Throughout my childhood, my father gave me vitamin supplements. When I was little it was Flintstones' chewable multivitamins, then eventually Centrum, Vitamin C, and Fish Oil. In fact, I have only switched over to LEF a few months ago. Considering the negative opinions around here of Centrum and the like, I am wondering if it was beneficial or detrimental to my health.
One of the commonly cited negatives is the high iron content. I have also heard various reports of certain brands containing trace heavy metals. I am fully aware of how pathetic the dosages are in mainstream brands, as well all the nutrients they lack. I am mostly concerned with the toxicity.
After thinking a bit more about the iron issue, I formed a loose hypothesis based on my own personal experience. Unlike me, my brother and sister would always do everything they could to avoid taking the vitamins, and would spit them out, throw them out, or hide them. They are both of only average intelligence. My mother and father are both very intelligent... my mother especially. She told me that as a kid she ate tons of spinach; she ate so much that she became sick as a result of iron overload. In the hospital, they didn't figure out the cause of the sickness right away, so all she ate in the hospital for awhile was spinach as well.
I thought that maybe iron plays some role in cognitive functioning or development and after some research I found that iron does play a critical role in brain development
http://www.ncbi.nlm....5&dopt=Abstract
Thoughts?
