Each morning, after my cup of tea and a protein rich breakfast I faithfully take my handful of 11 daily vitamins and carefully chosen dietary supplements. Am I “health conscious?” No, I am just very susceptible to “fear marketing”.

“If you take this supplement or vitamin you will avoid, cancer, diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure, menopause, erectile dysfunction, male pattern baldness, scurvy and the bends!"

It is entirely irrational to think that by simply taking a pill or two all of life’s ills, genetic or self-induced, will magically disappear. So, do they really work or is this just another marketing game where the true winner is the manufacturer and the consumer is left with nothing more than false hope and money, literally, flushed down the toilet?

There are no large studies that definitively show that multivitamins are of any true benefit to healthy men and women. While doctors have prescribed folic acid and vitamins B12 and B6 thinking it may prevent strokes and heart attacks (High homocysteine blood levels are associated with an increased risk of coronary and other vascular diseases.) recent studies, however, tell a different tale. While these vitamins do lower homocysteine levels, they do not prevent heart attacks or strokes. So what do we do?

Several years ago the trend was for doctors to suggest taking the antioxidants vitamin E and beta-carotene in hopes that they could reduce the risk of cardiovascular diseases and cancer. Unfortunately, studies have now shown that these supplements are not protective--and may even be harmful, especially when taken with the attitude- "one is good but three will be even better!" It was this type of skewed thinking that shifted the opinion about vitamins and supplements...the fact that few people take anything, prescribed or over the counter, AS DIRECTED. In the age of self-medicating and adhering to the advice of "Dr. Google" is it any wonder that people are confused?

No one can refute that an adequate intake of vitamins is essential; however, vitamins can and should be obtained from eating healthy foods and NOT only from swallowing vitamin supplements. One hundred years ago many people did suffer from malnutrition and the idea of regaining necessary vitamin levels was essential.That was an age of under-nutrition but Americans are now living in an age of over-nutrition or over-eating,which would lead one to think we are chock-full of those good old vitamins! It depends on what people are eating really since over-indulging in carbonated soft drinks can leech calcium from bones and surveys show that only 9% of North Americans eat the recommended five daily servings of fruits or vegetables that would provide the minimum level of nutrients believed necessary to prevent illness (http://www.lynnford.com:80/whyvit.htm). So does that mean the other 91% of Americans probably should take dietary supplements?

To take vitamins and supplements or not depends on individual nutritional intake or lack thereof and while you probably do just "pee out" the excess it is important to do your research, talk to your doctor, exercise, eat well and then judge for yourself. In the end it is your life and your wallet so live well by learning all you can about proper nutrition and the needs of your body because there is no magic pill that replaces common sense!