Are Vitamin Tablets a Fountain of Youth or Just a Placebo
Many people regularly take vitamin supplements. A female professor stated that she has been taking 10,000 units of vitamin A for over a decade without any adverse reactions. Even more people take vitamin C, mostly at a dose of 300 milligrams.
However, recent scientific reports have dampened people's enthusiasm for vitamins. Two long-term studies involving over 50,000 people, disclosed at the end of 2008, found that vitamins C and E, as well as selenium supplements, do not reduce the risk of prostate, colorectal, bladder, or pancreatic cancer, nor do they make the heart healthier. In fact, after taking the supplements, the risk of prostate cancer and diabetes showed a slight increase.
It appears that, to a large extent, vitamin tablets are not some magic elixir for preventing aging and disease. Taking them makes people feel that they love their health and are taking care of their bodies, serving as a placebo effect. However, they cannot replace a healthy diet at all.
In other words, obtaining 300 milligrams of vitamin C from eating vegetables and fruits has a tremendous health effect; however, the effect of simply taking a 300-milligram vitamin C tablet without eating vegetables and fruits is highly questionable. The health-promoting components in food are comprehensive; they interact with and protect one another to achieve the maximum effect. For this reason, it's best to take vitamins with food during meals.
There are no shortcuts to cherishing health, and there is no magic pill for preventing disease. What is rare is the persistence of a healthy lifestyle year after year. If your daily life is chaotic and your diet is uncontrolled, it's unlikely to achieve a state of health just by relying on vitamins.
Just after the New Year, many people will sigh that they have grown another year older. While wishing to be 18 next year at 40 is a delusion, as long as you change your unhealthy lifestyle, turning 38 next year instead of 40 is not an impossible goal.