IN MY OPINION ... YOU DON’ T NEED VITAMIN PILLS

INFORMATION is not knowledge. That phrase is never out of my mind in an era when everyone thinks everything they need to know is there at the click of a mouse.

But knowing how best to manage our wellbeing is not the same as understanding.

This was brought home to me recently by an app that tells you which supplements you need to take in addition to what you’re eating to be assured of good health.

The idea is that you record what you eat, then the app synchronises that information with whatever activity tracker you have (for instance, a Fitbit).

This then comes back with recommendations for which supplements to buy (not surprisingly, enabling the punter to order these for delivery directly). In short: it’s clever, seductive marketing.

This worries me. How often do we have to tell people all they need is a healthy, balanced diet for good health?

Let me give you two examples which illustrate why supplements are unnecessary, and show how the pressure to take them is misleading.

Studies have found that 100g of apple has an antioxidant effect equivalent to 1,500mg of vitamin C. For, although an apple contains just less than 6mg of the vitamin, it has other vitamin C-like chemicals — such as quercetin, catechin, phlorizin and others — that affect numerous reactions in the body.

No app offering commercially available supplements can compete with the effects of the simple apple.

In another example, studies on 95,000 patients have failed to show that taking a vitamin D supplement (an important nutrient for bone health) reduces fractures.

What makes a difference is a diet containing the precursors of vitamin D, along with exposure to sunshine.

So my message is this: forget technofantasies and simply eat a healthy diet.