Multivitamins

Are Multivitamins Good For You?
By Maggie Flowe

The food supply is getting stripped of vitamins, your doctor says you need more of them; but to lose weight you go on a low carb diet that is removing almost every vegetable known to man. You turn to a multivitamin because the guy at the store says that it is what you need to make sure that you're staying healthy. But are multivitamins good for you? You'd be surprised at what conventional "advice" is telling you that you might not want to listen to.

The following information is for educational purposes only, and out of recommendation. You, however, are free to choose to take your vitamins however way you wish to take them. However, I am merely asking that you read this information carefully, and then make the decision.

The Bad:
Let's start off with the bad news first. Few people realize that when a multivitamin is swallowed in any other form other than food-form, they are not getting nearly as many vitamins as they think. Sure, the bottle says there are such-n-such grams of the vitamin, but your body expels the majority of it. Why? Because the stomach destroys these vitamins in their processed and chemically enhanced form. It registers them as foreign.
Also, with such a concentrated dose; and the digestive system not working within its proper bounds (because it's a pill, not a food), the body doesn't absorb as much as it's given. It throws out what it doesn't need, and absorbs what it does.

The Good:
The good part is that multivitamins give you SOME of the vitamins you need. However improperly packaged as they are, you ARE getting some nutrient intake. But there is a "right" multivitamin to get.
The right multivitamin supplement that you should be getting has the following qualities:

1. It is made from quality, natural ingredients.
2. It is not chemically packaged.
3. It should not be shelved long, or else, should have an extremely long shelf-life.

If you take care to use these three things as guidelines, you'll be sure to get multivitamins good for you.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Maggie_Flowe


How Important Are Multivitamins To Overall Health?
By Tim Gorman

A great deal of discussion has occurred in recent years on the subject whether or not vitamin supplementation is a good idea or even necessary. Mostly, it's agreed that taking a daily multivitamin supplement is safe, and good ones are generally considered effective. It's a better choice than developing the unpleasant symptoms of a mineral or vitamin deficiency.
It seems that life for most of us has become a great deal more hectic in modern times, which means more hastily prepared meals or regular fast food meals. A lot of people spend long hours at work, which makes eating out an easy option. This may be more convenient, but it means we're losing control of what we eat. Portion sizes in most restaurants are often double or triple recommended levels. Saturated fats and artery-clogging oils are often used during preparation.
Eating out, however, is only one part of the problem. Far too many people are living with stress, which has a negative effect on the body. Stress can often diminish the nutritional value of the food you eat. It's not always easy to escape from stress, or from eating at odd time or eating on the run. Even worse, skipping meals is something that far too many people do on a regular basis.
So we have nutritionally inadequate food, stress, lack of exercise, and poor eating habits in general all working together to ruin our chances of eating a healthy, balanced diet. But these are precisely the reasons why so many people are turning to multivitamin supplements.
Perhaps you recognize yourself and your own habits above. If so, it's quite likely that you'd benefit from a daily multivitamin supplement. Generally it's not necessary to consult with a doctor first. If your health is generally good and you're not on any medication, it will be sufficient to take a multivitamin that provides the recommended daily allowances.
With water-soluble vitamins, it's difficult to over-supplement, as the body processes any of the vitamins it doesn't use and then eliminates the excess in the urine. Water-soluble vitamins include the B-vitamins and Vitamin C.
Other vitamin are fat soluble, including Vitamins A and D, and these are different because the body stores any excess amounts. Even if you take slightly more than the recommended daily allowances, however, you still shouldn't notice any adverse effects. However excessive consumption is not a good idea, and may even result in health issues.
Multivitamin supplements are like most things in life - moderation is the answer. Remember that many day-to-day foods are now fortified with vitamins and minerals, particularly orange juice and cereals. If at any time you're not sure about the right amount of supplementation to use, then consult with either your doctor or a nutritionist with experience in supplementation.
If you've decided that taking a multivitamin supplement is a good idea, all you need to do is go out and buy one! You can buy multivitamin supplements in tablet or pill form, and also as a liquid. There are plenty of brands to choose from, so it's probably worth spending some time reading the labels and looking for a manufacturer whose name is familiar to you. Taking multivitamin supplements may not solve everything, but they can help improve your overall level of health.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Tim_Gorman

