‘There’s nothing called multivitamin deficiency’, diabetologist criticises Centrum ad

Criticising an advertisement by multivitamin brand Centrum, published in a leading daily newspaper, diabetes specialist and Padma Shri awardee doctor V. Mohan has said that “there is nothing called multivitamin deficiency”.

The ad, which the chairman of Dr Mohan’s Diabetes Specialities Centre shared on X, reads, “8 in 10 Indians may be multivitamin deficient.”

“Every member of your family requires the right amount of multivitamins along with their daily diet. But do you think their daily diet is balanced? That’s why your family should take multivitamins everyday,” it added.

Believing the advertisement to be misleading, Mohan said that taking multivitamin supplements as advertised can also end up causing harm.

“There is nothing called multivitamin deficiency. Unless there is a deficiency of specific vitamins, such as Vitamin D or B12, giving multivitamins may not be beneficial and may even cause harm. Multivitamins usually do not provide enough of the deficient vitamin,” he wrote on X.

Health experts also said that consuming vitamin supplements daily without consulting a doctor may be detrimental to a person’s health.

“Without medical supervision, using multivitamin pills or calcium regularly can have negative health consequences,” Mohan Kumar Singh, Senior Consultant – Internal Medicine, Marengo Asia Hospital, Gurugram, told IANS.

According to Singh, taking too many of these supplements might result in overdosing, which can harm organs over time and cause symptoms like nausea, vomiting, and stomach pain.