At a very fundamental level, the primary reason that health supplements – including multivitamins – are as popular as they are in North America is that the majority of us eat what’s known as the ‘SAD’ diet. That’s an acronym for Standard American Diet, but the negative connotation in suggesting it’s literally a ‘sad’ diet isn’t exactly inappropriate.
It’s heavy in nutrient-depleted processed foods, refined grains, and added sugars. All of these contribute to inflammation, chronic disease, and much more in the way of undesirable health conditions, but they also add very little in the way of the nutrients and minerals that you need to be at your best, much less simply avoid sickness and disease.
So, in large part, a big part of the reason why supplements are as popular as they are is that individuals make them a quick fix for deficiencies in their diet. That’s not to suggest that they don’t have value in optimizing our physiologies. However, with the fact that for many people they make up the majority of their essential vitamin and mineral intake it raises the question of whether it’s preferable to ingest the bulk of them from diet choices rather than supplements.
Unique Individuals with Unique Physiologies
Even if you eat a healthy, well-balanced diet you may still be coming up short with your intake of necessary nutrients. That can be especially true for older individuals because as we age our ability to absorb nutrients from food decreases. Also, the decrease in energy needs often means older people eat less.
The focus here, however, is for people of all ages and asking the question of is it better to get your majority of nutritional needs from food rather than supplements.
The overall answer is yes, but the extent to which that’s true does depend on the individual.
The primary reason for that is because taking too much of any one dietary supplement can be harmful. As one example, taking excess Vitamin A can lead to dangerously toxic levels if those excess amounts are ingested too frequently.
Focus on Diet First
The general consensus among dietary experts and physicians is that you should try to improve your diet before relying more heavily on supplementation. The biggest reason for that is one that’s hard to argue against – nutrients are most potent when they are derived from food! In addition, they are accompanied by all sorts of great stuff like carotenoids, flavonoids, minerals, and antioxidants that you won’t get from your supplements. Simply, the spectrum of nutritional health benefits is much broader when you put more of the emphasis on dietary intake.
Then there’s the issue of fiber – dietary fiber intake is essential for the waste elimination processes in the body, and they are equally essential for being in your best health. Whole foods like grains, fruits, vegetables, and legumes provide loads of dietary fiber that a supplement won’t. Most high-fiber foods are also packed with other essential nutrients. Fiber, as part of a healthy diet, can help prevent certain diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease, and it can also help manage constipation.
In addition, food not only tastes better and has much more in the way of sensory enjoyment as compared to swallowing a tablet or capsule and – big one – food is nearly always less expensive than supplements, and often quite considerably so. It is true that some people have barriers to making certain dietary changes, and in those instances, supplementation may be a more legitimate option.
Here are a few good food sources of important nutrients:
Vitamin B – Lean beef, sunflower seeds, tuna, turkey, spinach and other leafy greens, and eggs
Iron – Oysters, liver, lean beef, lentils, chickpeas, and sesame seeds
Vitamin D – Lean beef, salmon, tuna, egg yolks, vitamin D-fortified milk and yogurt, fortified orange juice (plus get plenty of exposure to natural sunlight)
Magnesium – Spinach, kale and other leafy green vegetables, unrefined grains and legumes
Calcium – Dairy products, fish like salmon and sardines, dark leafy greens
One notable exception to the rule here is with the two B vitamins, and especially so if you are over 50. That’s because between ten and 30 percent of people in this age group are unable to properly digest and absorb natural vitamin B-12 from foods. Folic acid (aka vitamin B9) is also absorbed better from supplements than it is from regular foods such as spinach.
The reason that note about folic acid is worthy of mention here is for one particular designation of a human who absolutely needs to be at their physiological best – pregnant women. They are advised to get folic acid from a supplement (or fortified food) as well as regular foods. Also keep in mind that if you get your iron from plant foods, it is absorbed only half as well as iron from meat — although eating your spinach (or iron supplement) with a source of vitamin C will boost the absorption of its iron.
Supplementation Suitable for Some
It is true that some individuals will not be able to follow this regimen of making sure the bulk of your nutritional intake is from whole foods. The following bullet list will identify the majority of them. You should consider more extensive dietary supplements intake as compared to average individuals if you:
- Don’t eat well, or consume less than 1,600 calories a day.
- Are a vegan or a vegetarian who eats a limited variety of foods.
- Don’t consume two to three servings of fish per week. If you have difficulty meeting this quota, some experts recommend adding a fish oil supplement to your daily regimen.
- Are a woman who experiences heavy bleeding during your menstrual period.
- Have a medical condition that limits how effectively your body absorbs or uses nutrients, such as chronic diarrhea, food allergies, food intolerance, or a disease of the liver, gallbladder, intestines or pancreas.
- Have undergone surgery on your digestive tract and are unable to digest and absorb nutrients properly.
To conclude, it really is preferable to get most of your vitamin and mineral needs as part of solid nutrition from your dietary choices rather than via supplementation. This is true right across the board for younger people and those who are in ideal health, and only folks like those examples above should be evaluating their dietary intake differently. Lastly, put effort into making your meal plans varied and full of delicious, wholesome food so that you don’t tire of your choices AND you don’t gravitate towards any part of the SAD diet.
