Poles spend nearly 8 billion zlotys a year on supplements. This is an enormous amount!

Poles spend nearly 8 billion zlotys a year on supplements. This is an enormous amount!

Therefore, it is necessary to educate patients about what dietary supplements are and for what purpose they can be used. We should remember that dietary supplements are foods that contain, among other things, vitamins or minerals, and their purpose is only to supplement the normal diet.

Is buying vitamin supplements throwing money down the drain?

As pharmacists, we recommend ensuring that the body has the right vitamin and mineral requirements, but the basis is a healthy diet. You can consider the use of dietary supplements in certain cases, for example, by the elderly, post-menopausal women, pregnant women and people whose diet is associated with certain restrictions or elimination of certain nutrients, for example, by vegetarians.

So what to supplement during the fall and winter.

First of all, we should try to get vitamins and minerals from our diet. During winter, we have access to citrus fruits, which contain vitamin C, vitamin A and B vitamins, among others. Fish, such as salmon and tuna, are a source of fat-soluble vitamins, i.e. A, E, D, and micronutrients such as zinc and selenium. Nuts, on the other hand, are a rich source of B vitamins, vitamin E and zinc. And during winter, we should pay special attention to providing the indicated vitamins and minerals. Keep in mind that we should verify which ones we are providing with our diet, whether we are able to introduce the right products into our diet, and only then consider supplementation.

A Vitamin D and folic acid ....?

Folic acid supplementation is recommended by women of childbearing age and during pregnancy and lactation. Folic acid plays an important role especially at the beginning of pregnancy, so it should be supplemented at least 6 weeks before the planned pregnancy and at least until the end of the first trimester of pregnancy. The recommended dose is 400 µg of folate per day. This dose can be higher in cases of obesity or previous use of oral hormonal contraception, among others.

Vitamin D supplementation is also recommended, and the dose is determined by age, body weight, dietary intake or skin synthesis, among other factors. Before starting supplementation, blood levels of vitamin D3 should be determined, and levels should be monitored while taking the vitamin preparation.

If you need to take folic acid or vitamin D, you can use appropriate OTC medications containing these vitamins.

There is a noticeable phenomenon of ingesting supplements like favorite candies. How much do vitamin supplements harm us?

Any unwarranted or excessive supplementation can have negative effects on our health. Examples include the formation of kidney stones when using high doses of vitamin C or the occurrence of diarrhea after taking large amounts of magnesium. In addition, long-term intake of high doses of vitamin D without medical supervision can lead to symptoms of overdose, which include cardiovascular, nervous or kidney disorders.

Supplements can harm us when we suffer from something chronic....

For patients with chronic conditions, interactions between medications taken on a regular basis and preparations containing vitamins or minerals are important. Patients being treated for hypertension, angina pectoris or arrhythmia should pay special attention to preparations containing magnesium, calcium, potassium, iron. The mentioned minerals enter into significant reactions with some drugs used in cardiovascular diseases. Vitamin E and K affect blood clotting, with vitamin E possibly increasing the risk of bleeding and vitamin K possibly reducing the effect of anticoagulants. Vitamin B6 and magnesium may reduce the effectiveness of tranquilizers. Vitamin D may exacerbate the side effects of some antacids used to treat peptic ulcer disease or reflux disease, among others.

What should be in our home first aid kit during the winter?

During winter, it is worth stocking your home medicine cabinet with medications for typical symptoms of upper respiratory tract infections, i.e.: sore throat (preparations containing an active substance with antiseptic action, e.g. chlorhexidine, anti-inflammatory e.g. flurbiprofen or local anesthetic e.g. lidocaine), dry cough (e.g. levodropropazine), wet cough (e.g. ambroxol), headache, fever (e.g. paracetamol, ibuprofen). Before purchasing appropriate OTC drugs, it is important to consider the contraindications and precautions associated with their use. When stocking the medicine cabinet for the whole family, it is worth considering the purchase of preparations that can be used by more family members, i.e. both children and adults.

So which OTC drugs should we pay attention to in order not to harm ourselves?

When using rhinitis preparations containing xylometazoline or oxymetazoline in their formulation, it is important to remember that they are intended for short-term use - up to a maximum of 5 days. Long-term therapy with these drugs can lead to damage to the nasal mucosa and the occurrence of drug-induced rhinitis. Non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen or acetylsalicylic acid, can damage the gastric mucosa and increase the risk of dyspnea in asthmatic patients. Pseudoephedrine contained in preparations for cold symptoms should not be used by patients with cardiovascular disease.

So, Ms. Doctor, I would like to ask you for general supplementation recommendations on your own.

Before starting to use a dietary supplement, it is important to carefully evaluate the benefits and risks of a particular supplementation. It is best to consult a professional opinion as to whether, taking into account our lifestyle, diet, medications we take and existing diseases, the use of a particular dietary supplement is beneficial and safe for our health. When using a dietary supplement, it is important to read the information on the package, follow the recommendations that are indicated there, and do not exceed the daily intake limit for the substance in question. However, above all, it is advisable to pay attention to a balanced diet, which should contain all the necessary vitamins and minerals.

Source: SUM