Many men take nutritional supplements because they believe that certain vitamins or minerals provide health benefits or help them increase athletic performance or endurance. But if you are otherwise healthy, you probably don’t need to take a supplement as long as you follow the Food Guide Pyramid recommendations for a balanced diet. It’s best to obtain nutrients from a wide variety of foods rather than from a vitamin or mineral supplement because your body may not absorb the vitamins from supplements as effectively as those obtained from food. Also, most people can obtain the suggested recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of vitamins and minerals by consuming a varied diet. For
example, the RDA of vitamin C, which is 60 milligrams, can be obtained by eating five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Smoking increases the need for vitamin C, however. If you smoke, you should be getting 100 milligrams of vitamin C per day. It’s especially unwise to take in large amounts of vitamins and minerals in excess of the recommended daily allowances over prolonged periods of time. There is no convincing evidence that taking megadoses of a particular vitamin
will make you healthier. In fact, consuming huge amounts of certain vitamins can actually harm your health. For example, doses of vitamin C above 1,000 milligrams per day can cause nausea, stomach cramps, diarrhea, and even kidney stones.
However, certain people do need to take supplements. You may need to take a vitamin and mineral supplement if you:
• regularly skip meals
• are on a very low-calorie or low-carbohydrate diet for long periods
• are an older person who finds it hard to eat as much as you should
• eat a vegan diet (a vegetarian diet that omits dairy products and eggs)
• take medication that interferes with vitamin or mineral absorption
• are lactose intolerant and have been decreasing your calcium intake
If you fall into one of these categories, talk to your doctor about taking a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement. Even if you eat a balanced diet, a daily multivitamin won’t harm you. But remember that taking a vitamin and mineral supplement is no substitute for eating a balanced, high-fiber, low-fat diet containing plenty of grains, vegetables, and fruits.
example, the RDA of vitamin C, which is 60 milligrams, can be obtained by eating five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. Smoking increases the need for vitamin C, however. If you smoke, you should be getting 100 milligrams of vitamin C per day. It’s especially unwise to take in large amounts of vitamins and minerals in excess of the recommended daily allowances over prolonged periods of time. There is no convincing evidence that taking megadoses of a particular vitamin
will make you healthier. In fact, consuming huge amounts of certain vitamins can actually harm your health. For example, doses of vitamin C above 1,000 milligrams per day can cause nausea, stomach cramps, diarrhea, and even kidney stones.
However, certain people do need to take supplements. You may need to take a vitamin and mineral supplement if you:
• regularly skip meals
• are on a very low-calorie or low-carbohydrate diet for long periods
• are an older person who finds it hard to eat as much as you should
• eat a vegan diet (a vegetarian diet that omits dairy products and eggs)
• take medication that interferes with vitamin or mineral absorption
• are lactose intolerant and have been decreasing your calcium intake
If you fall into one of these categories, talk to your doctor about taking a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement. Even if you eat a balanced diet, a daily multivitamin won’t harm you. But remember that taking a vitamin and mineral supplement is no substitute for eating a balanced, high-fiber, low-fat diet containing plenty of grains, vegetables, and fruits.
