Vitamins which can do much harm to health

The American habit to accept vitamins, it seems, does not cost that it is thoughtless to adopt it. Recently in the States there are enough experts who criticize vitamin supplements. Materials in the press are devoted to it, on television doctors act and discuss a problem.

David Agus, the doctor and the author of the book best-seller "The End of Illness" (the end to diseases) called abuse of vitamins – one of the main problems of America. He is based in the judgments on 50 large-scale researches. "Any of them does not prove that vitamins give some advantage in fight against heart troubles or oncological diseases", - the doctor considers.

Agus is not lonely. Other experts compare purchase of vitamins to sinking of money in a toilet bowl. In certain cases it is possible to speak about it literally, the organism removes excess of vitamins together with urine.

But people continue to spend huge amounts of money for purchase of vitamin complexes, supporting by that the whole industry. For example, Americans spend about 28 billion dollars a year for vitamin and grass supplements.

And the nutritionist Dee Sandkuist from Academy of food and dietology of the USA considers that the excess of some vitamins can do harm to our health. It emitted three popular vitamins which can do much harm to us if we consume them uncontrolledly.

Vitamin E
Vitamin E is key in functioning of the immune system and cellular communications. However it is better to receive this vitamin with food. It contains in such products as wheat germs, sunflower seeds, in broccoli, nuts. As well as many other vitamins, vitamin E loses the main properties at excess reception.

Vitamin A
It is important for reproduction and health of bones and for the immune system. But the deficiency of vitamin A is a big rarity among healthy people. Because vitamin A can collect in an organism. However the large supply of vitamin A to toxic level is harmful, it can lead to problems with a liver, violations of the central nervous system, and at pregnant women – to congenital malformations of a fruit.

Beta carotene (it is one of vitamin A forms) is useful only when it comes to an organism with food (it contains in carrots). In this case it even helps to prevent cancer. But in the form of tablets beta carotene works on the contrary, and tell researches about it.

Vitamin C
This orange vitamin (as it is called because of high content in oranges and tangerines) is also support of our immune system. But only its natural form maintains immunity and struggles with colds. There are no proofs that the vitamin C received by us in tablets is capable to save from catarrhal diseases completely.

But vitamin C – is most harmless in respect of overdoses, it is the fact. Unlike vitamin A, it is dissolved in water, and it means that its surplus is just removed by an organism together with urine. But you should not calm down. Because scientists say that the excess of vitamin C can lead to such by-effects as diarrhea, gastric spasms, nausea, and even nephroliths. Any amount of vitamin C, bigger 500 milligrams a day, can cause problems with health (500 milligrams contain in a half of a 1-gramovy bag of Emergen-C).

Main recommendations
As to accept vitamins not to do harm to health?

- Respect the admissible rules of consumption of vitamins.

- Do not hope for additives and tablets. The main part of vitamins has to arrive with food. Vitamin supplements – only addition to food.

- Risks of overdose are rather high, remember it. But also do not panic if slightly touched. The recommended doses are more often less, than maximum permissible.

- Accepting vitamins or vitamin medicines (for example, for cold) you watch closely side effects. The headache, diarrhea, diarrhea should not remain unnoticed. Report about these states to the doctor.

- If vitamins come to your organism only with food, then you are never threatened by overdose. Therefore better choose such way of receiving vitamins.

The facts from article on usnews.com are used.