Vitamin Supplements

Some of the dangers encountered when comparing vitamin supplements - plus the top 25 brands
of vitamin supplements rated by a qualified independent health authority vitamin brand ratings .

Choosing the wrong vitamin supplements can be costly as well as hazardous to ones health, and
according to an article in the journal of the American Medical Association... many physicians may also be unsure of which vitamins they should recommend for their patients. So, we have included links to the relevant medical and scientific data for verification purposes.

The American Medical Association also published two scientific review articles, Vitamins for chronic disease prevention in adults - recommending vitamin supplements for all adults (ref 1 & 2 ). But, we can not expect to get the same benefits if the active ingredients in the clinical trials to prevent and treat diseases are not used. No matter how good a story someone tells...

According to the Food & Drug Administration, analyses of dietary supplements by a private sector laboratory suggest that a substantial number of dietary supplement products analyzed may not contain the amounts of dietary ingredients that would be expected to be found based on their product labels (dietary supplements also include vitamin supplements, and it may be
one of the reasons we find losing weight so difficult. reference 3 ).

Only 33% of the folic acid supplements they tested met U.S. Pharmacopeia standards
in this study (ref 4 ). And, studies have shown that folic acid supplementation can prevent spina bifida and anencephaly (birth defects of the baby's spine, and brain  5 & 6 ).  U.S. Pharmacopeia Standards are important when comparing vitamin supplements because, unless the ingredients are absorbable we do not get the benefit required even if the product contains what the label says.

Iron can be toxic, accidental overdose of iron pills is a leading cause of poisoning deaths among young children, and it is important to keep iron supplements tightly capped and out of children's reach. The need for Iron supplements also varies between individuals, and it
is recommended that a physician be consulted as to iron supplementation needs.

Note: the potency of iron supplements can also be affected if taken within one hour of multivitamin or calcium supplements (iron supplements risks ref 7, 8 & 9 ). And, the top rated brand of vitamin supplements on our  vitamin brand ratings  table does not include iron, and is one of the few selected companies listed in ‘The Physicians Desk Reference’

Vitamin supplements that are not balanced correctly can also do more harm than good... i.e. Folic acid may mask signs of vitamin B12 deficiency, and permanent nerve damage can occur
if vitamin B12 deficiency is not treated. Vitamin A can also be toxic, and may even cause
birth defects in some instances, depending on the amount taken, type of vitamin
A used in the vitamin supplements, etc. (vitamin supplements references 10 ).

The above are just a few of the hazards awaiting the unaware consumer of vitamin supplements, and, if you do not happen to have a Degree in Medicine, a PhD in Biochemistry & Nutrition, it makes good health sense to rely on those who do » vitamin brand ratings . And companies
that back up their claims with references to the medical and scientific evidence.

Abstracts for most of the vitamin supplements clinical references we used here can be found at www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/ . In PubMed select, ‘Single Citation Matcher’ from the PubMed Services menu, then enter the title name in the ‘Title words: box’, click search, then click on the authors' names (in blue) to verify the information.

1. Fairfield KM, Fletcher RH. Vitamins for chronic disease prevention in adults: scientific review.     JAMA 2002; 287:3116-3126.

2. Fletcher RH, Fairfield KM. Vitamins for chronic disease prevention in adults: clinical     applications. JAMA 2002; 287:3127-3129.

3. The FDA, Food & Drug Administration proposes New Standards For Dietary Supplements to
     protect the public Dietary Supplements Risks (will not come into effect for 3 more years?).

4. University of Maryland (UM) Baltimore. School of Pharmacy. Stephen Hoag, PhD.
    Failure of prescription prenatal vitamin products to meet USP standards for folic acid dissolution
     &   PRENATAL VITAMINS DON'T MEET U.S. STANDARDS .

5. Butterworth CE Jr., Bendich A., Folic acid and the prevention of birth defects. Annu Rev Nutr     16: 73-97 (1996).

6. Pediatrics 1999 Aug;104(2 Pt 1):325-7. Folic acid for the prevention of neural tube defects.     American Academy of Pediatrics. Committee on Genetics.

7. Long PJ. Rethinking iron supplementation during pregnancy. J Nurse Midwifery. 1995 Jan-     Feb;40(1):36-40. Review.

8. Iron Deficiency Anemia * Diabetes Mellitus. www.epi.umn.edu/let/files/NMPA_89-112.PDF

9. Food & Drug Administration, Preventing Iron Poisoning in Children  Iron Supplements Risks

10.  Institute of Medicine. Food and Nutrition Board. Dietary Reference Intakes: Thiamin,        riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6, folate, vitamin B12, pantothenic Acid, biotin, and choline.        National Academy Press. Washington, DC, 1998. (ref. pages 306 to 356 & 82 to 161)