Supplement Insurance: Is it really necessary? Dangerous?

There are those who believe everyone should take a multiple vitamin-mineral supplement and perhaps some fish oils or omega-3 fatty acids too. Others believe you can get all the nutrients you need from your diet. And still others believe no supplements of any kind are warranted for any reason.

What is to be believed? Who has the answers when you are standing in front of the supplements shelf at your local grocer?

When I first began looking into natural medicines in nursing school,Supplement Insurance: Is it really necessary? Dangerous? Articles I received a lot of mixed messages from my classmates. Although I believed in “medicine” at the time, I realized that something was missing from healing and sought answers outside of the medical field. The medical field has many wonders, and many people have received relief with using medical drugs and procedures. But I had learned, both professionally and personally, that medicine had its limits. Looking outside of the medical profession surely would give me insights that I sought.

And I found them in nature’s medicines, vitamins, minerals and homeopathy.

But I also found a whole new world of dangers that could easily befall the Buying Steroids unsuspecting consumer. The idea that “Natural is Safe” no matter what and how much was not true.

Supplement Insurance

The first Naturopathic Doctor I saw was one who believed everyone needed “supplement insurance,” taking a multiple vitamin-mineral supplement daily no matter what ails you (or doesn’t ail you). At first I had listened to her describe the nutrient-deficient foods on the market, even in fresh fruits and vegetables. She had said that without a supplement daily, no one could ever be healthy based on the poor quality of foods of the day. As time went on, I heard many more people with the same beliefs.

Then I went back to school myself—this time to become a Naturopathic Doctor. And I learned the dangers of just arbitrarily taking a supplement without needing it, and even more so if the person took medical drugs. Also, some supplements should not be taken with certain medical conditions, even if the person doesn’t take medical drugs for that condition.

In 2010, The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) have estimated that 67% of Americans take at least one medical drug daily (with most taking 7 or more). It was also estimated that 72% of Americans take natural health supplements. Based on those figures, someone was taking both medical drugs and natural supplements at the same time.