• Guest, the forum is undergoing some upgrades and so the usual themes will be unavailable for a few days. In the meantime, you can use the forum like normal. We'd love to know what you think about the forum! Take the 2025 Survey »

Type 1 Is it ok to take multivitamins?

S

shazbang26

Newbie
Hi, my 19yr old brother is type1, diagnosed age 11. He is a motorbike racer and very active. Recently his immune system seems to be very low and is catching every cold, flu and bug that's going about. He absolutely cannot stand to eat most fruit and vegetables so we were wondering if its ok for him to take vitamin supplements, will they affect his sugar levels etc. thanks
 
I take a high dose multi vitamin (Life Extension Two-Per-Day capsules), without Iron, as too much Iron if you are not deficient is a dodgy ingredient to have accumulating in your body . I vary rarely get a really bad cold and contribute part of my wellness to 1000mg+ of daily Vitamin C tablets (Vitamin C is water based which means your body can't store it, excess vitamin C will be expelled in urine, if you overdose you will get a bout of diarrhoea). You get Vitamin C from fruit and veg, it likes to give colds a good punch up ;) just don't take the chewable variety, they rot your teeth! Vitamin C uses the same GLUT 3&4 (Glucose Transporters), so it is possible for the vitamin to give a false high reading - over 1000mg can do it my memory serves me correctly. Also, unlike a pharmaceutical drug, Vitamins take longer to work, it may be several weeks before he feels any benefits. One of the ingredients might upset stomach too.

Is it ok for him to take them? I don't know - he should consult his doctor, explaining to his doctor that he has an appalling diet that may indicate vitamin deficiencies.
 
Are his blood sugars ok, because if they are too high that can increase the risk of infection.

Also, the annual flu vaccination will be available in the UK from October and diabetics are advised to have it as early in the winter as possible, because the flu can be a serious illness for us with the risk of complications and hospital. It's safe with a very low risk of minor side effects like a sore arm for a couple of days, and I think it's free for diabetics in the UK.
 
Back
Top