Startling Reasons Why Eating Vitamin Rich Foods Is Better Than Taking Supplements

Did your doctor prescribe iron supplement when you were pregnant? Women tend to suffer from iron deficiency owing to blood loss that happens during childbirth. Anemia or iron deficiency is also caused by poor diets, frequent blood donation and premature birth. To counter these deficiencies, doctors prescribe different vitamin pills. These nutritional deficiencies also occur as you grow older. Now, imagine all your daily nutrients packed into one small pill. Doesn’t that sound wonderful? With a single pill, you could manage all your nutrient deficiencies, but stop for a moment and think. Do you know if you benefit from these medications? Or, are these vitamin pills harmful to your health in the long run? What if there were other organic supplements to eliminate your deficiencies? It has been found that a healthy diet is a better nutrient supplement than multivitamins supplements, and here is why:

1. More Nutrients Absorbed From Food: A major portion of the multivitamins that you consume daily, cannot be easily absorbed. So, your body flushes the multivitamins out along with the toxins. Manufactured vitamin pills are too complex for your body to break down into small compounds for absorption. Instead, fruits and vegetables contain vitamins and minerals that can be easily absorbed by your body.
2. Antioxidant Absorption: Also, your diet contains bioflavonoids. They are phytochemicals like beta-carotene that act as antioxidants. They oxidize harmful free radicals in the body and prevent inflammation, reduce risks of cardiovascular diseases as well as cancer. Antioxidant pills do not benefit you at all since your body does not absorb them. Research has found that among smokers, who take antioxidant pills, there was no significant change in their health. On the other hand, those smokers who follow a higher beta-carotene diet, the phytochemical acts as a preventive mechanism to cancerous cells.
3. Benefits Of Healthy Diet: A healthy diet has a high concentration of necessary supplements including proteins, carbohydrates, fatty acids, minerals, and vitamins. It also contains dietary fiber that keeps your digestive system healthy. Fruits like amla or Indian gooseberry help in blood purification. Blueberries, strawberries, and cherries are rich antioxidant sources as well as contain enough dietary fiber. Bananas supplement potassium and sodium requirement of your body. Green leafy vegetables are not only sources of fiber but also are rich in calcium that is required for bone strength.
4. Health Risk Owing To Supplements: Older women whose daily intake of calcium is dependent on pills have higher chances of suffering from kidney stones, stroke, and even death in early life. Also, increased doses of synthetic Vitamin E consequently increase risks of bleeding problems. We think supplements are healthy and beneficial, but over-dose also has health risks. Supplement from whole foods will not give your body higher amounts of nutrition. Instead, they contain modest amounts of minerals and vitamins. However, these plant compounds are safer and ensure other benefits like fiber that help in bowel movements and cleanse your intestines.

A wholesome diet is evidently a better choice as opposed to synthetic supplements. Your body is capable of absorbing only a small percentage of the nutrient from the pill. It utilizes an even smaller percentage of the absorbed nutrient for your daily activities. Also, a balanced diet does not burn a hole in your pocket, unlike multivitamins from the drugstore. So, live healthy with a balanced diet that will improve your immune system and general health.

Author Bio : Vineetha Reddy

Being a regular practitioner and adviser of everything related to nutrition, fitness, health and wellness, I also have begun to write and contribute to this knowledge ecosystem. I strongly believe that the organic food you find in your pantry provide the best benefits for good health. Follow me for my best ideas and solutions :

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