I went to pick up more Vitamin D today. I took T. with me to run the errand, and he had strong opinions based on important criteria such as superheroes versus Peppa Pig. Then we moved on to flavours.  However, I was more interested in the back of the label.  If you’ve been to any vitamin and supplement aisle, you will know it is overwhelming. And separating out the necessary from the unnecessary, the useful from just expensive waste of money is not easy.

Let’s be clear:  Vitamin D is one of the few supplements that is necessary!  My real life patients know that I counsel them that many of the expensive supplements, tonics, and multivitamins they take are unnecessary or don’t do the good they think it will.  Among the industry targets are families with young children.  Did you know?  Your young child will get 8-12 viral infections per year, mostly in the winter months.  It is not your imagination that they are “always sick” but tonics, probiotics, and excess Vitamin C are unlikely to make any difference.  While this doesn’t matter to everyone, it really does matter to families on tight budgets. For a deeper dive into this, check out Why is my pre-schooler always sick?  or Healthy Back to School: “Crechitis” and You probably don’t need that supplement

Still have questions? Check out HSE website or speak with your GP or registered pharmacist.