Supplements?
I always thought it was counterproductive to take supplementary vitamins, because I figured that they were the sorts of things I should be attempting to derive from my diet, and that somehow I was "cheating" by taking a multivitamin.
Given that I am one of those people that takes a cocktail of vital medications every morning, you may have thought I would not have this mentality. You would be incorrect.
As a child I was raised on the endearing Flintstones' chewables, which set me up for a lifetime of disappointment with vitamins from thereafter. Having had symptoms of dysphagia long before I knew what dysphagia was, I've never been extraordinarily good at swallowing pills -- I can do it if absolutely necessary, but it takes a lot of effort and it really isn't something I want to do more than I have to. Much like paying bills. Flintstones, however, were tasty and easy to chew and swallow, although they did taste odd when consumed with orange juice.
The world of adult vitamins was not nearly as fun or as easily consumed as childrens' chewables, and for a long time I gave up on multivitamins simply because I thought I didn't have the fortitude. I quickly learned they stopped tasting good after you hit the age of twelve (or maybe after the product packaging stopped featuring cartoon characters). More than that, however, the pills became... larger and larger, and somehow I was supposed to swallow them? I remember watching my mum attempt to swallow an adult-sized vitamin that looked scarily like a horse pill. I nearly fainted at the thought of it.
You may remember me mentioning in my last post that I'd acquired gummy vitamins, and let me tell you... there's nothing childish about taking gummy vitamins and supplements. I have a much easier time chewing and swallowing these, and after a week of taking a general multivitamin, an additional B12 supplement, and now a hair-specific vitamin, I'm starting to notice some differences.
I'm going to use this post to detail some of the benefits that supplements offer, and why they're important! In case you, like me, are under the illusion that supplements are a) only for kids who are picky eaters or b) only for people who don't eat properly. They're for everyone, and here's why.
Multivitamins
Vitamin insufficiency is a scarily common occurrence in adults and children alike, especially in today's age. Recently the knowledge of B12 deficiency has been making the rounds, and many young people -- especially athletes, I've noticed -- have begun reaping the benefits of boosted B12 in their system.
If you're ever worried about overdosing on a specific vitamin, fear not; this is extremely uncommon, and all supplement packages come with specific measurements for how much of each vitamin you're actually ingesting. In Canada at the very least, this includes both a numerical measurement (e.g. 100mg) as well as a percentage, giving you an idea of how much of your daily intake the supplement is supporting.
Certain vitamins and minerals, however, pose a greater risk than others. In young children and AMAB individuals, iron overdose is a potentially lethal condition. This is why it's always best to shop around, as certain supplement brands market specifically towards separate sexes for their tailored needs, with more of some vitamins and less of others accordingly. And much like over the counter medications, all supplements come with child-proof packaging for this reason.
Individual Supplements
You've probably noticed that in addition to the multivitamins in your pharmacy's supplement aisle, you can purchase virtually every vitamin and mineral individually as well. What's up with that? It certainly works out cheaper to buy a multivitamin rather than a dozen different bottles.
Depending on the sort of lifestyle, dietary restrictions, or medical conditions you may have, certain daily vitamin values might not be enough for you. The recommended daily intake on the back of your multivitamin bottle assumes you have a baseline amount in your system from a more or less normal diet. This doesn't take into account existing deficiencies, whether they be caused by a condition or an inability to eat certain vital foods. If you're like me and you're allergic to everything, you're no stranger to the struggle of finding alternative sources for nutrients such as protein, calcium, and fatty acids.
Here's where our individual supplements are incredibly useful. Just as AMAB individuals must be careful of overdosing on iron, it's extremely (and unfortunately common) for those with uteri to find themselves iron deficient most of their lives. While iron-deficiency anemia isn't necessarily life-threatening, it can pose a lot of health risks -- and other vitamin deficiencies can be especially dangerous depending on what stage of your life you are in. Your calcium intake needs to be higher as you get older due to the increased risk of osteoporosis, and if you are pregnant you need to supply nutrients to a growing fetus as well as yourself.
If you're not sure what vitamins you need most, the best person to speak to is your doctor. Bloodwork is a simple process that can check to see which vitamins you're lacking, especially if you're concerned you may be anemic. If you're going to self-diagnose based on symptoms you have, always do your research before you commit to taking additional supplements and be sure to stop immediately if you experience any dangerous symptoms. It's always a good idea to have some emergency numbers on hand.
Individual Needs
If you're like me and you're self-diagnosing for certain desired outcomes, e.g. growing your hair, there are lots of options that all boil down to the same factors -- heightened intake of biotin, folic acid, and other supplementary vitamins. Because your hair is known to be a "dead" organism, I'm skeptical of all hair remedies that involve applying anything directly to your hair, so really vitamins (and your diet, of course) are the only way to infuse specific elements into your hair shaft.
Despite being targeted towards a "dead" organism, caution should still be taken when choosing vitamins for these purposes. Biotin, while wonderful, can also have side effects that vary between individuals. The good thing is that biotin, like B12, is water soluble, so it's not easily overdosed on. If you notice undesirable side effects -- I've seen a lot of reports of acne, though it is generally not known why this occurs with biotin -- you can reduce your dosage or stop taking it altogether and the symptoms should subside.
If you follow my Instagram, you may have noticed I started using vitamins from SugarBearHair. There are a couple of reasons I chose these particular vitamins that might appeal to some of you, so I've listed them below.
The ingredients are simple. While this may be a subjective statement based on reading ability and knowledge of fancy terms for certain vitamins, I have to be especially careful with certain supplements because of how they derive specific vitamins and minerals (there is no break from allergies, never).
They do not contain hormones! If you're wary of taking supplements for hair growth based on the fear that you'll look like a werewolf, fear not. These will only affect the places that your body is already used to growing hair.
They're vegetarian and don't contain gluten or gelatin -- celiacs and those who avoid animal-derived gelatin, these are safe for you. They specifically say vegetarian and not vegan, and I don't know enough about what constitutes as "not vegan" to be able to tell you why they're not, but that's something you can research if it's important to you.
They make a point of saying that their product caters to all hair types and "all genders", a little tidbit that I appreciate as a nonbinary individual.
They're gummies! So if you're like me and can't swallow pills or just don't like to, consider trying these.
That's the end of my piece for the day, but I'll try and continue with little facts like this as I continue doing this "taking care of myself" thing and becoming more aware and educated about how to take care of myself as a sick adult.
Until then, DJ
