Q: What vitamins do your recommend for women after age 50?
– Patricia in San Diego

A: You can get the basic vitamins and minerals from three supplements. First, take a moderate-dose vitamin and mineral supplement that supplies a wide variety of nutrients in doses of about 100% of the Daily Value as listed on the label. Second, take a calcium-magnesium supplement with a ratio of 2:1, or about 500 milligrams of calcium and 250 milligrams of magnesium. Third, take 100IU to 400IU of vitamin E. You shouldn’t spend much more than $10 a month for this supplement plan, but can rest assured that you are getting the vitamins and minerals in the right proportion. Of course, supplements alone won’t guarantee wellness. You must eat really well and supplement responsibly to ensure optimal nutrition. -Elizabeth Somer

Nine out of ten women think they eat well. Most of them are singing those praises to the wind. In researching my latest book – Nutrition for Women, 2nd edition (Owl Books 2003), I found that only 1 percent of us meet even minimum standards of a balanced diet. According to a USDA study, less than 19 percent of women who rated their diets as excellent, actually ate reasonably well.

Women’s eating styles are more like an hour-glass than a pyramid. We eat unprecedented amounts of sugar and fat from the top of the Food Pyramid and platters of refined grains from the bottom tier, but are sorely lacking in the vegetables, fruits, milk products, and other nutritious foods in the middle of the Pyramid. It’s not that we don’t know better. The majority of women know it’s important to cut back on sugary and fatty foods, yet only a third of us meet the recommendations to keep fat at no more than 30 percent of calories and the average woman consumes 158 pounds of sugar each year. We also are whole-grain phobic, including less than one serving of brown rice, whole wheat, quinoa, or any other real grain in our daily diets.

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Q: What is the best supplement to take for a 45 year old woman of otherwise good health? I did the Real-Age test yesterday and was doing really well until it came to diet then I suddenly got much older! My weight is in the top of the normal range for my height.
– Barbara in Canada

A: The basic supplement program includes a moderate-dose multiple vitamin and mineral that supplies approximately 100% of the Daily Value for a wide range of nutrients. If you don’t consume daily at least three calcium-rich foods, such as nonfat milk and yogurt, and lots of magnesium-rich whole grains, wheat germ, soy products, and legumes, then consider supplementing your multiple with extra calcium and magnesium, since no one-pill multiple contains enough of these two minerals. In a few cases, you might want to tailor this basic program with a few other supplements to meet your personal needs, such as black cohosh if you’re battling menopause symptoms or glucosamine for arthritis. Two good generic supplements (you’d still need to take extra calcium and magnesium) are Centrum and Nature Made’s Essential Balance (take Centrum Silver or Mature Balance if you are post-menopausal.) The two best supplements can be obtained over the internet: NutriGuard’s Broad Spectrum (with iron if you’re premenopausal and without iron if you’re postmenopausal) or Metabolic Maintenance’s Basic Maintenance (again with or without iron). The last two are complete, so you don’t need to take anything else by those. – Elizabeth Somer

Q: Is soy safe for women who have had estrogen-related tumors?
– Katie from Wisconsin

A: No one knows for sure. Soy contains estrogen-like compounds called phytoestrogens that have a weak estrogen activity. These phytoestrogens bind to estrogen receptor sites and block a woman’s natural estrogen from entering. Researchers suspect that this is one reason why adding soy to women’s diets lowers their risk for breast cancer. On the other hand, some researchers speculate that adding more estrogen to the body, even if it’s a mild form, could escalate cancer risk in women with a history of breast cancer. There are no definitive studies to prove this. On the contrary, cultures where women regularly consume soy, such as Japan, breast cancer rates are very low. In addition, soy-based infant formulas have been used in the United States for more than 30 years with no indication of long-term problems. The bottom line: I recommend that women with no history of breast cancer include several servings of soy in their weekly diets, and that women with a history of breast cancer consume whole soy foods (tofu and soy milk) in moderate amounts, say two or three servings a week. -Elizabeth Somer