photo by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/cleanwalmart/419584946/in/faves-49131548@N05/}Clean Wal-Mart{/link}
Dietary supplements have become amazingly popular. When you go to the store, you’ll find at least one full aisle dedicated to them, or if you’re feeling really ambitious you can go to an entire store dedicated to them, such as The Vitamin Shoppe or GNC. And it seems like there’s something out there for everything (though I’m still looking for the cure for writer’s block in pill form, since there’s no prescription for it, either *sigh*).
Do you take supplements, or wonder if they’re the right choice for you? That’s what we’re here to explore.
Why dietary supplements can be a good choice
There are lots of good reasons to take supplements. Here are a few:
- Dietary supplements are an easy way to improve health – Let’s face it, most of us are not in perfect health. Some of the reasons are our own fault, and some of them are just the blessings of genetics or circumstances. Whatever the reasons though, the odds are good that there’s at least one supplement out there designed to help us with our problem. And for some things, it can be as easy as a pill (or a couple of pills) a day to put us in better health.
- Supplements can be a good alternative or addition to traditional medications – Sometimes, the medications we take can have worse side effects than the condition they’re supposed to treat, and sometimes even when the side effects are non-existent they aren’t as effective as we’d like them to be. Or maybe we’re just not comfortable with taking a prescription or other traditional medication when there’s a supplement that is supposed to do the same thing. That’s okay too. With your doctor’s knowledge, you can take supplements along with your traditional treatment, or opt out of prescriptions altogether.
- Taking a dietary supplement is a good way to detect or correct dietary deficiencies – Just as most of us are not in perfect health, most of our diets leave at least a little bit to be desired. Some of us are worse eaters than others, and I’ll be the first to admit that I’m on the worse end of the scale. If you think you’re deficient in something, you can correct it with a dietary supplement, either as an experiment to see if you actually need more of what you’re taking before you make modifications to your diet, or as a more permanent solution if you don’t plan to change your eating habits.
- A dietary supplement doesn’t require a prescription – This is pretty self-explanatory. Rather than a trip to your doctor and health insurance approval, you just walk in, pick it up, and take it to the counter to buy it. Easy, and much less time-consuming.
- Supplements are often cheaper than prescription drugs (maybe not with insurance copay) – Depending on the condition you’re taking the supplement for, it can be cheaper to buy dietary supplements than prescription medications, especially if you’re paying out-of-pocket. However, if you’re treating something that has a prescription on that “$4 for 30 days” list at the Wal-Mart pharmacy, you may want to rethink your approach.
- Dietary supplements may help where other medications have failed – Taking medication after medication for a condition only to have it not help you is one of the most frustrating feelings in the world. I know; I’ve been there (and am there currently, as a matter of fact). In these cases, a dietary supplement may help where other treatments have failed. Explore all options, if you’re comfortable with it.
- They’re usually not addictive – Another self-explanatory one.
Why dietary supplements can be a bad choice
photo by {link:http://www.flickr.com/photos/emagineart/4741451457/}e-Magine Art{/link}
There are also lots of good reasons to NOT take supplements. Here are a few of those:
- Dietary supplements are not strictly regulated by the FDA – I’ll refer you to the link for more information, but the bottom line is that the regulations are much looser for supplements than they are for prescription and over-the-counter drugs.
- Supplements can have interactions with other medications – This is where you need to work with your doctor when taking dietary supplements along with other medications, even simple things like Tylenol or aspirin. At the very least, find a good online interaction checker and check for yourself before you take anything, because the dietary supplements will not have the interactions on the label.
- A dietary supplement is NOT a quick fix or a magic pill – This is kind of obvious, but still worth mentioning. No matter how impressive the claims of the manufacturer or distributor, dietary supplements are not magic, and they’re not a cure-all. A lot of the time, they won’t do anything at all for you other than make you pee interesting colors. And to be perfectly honest, you’re probably better off making changes to your eating habits and lifestyle than trying to fix your problems with a supplement. Bummer, huh?
- Supplements can be very expensive – While they can sometimes be a cheaper alternative to other courses of treatment, they can also end up costing you a lot of money for very little benefit.
- You may have to take a dietary supplement several times per day – This is, by far, my least favorite thing about taking supplements. With some of them, you have to take them more than once a day, and sometimes more than one of them more than once a day. And the ones you have to take a lot of are usually big too (which is why you have to take a lot of them, because you’d never be able to swallow the dose in one pill).
- Supplements can have side effects – Just like traditional medications, dietary supplements can have side effects too. Unlike traditional medications, the side effects are generally not as well documented. You’re not going to get that three-page printout with a bottle of zinc like you do from the pharmacy.
- They can be addictive – I mentioned that they’re usually not addictive as one of the pros of dietary supplements, but that’s not always true. Especially with things like sleep aids, you have to be cautions whether it’s a prescription, an over-the-counter medication, or a supplement.
- There’s a risk of overdosing, especially when taking more than one supplement every day – Dietary supplements often have very high concentrations of whatever vitamins or minerals they’re supposed to provide. If you take them as instructed, you should be fine, but you have to be careful if you’re taking more than one supplement every day, because you could unintentionally double up on something. You also need to be careful of what you eat, because you can overdose by eating too much of those same vitamins or minerals.
What do you think?
Before I tell you where I stand, I want to know what you think. What do you think of supplementing? Do you take dietary supplements? Why or why not?
Further Reading and Resources
Benefits and Risks of Taking Vitamin Supplements
Supplements: Pros and Cons Brainstorm
Related posts:
I take a calcium supplement because I don’t drink nearly enough milk – I’m lactose intolerant to the point of nearly getting sick when I see cows. During cold and flu season I also take Vitamin C to be on the safe side.
Great write-up!
I’m lactose intolerant too, but not as bad as you and I just can’t give up the milk. Thank God for Lactaid (honestly, I don’t know if that’s a supplement or not, but it IS a lifesaver). I probably should take Vitamin C, but I have a hard time remembering to take anything beyond my daily meds. Oh well. I do try to take a daily multivitamin, since my diet isn’t exactly the picture of health, but I have to take it with a meal or I get sick.
On a side note, I love your kitty picture. Is he (she?) sticking out his tongue, or does it just look like it?