To think that vitamin C and vitamins for immunity are a scam

[HowManyDucks]

I've had four horrible colds this year already. Its only April. I have a very healthy diet, rich in vitamin C (I have a kiwi everyday and at least one portion of broccoli, as well vitamin drinks etc). People have said to me "you'll probably fight it off faster", but no, seven days in (this morning is the worst!) and it is impossible to swallow, sinus headache and nose is running like a tap. I also have a sock one year old and a single mum so it's not much fun. Going to put my trainers on now for a run to try a sweat some of it out!

Scurvy isn't a scam.

You call vitamins / supplements efficacy "questionable.....scam"
Do you remember? Scroll up the thread

Now OP sounds like an MLM bot.....

If it's a respiratory illness, definitely can damage the heart. AND you cannot "sweat out" a virus.

If I stop taking iron and vitamin D, I soon notice a huge difference. It's definitely not a scam.

Vitamin D - practically everyone in the UK is deficient, especially at this time of year
Iron - lots of women are deficient due to pregnancy/child birth/heavy periods

Vitamin C - no scurvy is not a scam but when did you last meet someone with scurvy? I've seen 2 people with scurvy in 30 years of medicine and both had very severe eating disorders. You can have a truly terrible diet and still not have scurvy.

I think a lot of posters are missing my point, granted I wasn't exactly clear in my OP so I will state it more clearly:

Products that are marketed as "immunity boosters" etc. are a scam. They imply that they will boost immunity BECAUSE they contain Vitamin, Zinc and all the rest of it. IMO they should simply say "Contains vitamin C", because they are only going to have any effect if you are deficient in said vitamin. They aen't a miracle cure and you could get the same benefits from diet (unless of course you have an underlying health condition).

Even if you aren't deficient in anything, if you ae going to get a cold, let's face it, you are going to get a cold. Perfect markers don't guarantee immunity. As someone who was rarely sick before having DD, I sem to be picking up something every few weeks. It's really starting to irk me. Taking a berocca in th morning, gives me fluorescent pee and personally I experience no other benefits - I've still got a stinking cold.

We aren't missing your point, you just don't understand. Vitamins do help your immune system. For people who have low levels of vitamins, those products will help, if taken correctly and regularly. One berocca won't magically boost the immune system overnight. A regular intake of the correct vitamins will help boost the immune system (barring any medical issues).

You clearly don't need them, so they are pointless for you.

And you can have the best immune system in the world, you'll still have to fight if a cold if it manages to get in.

I didn't have a cold for 3 years before having DD. Children are germ carriers. I was ill on and off all the time for the first 18 months of her life. Pregnancy and childbirth wrecks havoc on your body and therefore your ability to fight things off quickly is lower while it repairs itself. All the vitamins in the world can't stop that process.

How do you know it's not helping?

You have a virus and you're still able to go for a run.

Vitamins aren't some kind of armour against catching anything ever, they just help your immune system to function at its best.

Also if you have a good diet anyway and no deficiencies then you don't need supplements.

That doesn't make it a 'scam', it just means people are a bit stupid and misinformed to buy them when they don't need them.

The packaging says they boost immunity because they do, for people that need them.

Just like paracetamol helps your headache... but not if you don't have one in the first place. It won't give you some kind of super body that never gets aches and pains.

If your zinc is low that affects your absorption of VitC.

If you aren’t getting enough sleep your immune system is disadvantaged.

if your stress levels are chronically elevated that can also impact the immune system (it’s able to work when we are in parasympathetic activation, aka rest and digest, and stress activates our sympathetic nervous system aka fight or flight, which suppresses immunity).

it isn’t just about vitamin C.

I do get it and I actually agreeing with you. What I don't understand is why people buy multivitamins spending a small fortune over many years (some of them are bloody expensive) when you could just alter you diet. Unless you have a medical condition of course, and with possibly the exception of vit d (which I can understand!).

It just seems that a lot of the health drinks that claim to improve focus, boost immunity, relax etc. are just buying into the idea that vitamins give these benefits. They don't boost anything. They ensure normal levels of immunity. Anything surplus has no added benefit and you just pee it out.

Plus even if you do have a great immune system, if you have a 1 year old, you most likely will get ill regardless.

Again I don't have the research on front of me, but I would imagine that for most people regular hand washing would be more effective than a daily berocca.

Altering your diet is, on paper, the best option. Is it an easy option? Nope, for many it's a complete lifestyle change, not just adding an orange a day.

Then there's things like vitamin D. Almost impossible to get enough of that in food. Mine is at a great level because we spend a LOT of time outside, as that's what we enjoy and we have a collie. But not everyone gets enough sun to have their levels right, especially in winter. And you need vitamin D to absorb some of the vital vitamins properly.

So you can eat all the right foods and still not absorb the vitamins correctly because you're not getting enough from other sources.

It sounds simple on paper, but it's not always that straightforward.

This! You can’t take vitamins while ill and expect them to cure you like medicine that’s not how they work. Of course if your body has optimum nutrition/ levels of vitamins it’s better placed to fight infection and you can recover more quickly etc. But our immune system will still respond and fight off a virus it’s exposed to… cold symptoms, temp and so on.

When did I say I take vitamins when I'm ill??!

My experience of one of the slightly pricier soluble multivitamins is that my kids have not been ill this year in spite of loads of kids in their classes being out sick. I used to buy the supermarket versions, but now I'm convinced there's a reason for the price. I give them a quarter tab in water in morning with breakfast. They are older though. Nothing will shield you completely in a house with under 5 year olds who will sneeze and cough into your face like it's a germ-spreading sport. Also, that well-known concentrated elderberry product was the only thing to shift Covid from my lungs 2 years ago. In short, I do believe certain products boost immunity and also believe in the anti-viral force of other products.

I don’t think people realise how much energy the body uses when fighting off illness.

@HowManyDucks I hope you are following this advice.

Please don't be stubborn about exercise. It isn't a moral failing to not exercise when you are ill.

As a single parent you need to take responsibility for your health and not take stupid risks.

What I don't understand is why people buy multivitamins spending a small fortune over many years (some of them are bloody expensive) when you could just alter you diet.

Because some people are stupid/ misinformed/ don't do their research/ believe that they know better. As with many things in life.