It often happens that we go to the pharmacy to buy a headache pill, accidentally look on the shelves with vitamins, hesitate for ten minutes and … do not buy them. Or we buy some supplements, and then forget about them, and a year later we find an expired drug and throw it away. Apparently, doctors do not convincingly explain to us the importance of these pills.
But the statistics are worrying. 80% of people are deficient in vitamin C (as well as A and D). Have you ever had a blood test for vitamins?
An interesting study was conducted in the United States and found that each study participant lacked 10 important nutrients (vitamins and trace elements). Since the participants of the experiment lived in different cities and ate differently, it can be concluded that this is typical for the whole population. That is, supplements must be taken in spring and autumn, as well as during stress and colds. And at-risk groups need them every day. For example, Swedes, whose diet is dominated by fish, are deficient in vitamin B1 on the background of some excess of vitamin A. Also, fish contains an enzyme that destroys it.
One of the main arguments of supporters of the constant intake of large amounts of vitamins is the low quality of modern food. Even if a person eats a balanced diet, he still lacks micronutrients for several reasons:
– There is less and less fresh food in our diet. Frozen, canned and otherwise processed products predominate.
– About 9 months a year, Europeans eat vegetables grown in greenhouses or after long-term storage. Such vegetables contain much less vitamins than fresh ones.
– After 3 days of storing food in the refrigerator, about 30% of vitamin C is lost, and at room temperature – 50%.
– 25% to 100% of vitamins are lost during cooking.
Chemistry and life
“I don’t want to take these pills, I’d better eat a salad,” older people often say. But every chemistry student knows that substances with the same chemical structure have exactly the same chemical properties and activity, regardless of how they are obtained. Therefore, if necessary, be sure to take vitamin complexes (such as Menevit or Chela-Ferr Forte).
Why are vitamins not absorbed?
“Those who often take vitamins have the most expensive urine in the world,” doctors joke. And there is some truth in this. Indeed, not all vitamins are absorbed. If, for example, you take a multivitamin complex tablet on an empty stomach, fat-soluble vitamins A, D and E will not be absorbed. But the main reason why vitamins do not enter the bloodstream is the poor condition of the digestive tract.
– If there are problems with the pancreas, fat-soluble vitamins – A, D, E are not absorbed.
– If the secretion of gastric juice is reduced, the body lacks B vitamins, in particular B12, the lack of which leads to anemia.
– With the “leaky gut” syndrome, when the permeability of the mucous membrane is impaired, there is a deficiency of almost all vitamins. This condition can be triggered by various causes – alcohol, nicotine, caffeine, Helicobacter pylori bacteria.
Therefore, before taking vitamins, check the condition of the digestive tract. If you have Helicobacter pilory, you need to take drugs such as Losec and Apo-Amoxi.