re: Do you think taking vitamins & minerals supplements does anything?

The real answer: for most people vitamins are a waste

If your diet is truly and atrociously deficient in something, then there is SOME value. But if that's the case…change your diet.

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Fish Oil

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This is pointless to take

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GP’s don’t know what the frick they’re talking about. You need someone that is educated on the particular substance you’re taking

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Yeah.... like an OP poster.

If my lab results say I am deficient in something important then, I take that vitamin or mineral. No point in paying for supplements you don't necessarily need unless, there is some benefit in doing so that is documented that you see benefit from. With that said I take Zinc, Boron, Vitamin B injections, aspirin, magnesium, and a probiotic each day from highly quality vendors like Seeking Health, Metagenics, etc. I have the MTHFR gene a double mutation and have regular labs done to monitor my levels as this gene does effect absorption. I OD'd on Vitamin D and had off the chart levels and that's not good either after being deficient for a long time so I'm off that for now. I'm also on all 3 hormones E, P, and T. At a certain age I decided to prioritize my health and make sure I optimize everything. Feel better now than I have in years.

Fish oil works.

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Fish oil works.

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It can be a great source of omegas, but you have to be careful to make sure it hasn't gone rancid-- which is harder to know when it's in capsules.

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What changed in your bloodwork? and were you able to pinpoint that fish oil was the only thing you changed in your diet in that timeframe ?

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Triglycerides and HDL. Both high triglycerides and lower-than-optimal HDL run in my family. It hit me abruptly at 31. I can pinpoint that based on having a thyroid condition since the age of 24 that resulted in me having bloodwork at least once every six months to this day, and for the rest of my life. Triglycerides jumped into the mid-300s. HDL was around 28 (should be 40 or more).

I immediately found and began taking a quality, high-dose fish oil, OceanBlue Professional 2,100mg (kept behind the pharmacy counter in any Publix, which frequently offers a BOGO for some percentage off on it). At any rate, they had to check me again in three months because of the sudden variance. The HDL was likely always low and I just never thought much about it. At that next check, the triglycerides were cut to less than half and the HDL was nearing 35.

I maintain those triglyceride numbers today (will turn 44 this month) and my HDL has been above 40 for a while now. I caught it early. The ONLY thing that changed in that time was me adding the fish oil. I did make the switch to Vascepa which is pure EPA several years ago and it seems to perform comparably.

My grandfather suffered with heart issues for many, many years. His brother died early in life (pre-40) and was himself a cardiologist. Anything I can do to stave off the issues they had, I will absolutely do.

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My bloodwork begs to differ. I switched from a very expensive, very potent fish oil to Vascepa several years ago and the benefits have been maintained.

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You beat me to it.

I'm on Vascepa as well and it's been incredible according to my blood work.

I do take certain supplements, always on top of a meal. My Internist of 40+ years has, over time, come to be a strong supporter of certain supplements like Berbine+ (with pepper), Cinnamon, D3, Chromium Picolinate, a proper Calcium/Magnesium/Zinc combo, Potassium, D³, Cherry Tart and a good probiotic.

I heal fast, (I was home after ooen heart surgery in 91 hours setting the record at our hospital), I recover quickly, I feel good for my age.

My vitamin C comes from my homemade green tea daily with a splash of ascorbic acid (fruit fresh).

Everything is about maximizing absorption combined with eating healthy and exercise.

Creatine works and anyone who says otherwise never took creatine.

Nothing wrong with a multi-vitamin, fish oil, vitamin d, c, etc either. Today's diets suck even when you know what you're doing

I’ve also been told multis are useless, to take them individually. I’ve also read that the US receives most synthetic vitamins and supplements from China, so be sure you know where you are getting them from.