The Vitamin Debate
So I spent the majority of yesterday working on my first paper of the semester. The topic? Natural vs. synthetic vitamins. As an adamant proponent of getting my nutrients from food sources over supplemental forms, I was curious to ascertain whether my strong opinions were upheld by science. While I did not appreciate the tedious perusal of scientific papers that was required for the assignment, the process did prove to be educational (gasp!). Some supplemental forms of nutrients (e.g., lycopene, vitamin E, vitamin C) are just as effective as their natural counterparts–but almost none have been proven to be more effective. Vitamin A, folate, and most of the B vitamins, however, are more bioavailable in their natural forms than in synthesized tablets. Sweet.
However, as I noted in my paper, I do not mean to discount the considerable benefits of synthetic vitamins–any vitamins are better than none! Getting my vitamins from natural sources (i.e., food) is just what works for me and my body. How do you feel about vitamins and supplements, whether they be natural or synthetic?
Alright, so you’ve probably heard enough about my dull writing assignments. Onto the grub!
Friday
Pineapple and strawberry call for some tropical flair…coconut to the rescue.
pineapple-strawberry smoothie with soymilk, berry HempShake, coconut, & Pumpkin Flax granola
Saturday
After sleeping for a blissful 8+ hours and going for a long run, I whipped myself up a batch of vegan banana pancakes. Cue the Jack Johnson music.
vegan banana pancakes topped with pecans & a drizzle of maple syrup
With a lovely eggplant staring me in the face, I knew it was ratatouille time. If only I had some of that zucchini…
ratatouille with chickpeas, Ak Maks; Fuji apple; almonds
My fall-ish cravings are hitting full-force this week. Observe:
roasted acorn squash stuffed with lentils, sweet potatoes, onions, & walnuts; grapes
Alanna and I watched Shag last night, quite possibly the cutest movie ever. All that shag-watchin’ made me hungry for some smoothie action.
peach-pineapple smoothie with soymilk, berry HempShake, & Pumpkin Flax granola
Sunday
I used CCV‘s “banana brulee” oatmeal trick today, and let’s just say I think that my breakfasts will be changed forever. DELISH.
whole grain Cream of Wheat cooked in almond milk & banana, topped with cashew butter & cranberries
My salad post this afternoon inspired my lunch. Mmm Greek goodness.
Greek salad with artichokes, grilled eggplant, cottage cheese, olives, chickpeas, dill, & oregano; strawberries
In case you haven’t noticed, my Sunday night dinners are typically rather uninspired. A bare fridge makes for interesting meals…good thing Whole Foods is on the agenda for tomorrow!
Amy's Split Pea Soup; TLCs; carrots; roasted acorn squash stuffed with apples & almond butter
G’night bloggigans.
Filed under: Meals
Hello and welcome! I have created this blog for people who love food, especially healthful, vegetarian food.
I have just graduated from Duke University with degrees in English and psychology. I plan to pursue a master's degree in nutrition starting in Fall 2010. Ideally, I would like to combine my love of food and the written word someday as a health writer.
sounds like an interesting paper topic! i love incorporating nutritional stuff into my papers..even though i’m a psych major for now, thats what i really want to do afterwards..
anyway, your eats look amazing! especially those banana brulee oats..yum, it needs to be breakfast time!
Your apples are so perfectly sliced. I prefer getting my vitamins from food because I think there is something about the way the vitamins interact with the food in your stomach/GI tract. Obviously, I’m not the most scientific person in the world. I do however take a multivitamin to be on the safe side. I also take calcium supplements because my bones are wimps.
I had acorn squash tonight TOO. Man we are totally rocking this samesies deal.
oh YUM! i am definatly making your lentil in acorn squash thang! looks so good!
to be honest i don’t know a lot about vitamins, natural or synthetic. i would love to read your paper though. i love fall foods!
cool topic. i loveeeee acorn squash!!!!!! my mommy used to always make it for us in the fall when i lived at home with a little butter and brown sugar. perfection.
I don’t like supplements, but I do take them once in a while. I know I lack B vitamins, so I just try to eat more food that has it, and if that doesn’t help, I’ll take some supplements. And know my mom brought me some multivitamin that you dissolve in a glass of water, and I love it. It’s a yummy way to perk up my immunity
Although I am pretty much a raw vegan, and believe I get everything I truly need from food, as extra insurance I take a Rainbow Light women’s one a day. They are considered “whole food” vites and so not as synthetic, although I’d hardly call vites “natural”. The New Chapter and Rainbow Light brand are both reasonably priced, “whole food vites” and mentally, I like the extra insurance. Plus, it also has probiotics in it. See….I wish I had to do classwork like yours. God I regret not following my heart in college. I am happy for you that you are!
Love those eats!
