It's important that your body gets enough vitamins and minerals every day in order to keep you fit and healthy.

Vitamins and minerals are essential nutrients that your body needs in small amounts to work properly. Vitamins affect every part of your body, including the way your hair, nails and muscles develop and grow, your sight, the way you digest food and your heart and your nervous system.

If you eat a balanced diet that includes food from all the major groups, there should be no need to take vitamin supplements. Supplements should only be used as a top-up if it is not possible to eat a healthy balanced diet – they aren't a substitute for healthy eating.

Which supplements should you consider taking and when? Many of us choose to take supplements and millions of pounds are spent on this every year in the UK. However, before you take a supplement, it's important to know about recommended daily allowances (RDAs). The European Union has produced guidelines on the RDA of vitamins and minerals you need to stay healthy. See the European Food Information Council's website. The amount of vitamins you need depends on your age, health and lifestyle.

The RDA for children is often lower than that for adults. Older people, those with specific medical conditions, pregnant women, and people on special diets may need to increase their intake of certain vitamins and minerals.

The Department of Health recommends taking supplements in respect of only three vitamins: vitamin A, vitamin D and folic acid.

Women who are pregnant or thinking about becoming pregnant are advised to take 400 micrograms of folic acid per day up to the 12th week of pregnancy. This is over and above the 200 micrograms assumed to be obtained from their diet. Remember, it is best to avoid taking any vitamin A supplements during pregnancy, as this may damage the development of your baby. For the same reason, liver, which is rich in vitamin A, should also be avoided.


Children between the age of six months and five years may need vitamins A, C and D. Supplements may not be needed if your child has a varied diet. Ask your health visitor or GP for advice.

Children whose bodies are continuously covered due to their cultural dress are at potential risk of rickets caused by a lack of vitamin D that we get from sunlight.

If they're not taken properly, supplements are flushed through the body without being absorbed. Take supplements with water at room temperature – hot or chilled drinks can damage them. Don't drink tea or coffee 15 minutes before or after taking supplements because they interfere with nutrient absorption. Make sure you read the label on the bottle, and take supplements with or after food as directed.

Don't take lots of different supplements because they can interact with each other and be less effective, for example, zinc interferes with how copper and iron are absorbed. Check with your GP if you have any concerns, and remember to store all vitamins and minerals out of the reach of children. If you are unsure about which supplements are safe to take, consult NHS Direct on 0845 46 47, a dietician, your GP or pharmacist.

Vegetarians or vegans can sometimes miss out on vitamin B12, vitamin D, calcium, iron and zinc which are mainly found in meat and dairy products. You don't need to take supplements if you eat a balanced diet. Iron and zinc are found in eggs, whole-grain cereals, pulses, green leafy vegetables and fortified breakfast cereals. For calcium, vitamins B2 and B12, try to eat two servings of low-fat dairy products a day. If you don't eat dairy products, try soya milk, fortified orange juice, dark leafy vegetables, sesame seeds, tahini, tofu, or almonds.


Paul Charlson

GP from Brough

Frankly you are wasting your money. Unless you have some form of bizarre diet or never see the sun (which in this summer I suppose is a possibility) you will get enough vitamins in your diet. If you are not vitamin deficient you will not absorb the vitamin supplements you take so you are literally flushing them down the toilet. Vitamin deficiency is very rare in the UK, with the exception of vitamin D deficiency in people who keep out of the sun, for instance some religious costumes prevent sun exposure. My advice is to spend your money on decent nutritious food.




Elaine Douglas

A chartered psychologist who specialises in family and child relationships

I was wandering through a health food shop and was overwhelmed by the array of supplements available. I am not sure why you went down this road in the first place, and it seems that over the years the number of vitamin supplements you are taking has increased. I am not a nutritionist, but I have read a little about eating a balanced diet and know that we must try to have a range of foods that cover the different categories, eg carbohydrates, proteins, fats etc. If you are unsure as to whether your diet contains the variety of things that you need to stay healthy, you might be better consulting a nutritionist or dietician who could help you. You do not say whether you have a medical condition. This could alter things slightly in that you may need to avoid certain foods – in which case it might be advisable to boost your diet in some way by taking supplements. Everyone is unique and I think you would benefit from having a clearer picture about what you need to keep you fit and active.


Cary Cooper

Professor of Organisational Psychology and Health at Lancaster University


You can either ask your GP or go online and find out for yourself. There will be those who say that if you have a normal, balanced diet, there is little need for supplements, unless you have some vitamin deficit that requires supplements. Others will say that given our hectic pace of life, we just don't eat the right type of food that would provide us with the range of vitamins we need. Through your GP practice, you may be able to get advice from a nutritionist, who can assess your current diet, the vitamins and mineral intake and where any deficiencies might lie.


Dr Carol Burniston

Consultant Clinical Child Psychologist

There is evidence that some supplements can be advantageous in certain situations, for example, folic acid prior to becoming pregnant can reduce the possibility of birth defects. However, there is also some evidence that overuse of supplements can have a negative effect on health. The best and most cost effective way of ensuring that you have enough vitamins is by eating a balanced diet with lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, some protein in the form of meat and fish, some carbohydrates and dairy products and minimal amounts of sugar and salt. Steam cooking preserves vitamins better than boiling in large amounts of water. Information is available on www.eatwell.gov.uk. Giving up smoking and getting some natural daylight every day will help. Try weaning yourself off supplements one at a time. You may realise that you feel just the same. Putting the money you normally spend on supplements away in a separate fund may also help you realise how much you have been spending.