Why I hate vitamins.

Growing up w/ a nurse mother, I was hounded daily to TAKE MY VITAMIN!  Flintstones chewables weren’t bad, but b/c they were mandatory I resented them.  Their grainy texture, metallic taste, the stain they sometimes left on my teeth & tongue.  By comparison, my best friend (one of seven children) was never offered vitamins at home.  She used to come over and when my mother wasn’t looking, she’d take the bottle and eat them by the handful.  This always scared the crap out of me, as my mother cautioned against that sort of thing, but the over-supplementing never seemed to do anything to my friend, good or bad.

From childhood through early adulthood, I took a daily multivitamin.  Every single morning, along w/ my frozen waffles, cereal, or scrambled eggs.  It was rote.  Once I hit my twenties, I added calcium pills to the regimen.  My mother, the nurse, was always going on about preventable osteoporosis.  How too many women my age were forgoing milk in lieu of water or diet soda.  How my entire generation was going to be hunchbacked by 2040.  So I took them, thinking I was doing myself a true service.  Unfortunately, vitamins didn’t keep me from getting Meniere’s Disease.  Something I was diagnosed w/ at the age of 31.  As a Meniere’s sufferer, I was put on a strict low sodium diet, limited to 1500 mg or less per day.  I had to account for everything I consumed.  I noticed the multivitamin I was taking listed several types of sodium on the label.  Not salt, but sodium.  Hmm.  Was this “bad” sodium?  I went to the pharmacy to compare brands.  All of the vitamins contained at least one type of sodium, more often several.  I was stumped.  Should I worry about the sodium in multivitamins?  Could it exacerbate the Meniere’s?  I asked the pharmacist.  Who didn’t know either.  I went to a different pharmacy and then another.  I asked my mom, I asked my doctors.  No one knew.  So I stopped taking vitamins altogether.

That was 6 years ago.  Recently I have begun thinking about osteoporosis, wondering whether I am getting enough calcium.  I’ve always had a tendency towards slouching.  I slump when I sit in chairs, I’m hunched over right now as I type.  I hear my mom’s voice echoing through my head, I envision myself having to shop at Big & Humpy.  For the past week I’ve mulled over the idea of supplements.  Yesterday I happened to be at the pharmacy and finally said what the heck.  I picked up calcium pills and a multivitamin for good measure.

I took them first thing this morning.  I thought YES! as I swallowed them down w/ a glass of water.  But after a short time, I noticed something.  Everyone says vitamins are good for you, but I felt sick as hell.  First, they made me burp.  I have no idea why, but they did.  I burped all day long.  These burps smelled (and tasted) terrible.  Before you say OH YOU FORGOT TO TAKE THEM WITH FOOD, no way.  I took them after consuming a full breakfast.  But even w/ the food, they still made me feel queasy.  Like having morning sickness all day long.  And no I am not pregnant.  I normally have a stomach of steel.  These stupid vitamins, which everyone touts as being supremely good for you, they make me belch, they make me want to wretch.  It is awful.  I hate these terrible sick-inducing vitamins.  Earlier I went to the supermarket, and felt dizzy.  Yes, I do have Meniere’s Disease, and feel dizzy quite a lot of the time, but this was different.  I was pushing the cart and felt like I might topple over from gag-producing illness.   That was VITAMIN dizzy.  I am sure of it.  I hate you vitamins.

17 thoughts on “Why I hate vitamins.

  1. Oh. That’s…not good.

    I only get “blech” with the fish oil supplements and I make SURE to take them with food. I’m sorry, hon!

    I actually totally love my vitamins. I also used to pretend I was a pharmacist when I was a kid. I’d get out a butter knife and bottle of whatever and dump the pills out on the table. If I was feeling extra sassy, I’d dump out more than one kind and sort them!

    Let’s just say I still love my vitamins and leave it at that!

  2. Well I’m glad someone enjoys them Hayden. Just WATCH OUT for those prenatal badboys when the time comes. Those things are killers. I think it’s cute that you used to play pharmacist. I used to play school, library, & my favorite: grocery store!

    @curly – nice try. but no cigar.

  3. have you checked out your local natural food store? You know, the place with all the granola and tofurkey?
    Sometimes the formularies are different at places like that and maybe they’ll have something that will set easier on your tummy.
    Or you can ask your doc what you should be taking…

    Good thing I stayed at the Holiday Inn Express last night.

  4. Do you think it was the salt?
    I take my vitamins at night, and bypass the whole icky vitamin stomach thing. Maybe because I eat my biggest meal at night? When I was pregnant, they recommended that I take my pre-natals at night to avoid morning sickness, so I just stick with that. Calcium is too freaking huge to take. Nothing worse than a huge horse pill stuck in your throat. I’ve been doing OJ with Calcium instead. And I just started Lilia on vitamins because I was worried her diet wasn’t the best. I bought 3 months worth of Yummi Bears… and today at the dentist, I was told that the gummy kind are HORRIBLE for kids’ teeth! The chalky kind are better. Oh well, hopefully 3 months worth won’t ruin her teeth.

  5. PS, you are coming to Philly for Thanksgiving? We are not going to Michigan, maybe we can see each other if your trip is not too whirlwind???

  6. Thanks for the advice Steph – the ones I have now are a “natural” brand and don’t seem to contain sodium. The first I’ve found that don’t.

    S.Le – I don’t blame you. My mom has convinced me to try them at night. Wish me luck!

    I agree Trace – the body knows best. Unfortunately after 4 days bent over weeding, I am in perpetual slouch. Maybe next week.

    Thanks for the advice & info Laura — I am trying them tonight. We’ll see! PS: would love to catch up in Philly. We’ll give a call! xoxo

    1. I am burping up my multi and B-100, and they smell gross ! but they are high end supplements , LifeExtensions, Ive tried with food , juice and at bed time , nothing helps, at bed time they keep me up ALL night !!

      1. Ugh.. so sorry to hear this. I’d def stop taking them at night if they’re causing sleep loss. NOTHING is worth that!! Except maybe kids.. and loving.. and..? But def not vitamins! hahah Take care!

  7. I never use to take much of vitamins. But still I look very healthy. So I don’t think that I should stick towards taking more vitamins everyday. Now after reading this article. I feel that what i am doing is right? But I know no one will agree this.

  8. There are 13 essential vitamins and each one has a special role to play within the body, helping to regulate the processes such as cell growth and repair, reproduction and digestion.The name vitamin is obtained from “vital amines” as it was originally thought that these substances were all amines. Human body uses these substances to stay healthy and support its many functions.

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