Does anyone else take an absurd amount of vitamins?
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Post Bariatric patients come with known malabsorption issues so I'll be on vitamins for life. I have to watch my Folic Acid, vitamin D, B12, iron, and calcium.
I take an eight hour patch so I don't have to use up valuable stomach real estate for the vitamins as well as extra iron, vitamin D, and B12. (Patch MD.com)
I take the B12 as a sub-lingual pill. I take iron at the end of the day with a chewable vitamin C to help with the absorption of both.
I never take calcium with iron as they can cancel each other out.
By the way only the iron deficient should take iron supplements. Too much iron can be a problem too. I got myself a LuckyIronFish.com which is a fun way to get extra iron in.0 -
Vitamin deficiencies are usually rare except D and Iron (mostly in women). I would speak to a dietician, nutritionist and/or get a full blood check up from a doctor to see if you're actually deficient in any of your vitamin intake from diet alone. Supplementation is overused way too frequently. You can actually overdo certain vitamins. Most common side effect is kidney stones but fat soluble vitamins have been known to cause toxicity in situations of exceeding the UL (tolerable upper limit). Any really benefit people experience from supplementation is usually placebo in nature. Some supplementation like Creatine and CoQ10 actually have scientific backing and observable results. I would just suggest before spending a bunch of money on vitamins and minerals you should visit a doctor first and rule out deficiencies and other causes for any ailments. Also there has never been a peer reviewed study that has shown taking multivitamins or supplementation has decreased mortality or disease risk versus someone who doesn't supplement at all.1
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I live in Northern New England. Vitamin D deficiency is very common here because of the latitude & light. All 4 of us in my family - hubby, 2 teens & myself have been taking Vitamin D for years. Initially, we had bloodwork which showed it to be low, tried a dose suggested by our docs, had repeat testing, and then adjusted the dose. We have testing annually at our annual exam.
Everyone in our family also takes fish oil. Our teens have been on it since they were about 9 & 5. Our HDL levels are not good without it - again, bloodwork. It's super helpful for brain & eye health.
I had thyroid cancer & now take calcium, selenium & magnesium. The calcium is because they had to take a parathyroid (controls calcium) during my thyroid surgery. I cannot maintain healthy levels of calcium on my own, despite having decent calcium intake from food. Again, my level was set with bloodwork. I'm lucky in that I only need a little, so I only have to dose that once a day.
The selenium & magnesium I initiated myself because they are commonly low in people who have had thyroid cancer & are struggling as much as I was for years. My magnesium has been confirmed by bloodwork, and would not be normal without the supplement. When I stopped taking selenium, my thyroid bloodwork went markedly south & when I resumed, it improved. This is indicative of needing it, too.
I'm taking iron right now because of funky perimenopausal bleeding. My ferritin & iron levels are being monitored by bloodwork.
I also take glucosamine/chondroitin. Without it, my knee arthritis acts up.
I consider the above to be a ton of vitamins & supplements. But except for the glucosamine, the need for them has all been confirmed by bloodwork & are monitored by bloodwork. I'm sure you get my point. According to my truly awesome PCP, for most people, vitamins & supplements aren't necessary & generally just make expensive urine when your body expells most of it.
But chronic fatigue is real & truly stinky. I'm sorry you have to cope with that. As someone who felt more than half dead for 3 years because I had narrow minded endocrinologists, I suggest you have your new doctor re-run your thyroid numbers. Make sure they look at Free T4 and Free T3, not just TSH. And educate yourself- there is a wide range of "normal," and one person might feel horrible where one person feels fine.2 -
I take a multi-vitamin (One-A-Day Women's Active Metabolism), Vitamin D, Magnesium, and a krill oil supplement. I came to the conclusion that I needed to take Magnesium after reading that stress can exasperate a magnesium deficiency, and a magnesium deficiency can exasperate Eczema. No more Eczema problems now that I take magnesium! I get my supplements from Walmart.
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I take D in the winter (recently stopped it as I'm now going to be out in the daylight more for some months). I take omega 3 (trying the algae kind) off and on, but am not that concerned about it because I eat lots of fatty fish. Tried taking a multi, but it upset my stomach, so I don't. Trying ZMA because I have sleep issues, but I keep forgetting to take it. I avoid taking iron since I've never been diagnosed with a deficiency, overdose is possible and dangerous (it can destroy your liver before you know anything is going on), and my mother has a condition that leads to iron build-up that I am therefore more likely to also have.0
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Not sure if you really mean just vitamins, or supplements. To the later -
Multi-Vitamin
Fish Oil
Creatine
ZMA - at night before bed, results were immediate - deeper sleep with less tossing and turning
I do take a pre-workout and also supplement protein intake with Whey Protein.0 -
Multivitamin with omegas, Adcal D3 (combo D & calcium) due to D/calcium deficiency, glucosamine & chondroitin. Deficiency diagnosed & monitored by blood tests.0
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Under the direction of my doctor, I take VitaminD3, Fish Oil, Biotin, B12, and an iron supplement once or twice a week.0
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Nothing. I am recommended to take Fish Oil, Niacin, Vit. D and a baby aspirin. I tend to get stomach upset with them.0
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I have Multiple Sclerosis. My Dr. wants me to take 50,000 IU's of Vitamin D. I Haven't been able to find any that go that high. I also take Tumeric, Biotin, and fish oil.0
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I have Multiple Sclerosis. My Dr. wants me to take 50,000 IU's of Vitamin D. I Haven't been able to find any that go that high. I also take Tumeric, Biotin, and fish oil.
