Why you don't have vitamin deficiency and you shouldn't spend money on vitamins

What is vitamin deficiency?

Avitaminosis (aka vitamin deficiency anemiaVitamin deficiency anemia) Is a diseaseOther types of malnutrition (E50 ‑ E64), which develops when a person is very lacking a particular vitamin due to malnutrition.

The fact is that most vitamins are not synthesized in our body - they come from food. And yet they are extremely important.

These substances are involvedVitamins: MedlinePlus Medical Encyclopedia in hundreds and thousands of biochemical processes. For example, vitamin A is involved in the formation of teeth, bones, soft tissues, mucous membranes, and the retina of the eyes. Vitamin C is essential for the absorption of iron. A vitamin D helps to use calcium.

With vitamin deficiency, biochemical processes slow down significantly, or even stop altogether. Therefore, he always makes itself felt with a pronounced illness.Avitaminosis - an overview | ScienceDirect Topics, and not a vague feeling “it seems that something is wrong with me”.

Why don't I have vitamin deficiency?

For at least two reasons.

1. You have the wrong symptoms

A critical lack of vitamin A causes a sharp, literally within a few months, or even weeks, blurred vision up to blindness.

Acute B1 deficiency leads to a disease called beriberi VITAMIN DEFICIENCY, METABOLISM DISORDERS AND OVERDOSE / THIAMINE, in which the nervous system suffers, severe convulsions appear, followed by muscular dystrophy, heart failure, psychosis.

Due to a lack of vitamin C, scurvy develops in just a few weeks VITAMIN DEFICIENCY, METABOLIC DISORDERS AND OVERDOSE / VITAMIN C. With her, gums bleed, teeth fall out, bruises appear all over the body.

You are unlikely to complain of scurvy. And if suddenly yes, then you need to see a doctor, and not to a pharmacy rack with supplements.

2. Your diet probably contains vitamins, even if you don't know about it.

People who are forced to eat extremely poorly suffer from real vitamin deficiencies. For example, one rice and only it, like those inhabitants of poor developing countries, who are diagnosed with vitamin B1 and beriberi. Or exclusively with biscuits, corned beef, jerky, like seafarers on long voyages, who thus earned vitamin C deficiency and scurvy.

Now in developed countries there are no nutritional problems. Almost everything you eat contains vitamins. They are added to flour, milk, breakfast cereals, sausages and sausages, sweets. Even potato chips haveChapter 14 - Nutritional Value of Potatoes: Vitamin, Phytonutrient and Mineral Content vitamins C and B6. A fruits vegetables, meat, fish, cereals, bread are the richest vitamin sources.

In all my medical practice, I have never seen vitamin deficiency. In our country, they practically do not occur. Our nutrition allows you to get all the necessary vitaminsToxicologist Aleksey Vodovozov in Voronezh: "Don't look for medicines for the flu".

Alexey Vodovozov, a therapist of the highest qualification category, toxicologist, science journalist, in an interview with RIA Voronezh

If you not starving and do not eat the same product for weeks, vitamin deficiency is definitely not your diagnosis.

But why then are they talking about spring vitamin deficiency?

Someone wants to make money selling vitamins, and someone simply confuses the concept.

Reduced intake of vitamins in the body, that is, hypovitaminosisHypovitaminosis - an overview, can actually be found. And not necessarily in the spring. For example, the lack of vitamin D is especially pronounced in the "dark" season - in winter and late autumn.

But the fact is that hypovitaminosis, unlike vitamin deficiency, has no specific symptoms. Due to the state, it is impossible to understand what kind of substance is missing. All signs are equally blurry. Also, they are not specific. For example, weakness can have dozens of reasons and is absolutely not associated with a lack of vitamins.

Therefore, you should not prescribe yourself the dietary supplements recommended by the TV, but first figure out what exactly caused your problems with well-being. This can only be done with a therapist.

Do I need to take vitamins to prevent vitamin deficiency?

Most people who lead healthy lifestyle (in particular, they eat a variety of foods and are regularly in the sun), there are enough nutrients from food.

But for some, an extra dose of vitamins may indeed be necessary.Vitamin deficiency anemia. For example:

• Vegans. They receive lessVitamin B12 deficiency can be sneaky, harmful vitamin B12, since it is found only in animal products: meat, eggs, milk.
• Pregnant women. Their need for vitamins increases dramaticallyVitamin Deficiencies.
• Heavy smokers. Nicotine impairs the absorption of certain vitamins, in particular C.
• Alcohol lovers. They may not absorb vitamin C and folic acid well.
• For those who suffer from digestive disorders or food intolerances.

What if I am at risk or I think I am not getting enough vitamins?

See a therapist. The doctor will ask you about your well-being, lifestyle and offer to take tests that will confirm or deny the vitamin deficiency. It is far from the fact that your drowsiness, more frequent ARVI and other problems have arisen only because the body wants ascorbic acid.

It is not worth taking tests without consulting a doctor. You will not be able to correctly decipher their results.

But even if a lack of vitamins is established, the therapist will first advise you to change your lifestyle:

• Review the diet. The best way to prevent vitamin deficiency is a healthy diet that includes a variety of foods: fruits, vegetables, meat, cereals, and sour milk.
• To refuse from bad habits. In particular, stop drinking and to smoke.

If, in your doctor's opinion, this does not help, he will prescribe vitamin supplements for you. Moreover, he will select the dosage based on your needs.

Can't you just buy a vitamin complex for a specific problem or for a specific gender and age?

You cannot prescribe pharmacy vitamins on your own.

1. Ready-made complexes do not take into account your lifestyle and nutrition

Therefore, there is a high risk of overdose - hypervitaminosis. It can disrupt kidney function liver, respiratory organs and worsen the condition in general.

Let's give an example. Vitamin A is found in meat, fish, poultry, dairy products, and some fruits and vegetables. So, chances are you get enough of it just by eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

Moreover, it tends to accumulate in the liver. If you add a vitamin complex to your food, the body stores too much vitamin A. And this threatens with poisoningHYPERVITAMINOSIS A. It manifests itself as dizziness, blurred vision, nausea, joint pain, hair loss, and liver damage.

2. Complexes may contain larger doses than necessary

In 2017, the independent consumer testing organization ConsumerLab (USA) examined several dozen popular multivitamin supplements. And foundMultivitamin and Multimineral Supplements Reviewthat some of them contained a dose of vitamins that exceeded the recommended daily dose by two or three times. Moreover, the instructions for the complexes contained other information.

So, the manufacturer stated that his product contains 400 mg of folic acid (vitamin B9), but in fact the researchers found 800 mg. "This increases the risk of poisoning if taken regularly," the experts concluded.

Hence the conclusion: it is necessary to pay attention not only to what vitamins are contained in the complex, but also to the manufacturer. It is often simply impossible to understand such nuances without the help of a doctor.

3. Vitamin complexes do not solve health problems

Simply because they cannot.

When we take vitamins, the illusion of security is created. It is a gesture of self-care. But vitamins do not neutralize the harm that people do to themselves either by the wrong lifestyle, or by the wrong diet, or by some substances.Myths about vitamins. Alexey Vodovozov. Scientists Against Myths - 7-1.

Alexey Vodovozov at the scientific and educational forum "Scientists against myths - 7"

If you want to improve your well-being - start not with a trip to the pharmacy, but with proper nutrition, a healthy lifestyle and a visit to a therapist.

The doctor will help you figure out whether your problems are really related to vitamin deficiency, give a referral for tests and, if necessary, prescribe a vitamin complex. The one that will be most effective and safe in your case.