A manufacturer is always looking for what else can make his product profitable. Manufacturers always find various opportunities to make extra profit with their products. There are many drinks and foods to which, according to the information on the pack or bottle, extra vitamins and minerals have been added. They are promoted as being good for your health, but that is not always true. In addition, they are usually more expensive than foods without those additives. It is therefore becoming increasingly important to look at the content labels of the products. After all, the additions are not only often unnecessary, but can sometimes even cause an increase in the number of patients with allergies. After all, not all vitamins may be used in unlimited quantities.
The manufacturer provides added vitamins and minerals and enjoys sales
Products with added vitamins and minerals are flooding the consumer market. The critical consumer is often confused by this. Butter and bread with added omega 3, yoghurt with extra calcium or extra fiber, cholesterol-lowering butter, small but expensive dairy drinks with extra bacteria for the intestines. It is all happily stated on the content information on the packaging. What do we need and what not? Is all that good for our body? The manufacturers like to sell those products and tell us that we need those additives, but is that true?
Energy drinks
Also orange drinks with added vitamin C, energy drinks with much more in them and even ready-made meals have often added extra minerals and vitamins. In addition, manufacturers are using fewer and fewer natural nutrients in their products.
No ready-made food, but natural counterparts
For example, the number of mushrooms in a pack of mushroom soup is depressingly few, as is the number of strawberries in the strawberry yogurt. It is therefore better to make a delicious, natural mushroom soup for 4 people in five minutes from a pack of fresh mushrooms, some butter, flour, a stock cube and some pepper. You can also make your own strawberry yogurt from some fresh strawberries and regular natural yogurt.
Additions not always in natural form
The vitamins and minerals added by the manufacturer are not always of natural origin, but are regularly developed in laboratories. That is usually cheaper than using the natural substance. People have been doing this with flavorings for much longer. The consumer doesn’t taste anything and the taste is often even more intense than the taste of the natural product. If children are allowed to get used to these flavorings, they often no longer like the real, natural nutrients later on.
Better to drink water than processed fruit juices
Sometimes children no longer like water because they have always been given fruit juices and other drinks from an early age. The taste of clear water is no longer good enough for them, because they are used to sweet drinks. That is of course not good. Children raised this way often grow up to be overweight. They no longer know the taste of water. It is difficult to get children used to drinking sweet fruit juices and the like on a daily basis back to the taste of water.
Added substances can sometimes cause allergies
It is often said that all kinds of allergies are on the rise these days because we are said to be too hygienic. Possibly, but additional additives to foods can also trigger allergies. Therefore, caution cannot do any harm. So always check the information on the pack, bag or bottle you want to buy.
A gluten allergy is becoming increasingly common
For example, a gluten allergy can be triggered by ready-made foods to which manufacturers add more gluten to make the product firmer and give it more volume. This is of course also better for the consumer. For example, many of the cold dishes that are in the refrigerators of supermarkets also receive this treatment. People who previously did not have a gluten allergy and were just able to process the amount of gluten can develop it due to a gluten overdose. They then consume too large a portion of it, against which their body starts to protest.
A varied diet provides sufficient vitamins and minerals
If you eat a varied diet, you don’t actually need all those added vitamins and minerals. A sufficient portion of vegetables, fruit, grains and/or potatoes and dairy every day gives the body everything it needs. For healthy, adult people, a varied diet is sufficient to stay healthy.
Only at an older age, or with a diet, is something extra necessary
It only changes if you are over forty, are on a diet, are vegan or vegetarian or if you are allergic to gluten or lactose, for example. Especially if you have to follow a diet, it is better to write down everything you eat (including the extras in between) and have a dietitian determine what additional food should be taken.
When to use extra vitamins and minerals
Many people over 40 often need something extra. Like all functions, the absorption capacity of the intestines also deteriorates somewhat in most people. Although the diet is varied, the body sometimes still lacks energy. However, it is better to eat more fresh fruit and vegetables than to eat foods from the store that promise extra vitamins and minerals. This is not only better for your health, but also better for your wallet, if you avoid those extra supplemented products.
Deficiencies with a weight loss diet
People on a weight loss diet, a celiac disease diet, lactose intolerance, and the like can often use something extra. For example, with a celiac disease diet one cannot eat normal brown bread and therefore does not get the vitamin B’s, which are especially important for the ability to concentrate. If you are on a necessary diet, it is wise to write down what you eat and after two weeks with that list, go to a dietician to have the diet assessed for any deficiencies.
Sometimes a deficiency even occurs in the eating disorder of “eating too healthy” (orthorexia nervosa).
Anyone who is afraid of all the added substances in food can sometimes develop a deficiency of the most normal vitamins and minerals over a short period of time. Some people pay attention to all the slogans about nutrition in the media and no longer eat sugar, no fat, no meat, no wheat, no eggs, etc., because they are afraid of the wrong substances they contain. That is of course not good either. It is wise to have the ‘diet’ approved by a dietitian. However, anyone who eats a varied diet gets enough and will not easily suffer damage.
There is also often a shortage after an illness
In addition to diets, it can sometimes be a good idea to take some extra vitamins before and after a major illness or surgery to supplement the resulting deficiency and regain your strength. However, it is best to go to the pharmacy or drugstore for this. After all, extra additives and supplements are necessary in some cases, but they certainly do not have to be included in all common products, because then you run a greater risk of excess with unpleasant consequences.
Consult a dietitian or GP
If you are not feeling completely well and are not sure that your body is getting enough of all the vitamins and building blocks, visit a dietitian and explain your two-week diet to her. She can determine whether you need anything extra based on your age. You can also have blood tests checked by your GP to determine whether there are any deficiencies. However, as long as you feel good, there is probably nothing to worry about.
An accumulation of some types of vitamins in the body is not healthy
For everyone else, foods with added vitamins and minerals are unnecessary and can even be unhealthy. For example, one should not consume too much of vitamins A, D and E, because they can accumulate in the body and even cause damage.
Always read the content information on the products
It is therefore important to read the ingredients on the label, so that you can determine for yourself which substances you and the members of your family are consuming. For the time being, there is no end to the creativity of manufacturers. As long as governments do not put a stop to this, everyone must pay attention. Your wallet and your body will benefit.