1 hour ago, gargamon said:

It's a scam business. Lots of fake claims with cherry picked data from questionable studies support them. I only take ones with actual scientific studies showing a benefit. For example people have been taking glucosamine/chondroitin supplements for joints forever to the cost of billions of dollars a year when there's no real tests showing any benefits. The opposite exactly as it's now shown to speed up the progression of dementia/Parkinson's once they start.

"now shown to speed up the progression of dementia/Parkinson's once they start"

This is new to me. Used to take it for a short period long time ago, but stopped. But some friends do keep taking it even now for knee pain - A Doctor has prescribed.

Here is a very thorough recent article on this topic:

https://robertyoho.substack.com/p/whats-in-the-bottle

6 minutes ago, BangkokHank said:

Here is a very thorough recent article on this topic:

https://robertyoho.substack.com/p/whats-in-the-bottle

That's why I only buy NOW Foods supplements now. Prior to that, it was Kirkland brand, also decent ...

Edited August 23Aug 23 by KhunLA

Scientific studies have shown that multivitamins do have an effect on cognitive abilities when aging, which could explain why some older men here think multivitamins have no effect. They're not taking multivitamins, and thus their cognitive abilities have decreased.

COSMOS-Mind included about 2,200 people. It found an association between taking a daily multivitamin and improved cognition, which was equivalent to about three years less of cognitive aging.

COSMOS-Web included about 3,500 participants. This study also found a cognitive benefit to taking a multivitamin, though it was smaller than the benefit seen in COSMOS-Mind.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/preventive-care/do-multivitamins-make-you-healthier

Clearly multivitamins do have an effect, but it is limited to cognitive abilities, better physical stamina and a very small reduction in cancer incidence for people who lack nutrients.

23 hours ago, ravip said:

Some doctors consider these supplements to be unnecessary or ineffective

me too

To be honest, I was referring to more conventional products, such as Forceval Multivitamin & Mineral Complex Capsules and Seven Seas Pulse Trio Omega Fish Oil Capsules.

1 hour ago, Cameroni said:

Scientific studies have shown that multivitamins do have an effect on cognitive abilities when aging, which could explain why some older men here think multivitamins have no effect. They're not taking multivitamins, and thus their cognitive abilities have decreased.

COSMOS-Mind included about 2,200 people. It found an association between taking a daily multivitamin and improved cognition, which was equivalent to about three years less of cognitive aging.

COSMOS-Web included about 3,500 participants. This study also found a cognitive benefit to taking a multivitamin, though it was smaller than the benefit seen in COSMOS-Mind.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/preventive-care/do-multivitamins-make-you-healthier

Clearly multivitamins do have an effect, but it is limited to cognitive abilities, better physical stamina and a very small reduction in cancer incidence for people who lack nutrients.

The COSMOS studies are interesting, but the effect was small and doesn’t prove everyone needs a multivitamin. If you already meet your nutritional needs, more isn’t automatically better. Ideally you supplement what you’re actually lacking. Vitamins and minerals also interact, and some can compete for absorption, especially at higher doses. What vitamins you need also depend on your lifestyle, diet, exercise regime, climate, age, and individual needs.

The funny thing about the study, or call it interesting, is that they do not know exactly what caused the positive results. The improvements were statistically significant, but small, and they have not shown that they actually translate into a meaningful long term difference, such as reducing dementia or mild cognitive impairment.

9 minutes ago, Hummin said:

The COSMOS studies are interesting, but the effect was small and doesn’t prove everyone needs a multivitamin. If you already meet your nutritional needs, more isn’t automatically better. Ideally you supplement what you’re actually lacking. Vitamins and minerals also interact, and some can compete for absorption, especially at higher doses. What vitamins you need also depend on your lifestyle, diet, exercise regime, climate, age, and individual needs.

The funny thing about the study, or call it interesting, is that they do not know exactly what caused the positive results. The improvements were statistically significant, but small, and they have not shown that they actually translate into a meaningful long term difference, such as reducing dementia or mild cognitive impairment.

We all know, you put 3 scientists in a room and you get 4 different opinions. However, since there are studies that show that multivitamins equals three less years of aging in cognitive terms, then it would seem advisable to take multivitamins. If one desires better cognitive abilities for three years. Yes, sure it is a small difference, and it may indeed be bs. But multivitamins cost 280 baht a month or so. Why not heed the studies? It's insurance isn't it?

Now much more interesting is whether NMN supplements have an effect on longevity and health. Here again, those who can afford it can probably get this insurance. It may make no difference, or a very small one. But when one talks about health, cognitive abilities and longevity those are quite serious things.

8 minutes ago, Cameroni said:

We all know, you put 3 scientists in a room and you get 4 different opinions. However, since there are studies that show that multivitamins equals three less years of aging in cognitive terms, then it would seem advisable to take multivitamins. If one desires better cognitive abilities for three years. Yes, sure it is a small difference, and it may indeed be bs. But multivitamins cost 280 baht a month or so. Why not heed the studies? It's insurance isn't it?

Now much more interesting is whether NMN supplements have an effect on longevity and health. Here again, those who can afford it can probably get this insurance. It may make no difference, or a very small one. But when one talks about health, cognitive abilities and longevity those are quite serious things.

