Every now and then, a new report comes out putting vitamins and other supplements in the negative spotlight. Many of these reports are not balanced; sometimes they are just misleading and lead people to believe that all supplements are a waste of money.

The experts are warning again that multivitamins, vitamin C, vitamin E, and anti-oxidants such as selenium, grape seed extract, as well as some others may do us more harm than good. They recycle a controversial, but discredited claim that vitamin E can increase the risk of heart failure. They also warn against heavily fortified foods.

Vitamin C is apparently dangerous, because it may accelerate atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, in diabetics. But diabetics is a group of people with a medical condition. Forget vitamins, many foods can cause problems for diabetics. Food & Nutrition Board recommends vitamin C supplementation for smokers, because smoking reduces vitamin C levels. Why not report on that?

I have seen my share of useless supplements. It is true that the industry is littered with a lot of nonsense. The quality of many supplements is also a suspect. What they do not tell you is the fact that while not all supplements are effective, many of them are. There are plenty of scientific studies showing how effective supplementation can be to our health.

Do you take supplements?