More Reasons to Avoid Supplements and Vitamins

This article dives deep into how nutritional supplements became popular and why that’s a bad things. It focuses on the research about free radicals, antioxidants, and the movement to increase consumption of antioxidants. The article says the latest research indicates that taking artificial antioxidants doesn’t improve health or postpone aging. Some studies show that taking antioxidant supplements actually diminishes health, such as by increasing the incidence of lung cancer among smokers.

No one would deny that vitamin C is vital to a healthy lifestyle, as are all antioxidants, but unless you are following doctor’s orders, these supplements are rarely going to be the answer for a longer life when a healthy diet is also an option. “Administration of antioxidants is justified only when it is evident that there is a real deficiency of a specific antioxidant,” says Villanueva. “The best option is to get antioxidants from food because it contains a mixture of antioxidants that work together.”

“Diets rich in fruits and vegetables have been shown generally to be good for you,” says Lane. “Not invariably, but generally that’s agreed to be the case.” Although often attributed to antioxidants, the benefits of such a diet, he says, might also hail from a healthy balance of pro-oxidants and other compounds whose roles aren’t yet fully understood.