[diebitter]

I think vitamins/mineral supplement are important if you do a lot of exercise or manual work, if you have a lifestyle that depletes them excessively (smoking and drinking), or if you're old or pregnant. Doesn't hurt the developing stages of life either (childhood, teendom). Otherwise a reasonable diet is more than enough for anyone.


More important are the water-based vitamins such as B and C. Humans don't have the capacity to store these, so they are needed in a diet. If you have low energy and you have a processed diet or don't each much veggies/fruit, decent vitamin B complex supplements will work wonders for you in a few days of taking (you need to keep taking them though). If you're prone to colds and infections, vit C will likewise work wonders.


These vitamins and their role are well understood by scientists who study metabolism, and they have clear and reasonably understood roles there.

Fish oils I think have proven benefits.

Antioxidants and combating free radicals - yes I do believe this is real - I'm pretty sure this has firm scientific basis.


Where I remain somewhat cynical (though weakly - if a scientist proves benefits by direct analysis of metabolism, or a very strong correlational link) about stuff like ginseng and st johns wort. There might be something there. I remain deoubtful till proper scientific examination shows something.



One of the things that is amusing/irritating about the whole nutrition thing though, is that it seems that one week, one scientist says X is bad for you, and the next, it's good for you. I used to be a scientist, so I'm well aware that science is based on hypotheses that are testable and available for refutation rather than a provider of absolute truths, but even so...it's sometimes a little exasperating.