Vitamins Are Vital - Multivitamins - Who Really Needs Them?

[Guest guest]

Vitamins Are Vital - Multivitamins - Who Really Needs Them?

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/medicalnews.php?newsid=46364

Never before in the industrial nations has such a variety of fresh

food been so freely available. But despite this, nutrition-related

diseases continue to spread. Obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular

diseases are a direct consequence of today's eating habits. Canteen

food, fast food and convenience products are all increasingly leaving

their mark as a bulge around the hips.

Highly refined foods such as white flour products, sweets and sugar

supply the body with pure energy - so-called empty calories - but

they do not contain essential nutrients such as vitamins.

Five portions of fruit and vegetables?

Nutrition experts advise us to eat five portions of fruit and

vegetables every day. But even health-conscious people often fail to

reach this simple target. Modern life, with its constant stress,

nicotine consumption and regular intake of alcohol, means an

additional increase in vitamin requirements. Nutrition surveys have

revealed that a considerable number of Americans and Europeans are

not guaranteed an adequate supply of essential vitamins through their

normal diet.

Genuine vitamin deficiency diseases tend to be the exception in the

Western industrialized nations. However, a whole range of unspecific

illnesses and ailments is often caused by an inadequate supply of

vitamins. A regular intake of multivitamins can make a valuable

contribution towards closing this deficit.

The body needs vitamins

The human body cannot produce vitamins itself. It has to rely on

obtaining these essential substances regularly from the diet. While

fat-soluble vitamins can be stored to some extent, reserves of water-

soluble B-complex vitamins and vitamin C are quickly exhausted. If

even one vitamin is lacking in the body, our metabolism is unable to

function smoothly. Skin and hair problems, as well as frequent

infections, tiredness, lethargy, headaches and depression, are often

the first warning signs that the body is lacking in these valuable

essential substances.

Multivitamins are safe

Multivitamins are a cocktail that ensures the body is supplied with

the minimum daily requirement of all essential vitamins. They have a

long history of safe use for humans, and are based on the

recommendations of international health organizations. Taking them

regularly is a balanced, practical and affordable way to fill

nutritional gaps.

Sections of the population with a substantially higher vitamin

requirement, such as children and young people, pregnant women, the

elderly and physically active people, but also people with metabolic

diseases such as diabetes, derive enormous health benefits from a

daily intake of multivitamins. Sometimes multivitamins are indeed the

only way to ensure that at least minimum requirements are met.

Multivitamins for health

Numerous observational studies involving tens of thousands of people

have demonstrated the relationship between a regular intake of

multivitamins and a reduction in chronic diseases. Apart from this,

scientific investigations confirm that these health benefits increase

considerably with sustained ingestion of multivitamins.

A daily intake of multivitamins does not replace a healthy lifestyle

with a balanced diet, plenty of physical exercise and regular visits

to the doctor. A minimal supply of multivitamins is a kind of basic

insurance for physical and mental fitness. They protect health well

into old age, enhance wellbeing and make us look good from the inside

out. The best guide to health is therefore to eat plenty of fruit and

vegetables, take multivitamins and join in health promotion measures.