Vitamins for Health and Performance? - Newsolio

If the sheer size of the vitamin department at your local Tom Thumb  pharmacy or Whole Foods Market  counts for anything, Americans must be among the best-nourished people on earth. Scan the shelves and you’ll see bottle after bottle filled with tablets, fruit-flavored chewables, red pills, purple pills, and little Freds and Barneys. Your original intent may have been to make sure your exercise performance didn’t suffer because of your less-than-perfect eating habits. But suddenly you’re confronted with general formulas for men, energizers and stress reducers, sexual performance enhancers and even brain power supplements.

Vitamins and minerals are certainly a necessary part of any diet. Fortunately, the abundance of foods in the U.S. makes for a ready supply of vitamins. In fact, vitamin deficiencies are rare in this country. But skipping meals, dieting and relying on processed and fast foods all contribute to poor nutrition. Athletes in particular tend to wonder if their vitamin needs are being met. In their quest to be competitive, many athletes have embraced the promises of improved performance made by vitamin and mineral supplements. Unfortunately, they are often misled by advertisements that promise things they can’t deliver. Two important questions are often asked about vitamin/mineral supplements and physical performance. First, does exercise affect vitamin and mineral requirements? Second, does supplementation benefit performance?

Exercise and Vitamins

How are vitamins and exercise related? Well, certain vitamins are involved in chemical reactions that produce energy (thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, and pantothenic acid). Other vitamins are involved in protein metabolism (vitamin B6), synthesis of new red blood cells (folate and vitamin B12), and serve as antioxidants to protect the cell membrane (vitamins C, E and beta carotene).

Minerals also play a role in exercise. Iron found in red blood cells transports oxygen to exercising muscle cells. Calcium and magnesium are minerals necessary for muscle contraction. Phosphorous is required for formation of ATP, which provides energy in cell metabolism.

There is no doubt that diet is a critical element in maintaining high levels of exercise performance. It would be difficult to gather up the strength to lift weights, run a marathon, or even walk, if the levels of vitamins in the tissues were to low. However, this does not mean that vitamins can directly produce energy. They can’t. Only foods which contain carbohydrates, fats and protein can provide energy (calories). Vitamins act as catalysts â€" substances which speed up reactions without being used up by the reaction. So, if you think you can pop a vitamin pill and suddenly feel “energized,” you’re way off base. After 40 years of scientific scrutiny, most studies report that long-term supplementation with multivitamin/mineral compounds does not enhance sport performance â€" including strength performance.

While it is clear that vitamin and mineral deficiencies impair athletic performance, there is no evidence that vitamins taken in excess of normal daily requirements will improve physical performance. For example, in one study of 82 athletes from four sports (basketball, gymnastics, rowing, and swimming), 7 to 8 months of daily supplementation with a high-dose vitamin/mineral tablet failed to have an effect on muscular strength, or aerobic and anaerobic fitness. Heavy exercise is associated with an increased need for many nutrients, including iron, zinc, copper, chromium, vitamin B6, riboflavin and vitamin C. However, it is the position of the American Dietetic Association that these demands are usually met when the athlete eats more food to meet the increased energy needs.

Too Much of a Good Thing

Many substances that are harmless in small or moderate amounts can be harmful in large doses or by gradual buildup over months or years. Just because a vitamin or mineral is found naturally in food doesn’t mean that it cannot be toxic. Megadoses of most nutrients have been demonstrated to be harmful. High intakes of specific nutrients, especially fat soluble vitamins like A,D,E, and K, can be toxic in themselves and indirectly dangerous because they block the action of other nutrients. Prolonged excessive intake of vitamin D can cause loss of appetite, nausea and weakness. Excess vitamin E can cause headaches, diarrhea and increased blood pressure.

Even excessive intake of the water soluble vitamins (B vitamins and vitamin C) can lead to problems. In time, large doses of niacin can lead to liver toxicity. Too much vitamin C can cause diarrhea or liver problems. Too much vitamin B6 can lead to muscle weakness and numbness of the feet and hands.

A deficiency of one nutrient can be caused by an excess of another. Excessive zinc decreases copper and iron absorption. Excessive vitamin C decreases copper absorption. And recently, researchers at the Grand Forks Human Nutrition Research Center, North Dakota, found that chromium picolinate supplementation leads to iron deficiency. Men taking 200 micrograms of chromium picolinate were iron deficient in as little as two months. The chromium picolinate binds with transferrin, the substance responsible for transporting iron in the blood.

First, Eat Well

It’s much easier to take a vitamin/mineral pill than to change the way you eat. Supplements provide the illusion of caring for your health, but unless you’re eating three squares a day, you’re not getting the benefits of food itself. Remember that the word supplement means “something extra.” No matter what an ad might imply, supplements do not replace food and cannot make up for nutritional deficiencies of a diet based on beer and pizza.

So, before reaching for a vitamin bottle, go straight to the source: your favorite fruits and vegetables. Not only will you get to enjoy the delicious flavor of the real thing, you’ll also get the benefits of added energy, fiber, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals (a scary sounding word which means health-promoting chemicals found by the hundreds in plants).

Fiber, the noncaloric plant material that aids digestion, helps prevent obesity, and helps ward off colon cancer and heart disease. In addition, the skins of many fruits contain cancer-fighting chemicals. For example, the skins of grapes contain a chemical called resveratrol which can prevent cells from turning cancerous. Also, those phytochemicals appear to prevent cancer, reduce tumor size, lower blood cholesterol levels and enhance immune function. You can’t do all of this with a pill alone. Just as an adequate diet is not enhanced by supplementation, an inadequate diet is not redeemed by supplementation.

If you want to take vitamins, fine, but first stock up on fruits, vegetables and whole-grain bread products. The National Cancer Institute urges all Americans to include a generous intake of fruit (2-4 servings per day) and vegetables (3-5 servings per day). If athletes take care to select those that are dark green or yellow in color, they should meet their requirements for most of the antioxidant nutrients (including phytochemicals) from diet alone. One exception could be vitamin E. The Daily RDA for vitamin E is 15 IU, which may be an amount insufficient for most athletes. Recently, it has been suggested that vitamin E intakes of 100 to 400 IU per day may be reasonable for athletes engaged in moderate to heavy exercise.

Choosing the Right Supplement

If you decide, or have been advised, to take a supplement, these tips can help.

- Look for a supplement that provides at least 20 vitamins and minerals known to be essential to good health. Choose one with no more than 100 percent of the U.S. RDA for each nutrient. Supplements at levels exceeding the U.S. RDA do not improve the performance of a well-nourished athlete.

- Don’t be lured by extra ingredients that offer no proven benefits, such as choline, inositol, lecithin and PABA.

- To save money, consider the generic or store brand. They are less expensive because there is no cost of national advertising to pass along to the consumer.  The less expensive pills may be from the same batch as the higher priced ones but without the brand-name price.

- Check the expiration date on the label. Supplements lose their potency over time.

- Remember, food before pills. Supplements can only complement, not replace a healthy diet. Your best nutritional resource for optimum performance is eating a variety of wholesome, nutritious foods.

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The information contained in or made available through This Site cannot replace or substitute for the services of trained professionals in the medical field. We do not recommend any treatment, drug, food or supplement. You should regularly consult a doctor in all matters relating to physical or mental health, particularly concerning any symptoms that may require diagnosis or medical attention.