For the past 50 years or more, the public has been misled into believing that RDA nutrient levels are appropriate. But is it enough to prevent clinically evident nutritional deficiencies?
What is RDA?
RDA is the recommended daily allowance for the average daily intake, sufficient to meet the needs of almost all healthy individuals in a given life stage and gender group.
The RDA is defined as the lowest amount of nutrient intake necessary to prevent deficiencies. It is also clearly important for avoiding acute deficiency diseases, but it does not solve the problem of optimal nutrition.
With RDA, it’s wonderful that it’s been so successful in reducing acute illness. However, another question arises: are the RDA levels of vitamins and minerals sufficient to prevent degenerative diseases?
Many degenerative diseases and chronic diseases develop throughout life and strike otherwise healthy individuals when they least expect it. A minimal intake at this point may not be sufficient to meet the challenges of modern lifestyle.
If I eat healthily, do I still need supplements?
Remember that a healthy diet is a necessary foundation of any optimal nutrition program and that there is no substitute for good nutrition.
From the Journal of the American Medical Associations, which published two separate articles in 2002 and 2012 as follows:
Article 1: “Vitamins for the Prevention of Chronic Diseases in Adults”. Through their research, these independent researchers concluded:
“…suboptimal intake of some vitamins, above levels that cause classic vitamin deficiency, is a risk factor for chronic disease and is prevalent in the general population, particularly the elderly. Suboptimal levels of folic acid, along with suboptimal levels of the vitamin B6 and B12, are a risk factor for cardiovascular disease, neural tube defects, and colon and breast cancer; low levels of vitamin D contribute to osteopenia and fractures, and low levels of antioxidant vitamins (vitamins A, E, and C) can Several chronic diseases increase the risk of B12.”
Article 2: “Multivitamins in cancer prevention in men”.
“Daily multivitamin supplementation significantly but moderately reduced overall cancer risk during a mean treatment and follow-up period of 11 years. Although the primary reason for taking multivitamins is to prevent nutritional deficiencies, these data support the potential use of multivitamin supplements in cancer prevention.”
From the two articles I shared from American Medical Associations that taking supplements reduces the risk of degenerative diseases and from my personal perspective that optimal nutrients from a healthy diet may not be enough to prevent degenerative diseases that are associated with may occur to you.
Which supplement is right for me?
There are thousands of dietary supplement brands sold from pharmacy to retail and you are definitely not sure which brand to choose or what your needs are for yourself.
Here is a small exchange with you from my personal point of view that firstly you need to understand the type of supplement from the shelves and secondly knowing your needs is very important. If you have no idea what you really need, maybe you can hire any health and wellness consultant you can think of, or you can message me here where I’ll definitely be happy to help.
Another source to consider is a comparative guide to supplement books and I would recommend NutriSearch. Essentially written by Lyle Macwilliam, former Canadian MP and member of the Legislative Assembly for British Columbia, this book provides comprehensive market research of over 1,600 dietary supplements in the United States, Canada, Mexico and Colombia.
Thanks to Paul Kee
