Life Begins At.....
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Which nutritional supplements are best for you? Australians spend over half a billion dollars each year on nutritional supplements. But are we wasting our money, or are vitamin supplements important for our health? Accredited Practising Dietitian, , explains. Popping a daily nutritional supplement has become as routine as brushing our teeth, with around 50 per cent of Australians using vitamin or mineral supplements every year. However, dietitians warn that most people are taking the wrong nutritional supplements for their needs – which are at best a waste of money or at worst can lead to additional health problems! Taking nutritional supplements does not guarantee good health Some people seem to be of the impression that they can eat whatever they like, and a multivitamin will fix all the damage. Vitamin supplements are not a replacement for a healthy diet! Multivitamins only provide a small percentage of the nutrients that our body requires to function well on a daily basis. Furthermore, research has shown time and time again that the nutrients that we get from food work more effectively than the nutrients that we get from supplements. For example, a study which was published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition last year showed that people who consumed lycopene (which is known for decreasing the risk of prostrate cancer) in the form of tomato paste had a decrease in cancer causing genes, yet those who took the lycopene supplement had no change. The authors logically concluded that lycopene antioxidants cannot be the sole component in tomatoes decreasing the risk of prostrate cancer and until scientists have a better understanding, we should protect ourselves against cancer by eating a diet rich in fruit and vegetables such as tomatoes, rather than relying on supplements. There are a lot of goodies in food that aren’t possible to get from supplements. We call these goodies phytochemicals – which literally means plant nutrients. Phytochemicals include things like antioxidants, some of which can be hard to bottle, but many of which remain undiscovered! Scientists are finding new types of phytochemicals in foods all of the time, but in the meantime, we are much better off getting the majority of our nutrition from nature’s original source – fresh food! Myth: Taking a multivitamin will ensure good health Myth: If you eat a healthy diet, you don’t need any nutritional supplements Myth: The more nutritional supplements that you take, the healthier that you will be Myth: The more expensive the supplement, the better it is Fact: Taking nutritional supplements that you don’t need can do more harm than good Fact: An assessment with a dietitian is the best way to know which nutritional supplements you should be taking 74 THE RETIREE WINTER Melanie McGrice