No miracles

There are some things about ageing that are good (more credibility, for example), and plenty of things that aren’t. One of the things that’s been bugging me has been the too-frequent lack of ability to concentrate as I think I should be able to, along with a lack of clarity and stamina. There’s a pill for that.

Bayer created a multivitamin for the over 50 set (people like me) called Berocca Focus 50+ (commercial above), which, they claim, helps with these things. I started taking it a few weeks ago, and I think it does help, if only a little.

I used to take vitamins every day for years and years. Then, suddenly, I couldn’t take them any more. I switched to the “silver” version of the vitamins, and couldn’t tolerate them either. I tried other “50+” vitamins but also couldn’t tolerate them. The problem, I came to believe, was the high levels of B vitamins, which made me feel hyper after about a week of taking them. It was a very unpleasant feeling, a bit like a panic attack, actually.

So, I decided to look for a lower-strength vitamin and saw the Beroca ones in the grocery store one day. I’d never heard of regular Berocca until I moved to New Zealand, where they seemed popular as part of a hangover remedy. One of their old slogans was something like, “Berocca gives you back your B B Bounce”, highlighting the B vitamins inside. But I also knew their levels weren’t that high. That’s why I decided to give the Focus 50+ a go.

Like I said, I think it helps some, but the ad is actually true: Miracles, no. Still, even small improvements can be a good thing, I think, even though I’m aware some people dismiss the very idea of taking multivitamins, and there could be a sort of placebo effect going on.

The bottom line for me is that I found something that seems to help. Even if it’s not really doing anything, the feeling of improvement is real. Right now, that’s enough.

Of course, the main reason I'm posting this at all isn't just that the vitamins seem to work for me, but because I like the ad. It's just that in this case, I actually use the product advertised.

I have NOT been paid anything to write this post, but I'm open to freebies if Mr. Bayer wants to send some my way…