‘UNNECESSARY’ PILL-PUSHING

Press, Volume CXIII, Issue 33315, 28 August 1973, Page 19

‘UNNECESSARY’ PILL-PUSHING

For most New Zealanders on a varied diet vitamin pills are unnecessary, according to an article in the August issue of “Consumer.” The publisher, Consumers’ Institute, is concerned about the way vitamin pills are being promoted.

The institute criticises i advertising — in newspapers, ; magazines and on television ; — which suggests that pill- < taking should be a normal part of life. “In particular we deplore the manufacturers’ appeal to ; protect yourself and your ; family from our ‘modern commercialised way of life’? with its ‘over-processed, de-j; vitalised’ food,” it says. |i “The advertisers would have us believe our foods; have been refined of all goodness, our soils depleted; of nutrients — in fact, we are told, our diets are totally deficient. But the truth is that there has been no sudden change in our dietary needs. 'What happened is that a lucrative market has been spotted by the trade — which has set out to cash in on sales of an unnecessary product.” SOME IN FAVOUR The body requires only small amounts of vitamins: daily, says the institute. Any excess water-soluble vitamins 1 are simply excreted. How-i ever, the fat-soluble vitamins < are stored in the body. Prolonged intake of excessive amount of vitamins A and D can be dangerous for people of all ages.” In spite of any reduction in nutritive value caused by processing, a varied diet still supplies more than enough

essential nutrients. In fact, processing generally has about the same effect as ■ cooking has on the nutritive value of food, says the institute. A wide variety of foods in the daily diet will provide all the nutritional insurance necessary. “While there will always be some medical people who; argue in favour of supplementary vitamins, the consensus of medical opinion the world is that they are not necessary for the majority of the popula-| tion.”