The three years sounds more impressive than the actual result. The measured difference was small, and they have not shown that it translates into three extra years of cognitive health or reduced dementia. They also do not know which ingredient caused the effect, and all three studies came from the same COSMOS programme using Centrum Silver.

Taking it as cheap insurance is fair enough, but that is a personal choice, not what the evidence actually proves.

What we can agree on is that it is better to do something than nothing, and if there is a chance of improvement, why not? Doing nothing or too much can both be bad. Be wise about it, exercise your brain as well as your body, and maybe cutting toxic food and drinks and an unhealthy lifestyle will do more than any multivitamin.

I take a lot of tablets and softgels every day. A few are prescription, but several are just 'supplements.' I'm very active and out in the sun every day and sweat a lot, so I supplement my electrolytes daily. I follow Keto and don't eat as many green vegetables as I should, so I take a multivitamin every day. And I take supplements for BPH. My body tells me they are working.
Waste of money? Not for me. I'm sure a lot gets pissed away, and that's OK. I prefer to err on the side of caution. The stuff just isn't that expensive.

Edited August 23Aug 23 by FolkGuitar

Well, if you are super organised with your diet and buying expensive stuff like blueberries, walnuts, sardines, grass-fed meats, organic veg of wide varieties and you have good knowledge of nutrition, then diet alone can do it.

However, the caveat is that most people either don't really understand it properly or have schedules, eating patterns, bad food choices, or say something like budget constraints that often limit their wide-spectrum nutritional intake. In this case, then a few supplements are probably effective and worth it, such as acerola cherry vitamin C (not absorbic acid ones), vitamin D (although vitamin D acts more like a hormone than a vitamin), magnesium glycenate, omega 3, B-complex, and maybe zinc for men... those would be the basic ones to take if you were to.

There are others for if you have a specific concern or think a deficiency is present or want to boost phytonutrient intake... but most multivitamin pills have such low levels of each thing they claim to contain that at best they will only fend off a serious deficiency, assuming your absortion rates are normal.

What most people are often unaware of is the bioavailability of the differing forms of a mineral or vitamin etc... for example, zinc chelate is way more absorbable than zinc oxide, and the same goes for many of them.

Also worth mentioning, that herbs and spices are different beast which cab be more benefitial, and things like taking tumeric with black pepper increases effectiveness in absorption.

Wonder if multivitamins actually contain all the vitamins and minerals they claim? Would be nice to think they did. However, often, they're made by some obscure company you've never heard of before and without any laboratory analysis, you've only got their word for it.

iHerb having site wide sale, 20% off ... code: M180203YP2GA

Reordered my Multi & Vit C, considerably cheaper than Shopee / iHerb

Supplements as I knew it were used for sick people in hospitals.

Iron deficiency, there was injectables; tablets and in some cases blood transfusions before surgery. For anaemia for example.

Some treatments were discontinued eg Iron injection for Multiple Sclerosis.

But as been pointed out before, your body only absorbs a small amount and excretes the rest. 1 millimetre of iron per day, the rest is expensive poo!

Other instances, eg for the aged with no appetite, food supplements like Complan or Ensure.

Alcoholics had vitamins for withdrawal symptoms and if in rehabilitation and doing vigorous exercises they were given electrolytes.

Can’t think of much more.

Many of the other conditions have been eliminated today.

In my view and experience, it's healthy to some degree — never be fanatic — but might depend on the individual and furthermore have a level of placebo effect.

Especially Vitamin C — ascorbic acid from one or other source — in a relative high level like 1,000 mg is a healthy daily supplement. It's water based vitamin, so no harm, as long as you don't take several grams daily, which is said to be no more than 3 grams.

I take a multi vitamin & mineral tablet — a normal Centrum-brand, but they also have a special make for seniors, which I might consider when I pass 100 — once a week. This could keep me away from totally loosing some important healthy stuff, but it's not enough to do me any harm — my good friend, a professor in health, told me...👍

I take extra Vitamin D — it's often said that we get to little of it, even in sunny Thailand — where about 2,000 IU is recommended as daily dose, some experts even talk about 4,000 IU.

Also Vitamin B12 — vitamin B to be taken in a complex with the whole B-range, and without Vitamin C — is something we need more of, I take one B12-complex tablet a week.

Another healthy supplement can be a so-called "heart aspirin" when you are elder — medically stated somewhere between 40 and 65 years old — which in 81 mg dose thins the blood, without doing any other harm. It's good to prevent stroke and might also keep a fine flow for virility. The extra benefit is that several scientific studies have shown that it gives some level of cancer protection; however, taking higher doses do not gives higher cancer-protection, but increases bleeding risk. I take one tablet three times a week, which should be within the safe level, and it seem still working as expected.

Coconut oil — which there should be plenty of in good quality here in Land-of-Smiles — seems to have similar benefits to olive oil; herunder potential prevention of dementia. It's great a cooking oil — among the best — and if you use oil in salads and like, a good virgin coconut oil is an excellent choice.

I have begun to take a NAD+ "Life Extension" daily after supper — it is the stuff the scientists studying longevity says that they take themselves — would be cool if that can buy me some extra fun years on this excellent level of happiness, before I need to climb further up on the staircase...😉

So far it works well for, but I'm still fairly young — modest 77 — so, let's talk again in 20-25 years from now and see, if I'm still fit for a night in the town...😄