Navigating the labyrinth: 30 things you need to know about nutritional supplements

Vegetarian Times, Jan, 1998 by Jack Challem

Shannon Hill, a 30-year-old marketing executive in Seattle, remembers a recent trip to her local natural food store to pick up a multivitamin for, as she put it, "dietary insurance." The overzealous clerk proceeded to pitch a second supplement to deal with stress, a third to relieve premenstrual cramps and a fourth for losing weight. Confused and overwhelmed, Shannon walked out of the store frustrated--and empty-handed.

"Maybe I should just stick with natural foods," she thought on the ride home.

Shannon's notion is an admirable one, to be sure. But in today's overprocessed, stressed-out, polluted world, a good diet--even a great diet--may not be enough. Emanuel Cheraskin, M.D., professor emeritus of the University of Alabama, Birmingham, makes the point that a natural diet is fine--but few of us actually live in a natural world. He calls supplements "heroic countermeasures" that bolster our biological defenses against food additives, stress, alcohol, pesticides, chemical emissions and second-hand cigarette smoke.

But the difficulty with supplementing our diets lies in sorting through all the manufacturers' claims, counterclaims, truths and half-truths--not to mention all the products themselves. One researcher recently counted a mind-numbing 3,400 supplements on the market. Obviously, nobody needs all of them; at most, we probably need only a handful. But deciding which ones we do need can be daunting. A simple solution is to identify what you want to get out of supplements. Do you want "dietary insurance," as Shannon Hill does, to protect yourself against possible nutritional omissions and deficiencies? Are you looking to treat--or reduce your risk for--a specific disease? All of the above? Once you have a reason for supplementing, you've got a basis for selection and something to measure the purported claims against.

What follows is a list of 30 things you need to know as you maneuver through the labyrinthine world of supplements. The information is general and applicable to most people. For specific information on your unique biochemical requirements, consult a knowledgeable health-care practitioner or nutritionist.

1 But I Eat a Healthful Diet. That's a good start, but from a nutritional standpoint, the food supply isn't what it used to be, and even under She best of circumstances, vitamin and mineral levels in foods are dependent on highly variable growing conditions. Plus, can you honestly say you eat a perfect diet all the time? For dietary insurance--and to keep things simple--Catherine RiceEvans, Ph.D., a British vitamin researcher, recommends taking a vitamin/mineral supplement--and eating lots of fresh fruits and vegetables.

2 How Do I Know What I Need? The decades-old concept of biochemical individuality essentially means that while everyone requires the same vitamins and minerals, we need different amounts. Some of us are genetically less efficient at utilizing nutrients. For example, one in seven women has a subtle genetic defect that interferes with folic acid (a B vitamin), and diet alone may not be sufficient to compensate. Look at the diseases your parents and siblings have had, then learn which vitamins and minerals might lower your risk for these illnesses.

3 What's an Antioxidant? The rallying cry of die-hard supplement takers, antioxidants (including vitamins C and E, Co-[Q.sub.10], and alpha-lipoic acid) are best thought of as anti-disease and anti-aging nutrients. They protect cells against damaging molecules called free radicals, which are found in pollutants and also produced by your body. The question is whether you need to supplement with antioxidants or if you get enough from fruits and vegetables. A nutritionally oriented M.D. or naturopath can test your antioxidant levels to see if they are adequate.

4 Do Vegetarians Have Special Needs? Vegetarians tend to consume more antioxidants than the average person, according to a study by Anna-Liisa Rauma, Ph.D., of the University of Kuopio, Finland. But we may be missing out on other nutrients, such as vitamins A and D, [B.sub.12] and zinc, because these substances are most abundant in animal products. This doesn't mean you're necessarily deficient--just that you should work a little harder at getting them in your diet, or consider supplementing, especially if you're vegan. Vegetarians also tend to have lower levels of carnitine, an important component of protein, than meat eaters. According to San Francisco-based Richard Kunin, M.D., one of the nation's leading nutritionally oriented physicians, low carnitine levels leave us more susceptible to environmental toxins.

5 What Else Should We Look For? Unfortunately, "natural" sometimes means "animal sources," so watch for vitamins A and D from fish liver oil, omega-3 essential fatty acids from fish oils and pancreatic enzymes from pigs or cows. One alternative is to take synthetic vitamins A and D, flax seed oil instead of fish oils, and betaine-hydrochloride (which acidifies the stomach) instead of pancreatic enzymes.