Do I need dietary supplements?

People nowadays are more concerned about their health and most of them take dietary supplements. But does this all-in-one formulation meet their health needs? Dietary supplements aren't meant to be food substitutes, as they can't replicate all of the nutrients and benefits of whole foods, such as fruits and vegetables. Whole foods are the best sources of vitamins and minerals as they offer three main benefits over dietary supplements:

* Greater nutrition. Whole foods are complex, containing a variety of the micronutrients your body needs — not just one. An orange, for example, provides vitamin C but also some beta carotene, calcium and other nutrients. A vitamin C supplement lacks these other micronutrients.
* Essential fiber. Whole foods provide dietary fiber. Fiber can help prevent certain diseases, such as diabetes and heart disease, and it can also help manage constipation.
* Protective substances. Whole foods contain other substances recognized as important for good health. Fruits and vegetables, for example, contain naturally occurring food substances called phytochemicals, which may help protect you against cancer, heart disease, diabetes and high blood pressure. Many are also good sources of antioxidants — substances that slow down oxidation, a natural process that leads to cell and tissue damage. If you depend on dietary supplements rather than eating a variety of whole foods, you miss the benefits of these substances.

Dietary supplements may be appropriate if you eat less than five total servings of fruits and vegetables daily; or you eat only one or two times a day; or you consume less than 1,200 calories a day. Vegetarian, postmenopausal woman, woman who has heavy menstrual bleeding, people with medical condition that affects how their body absorbs, uses or excretes nutrients, pregnant woman or woman plans to become pregnant, smoker and drinker may need dietary supplements.

If you decide to take a vitamin or mineral supplement, consider these factors:

* Check the supplement label. Read labels carefully. Product labels can tell you what the active ingredient or ingredients are, which nutrients are included, the serving size — for example, capsule, packet or teaspoonful — and the amount of nutrients in each serving.
* Avoid supplements that provide 'megadoses.' In general, choose a multivitamin-mineral supplement — for example, Centrum, One-A-Day, others — that provides about 100 percent of the Daily Value (DV) of all the vitamins and minerals, rather than one which has, for example, 500 percent of the DV for one vitamin and only 20 percent of the DV for another. The exception to this is calcium. You may notice that calcium-containing supplements don't provide 100 percent of the DV. If they did, the tablets would be too large to swallow.

What does Percent Daily Value (DV) means? Food labels list percentages that are based on recommended daily allowances — meaning the amount of nutrients a person should get each day. These numbers tell you the Percent Daily Value (DV) that one serving of this food provides as a percentage of established standards. For example, a label may show that a serving of the food provides 30 percent of the daily recommended amount of fiber. This means you still need another 70 percent to meet the recommended goal. Percent DV is based on a 2,000-calorie diet for adults older than 18.

The most important information that one should know about multivitamins and minerals is that do not take more than is prescribed for you or is directed on the package. Large doses of multivitamins and minerals can be dangerous. Take each dose with a full glass of water. Take them with food to lessen stomach upset.

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