You can buy a lower dose of D and then just take 2-3 of them, to equal the amount you need. That's what my doctor told me to do when I had a low level. Otherwise your doctor can give you an inexpensive prescription for the higher dose.2 -
Just had a discussion about vitamins with my doc. He wants me to take vitamin D and that's it. I've had a history of low iron dating back to childhood so when I'm feeling rundown I take a multivitamin with iron for a few days.0
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lemurcat12 wrote: »I take D in the winter (recently stopped it as I'm now going to be out in the daylight more for some months). I take omega 3 (trying the algae kind) off and on, but am not that concerned about it because I eat lots of fatty fish. Tried taking a multi, but it upset my stomach, so I don't. Trying ZMA because I have sleep issues, but I keep forgetting to take it. I avoid taking iron since I've never been diagnosed with a deficiency, overdose is possible and dangerous (it can destroy your liver before you know anything is going on), and my mother has a condition that leads to iron build-up that I am therefore more likely to also have.
I googled ZMA because I am having sleep problems. Wiki lists some interesting studies/results, but ends with the statement "However, one of the scientists who conducted the study holds the registered trademark for the original formula of ZMA, and his company funded the research". Why can't it ever be straightforward?
Let us know how it works for you (sleepwise specifically). 0 -
Vitamins work great if you know which ones you need. I take the full spectrum of vitamins but try to limit copper and take higher doses of zinc. I don't need b12 because I eat sardines every day. I don't need iodine because I eat seaweed every few days. I don't need vitamin a because I eat eggs, butter, kale, spinach, chard, and lettuce. I'm currently reading about what vitamins, amino acids and minerals are needed for certain hormones and neurotransmitters.0
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I take a super-high-powered probiotic, magnesium citrate, vitamin c, and fish oil everyday. I take a multivitamin, immune-booster, vitamin D more sporadically. I also use digestive enzymes as needed. I tend to focus more on my poor digestive health rather than on absolute amounts of vitamin supplements, since I figure that taking a ton of vitamins won't do me any good if I'm not absorbing them properly. Plus, 95% of my diet is fruit/veggie/nut-based, so I figure that I get a lot of my daily needs through that.0
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NOW makes one that's 10,000 IU. Other than that, I don't know of any that are any higher.0 -
Get your vitamins and minerals from real food and use Cronometer to determine if your diet is nutritious enough. The only thing I supplement is B12 because I don't eat a lot of meat. I even stopped taking D and now make sure to get plenty of sun exposure instead. Will get blood test soon to verify if that's working.0
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Traveler120 wrote: »Get your vitamins and minerals from real food and use Cronometer to determine if your diet is nutritious enough. The only thing I supplement is B12 because I don't eat a lot of meat. I even stopped taking D and now make sure to get plenty of sun exposure instead. Will get blood test soon to verify if that's working.
For most people who do not live at the equator, sun exposure is not enough to increase vit D levels.4 -
Traveler120 wrote: »Get your vitamins and minerals from real food and use Cronometer to determine if your diet is nutritious enough. The only thing I supplement is B12 because I don't eat a lot of meat. I even stopped taking D and now make sure to get plenty of sun exposure instead. Will get blood test soon to verify if that's working.
For most people who do not live at the equator, sun exposure is not enough to increase vit D levels.
That may be true if you live in the north or south pole. And possibly true during winter months for those in high latitudes, but for the remaining 8 months, even they can get sufficient levels through adequate exposure. For everyone else, which is most people, you simply need to expose your skin for long enough depending on skin tone.
http://www.direct-ms.org/sites/default/files/Vit D synthesis gradient.pdf
"The results can be confirmed by computer modeling
and generalized to latitudes from 0N to 70N. During the
8 warmer months of the year (March–October), relative
vitamin D UV levels are practically independent of latitude.
We conclude that there is practically no latitude gradient
of relative vitamin D UV for the entire USA during
summer, and indeed during most of the year."
Another issue is that some people try to achieve levels that are way above what's considered sufficient. For them, you're right, no amount of sun will get them there and so they resort to supplementation. That doesn't mean it's necessary for optimal health.0
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