Vitamin supplement

growstuff
I wrote:
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.

and your immediate response was:
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.

What other conclusion could I draw?

M0nica

growstuff are you supposing that anyone decadent enough to go to a beautician must be a drinker.

I assure you, I am not. I went to a talk this evening where a small glass of white wine was served. It was my first drink in over three weeks.

How on earth did you assume that? There's absolutely no logic in your question. I couldn't care less how much you drink.

growstuff are you supposing that anyone decadent enough to go to a beautician must be a drinker.

I assure you, I am not. I went to a talk this evening where a small glass of white wine was served. It was my first drink in over three weeks.

dogsmother My nails have always cracked and split easily. Recently I have been taking Evening Primrose Oil in gelatin capsules. This has had the side effect of making my nails stronger than they have ever been! It is either the evening primrose or the gelatin. and to be honest I don't care which. It is a pleasure not to have them break at the least thing.

growstuff

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.

Well yes growstuff as a matter of fact most of the advice you get on sites such as the NHS is based on studies from the government’s scientific advisory committee on nutrition (SACN) in July 2016.

The new meta analysis published in the Lancet Diabetes and Endocrinology journal led by the long standing experts on Vitamin D, Professors Mark Bolland, Andrew Grey and Alison Avenell, concluded that “On the strength of existing evidence, we believe there is little justification for more trials of vitamin D supplements looking at musculoskeletal outcomes”.
Martin Hewison, professor of molecular endocrinology at the University of Birmingham agreed, adding that many trials for vitamin D supplementation have shown it is only effective if individuals are vitamin D deficient to begin with, but that in his research very few participants started off with low levels of vitamin D.
Professor Bolland said “In the last four years “more than 30 randomised controlled trials on vitamin D and bone health have been published, nearly doubling the evidence base available. ”Our meta analysis finds that vitamin D does not prevent fractures, falls or improve bone mineral density, whether at high or low dose.”

I hope that satisfies you growstuff. Please read the paper.

The very next sentence says:

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

I would say that "should" is stronger than "consider".

The NHS obviously credits people with enough intelligence to know whether they belong to a higher risk group. the majority of us (especially those with less than perfect bodies and/or concerned about skin cancer) don't expose enough skin outdoors for Vitamin D to be made.

People with the following conditions have problems with fat absorption, which affects the absorption of Vitamin D: liver disease, cystic fibrosis, celiac disease, Crohn's disease, and ulcerative colitis. PPIs can cause loss of bone density, so adequate Vit D and calcium is especially important. On the other hand, people taking certain drugs should check that extra Vitamin D is safe.

PS. I have my Vitamin D checked every year as part of a full blood test. It's not standard to include it, but I had a severe deficiency a few years ago.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

Message deleted by Gransnet for breaking our forum guidelines. Replies may also be deleted.

Reported

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

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.

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 should have added “For the 50+”.

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

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.