Vitamin frequency?
 

This morning I went to Walmart looking for a good multivitamin, and was so pleased to find Atkins vitamins there! I bought the Basic #3 multi, the Essential Oils, and the Coenzyme Q10, as he suggests in his book. It says to take 3 Basic, 2 Essential Oils, and 1 Coenzyme daily, with meals. Does that mean spread them out over the day, or take them all at once?

I just finished lunch and popped all 6 pills, then realized that maybe I was supposed to spread them out over the day! Oooops! Hope I didn't overdose! What's the norm for these vitamins?

Wendy

Hi Wendy,

This is good new that Atkins products are making it to Wal-Mart!!!

I have no idea how frequently they should be used. I think some of them are mentioned in the New Diet Revolution though, no? I just use generic brand vitamins, and they work fine for me.

Wa'il

Thanks Wa'il! Dr. Atkins does mention plenty of vitamins in his book, but he doesn't say how & when to take them. It doesn't say on the bottle either, just says "Take three tablets daily, with meals." I wasn't sure if that meant one vitamin with each meal, or three tablets with one meal or what? LOL Oh well, I've been taking them all at once, it's just more convenient to do that.

I splurged on the Atkins ones (which cost me $40 US - ouch!) because I figured my poor body was so nutritionally deficient that I could use the mega doses! :) After these are gone in a month, I'll switch to a good (cheaper) multi vitamin.

Thanks for the input!

Wendy

hi Wendy,

Just looking at when you originally posted ... I didn't see this at first, must've got "lost" down the list of other messages. Sorry.

Label instructions on vitamins, herbs and supplements in both the US and Canada are so vague, it's sickening. Unfortunately, between labelling laws and the FDA ... manufacturers are not permitted to make any kind of claim for the theraputic use of their product. Making a Therapeutic Claim would require the supplement to be classified as a DRUG. Being classified as a drug then puts all kind of restrictions on things like dosage, and even where the product can be sold. There can be no recommended dosage .. because invariably the amount contained in the supplement is more than the RDA.

Which brings up another issue .. Recommended Daily Allowances are way too low, IMHO ... the amounts suggested are the bare minimum required to prevent a deficiency disease. I believe the amounts needed for good health are much higher. I also believe that the amounts required is highly individual ... and to make a blanket recommendation for the entire population is as bad as telling everyone they must eat lowFAT... :mad: ... And, every couple years now, I notice they keep bumping the RDA's of certain nutrients UP, meaning the FDA knows the amounts are too low. Vitamin C used to be 60 mg per day, now it's 100 mg. Calcium used to be 500 mg, then was 750, then 1000 mg, then 1200 mg. I think now it's 1000 mg for men and women under 50 yrs, and 1500 for women over 50.

Because herbs, supplements and the like are classified as FOOD, not drug ... they can only be recommended to be consumed as part of a meal, which is unfortunate since some nutrients are better absorbed on an empty stomach. You really need to do homework these days ... Earl Mindell's Vitamin Bible is good, if you ignore the anti-meat stance. "Prescription for Nutrtional Healing" by James and Phyllis Balch is excellent ... it not only suggests specific supplements to take for whatever condition ... it explains WHY and how it will work. It's also rather anti-meat ... but the dietary recommendations for diabetes, hypoglyemia, obesity ... are much lower and controlled carbohydrate than the standard diets .. quite close to The Zone levels. Very worhtwhile book. Lots of practical advice for non-drug interventions in children's ailments too.
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The instructions .... three tablets daily with meals ... means you are to take a total of 3 tablets each day, divide the dose throughout the day and take at mealtime. If you are to take more than one pill at a time, the instructions would likely say something like "take 2 tablets, three times daily with meals" which means a total of 6 tablets, divided through the day.

It's unlikely that taking them all at once will do any harm at all. At worst, it would be wasteful ... meaning it's possible that if there's an excess of any particular nutrient in the bloodstream at a given time, it just gets excreted in the urine. Spreading them out through the day just ensures that there's a slow but steady level in the bloodstream .. :)

hope this helps,

Doreen

Thanks Doreen! I almost missed your response too, this thread keeps disappearing, LOL!

I'm so glad you helped clarify that for me. You're right, it can be so confusing about how much of each nutrient we truly need! Dr. Atkins has a book out too, can't recall the name of it offhand. I'm going to be looking into getting either that one or another one, maybe the one you suggested.

But in the meantime, I will begin to spread out the doses over the day. :) Thanks for the info!

Wendy