Vitamins

Most people, with the exception of some infants, children, sick individuals, the poor or malnourished, pregnant women, and elderly, get more than enough vitamins in their daily diet. Vitamins A, D, E and K are stored in fat so that if we do not get a daily allowance of one in a given day, our bodies obtain those vitamin molecules from fat. Other vitamins, like Vitamin C, are passed out in urine. This means that if we drink three glasses of orange juice a day, it will not make any difference; we will get the required vitamin C and get rid of the rest when we urinate. (That may p-off those of you who spend a lot of money buying vitamin pills that contain water-soluble vitamins like Vitamin C. I could not resist. ha ha ha)

Unless one eats potato chips for three meals a day, they should be getting the correct amount of vitamins. Even a bowl of cereal (depending on the cereal) can have nearly all the vitamins and minerals you need for the day. Consult your physician and do your own research. You may want to try some pills once in a while like omega-3 fish fat pills, flax seed pills, and the like. But for most of the time, "if it ain't broke, don't fix it"!

An article in today's AMNY newspaper (page 23) wrote about a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized clinical trial that concluded that too much folic acid (an artificial version of folate or water-soluble vitamin B9) can be harmful. It may not prevent precancerous colon polyps, and may even increase the risk of developing them. The journal article "Folic Acid for the Prevention of Colorectal Adenomas" by Bernard F. Cole et al published by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA)can be read at http://jama.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/297/21/2351#AUTHINFO .

My third book, Pocket Guide to Fitness, is available on http://www.authorhouse.com,/ http://www.amazon.com/, and http://www.bn.com/. If you look up my name on those Web sites, you will find my other books The Boy in a Wheelchair and Life, Work and Play: Poems and Short Stories. These two books are on my Web site http://www.louizapatsis.com/.