Research has found that 30-40% adults in this country take some kind of vitamin supplement and many also turn to pills on a regular basis for additional minerals, fiber, and fish oil. Are these supplements really necessary and beneficial and if so, are they a good idea for everyone?

Health experts agree that a varied diet consisting of food from all the food groups will provide all the nutrients a healthy person needs to stay healthy. The dietary reference intakes (DRIs) were established to build awareness of how diets measure up. DRIs are a set of guidelines that define the daily amounts of essential nutrients considered to be adequate to meet the known nutritional needs of practically all healthy persons. It is best for individuals to eat enough food to get 100% of the DRI for each nutrient. However, if your life doesn’t allow you to eat wisely most of the time, supplementing your diet with a vitamin/mineral pill that supplies no more than 100% of the DRIs for each nutrient may be a good choice for you.

Taking excessive amounts of supplements, or mega doses, however, is another story. It may hurt your health rather than help it. There are many vitamin and minerals that can cause toxicity syndromes at high levels and even metabolic disturbances at lower doses but exceed the DRIs. For example, vitamin B-6 at 10 times the DRI may lead to nerve damage and paralysis and vitamin A at only 5 times the DRI can result in liver damage and birth defects.

Special needs do arise that require supplementation. Not everyone is able or willing to eat a balanced diet on a regular basis. These include, people with demanding lifestyles, those on very low calorie diets or unbalanced weight reduction diets, strict vegetarians who eat no animal products at all, and pregnant women.

• Demanding Lifestyles: Due to hectic schedules, carefully planned and balanced meals are often hard to come by. Therefore, people tend to eat out or bring home processed foods more than they cook from scratch. Unfortunately, this type of diet may fall short of the DRI’s for many essential nutrients. This is when a multiple vitamin-mineral supplement not exceeding 100% of the DRI for any nutrient may be advisable.

• Weight-Loss Diets: It is very difficult to meet all your vitamin and mineral needs on less than 1200 calories per day, no matter how responsible your meal planning. In this case, a basic vitamin/mineral supplement may be recommended. Be aware however, chronic very low calorie dieting can prove to be hazardous in some individuals.

• Strict Vegetarianism: Individuals who consume a strict vegetarian diet with no animal products may be at risk for vitamin/mineral deficiencies. These may include, vitamins B12, riboflavin, and D. Calcium and iron may also be low. Strict vegetarians should consider replacing these nutrients with supplements.

• Pregnancy and Lactation: During pregnancy and lactation, women need more iron, folic acid, and calcium than they do under normal circumstances. These additional quantities may be hard to get through diet alone. Therefore, many physicians prescribe a prenatal vitamin/mineral supplement to be taken throughout pregnancy and lactation.
  
• Nutrient Specific Supplementation: Individuals who may be consuming a relatively healthy diet but missing one or more specific nutrients, might consider supplementing their diet. These nutrients include, calcium, iron, fiber, and fish oil. For example, many females find it difficult to get the recommended amount of calcium in their diet. Women need on average 800-1200mg of calcium a day depending on age which is equal to 3-4 servings of dairy a day. If a woman does not regularly consume dairy products a calcium supplement would be very advantageous. For specific questions about other supplements, one should consider discussing their needs with a physician or dietitian.