Vitamins Part 1

Articles by Dr. Erdman are for informational purposes, and are not to be taken as specific medical advice.

 

Do you take vitamins and supplements? Why do you take them? How did you choose what you currently consume? Price? Ingredients? Availability? Recommendation? Why?

I talk supplements with many people in the office, and most are just winging it, hoping it helps their health. Many people have fallen for the “one a day” advertising. Some buy supplements as cheaply as possible. Others look for certain ingredients, but really have no idea what should be in them. It is hard to know what to look for and how to buy when your knowledge and time are limited.

Sell By vs. Use By Dates

Articles by Dr. Erdman are for informational purposes, and are not to be taken as specific medical advice.

 

How many times have the ‘use by’ or ‘sell by’ date on a packaged food caused you to rethink eating or purchasing a product? Does either of those dates say anything about whether the product is safe to eat? Are these dates regulated by the government or backed by any research showing good reason for them?

The average family in America wastes over $1500 worth of food each year. Moldy bread and spoiled produce should be discarded for obvious reasons. Yet many perfectly fine foods are tossed based on the ‘use by/best by’ and ‘sell by’ dates. A recent report from Harvard found that 90% of Americans throw out food prematurely based on a misunderstanding of what these dates really mean.+