Statement: This article is written according to authoritative information combined with personal views, is original content, the end of the article has been marked with literature and other relevant sources, published on today's headlines for 72 hours, the article does not contain any fictional plot and "artistic processing", no fictional dialogue, this article does not contain any low-quality creation, aimed at more interesting popular science health knowledge, if you feel unwell, please seek medical attention offline.
There are many people who have doubts about the role of vitamins, especially in winter, when they are always worried about their weakened immunity, or feeling tired easily and not feeling well.
At this time, people often think: is it possible to supplement some vitamins, the body can recover faster, and even prevent some common diseases?
As a doctor who has worked in a hospital for many years, I often meet patients who ask me, "Can vitamins really improve my health?" If I take these vitamins every day, will I be less ailmented? ”
Vitamin A helps in skin diseases
In fact, not everyone can feel the effects of vitamin A on the skin immediately, and even sometimes, excessive vitamin A supplementation can lead to adverse effects.
I remember working in a hospital and meeting a young man who had been bothered by acne on his face and tried almost all kinds of topical creams and oral medications, but there was no noticeable improvement.
After hearing that vitamin A has a certain effect on acne, he began to supplement a large amount of vitamin A, and as a result, not only did the acne not improve, but the skin began to become drier and even peeled.
After a detailed examination, it was found that the patient's vitamin A had exceeded the standard, which led to the opposite effect, and it turned out that vitamin A, as a fat-soluble vitamin, can easily cause a burden on the skin and other organs once it accumulates too much in the body.
Vitamin A can promote the normal differentiation of skin cells and prevent excessive growth of the stratum corneum, so it does have a certain effect on improving the smoothness of the skin, reducing clogged pores, and relieving acne.
In fact, many patients with skin diseases are not vitamin A deficiency, but the balance in the body is broken, and blind vitamin A supplementation is not the fundamental solution to the problem.
The correct approach for patients with skin diseases is to confirm whether there is a real deficiency of vitamin A through professional examination, and then supplement under the guidance of a doctor, and do not blindly rely on nutritional supplements.
Vitamin B12 for the improvement of anemia
It is an indisputable fact that many people believe that vitamin B12 improves anemia, and it is true that vitamin B12 plays an important role in the production of red blood cells, and when B12 is deficient, it can lead to dysplasia of red blood cells, which can lead to megaloblastic anemia.
I once met a middle-aged man who was chronically tired and anxious, and even often had numbness in his limbs, and was initially diagnosed with mild anemia, but iron supplementation alone did not improve his symptoms.
So, he was given vitamin B12 supplements and adjusted his diet, and after a month, the patient's symptoms were relieved, his anxiety was reduced, and the numbness in his limbs disappeared.
In fact, the symptoms of vitamin B12 deficiency are often multifaceted, and in addition to anemia, patients may also have neurological symptoms such as memory loss, mood swings, numbness in the hands and feet, etc.
These symptoms are not directly related to anemia, but they also reflect the importance of vitamin B12, which is often overlooked in some people who are long-term vegetarians or have weak gastrointestinal function, leading them to ignore the severity of the symptoms.
The correct approach is to go through a thorough medical examination to confirm whether there is a vitamin B12 deficiency, and then supplement it on a case-by-case basis, rather than relying on one supplement alone.
vitamin E
Vitamin E is widely known for its antioxidant properties, and many people believe that it mainly helps with anti-aging and slows down the skin aging process, however, the role of vitamin E in protecting the health of blood vessels may be more important than we think.
There was once a 60-year-old retired teacher who had suffered from high blood pressure for many years, high blood lipids, often felt discomfort in his chest, panic and shortness of breath, and began to take a lot of vitamin E on the recommendation of a friend, hoping to improve his cardiovascular health.
However, after a few months, despite a large amount of vitamin E supplementation, his cardiovascular symptoms did not improve significantly, so he came to me for consultation.
After a detailed understanding, it was found that his eating habits were poor, he lacked regular exercise, and did not control his blood pressure and blood lipids, and the effect of vitamin E supplementation was not obvious, because he did not cooperate with other necessary health interventions.
Vitamin E does not work alone, it must be combined with the control of blood lipids, blood pressure, and the maintenance of good lifestyle habits to achieve the desired effect.
If you only supplement with vitamin E and ignore other health factors, the effect may be minimal or even some side effects.
Lifestyle changes, dietary adjustments, especially increasing dietary omega-3 fatty acids, dietary fiber, and maintaining regular physical activity are the keys to preventing cardiovascular disease.
The right way to supplement your vitamins
Vitamin supplementation is a hot topic in health management in modern society, almost everyone knows that a certain vitamin is good for the body, especially during the flu season or in a high-pressure state for a long time, many people will choose to enhance their physique by supplementing vitamins.
I once met a woman who has been working in the office for a long time, with high work pressure, irregular diet, often feeling tired and poor immunity, she heard from a friend that vitamin C helps to improve immunity, so she swallowed a large amount of vitamin C tablets every day to reduce the chance of catching a cold.
As a result, after a period of time, not only did she not get healthier, but because of long-term overdose of vitamin C, she led to small stones in her kidneys.
After examination, it was found that the level of vitamin C in her body was far beyond the normal range, and her body was unable to excrete excess vitamin C in time, resulting in the accumulation of vitamin C in her kidneys and the formation of stones.
For most people, a balanced diet of whole foods is sufficient to provide the vitamins they need, and oversupplementation can be detrimental to health, so it is important to check for deficiencies before supplementing, especially blood tests and professional counseling.
For those who eat regularly and pay attention to a variety of foods, the significance of vitamin supplementation is far less important than the improvement of dietary structure.
There is no doubt about the role of vitamins in maintaining good health and preventing disease, however, we should not mythologize them and assume that just enough vitamins can solve all health problems.
Vitamin supplementation, like any other health behavior, must be scientific, reasonable, and appropriate to achieve the best results.
The most important thing is not to ignore the potential factors that may lead to vitamin deficiency in life, and to clarify the specific needs of your body through a comprehensive examination, so as to achieve the real "right medicine".
The above content is for reference only, if you feel unwell, please consult a professional doctor in time.
What do you think about vitamins? Welcome to discuss in the comment area!
Resources:
[1] Xie Yingjun, Dongfang Ning, Liu Chunli, et al. Research on the application of microbial test-tube method in the detection of vitamin B12 content in beverages[J].Beverage Industry,2024