We’re constantly being told that our busy lives require us to take vitamins in a bid to balance out a lack of sleep and poor diet. But do our bodies really need them? And what effect do they have if we take too many? Firstly, find out if you actually have any deficiencies “Undergoing blood testing is the only way to really find out what your body is lacking,” says Sarah Lomas, president of wellness brand REVIV. “In our fast-paced modern lifestyle, the traditionally recommended sleep, diet and exercise requirements are rarely met, and supplements can be beneficial and sometimes necessary. For example, 10-40 per cent of the population are noted to be vitamin B12 deficient; people that have undergone gastric surgery, or are stressed, chronically ill, elderly or strict vegetarians are more disproportionately affected. Vitamin deficiency can result in many disorders and at the very least can decrease productivity. Supplementation can usually quickly reverse the effects of malnutrition to help people look and feel better.”
Full of natural antioxidants, cranberries can be beneficial for flushing out the kidneys. Solgar natural cranberry with vitamin C, £9.95 for 60 capsules, Dolphin Fitness Be wary of taking too many “Combining multiple products containing the same active ingredients, or those with the same action, has the potential to result in adverse effects,” says Alex Thompson, nutritionist for Holland & Barrett. “For example, taking a combination of products providing an excessive intake of retinol (vitamin A) over an extended period may result in vitamin A toxicity. The two most useful supplements for women to take are hydrolysed collagen and products providing omega 3 essential fatty acids, as there aren’t that many good dietary sources, with only oily fish and a small handful of vegetable sources. This means that even those with a pretty balanced and varied diet may not be ingesting enough omega 3 from diet alone; this is where a daily fish oil supplement becomes very useful.”
Perfectil is a combination of multivitamins for women, including zinc and biotin. Vitabiotics Perfectil multivitamins, £6.30 for 30 capsules, Superdrug. Wellwoman includes vitamin B12 and folate, which can contribute to the reduction of fatigue. Vitabiotics Wellwoman Original, £25.20 for 180 capsules, Boots. “Vitamins, minerals, and essential fats nearly all rely on other nutrients to function properly. This synergy is often supported in the plant foods we eat – such as vitamin C in an apricot that also has iron,” says Yvonne Bishop-Weston, nutritionist at Harley Street. “However, this synergy can be lost if you take supplements as individual nutrients. Too much calcium without magnesium, and vitamins D and K to process and store it properly can be bad for your heart. Well-formulated supplements have a balance between the nutrients so you have a synergistic blend of vitamins and minerals to help the body function in an optimal way.” Made with a low odour oil and with a hint of flavouring to ensure taste isn’t an issue.
Omega3 liquid, £5.99 for 150ml, My Protein Diet for type 1 diabetes Diet for type 2 diabetes Low carb high fat diet Meal replacement diet plans Very low calorie diet What can I drink? Alcohol and blood sugar Soft drinks and diabetes Diet soft drinks and diabetes Carbohydrate counting Chocolate and diabetes Food for a healthy diet Which slimming club is best? Eggs, beans & pulses Eating out with diabetes Low carb lunch ideas Low carb dinner ideas Low carb flour alternatives Low carb snacks Low sugar sweets Simple carbs vs complex carbs Nutritive and non-nutritive sweeteners Role of sugar in our diet Which artificial sweetener should I choose? Vitamin D can be found in foods such as nuts, oily fish, eggs, powdered milk and some fortified cereals Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that plays a number of important roles in the body, including maintaining the health of your bones, teeth and joints, and assisting immune system function.
This underrated vitamin is found in certain foods but is also produced by the body in response to exposure to the sun. When the sun’s ultraviolet-B (UVB) rays are exposed to bare skin, the body converts a cholesterol derivative into Vitamin D. In fact, it’s now known that every cell and tissue within the body has a Vitamin D protein receptor. However, most of us in the UK and other Western countries are deficient in Vitamin D, including many patients with Type 2 diabetes, due to limited sunlight exposure caused by a number of factors, including more time spent at home, in the office or the car, shorter days in winter, sunscreen use in summer and fears of skin cancer. The signs of Vitamin D deficiency can range from bone pain and muscle weakness to depression and weakened immune system, while longer-term deficiency can result in obesity, high blood pressure, psoriasis, osteoporosis, chronic fatigue, Alzheimer’s disease, cancer and type 2 diabetes. Exposing your skin to the sun for 15-20 minutes each day can help increase your body’s own production of vitamin D and thus reduce your risk of diabetes and other serious medical conditions.
Alternatively, you can get your daily intake of vitamin D through dietary supplements and foods such as nuts, oily fish, eggs, powdered milk and some fortified cereals. Vitamin D is believed to help improve the body’s sensitivity to insulin – the hormone responsible for regulating blood sugar levels – and thus reduce the risk of insulin resistance, which is often a precursor to type 2 diabetes. Some scientists also believe this vitamin may help regulate the production of insulin in the pancreas. Vitamin D levels should ideally be between 20-56 ng/ml (50-140 nmol/l)*, with anything below 20 ng/ml considered deficient. However, it is now known that raising the amount of vitamin D in your body to around 60-80 ng/ml can help keep blood glucose levels under control, which is vital for people with diabetes.the correct level of vitamin D varies from person to person. The only way to be sure that your vitamin D levels are where they should be is to request a 25-hydroxyvitamin D, or 25(OH)D, blood test from your GP.
Ideally your blood level of 25 OH D should be 60ng/ml. As well as assisting glycemic control, increasing your levels of vitamin D can also: Now I need Vitamin D and Metformin to get pregnant?! Vitamin supplements with Type 1 Take Vitamin D - make sure your children take it There are two forms of this vitamin; vitamin D2 and vitamin D3. Vitamin D2 is a synthetic version called ergocalciferol, which has a shorter shelf life, while vitamin D3 (also known as cholecalciferol) is the same as the vitamin D that is produced by the body following exposure to UVB rays. Studies have shown that vitamin D3 appears to be more than three times as effective as vitamin D2, but most products that include the words “good source of vitamin D” or “fortified with vitamin D” on their labels contain the hugely inferior vitamin D2. So when shopping for vitamin D-rich foods or supplements, make sure you check which ‘type’ of vitamin D each product contains. Single vitamin D supplements or vitamin drops containing vitamin D (for use by young children) are available at most UK pharmacies, supermarkets and health food retailers like Holland and Barrett.