Re-Thinking Supplements

I was never really sure about the effectiveness of a multivitamin. About a year ago I started taking my first ever multivitamin to try to supplement my diet with the things I wasn’t getting through regular meals. I know people who swear by them. And I know the other side of the story, which claims the trace amounts contained in multivitamins made the whole exercise of taking them seem pointless. It was that argument that made it easy for me to quit using them. Then I started re-reading articles I had kept from various health magazines I had saved over the past couple of years and came across one in support of supplements. Apparently, the key to multivitamins is to take one that contains the nutrients selenium (known for cancer protective effects) and zinc (which, among other things, assists in sperm production). There’s no doubt that since I’m in my 40’s I should be looking at supplements more seriously and this article got me thinking. It also promoted fish oil as one of the best sources of omega-3 fatty acids (important for brain and heart health and a natural anti-inflammatory) and probiotics – the good bacteria (which assists digestive health and enhances the immune system). We basically have to adjust our meal plans slightly to factor in more fish (we eat a lot already), yogurt and soy products (both of which we already consume) and I’ll add a good multivitamin and fish oil tablets to my mix and I should have all the supplements I’ll need. Which reminds me, I subscribed to a couple different health magazines a few years ago and have found them a wealth of information since I started this ‘project’ of mine. I’m glad I kept them!