The Truth About Vitamins

by Cascade Ice on August 8, 2011

Just walking down the aisle of vitamins at the store can be overwhelming. A barrage of brands and hard-to-pronounce names makes choosing which vitamins you actually need difficult. However, making sure you are getting all the nutrients you need is important and can prevent heart disease, cancer and other health related problems.

Fortunately, finding out which vitamins are right for you and where to get them is made easy by Health.com:

• Vitamin A: It’s found in carrots, sweet potatoes and green peppers. It will help your skin, vision and immune system.
• Calcium: Found in dairy products like milk and cheese. If you have allergies or plain don’t like dairy products you can take a supplement, but be warned if you are prone to kidney stones supplements can actually make them worse.
• Potassium: This nutrient can lower blood sugar and is found in bananas, raisins and milk. However, if you have kidney disease be cautious with your potassium intake.
• Vitamin C: Found in citrus fruits, green peppers and broccoli. This vitamin is still a must-have for common-cold prevention. Most studies have found that a supplement doesn’t do you much good in this category, so opt for obtaining your Vitamin C from real foods.

What about a multivitamin? Multivitamins are okay if you are in a hurry, but you shouldn’t expect the same results as obtaining your daily nutrient intake from the real thing! Bottom line, eat real foods to get the majority of your vitamin intake and use supplements sparingly.

What vitamin do you not get enough of?

If you are looking at changing your diet please consult of a physician.