I get most of my vitamins from ‘real food’ and take extra calcium (with vit D) and fish oil…
xxx Julia (Taste of Living)
OMG I was *just* about to hit “publish/schedule” when I saw this. Adding your name to my post ASAP.
I’ll leave a longer comment in a few hours. (Right now I’m off to run in the rain!)
Love you, twinnie!!
i always wonder about this– because of fortified cereals. they are cited as a major/good source of b-vitamins and folate, etc. but isn’t that synthetic??? i wonder if we get as many vitamins from fortified cereals as we think we do??? and what are bio-available b-vitamin sources for non-meat eaters (other than fortified cereal?) thanks
I lerrrrv the way you cut your apples. I pretty much almost slice my fingers off just cutting them the standard way. You are skilled man.
sounds like a fun paper to write! MUCH better then researching and analyzing a budget haha
Oh haiiiii all this food is killing me as I eat my cereal out of a plastic bowl with a plastic spoon. All the squash and veggies altogether looking bossy and then the almond butta at the end! mmm giiiiirl, not only do we listen to the same AWESOME 90s BOY BANDS, we like da same food
The thing about vitamins that makes me a little leary is that when I was still in my sport, we would get drug tested and they always told us not to take vitamins since they weren’t heavily regulated at the tests could show a positive. I prefer to eat the rainbow and get my nutrients that way.
Nothing wrong with those fall cravings – yum! Have fun at WFs
I think vitamins are a bit of a waste, artificial or natural(though natural is definitely better). It’s an extra cost that would be better spent on real food with the nutrients already in it. It might not always seem cheaper to buy whole foods, especially organic ones, but the price is spared with not needing vitamins. Fortified foods are a happy medium, in my opinion. The food might be toyed with a bit but it’s still food meaning it will fill you up for your dollar
your eats are always so friggin’ gorge dear! how did you make that ratatouille? with apples…mmmm, i am loving it!
drool at all your food. seriously, drool.
Ah I forgot it was squash season again! I forget pumpkin is a squash since it comes in a can lol. Your acorn squashes look amazing!
i also prefer to get vitamins from food than from synthetics, because i thin it’s always better the natural source. of course, for people for do not consume enough veggies and fruits, synthetic vitamins are still better than nothing at all.
I would rather get my vitamins from food but I do take a multivitamin and calcium pills daily.
I have never tried Cream of Wheat but your blog is inspiring me to try some – I need to add it to my grocery list for next week.
I like taking a multi everyday…….but it’s partly because they are gummy bears!!
I also supplement my calcium with 2 different types of chews about 4 times a day….but only IF i don’t eat any cheese, milk, or yogurt that day!
love your beautiful eats mama!!
I am no great believer in supplementation, as you know!
But I am a fan of CCV recipes
Wow, I’m loving all those stuffed squash dishes. Acorn squash stuffed with purple sweet potatoes? Oh my goodness! Definitely a very autumn inspired dish
AHHHH those banana pancakes look amazing
WE’RE NOT WORTHY!!!! *Wayne’s World moment*
I prefer to get my vitamins from my food sources, but I recently decided to start taking one multivitamin to supplement my foods just in case. It’s definitely a bad thing to go OVERBOARD with vitamins– like my grandmother did once. She took so many that I think it was actually making her sick (so she cut way back).
That is definitely very interesting about the vitamins. I try to get most of mine from food as well unless I think my diet isn’t nutritrious for that day. There are so many natural things to add to smoothies now like spirulina, bee pollen, etc. that vitamins really aren’t necessary as much.
Thanks for eating Cream of Wheat! Loved your recipe! Am posting a link from our FB and Twitter pages!
Sorry I’m a little late to respond to this (trying to catch up on the Google Reader) but that’s an interesting assignment and clearly, it’s good since you actually feel like you learned something from it!
I am an advocate of getting your vitamins from food, but even though I try to eat well for the most part, I take a multi-vitamin every or every other day. I think vitamins should be a supplement and not a replacement for whole foods nutrition.
That is an interesting topic, nice to hear your conclusions. Personally, I try to vary my diet as much as possible to get a wide range of vitamins and nutrients, but I also take a multivitamin every day just in case to fill in any gaps. I have this crazy fear of being deficient in something.
Your meals look great! I’m looking forward to fall squashes too, although I haven’t had any quite yet.
Back the truck up – roasted squash with apples & almond butter? What a great combo! Hmmm…I have some pecan buter. I bet that would also be fabulous. And I plan on roasting some squash tonight. Score!
And I do agree, I would rather get my vitamins from natural vs synthetic sources, because you also get so many other things that are beneficial to you, even if they don’t have an RDA value attached – hello phytochemicals? I think the whole “variety is the spice of life” thing is so true when it comes to meeting nutrient needs. But if your diet is deficient for whatever reason, then you really should look at getting the appropriate suppliment.