should you take a break from taking various vitamins and supplements
if you have been taking them regularly for over 2 years

It depends what type and who makes them. If they are pharmaceutical
grade then you know you are getting what you pay for (ie what is on
the label is what is in the tablet). In the USA vitamins are classed
as food so by law unless they are pharmaceutical grade the tablet need
only contain 10% of what it says on the label. In other countries like
Australia, there are tougher government regulations BUT companies that
don't voluntarily comply with the strict pharmaceutical grade
guidelines simply do the absolute minimum to comply with the laws of
the land.

What this means is their quality control is poor unless they are a
pharmaceutical company. Further, is the company a scientific company
or a marketing company? Do they have scientifically designed ratios of
nutrients or just what the public will buy this month? Many nutrients
work in synergy and without 1 they are useless or harmful.

eg calcium is useless unless you have enough boron, zinc, magnesium and manganese.

Generally, the levels of toxic dose are well above the optimal level
for disease prevention so you should be fine to take them your whole
life without breaks.

However, if they are a badly designed product and contain things like
vitamin A rather than betacarotine or they have iron in them, you
should take a break.
Most scientists say that you should only take iron in supplement form
if you are being closely monitored via blood tests and your doctor.

Vitamin A in high doses can be bad for your health, betacarotine (a
precurser to viatmin A meaning it is converted to vitamin A when it is
needed only) is totally safe.

There have been some "reports" claiming high dosage of vitamin C is
bad for you though they study was NOT a proper study- they literally
poured pure ascorbic acid onto cells in a petri dish... then said
"wow, this highly acidic substance known as ascorbic acid damages
cells in a the lab". Yet they seemed to conveiently forget that in the
body we have a digestive system and our food is not just sprayed onto
our cells direct.

I suggest you read "Comparative Guide To Nutrional Supplemnts" By Lyle
McWilliam. This book is the results of research into thousands of
products in USA, Canada, Mexico and now Australia and NZ. The book
covers the top 500 based on a whole range of criteria and has a load
of great info about vitamins, research etc.

Hello

The short answer is that since the FDA has not evaluated any of the
supplements you are taking, it is impossible to know exactly the
quantities that you are ingesting. However, I am not aware of any
vitamin that can be addictive or cause effects after using it for 2
years (if you are taking a regular dose).

regards,
Leo

Some bottled vitamins actually cause disease. The natural vitamin A
for example is great however studies have shown that some synthetic
forms cause cancer.
Increasingly studies seem to be pointing out that itis not only the
vitamins and minerals in 'things' that work for people, but the 'whole
package'. What I mean by this is - you get way more benefit eating an
orange than taking a Vitamin C table. Also there are things like
colours (eg anthocyanins in Blueberries) that are remarkable
antioxidants and we just can't separate them from the berry (why would
you want to anyway).
So I would say to you, stop peeing vitamins down the loo, save your
money and use it to buy good quality fruit and veges. Unless you have
a particular medical condition that requires a vitamin (and you cannot
eat enough of the natural fruit, vege or meat to get it) you are
wasting money and possibly damaging your health.