Why people take dietary supplements
JAKARTA (JP): We all know what it takes to keep in tip-top physical shape.
Eat healthful foods, get plenty of sleep and maintain a regular exercise routine.
For some of us, this standard fitness equation has expanded to include regular doses of dietary supplements.
Most of these are imported and carry a high price tag. But devoted users, particularly from the middle and upper economic brackets and in the entertainment world, do not seem to care about the cost in their quest to look good.
The Jakarta Post interviewed Jakartans to find out the benefits and drawbacks of rounding out one's diet.
Lulu Dewayanti, director of Look Models Inc.: I always take vitamins C and E every day. Vitamin E is good for the skin, and vitamin C is necessary to keep me fit, especially when I am tired.
When I was a kid, my mother gave me vitamin C and cod liver oil. In the past five years, I have been taking vitamins C and E produced by N.F.C., which I buy in America. It is cheap. A bottle of 250 vitamin C pills costs just US$12.
I checked the price here, and you know how much it was? Between Rp 300,000 and Rp 400,000. That was several months ago, when the U.S. dollar was equivalent to about Rp 3,500. It must be more expensive now.
I believe they (dietary supplements) are good. I am quite busy and sometimes I don't have time to eat fruit. At those times, taking vitamin C becomes more important.
Djoeni Djoenaedi, finance manager, PT Bekasi Fajar Industrial Estate: I used to take anabolic steroids before exercising. I read about them in a foreign bodybuilding magazine. The ad said that it could help build your muscles.
It was true. I took it three times a week, before I exercised, and it did increase my muscles. I still exercise regularly, but I stopped taking the steroids after six months because of the side effects. It increased my heart rate and, in something I really couldn't help, my face became marked by acne.
I take an effervescent multivitamin tablet, containing vitamins C, B, D and calcium, every day. I know that eating fruit is better than taking those tablets, but I take the vitamins for practical reasons. I think I can feel the effects; I have become more resistant to flu. I also drink Hemaviton when I feel tired.
I admit that those advertisements on TV and in magazines influenced my choices in buying the dietary supplements, but I don't think I was duped by those ads. I have my own considerations.
Edwin Manansang, a member of the popular pop group Trio Libels: Sure, I know many people in the entertainment business who take dietary supplements. It's understandable -- our appearance is our selling point when we are up there on stage.
And people now tend to judge others more on their appearance anyway. The assumption is that the better you look, the more money you must have to take care of yourself by using dietary supplements and health products.
Personally, I take a multivitamin and super collagen tablets. I do notice the differences. My skin is a bit better, I feel a little healthier than when I don't take the tablets.
Of course, dietary supplements won't help if you don't change your ways. For instance, using supplements but still eating junk food won't work. You also have to be careful about what you choose, and that the product is really what it claims to be.
I concentrate more on working out and taking care of my body. Dietary supplements are there to help, but they are just a help. The rest is up to you.
Anthony, a 31-year-old: I used to take one of those food supplement products for almost three years. A dermatologist recommended it to me when I came to him with my acne problem. He said it could be used to help keep my skin in good condition. And I think it did help reduce my acne. My skin in general seems to be in better shape. The results first appeared after about three months of routine usage.
But I stopped using it three months ago. It's too expensive. (team)