That Little Red-Blue Elixir

Now, with her energy levels at an unprecedented high, the Mumbai-based software engineer says she can juggle her umpteen do-mestic and professional re-sponsibilities with ease.

Preeti is part of a growing brigade of time-starved ur-ban Indians who rely on sup-plements for their daily dose of essential vitamins and minerals. While the jury may still be divided on the reliabil-ity of these tablets, users like Pune-based Sulotika Sahu, 44, vouch by them. A teacher, Sahu started depending on the supplements after hitting middle age. 8216;8216;Instead of brooding over my lost youth-ful energy, I decided to go for something that would make me feel more sprightly. The supplements worked won-ders for my hair and skin and I could even take care of my kids better,8217;8217; she says.

But, isn8217;t it healthier and easier to include more fruits and vegetables in the diet than depend on such artifi-cial supplements? 8216;8216;Even 8216;nat-ural8217; fruits and vegetables have alarmingly high levels of pesticides. One keeps hear-ing about artificial colours in carrots and watermelons. So, the risk factor is the same. Also, supplements are not substitutes for my diet,8217;8217; points out Sahu, who ensures a balanced diet comprising lean meats, veg-etables and salads every day.

Does that mean vitamin supplements are a healthy option for everyone? Avanti Damle, senior dietician at Pune8217;s Jehangir Hospital, says they should be consumed only by children, those recovering from an ailment, pregnant women and the elderly. 8216;8216;Every age group has a Recommended Di-etary Allowance RDA that is vital to en- hance muscle growth and repair the body8217;s wear and tear. The nutrients thus required are not met through a normal, supposedly healthy diet. That8217;s when multi-vitamins be-come essential,8217;8217; she explains. The elderly, she says, have a low absorption rate, and hence, need concentrated doses of vitamins that can be readily absorbed by the body. Agrees general practitioner Dr Satyasheel Naik, who attributes multi-vita-mins8217; popularity in India to western influ-ence.

8216;8216;Deficiencies in a child8217;s diet cause diseases like rickets and scurvy. Women also have a tendency to suffer from calcium defi-ciency, often leading to problems like osteo-porosis after menopause. Vegetarians need additional intake of Vitamin B12, which, if taken inadequately, can lead to a number of neurological and cardiac problems,8217;8217; says he. According to Naik, healthy individuals and even sportsmen need not take these re- vitalising pills as dietary supplements.

Naik is not alone in his reservation against these capsules. Warns another GP Dr Sohan Jain: 8216;8216;Water-soluble supplements like Vitamin B and C can be easily flushed out of the system and hence, even an over-dose would not be harmful to anyone. But other fat-soluble vitamins like Vitamin A, D, E and K stay in the body for a longer time and may cause toxicity.8217;8217;

Jain blames drug manufacturers for lur-ing doctors with incentives and making them prescribe expensive and unnecessary multi-vitamins. 8216;8216;They should be prescribed only when the patient is on antibiotics or is suffering from some deficiency. Even preg-nant women need not resort to multi-vita-mins. Instead, they should opt for vitamin tablets that will take care of iron or calcium deficiencies.8217;8217; Jain also believes that these pills have no benefits and the so-called 8216;jump8217; in energy levels is ultimately purely psychological.

Many doctors advise patients to limit the intake of multi-vitamins to a third of the month. Take, for instance, Shaila Chakra-narayan, 54 , a teacher of English: 8216;8216;I have supplements only for 10 days in a month. The logic is simple. Just as the body stops re-acting to medicines that are consumed con-tinuously, it becomes immune to artificial vitamin intakes as well. So, gaps are always a must,8217;8217; she explains.

Yet another debatable benefit of multivi-tamins is their ability to prevent diseases. 8216;8216;Several studies conducted abroad show that supplements help fight viral infections, diabetes and even asthma. In fact, Vitamin C can even prevent cancer by prohibiting free radicals from being released into the bloodstream,8217;8217; informs dietician Damle.

While the potency of multi-vitamins may continue to be a controversial topic, the bottomline prescribed by doctors is sim-ple8212; check the authenticity of the drug manufacturer, never buy anything without a doctor8217;s prescription and never substitute a good wholesome meal for the golden pills. After all, doesn8217;t paneer tikka taste better than multi-vitamins?