would help. Joyce
DeleteThis zyflamend seems to be helpful in prostate and pancreatic cancer cells, not sure of other types of cancers. Do you have much sugar? I have been reading a lot lately that says sugar causes/feeds cancer cells.
Deletethat is true on the sugar been working on cutting it out of my diet. Because I love sugar. They want me to do a stem cell treatment 3 hours from home and a month stay in hospital. I am trying to avoid that. Joyce
DeleteDh has an acquaintance who's wife got dx with breast cancer about a year ago - among other things, she completely cut sugar out of her diet and almost immediately he said her tumor shrank.
DeleteThose that seem to know reckon we probably get our recommended dose of vitamins through our food but I have put myself on vitamins when I've felt less than 100%.
ReplyDeleteOne vitamin that can help people who live in areas of the globe that don't get a lot of sunshine - UK for instance! - is vitamin D. I was diagnosed with low vitamin D and told to take OTC ones. vitamins.
I've heard that about Vitamin D as well. I did see on my last annual bloodwork, vitiamin d was checked and it was in the good range - but not sure if that's because I'm getting extra from the supplement or not! I have dh on Vitamin D as well
DeleteTalk to your doctor at your next physical.
ReplyDeleteHonestly, I find doctors to not be of much info/help at all. They are just very vague and most seem to have zero interest in spending much time discussing anything. Kind of like the book I just read by a doctor - she said her medical schooling and training had zero learning about nutrition for health. Dh's urologist certainly wouldn't have suggested dh take that Zyflamend Prostate supplement and when we went back and his cancer was gone and I brought up that's what he started taking he didn't even acknowledge what I said.
DeleteI do take a multivitamin and a fish oil supplement. Mostly I take them for my own peace of mind. Ha! I know I don't always get enough fresh fruits and vegetables (or even canned or frozen) as is "recommended", so I take a supplement to make me feel better about the way I eat. I just purchase the mass produced ones. I figure if they don't physically do much for my health, they help me mentally not worry and that is proven to benefit my health! Take it or leave it, it works for me!
ReplyDeleteA few years ago my Vit D and B-12 levels were very low. Low B-12 was side effect from taking Metformin. Started taking D and B-12 vitamins and the next year the levels were normal. I also now take a daily multivitamin. I eat healthy wholefoods. But since supplementing D & B12 worked, I plan on continuing.
ReplyDeleteI already commented but I just happened to run across this quote from The NY Times:
ReplyDelete"Healthy people, even those over 50 like myself, should not feel compelled to add a multivitamin or other supplement to their diet to stay healthy."
Dr. Pieter Cohen
Associate professor at Harvard Medical School