I need to hear from people who really know supplements

‘You don’t need vitamins as long as you are eating a healthy diet’.

How often have you heard that? The problem I find with this is how one decides just how healthy a healthy diet is? Never mind just what constitutes a healthy diet.

We’ve had lots of scandals over here recently: Free Range eggs (eggs from free roaming, uncaged hens) are on sale in all the super markets here (at a premium) but a few months ago it was discovered that a huge number from one supplier were from battery farmed hens and they (the supplier) simply shipped the eggs in the Free Range boxes and collected the higher price from their buyers.

Same goes for chicken meat, beef, pig etc. And organic foods. Shoppers didn’t and don’t think twice about the validity of the claims on the cartons and it would seem that the the supermarket buyers didn’t either!

Vegetables that have been processed and frozen and stored have reportedly up to 75% of their nutritional value compromised by these processes.

We now shop mostly at the local Farm Shops and Farmers Markets where the produce is fresh that day. Or is it?

I am always very leery any time someone claims that whichever remedy, herbal or prescription, is a magic bullet cure for everyone with a certain symptom profile. Even people that have identical underlying causes to problems will have varied reactions to different treatments.

I agree 100% with you. We’d never know what we’re really eating…

Getting back to the original question: Both Omega-3 fatty acids and gingko are known blood thinners, so I would be cautious about taking other substances that may further anticoagulate your blood, such as aspirin. If you notice petechiae while performing PE or easy bruising/bleeding, definitely cut back on the supplements. In my experience, I have never received any benefit from ginseng but I haven’t reviewed the literature on this substance. I think goat weed is a scam, as is much of the nutriceutical industry. Just be smart. Look at studies on PubMed and elsewhere. Many herbs, vitamins, minerals, and supplements do work and the ones you are taking (O-3 and gingko) are certainly good for your heart and may help stave off coronary artery disease and peripheral vascular disease as well as other conditions. And keeping healthy blood vessels is essential to having great erections well into old age. But, as with everything, there are risks and benefits. When I left my last reserach job, they were starting a human trial testing omega-3 supplements on pregnant women to see if it prevented the development of type- 1 diabetes, so research is starting to accumulate. A rule of thumb is that if anyone claims that a supplement definitely does something, they are probably trying to sell you something. Buyer beware.

As far as multi-vits go, just make sure they don’t contain iron (unless you are a vegetarian). You really don’t need that. As long as you are not getting mega doses of fat soluble vitamins (A,D,E,K) you should be fine.

I worked in healthfood industry for 5 years and am a med student and take selcted supplements myself, including omega-3 and gingko.

As far as the argument regarding the benefits or harm of multi-vits, it certainly is a small leap of faith because the evidence is inconclusive (last I checked), but I always find it funny that people who smoke, drink, do drugs, don’t exercise, eat fast food, etc. are often the ones denouncing vitamins as poison.

What about us poor souls that have iron deficient anemia? As far as finding real good links to Ginseng and Ginkgo you just can’t find good ones.
Nothing is as good as my nursing books, pharmaceutical books or books on herbs and supplements.

I’m late to this thread, but my $.02 is that a reasonable amount of fish oil is one of the healthiest supplements to take — and about the only one worth bothering with. Pills won’t make up for a crappy diet. Or for lack of exercise.

Men shouldn’t take supplemental iron.

The few of you are weird, odd cases. Most American men and post-menopausal women shouldn’t take supplemental iron.

Interesting thread, sorry to dig it up.

My $.02 is that fish oil and a multivitamin should be a staple for all diets. But beware of Centrum or any of those cheap over the counter multivitamins.

Also - supplements like Arginine, in my opinion, are iffy to take. It comes natural in foods like nuts.

Personally I’ve found Ginkgo to work VERY well.

Soy products contain only Omega-6. Chestnuts contain about 10x more omega-6 than omega-3. Olive oil, while it contains lots of healthy monounsaturated fat, contains only Omega-6. Only certain fatty fish (salmon, herring, sardines) contain much Omega-3: most fish, including all whitefish, don’t contain meaningful amounts in the meat.

Our diets are already full of Omega-6, which is the problem…we’re getting too much 6 and not enough 3. All the common vegetable oils (soy, corn, sunflower, safflower) contain massive doses of Omega-6, and none except canola contain meaningful amounts of omega-3.

The 1000mg Omega-3 supplements usually only contain 250-400mg of actual Omega-3s. You get that much Omega-6 out of two tortilla chips, two potato chips, or two french fries. The problem is not getting enough Omega-6, it’s getting enough Omega-3, and the only way to do that is to eat lots of fatty fish or take capsules.

“Best Sophocles-Quoting Thread Ever!!”

:thumbs:

GM

Yeah!