Vitamin pills: Five that don’t work – and three that help

They are supposed to support the immune system or strengthen the bones, some manufacturers even promise protection against infections or cure cancer: According to market studies, vitamin preparations are experiencing a boom. It’s not always just a waste of money – it can also be dangerous.

“Only a few consumers are aware that dietary supplements are not approved medicines, but foodstuffs and are therefore not checked for safety and quality by any authority,” emphasized internist Monika Rau from the University Hospital of Würzburg in an interview with “Spiegel”. Therefore, the thought that you are getting something good with the supplements prevails. However, exactly the opposite could be the case.

“Investigations regularly show that the products available on the market often have too many ingredients,” warns consumer advocate Sabrina Göddertz at “Spiegel”. The recommended daily dose is often exceeded. In addition, the advertising promises are sometimes inadmissible or misleading.

Three out of four Germans swallow dietary supplements

It is worrying when you consider how popular the funds are. This was shown in November by a study by the “Statista” statistics platform, for which more than 5,000 people were interviewed as part of the “Global Consumer Survey”. are particularly widespread

• vitamins with 58 percent and
• minerals with 34 percent .

In third place are proteins, which every fifth person eats.

FOCUS online explains which vitamins actually make sense – and which ones you can save on. You can also find out in which amounts the preparations are harmless in the BfR list for the maximum amounts of vitamins and minerals in food supplements.

Which vitamin pills you can do without

With a few exceptions, you can do without vitamins in tablet form – as long as a doctor has not demonstrated a demonstrable deficiency in your blood count. Here are the five most commonly consumed but not needed by healthy people:

1. Multivitamintabletten

Everything they contain can provide a balanced diet. A large US study of 39,000 older women showed a few years ago that the pill users had a greater risk of death than the comparison group that did not take any vitamin pills. In addition, in 2018 a meta-analysis of numerous studies on vitamin supplementation showed that they have no positive effect on cardiovascular diseases.

2. Vitamin A

The cell protection vitamins A, C and E form the most important antioxidants, also known as cell protection vitamins. As radical scavengers, the vitamins fulfill an important task in the organism. Because free radicals are jointly responsible for aging processes and the development of diseases.

Fruit, vegetables and (good) oil actually provide sufficient amounts of these cell protection vitamins. As a dietary supplement, especially in high doses, the vitamins get bad marks from experts: specifically, a long-term study found an increase in lung cancer among smokers who Vitamin A or the precursor beta-carotene revenue. It is also known that even a slight daily overdose of the fat-soluble vitamin A can damage the liver and bones.

3. Vitamin C

Vitamin C can not protect against diseases – not even against colds, as some believe. Studies in recent decades have repeatedly tried to prove the positive influence on the immune system. On the other hand, it has been shown that high daily doses can lead to kidney stones. Supplementation without a proven deficiency therefore makes no sense.

4. Vitamin E

For vitamin E the previously suspected cancer protection could never be proven. In fact, a study of 36,000 male participants showed an increased risk of prostate cancer when they swallowed vitamin E capsules. Long-term high dosages can lead to disturbances in digestion, muscle strength or blood clotting. Vitamin E capsules are therefore not recommended.

5. Vitamin B3

For a long time, niacin (nicotinic acid) had the reputation of having a protective effect on the heart and brain. Here, too, a large study with 25,000 heart patients showed that long-term use did not lead to fewer heart attacks or strokes. Compared to the placebo group, however, the B3 users developed liver problems and internal bleeding more frequently.

In the best-case scenario, taking vitamins unnecessarily will produce “expensive urine,” explains nutritionist Wiebke Franz from the Hesse consumer advice center. In the worst case, you damage your health. The authorities do not test food supplements – such as vitamin preparations – for their safety and quality before they are placed on the market, as they do with pharmaceuticals. So it comes with these pills and powders again and again to contamination.

Which vitamins can be useful

The following three micronutrients are recommended as food supplements:

1. Vitamin D

The “sun vitamin” is important for bone health because it promotes the storage of calcium. However, it is rarely found in food.

The body can produce vitamin D itself in the skin if it gets enough sunlight. Ten minutes a day outside is enough for this, even if the sky is overcast. No problem in light summer clothing, but on cold winter days the vitamin D supply becomes tight. Especially since many physicians consider a high daily dose to be sensible.

2. Folic acid

Folate is the only vitamin for which the dietary supply in Germany is rather insufficient. As a “baby vitamin” it is particularly important for pregnant women and women who want to become pregnant. Folic acid is one of the B vitamins and is essential for blood formation, cell division and all growth processes in general.

Folic acid deficiency can have dramatic consequences for the unborn child: malformations, especially in the spine and spinal cord, the so-called neural tube defect.

Although there is a significant amount of folic acid in sprouts, green vegetables and legumes, this rarely covers the average daily requirement, and certainly not the greatly increased requirement during pregnancy. So: Pills allowed to necessary.

3. Vitamin B12

Not all people need this vitamin as a dietary supplement. However, for the growing group of vegans, B12 pills are necessary because it is the only vitamin that the completely animal-free diet cannot cover with plant-based foods. As an important building block for cell division, blood formation and the function of the nervous system, B12 is indispensable in the daily vitamin supply.