Dietary Supplements: What You Need To Know
Many adults and children take one or more vitamins or other dietary supplements. In addition to vitamins, dietary supplements can contain minerals, herbs or other botanicals, amino acids, enzymes, and many other ingredients.
Dietary supplements come in a variety of forms, including tablets, capsules, gummies, and powders, as well as drinks and energy bars.
Popular supplements include vitamins D and B12; minerals like calcium and iron; herbs such as echinacea and garlic; and products like glucosamine, probiotics, and fish oils.
Effectiveness
Some dietary supplements can help you get adequate amounts of essential nutrients if you don’t eat a nutritious variety of foods. However, supplements can’t take the place of the variety of foods that are important to a healthy eating routine.
Some dietary supplements can improve overall health and help manage some health conditions.
For example:
- Calcium and vitamin D help keep bones strong and reduce bone loss.
- Folic acid decreases the risk of certain birth defects.
- Omega-3 fatty acids from fish oils might help some people with heart disease.
- A combination of vitamins C and E, zinc, coppe, lutein and zeaxanthin (known as an AREDS formula) may slow down further vision loss in people with age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
Many other supplements need more study to determine if they have value.
Talk with Your Health Care Providers
Tell your health care providers (including doctors, dentists, pharmacists, and dietitians) about any dietary supplements you’re taking. They can help you determine which supplements, if any, might be valuable for you.
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