What to look for in a Multivitamin
By: Dr. George Obikoya

We all need to take multivitamins. The American Medical Association recently recommended that all Americans should take a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement 1. This is because our diets cannot provide us with all the vitamins and nutritional supplements we need. Yet, with the vast array of vitamins out in the market, it is no wonder that many of us don’t know which one to buy. This is despite new labeling laws mandating manufacturers to provide more information on their labels to inform consumers. This information is often too technical for people to understand and can sometimes even be printed too small to read. Here are some useful tips to keep in mind when shopping for vitamins. The first thing you want to know what the constituents of the vitamins you want to buy are. What additional nutrients do they contain? If they contained the vitamins you are looking for, you should next find out what their percentages of the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) are. Vitamins should be at least 100% of the RDA. Minerals except iron, fluoride, phosphorus and electrolytes such as sodium and potassium should be at least 50%. Be sure to look check the mineral content of the product. Many multivitamin preparations do not have sufficient minerals because they occupy too much space. Do the vitamins meet United States Pharmacopoeia (USP) requirements? Some vitamins only meet the National Formulary criteria, quality control standards currently unavailable for some products. What about dosing? Is the multivitamins supposed to be taken once daily or three times daily? Is the dosing what you want? Check the individual vitamins in the product. Is Vitamin A from non-toxic beta-carotene, its safest form What about Vitamin D? Is it D2 (synthetic, ergocalciferol) or D3 (natural, cholecalciferol)? This is important because obese individuals may be unable to convert D2 to the active form of vitamin D critical for healthy bones.2 Is Vitamin E in its natural, more useful ("d") forms such as d-alpha tocopheryl acetate or succinate or is its form preceded by "dl" which means it is synthetic. Does the multivitamin supplement have inorganic oxides that are hardly digestible? Does it contain minerals as citrates, malates, and chelates? Does the multivitamin have iron, particularly in its sufate form that tends to constipate? Check to see if the multivitamins you are planning to buy has herbal extracts. If so, are the extracts good for your health? Do you need to consult your doctor about this? What other things are in the product beside vitamins? Look for artificial colorings and flavors, sugars and artificial sweeteners? Are these things good for you? The sugar content of the multivitamins will be important, for example, for someone that suffers from Diabetes to note. You can make an informed choice about what vitamin supplement to buy using these tips. Remember that liquid multivitamins absorb 5 times better than do pills. So, take your time to ensure you buy the multivitamin preparation that best suits you.
A good multivitamin is the foundation of health and nutrition. Take a look at our scientific reviews of many of the popular brands for factors such as ingredients, areas of improvement, quality level, and overall value. If you are looking for a high quality liquid multivitamin, we suggest that you take a look at the Multivitamin Product Comparisons.

References:

1. Fletcher RH, Fairfield KM.Vitamins for chronic disease prevention in adults: clinical applications. JAMA (United States), Jun 19 2002, 287(23) p3127-9.
2. Trang HM, Cole DE, Rubin LA, et al. Evidence that vitamin D3 increases serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D more efficiently than does vitamin D2. Am J Clin Nutr (United States), Oct 1998, 68(4) p854-8.
   

Article source: http://www.vitamins-nutrition.org

Why Drinking Water Is the Way to Go

What do you, the trees, and a hamster have in common? Give up? You all need water. All living things must have water to survive, whether they get it from a water fountain, a rain cloud, or a little bottle attached to the side of a hamster cage.

Without water, your body would stop working properly. Water makes up more than half of your body weight and a person can't survive for more than a few days without it. Why? Your body has lots of important jobs and it needs water to do many of them. For instance, your blood, which contains a lot of water, carries oxygen to all the cells of your body. Without oxygen, those tiny cells would die and your body would stop working.

Water is also in lymph (say: limf), a fluid that is part of your immune system, which helps you fight off illness. You need water to digest your food and get rid of waste, too. Water is needed for digestive juices, urine (pee), and poop. And you can bet that water is the main ingredient in perspiration, also called sweat.

In addition to being an important part of the fluids in your body, each cell depends on water to function normally.

Your body doesn't get water only from drinking water. Any fluid you drink will contain water, but water and milk are the best choices. Lots of foods contain water, too. Fruit contains quite a bit of water, which you could probably tell if you've ever bitten into a peach or plum and felt the juices dripping down your chin! Vegetables, too, contain a lot of water. Think of slicing into a fat tomato from the garden or crunching into a crisp stalk of celery.

How Much Is Enough?
Since water is so important, you might wonder if you're drinking enough. There is no magic amount of water that kids need to drink every day. Usually, kids like to drink something with meals and should definitely drink when they are thirsty. But when it's warm out, or you're exercising, you'll need more. Be sure to drink some extra water when you're out in warm weather, especially while playing sports or exercising.

When you drink is also important. If you're going to sports practice, a game, or just working out or playing hard, drink water before, during, and after playing. Don't forget your water bottle. You can't play your best when you're thinking about how thirsty you are!

When your body doesn't have enough water, that's called being dehydrated. Dehydration also can keep you from being as fast and as sharp as you'd like to be. A bad case of dehydration can make you sick. So keep that water bottle handy when the weather warms up! Not only does water fight dehydration, but it's awfully refreshing and has no calories.

Your body can help you stay properly hydrated by regulating the amount of water in your system. The body can hold on to water when you don't have enough or get rid of it if you have too much. If your pee has ever been very light yellow, your body might have been getting rid of excess water. When your pee is very dark yellow, it's holding on to water, so it's probably time to drink up.

You can help your body by drinking when you're thirsty and drinking extra water when it's warm out. Your body will be able to do all of its wonderful, waterful jobs and you'll feel great!

Reviewed by: Mary L. Gavin, MD
Date reviewed: March 2007