Vitamin supplement

You should get your bloods done first...see if you have any deficiencies.... or ...which is more likely....results which are 'only just in range.....so seen as 'normal'.... but actually need supplementing

I find The Complete Woman from Boots to be very good. Has everything so no need for any other supplement. Quite a large tablet but no side effects here. Not advertising for Boots but it has helped me.

Hi.I bought some centrum vitamins for me and my mum were 64 and 90. So far my mum feels and looks so much better , it’s quite incredible ! She has been very poorly these last 3 years, and hardly eats anything normally but these vitamins have increased her apitite no end.
I can’t say I feel any better other than they have also increased my apitite. I’m already overweight so not a good thing for me.

Sorry appetite ?

I take a soluble multivitamins and minerals which makes a pleasant orange drink, as I find a lot of supplements too large to swallow. Just as a precaution in the winter, as I’m a (very) fussy eater.

I buy well woman 70+ multivitamins, they come in a purple box.
My nails were terribly ridged, bumpy and brittle, but since taking these, all but one have gone back to normal and are much stronger.

Are they Vitabionics (?) Minimoon? I take those but they don't seem to have helped my nails.

I should have added “For the 50+”.

Vitamin D essential for everyone, but especially older people.

Here is the Age UK advice sheet for supplements for older people www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/health-wellbeing/healthy-eating/vitamins-for-older-people/

I take Vit D and a fish oil daily. I’ve always been told that a normal, balanced diet should provide plenty of vitamins and minerals. Taking more than the body needs just results in expensive urine as the body gets rid of the unwanted excess.

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I also have a varied and balanced diet with plenty of exposure to the sun so I don't need supplements. It is so easy to get carried away with the idea that supplements are good and end up doing real harm to your body through overdosing.
Instead of spending your money in the pharmacy why not switch to the greengrocer.

Not everyone gets exposure to the sun everyday, especially in winter and wearing spf face creams.

I take vit D in cod liver oil supplement. Also no laughing please! I have a what I term my daily “ Collagen Coffee “ my nails are awfully thin, they split and tear and I have some painful arthritis in parts. I was using Glucosamine and Chondroitin but this had an adverse effect.
So far so good with this new regime.

As we get older we eat less, so can easily end up not eating enough to get the balance of minerals, vitamins and other trace elements we need - even if are smaller diet is high in fruit and vegetables, nor is it always possible to have plenty of exposure to the sun, especially in winter and if you live in an urban area.

Obviously if you start taking huge doses of one particular supplement there will be dangers, but I can see no harm, and probably benefits in taking a daily multimineral and vitamin tablet.

The cost of a mineral and vitamin tablet, is very little compared with the money many people spend on alcohol or other minor life enhancers.

I reckon that over a year I probably spend no more on suplements as I do on having my eyebrows tinted and tidied every 6 weeks.

Perfectil are good for nails, but you have to take them for a good few weeks before you see results. My nails were very poor, with lots of ragged, split ends, but are much, much better now.

I spend a heck of a lot more on Vitamin D supplements than I do on my eyebrows, nails or alcohol, for the simple reason I've never been to a beautician and don't drink alcohol.

Vitamin D is the only supplement which is universally recommended for people over 60.

I wouldn't take anything without asking a GP or pharmacist for advice first.
I was taking multivitamins and they made me feel worse. Turns out they weren't being cleared from my body by my liver and kidneys. We are all different and it is possible to overdose on supplements.

Taking the water soluble vitamins B and C probably won't do too much harm because you'll wee them out. Taking too much vitamin A, D or E or too many minerals can be harmful, so I agree with you Pittcity. I've long thought that health supplement companies are money printing factories.

Vitamin D, if you take too much, can have really awful effects, hypercalcemia being the worst.
If you know you are deficient this will be through blood tests and a medical professional will advise you what and how much to take.
Most of us do NOT need to supplement.
As for winter, our bodies store vitamin D so as long as you get out during the summer most people will have enough to last the winter.

You are wrong Esspee. The vast majority of people over 60 do need to take a Vitamin D supplement, especially in the winter months.

... unless, of course the NHS and just about every other nutritionist, is wrong and you know better.

The NHS website says ^All adults are advised to consider taking a daily vitamin D supplement, particularly during the winter months (October to March).

People who are not often exposed to the sun should take a daily vitamin D supplement throughout the year.

These include people who:

are not often outdoors, such as those who are frail or housebound
are in an institution, such as a care home
usually wear clothes that cover up most of their skin when outdoors
People with dark skin, such as those of African, African-Caribbean and south Asian origin, might not get enough vitamin D from sunlight, so they should consider taking a supplement throughout the year.^

Advised to CONSIDER unless....... being the important part.

I would suggest considering under professional advisement.