Gransnet forums

Health

Supplement obsession.

(60 Posts)
Missfoodlove Sat 21-Nov-20 16:05:04

Am I alone in taking a lot of supplements?
I’ve just filled my pill dispenser for the week and it made me think.
Here’s the list.....
Cinnamon for blood sugar,
NAC for chest and C19 protection.
Sage for hot flushes.
Vitamin D for general wellness.
D Mannose to prevent UTI’s
Occasionally Vit B.
Please assure me I’m not bonkers.

Sparklefizz Sat 21-Nov-20 16:07:14

You're not bonkers, I take far more than you ..... but I have 9 illnesses I am juggling including multiple food intolerances and lack of pancreatic digestive enzymes, so I need them to make up for my imbalanced diet.

Callistemon Sat 21-Nov-20 16:15:28

Just looking up D Mannose .....

DanniRae Sat 21-Nov-20 16:17:51

I like a supplement and vary them from time to time. At the moment I am taking flaxseed capsules (this one I have been taking for years for my joints) - a multi vitamin and mineral tablet and a magnesium tablet. Before any one points out that there will be magnesium in the multi vitamin and mineral tablet I have taken this into consideration already.

Blossoming Sat 21-Nov-20 16:20:08

I take 10 prescription meds, one of which is vitamin D, so I wouldn’t take anything without first checking with my doctors.

Your list looks reasonable to me though ?

Onthenaughtystep1 Sat 21-Nov-20 16:23:59

I eat an excellent diet (a bit too much of it if I’m honest) and have nothing wrong with me that needs supplementation. I do have an oestrogen implant twice a year but that’s just because I refuse to go through the menopause.

SynchroSwimmer Sat 21-Nov-20 16:26:52

Ha, me too!
To your list I have also added magnesium, biotin (hair and nails) and marine collagen - my skin and wrinkles seem to look better on it.

Missfoodlove Sat 21-Nov-20 17:05:06

I’m feeling better, keep them coming!

paddyanne Sat 21-Nov-20 17:44:53

I take flaxseed capsules ,recommended by my homeopath 20 years ago or more,also vit D ,we're in Scotland and no one gets enough Vit D,currently taking Vit E for breast pain and sea weed capsules for brittle nails .SynchroSwimmer does Biotin work? My nails have been shocking for a couple of years ,split and break before they reach the end of my fingers and are a bit ridged .

Juliet27 Sat 21-Nov-20 17:49:11

Vit D
Lyprinol
Flaxseed

Hetty58 Sat 21-Nov-20 17:52:54

I take Vitamin D (we don't get much sun here in London) and B vitamins, just in case, as I'm vegan. There's no substitute for a really good diet, though.

EllanVannin Sat 21-Nov-20 18:19:51

I used to have malt and cod liver oil religiously every winter but that had to stop when I started on the warfarin in 2006, so no supplements allowed sad It's the oil in these things that upsets the balance.

MissChateline Sat 21-Nov-20 18:34:22

I’ve never taken a supplement in my life neither have I ever had a days serious illness. I am probably very lucky or have exceptionally good genes. I vaguely recall having flu for a day 25 years ago and a cold 10 years ago. Otherwise nothing. I’m 65 I look after my health, exercise daily, don’t eat any processed food and walk 10 miles a day. I totally believe in personal responsibility for my own health. I do weight training most days. I really am so not frightened of this virus that I’m going through the application process of applying to be a doorstep tracer for my local council.

Luckyoldbeethoven Sat 21-Nov-20 18:42:08

My husband is like you Miss Chateleine, it sounds like you live well but I think genes have a lot to do with it.
I take turmeric, fish oil for my joints, vitamin b12 because I'm vegan, a b complex occasionally. If I'm unwell, vitamin c and quercetin.

Iam64 Sat 21-Nov-20 18:55:00

I have prescription AdCal/Vit D.
I have atrial fibrillation (and RA and its auto immune pals). A friend suggested that people with AF are usually short of Magnesium, did I get leg cramps at night. Yes I did. I started a supplement of magnesium, vit C and Zinc- leg cramps are a thing of the past. Fabulous

ginny Sat 21-Nov-20 19:03:39

I don’t take any supplements. I eat lots of fruit , veg and enough dairy and meat. Probably to much home baking.
I have tried some for arthritis but didn’t find after some time that they made any difference.

Grannynannywanny Sat 21-Nov-20 19:03:41

I’ve never had a supplement since I was a child and we were given a spoonful of Virol every day! But literally just today I’ve started taking vitamin D. I hear it mentioned a lot recently and thought I might as well.

Grannynannywanny Sat 21-Nov-20 19:04:31

Forgetting about my folic acid supplement during both pregnancies.

M0nica Sat 21-Nov-20 19:06:21

I started supplements when I lost my post menopausal weight and realised that keeping it off meant eating much less than I used to. I then became concerned that this meant that I would no longer be eating enough to meet my micro-nutritional needs.

I read Dr Paul Clayton's Health Defence and now take the vitamin package he recommends. I buy it direct and as well as minerals and vitamins it includes a wide range of other micro-nutrients. I do not have to think about what amounts of what to take. It is all done for me and the nutrient mix is updated regularly in line with the most recent research findings.

BlueBelle Sat 21-Nov-20 19:12:50

Take no medication and just one Vit D tablet daily 75 and feel pretty ok
I don’t think all the supplements are necessary for most people just a money making racket

phoenix Sat 21-Nov-20 19:16:11

Missfoodlove you mention "occasional vitamin B".

Please remember the vitamins A,D, E and K are fat soluble, and can store in the body, hence excess carrot juice or liver can end up becoming toxic.

Vitamins B and C are water soluble, so (as an example) eating 6 oranges in one day will only give you Vitamin C for that day, the rest will just go as bodily waste.

Witzend Sat 21-Nov-20 19:16:54

No prescription items, but

Vitamin D3
Acidophilus (probiotic, to help with bloating and gas, as the Yanks call it.)
A cranberry tablet, to help ward off cystitis
Green lipped mussel extract, for arthritis, or rather for fending it off - I hope.

We do eat a good, varied diet, with loads of veg and fruit, but if they may help (not much doubt about D3) then why not.

BlueSky Sat 21-Nov-20 19:28:51

I just take a multi vitamin for the over 50s from October to March, I have the soluble ones that make a pleasant orange drink as some supplements are too big to swallow.

Gingster Sat 21-Nov-20 19:54:31

No prescribed meds or supplements for me. A balanced diet , Normal food plus anything we might fancy. Everything in moderation.I agree with Bluebell - a money making racket.

Callistemon Sat 21-Nov-20 20:06:41

Well, a balanced diet does not always mean no prescribed meds.

We never know what life may have in store for us.