Recently, a group of physicians were asked to recommend the top three supplements for good health. The unanimous outcome was: a good, low dose, multivitamin/mineral supplement; 1,000 IUs of vitamin D and 1,000 mg of omega-3 fish oil every day. It is hard to argue with this recommendation, especially considering the wide spread purported deficiencies in the American diet of both vitamin D and the omega-3 fats from fish, and the overall degradation of the vitamin and mineral content of the our highly processed, mass produced, food supply.

Fish oil

Fish oil is has gained popularity as a concentrated source of essential omega 3 fatty acids EPA and DHA. Since your body cannot synthesize these fats you must get them from an outside source. Unfortunately, the standard processed American diet is practically devoid of fish, especially wild caught cold-water fish such as salmon, known for its high content of essential fatty acids, particularly omega-3s EPA and DHA. Compounding the paucity of fish in the diet, the highly processed nature of the American food supply renders it high in omega-6 fatty acids. The fact that people are not eating enough fish and the high level of dietary omega-6 fats combine to decrease the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fatty acid to an unfavorable level. Since omega-6 fats incite the inflammatory response, and omega-3s combat inflammation, this skewed ratio is thought to increase inflammation in the body and the inflammatory conditions that go with it. Supplementing your diet with at least 1,000 mg per day (the FDA recommends up to 3,000 mg) omega-3 fatty acids changes the balance back to a more favorable (less inflammatory) ratio.

Multivitamins

According to the American Dietetic Association (ADA) only 3-4% of Americans reach the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA). The ADA has thus recommended that while it is always preferable to get your vitamins from real food, if, like most people you don’t, then you should at least get those vitamins and minerals from a good multivitamin/mineral supplement. However, don’t assume that just because you are taking a vitamin/mineral supplement that it makes up for not eating right. It is always best to get a healthy combination of vitamins and minerals from quality foods.

In spite of the ADA’s findings, the National Institute on Health (NIH) concluded in 2006 that, “the present evidence is insufficient to recommend either for or against the use of multivitamin/minerals by the American public to prevent chronic disease.”

So what do we do? Obviously, the best course of action is to eat a balanced diet of clean healthy foods. Since that is apparently a tough accomplishment for a reported 97% of America then its probably a good idea to take a daily, low dose, multivitamin/mineral supplement.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D has lately become a big deal. To wit, a PubMed search returns over 50,000 references. Google “Vitamin D” and you get 67,500,000 hits! It has become almost common knowledge that being deficient in Vitamin D is bad for you and that most of us are vitamin D deficient.

Clearly, the first thing you need to do is see your doctor and get your Vitamin D level checked. 30ng/ml is minimum, but some physicians feel that levels should be kept over 50 or 60ng/ml to optimally decrease the risk of some cancers and other conditions. 1000 IU is becoming more and more the recommended daily dose in the United States.