The Need for Vitamins

by Lisa P | More from this Blogger

"If I'm eating right do I really need to worry about taking extra vitamins. I eat from all four food groups just like I should so I shouldn't need supplements, right?"

There are two schools of thought on this topic. You have the die hard granola crunchers who will say that you can get every nutrient you need just by eating right. Then there are the people like me who believe that the foods you get in the average grocery store just don't have it all. We're both right.

The Birkenstock-wearing, granola crunchers are right if you eat three perfectly balanced meals every day, those meals are prepared properly by a knowledgable cook and they are prepared from foods that were organically grown in a nutrient rich soil in a chemical free environment.

While I agree with them, I also know that not everyone can shop at health food stores and find foods that are organically grown. For some people these sort of stores are just too difficult to find. For others, they are entirely too expensive. I also know that not everyone cares to take their time and prepare every meal from scratch in a clean, healthy kitchen where pans are heated to just the right temperature and never overcook. Let's face it - the average Joe just can afford to shop healthy and organic and doesn't have the time, energy or knowledge to prepare these foods properly. If you do, then more power to you!

If you can't do all of that, shop at your nearest super grocery store and occasionally feed your family prepared foods out of a package then it just makes sense to take a daily multi-vitamin and mineral supplement. If you exercise hard, have a particularly stressful life or are dieting, then that is all the more reason to take a vitamin and mineral supplement.

Learn more about Lisa P

Lisa used to be a freelance writer and Community Manager for Families.com, but she has finally made the jump to novelist.

View Full Profile | More from this Blogger