How to Decide If Multivitamins Are Right for You

Men's Multivitamin Rainbow Light, 150 Count 

More than half of Americans currently take over-the-counter multivitamins, but there is little scientific support for taking multivitamins. All people should try to get the daily nutritional content recommended by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), and some people may benefit from taking multivitamins to supplement their diets. If you aren't sure if you should take a multivitamin or not, consider your diet, your age, your health needs and be aware of the risks of taking multivitamins.

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EditLearning About Your Daily Vitamin Needs

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   Consider your diet. Many people who are on restricted diets may benefit from taking multivitamins. For example, if you are trying to lose weight, you may eat less and therefore not be taking in as many nutrients as you should. Vegetarians and vegans (people who don't eat meat and people who don't consume animal-based products) may need supplements to receive their daily minimum requirements.^[1]

   • If you eat fewer than five servings of fruits and vegetables per day, you may want to consider taking multivitamins.
   • If you are a vegan and consume no animal products, it is important you take vitamin B12, which is only available in animal foods like meat, dairy, fish, eggs, etc. You can also look for plant products fortified with B12 — just make sure you're getting it somehow, or you risk anemia or neurological problems, such as difficulty concentrating.^[2]
   • If you have gained or lost more than 10 pounds in the previous six months without trying to, you may benefit from taking multivitamin supplements.
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   Think about your age. Your vitamin needs vary according to your lifespan. Older men and women are less able to absorb certain vitamins from natural food sources, such as vitamin B-12, and will require supplements. Women of child-bearing years may require additional iron and Vitamin C.^[3]
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   Make sure your vitamin has USP verification. The U.S. Pharmacopeial Convention (USP)^[4] is a nonprofit agency that verifies whether a supplement contains the ingredients it claims on its label. Look for the seal associated with the USP verification — don't be fooled by finding the letters USP on the label of your vitamins.^[5]

   • If your vitamins aren't certified by the USP, they may be worthless. Or, they may be actively harmful. In a manufacturing error, the amount of vitamin D found in a non-certified supplement varied from nine to 146 percent of what was listed on the bottle. There was even inconsistency from pill to pill within the same bottle.^[6]
   • Consumer Lab is a newer agency that provides verification services for multivitamins. Look for its label, CL.
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   Make sure a multivitamin has what you need. The contents of a multivitamin vary. You'll want to consider your own dietary needs to make sure you're taking the best multivitamin for you. If you're an older adult, you'll need more calcium, vitamin D, and B6. If you're a premenopausal woman, you'll need more iron.^[7]

   • Consult a dietitian or your family doctor to ensure you're getting the right vitamin balance for your health needs.
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   Don't forget micronutrients. Micronutrients are vitamins and minerals that are required, but in small amounts. They include iron, iodine, vitamin A, folate and zinc. Your body can't produce micronutrients; they must be taken in through food and vitamin supplements. Good multivitamins should include a range of micronutrients.^[8]

   • Certain micronutrients are necessary for healthy fetal development. All women of child-bearing age who are planning to get pregnant are recommended to take folate supplements as soon as they start trying.^[9] Talk to your medical provider about folate, iron and folic acid supplements.
   • Multivitamins may contain other ingredients for which there are no FDA standard guidelines. Talk to your doctor before purchasing these multivitamins.
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   Eat a healthy diet. Your daily vitamins can be best absorbed when found in your daily food intake. Before taking a multivitamin, consider your daily food intake. Make sure you're eating 5 portions of fruit and vegetable per day.^[10]

   • Get plenty of fiber by including beans and legumes; nuts and seeds; oats and whole grains; and unprocessed fruits and vegetables.
   • Increase the amount of by potassium you take in by including the following within your daily diet: beans and legumes; potatoes; low-fat milk and yogurt; lower-sodium canned tomato products; fruits; and lamb, pork, and fish.
   • Include high-calcium foods in your diet, such as milk, cheese, and yogurt; calcium-fortified, plant-based milks; orange juice; cereals; tofu (prepared with calcium citrate); and almonds.
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   Take multivitamins and supplements if you have a deficiency. Many medical conditions, such as kidney disease, cause deficiencies in the body. If you have a medical condition that causes a deficiency, it's necessary to take any supplements that your doctor instructs you to take in addition to your daily multivitamin.

   • For example, those with kidney disease likely have a calcium deficiency and need to take a calcium supplement or a multivitamin that's high in calcium.
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   Take a multivitamin with folates if you may become pregnant. If you're a woman of child bearing age and there's a possibility that you could become pregnant, you'll need a multivitamin that contains folates. Folates are a natural form of Vitamin B. Consuming folates is necessary in preventing neural tube defects in a growing fetus.

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EditChoosing a Multivitamin for Your Child

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   Ask your pediatrician about multivitamins. Most children will not need a multivitamin, and the dangers of taking in too much of a vitamin can outweigh the potential benefits. Many foods are fortified with essential nutrients, such as B vitamins, vitamin D, calcium and iron. In short, your child may already be getting enough nutrition, even if it seems like he's a pretty picky eater.^[11]

   • Foods are the best source of vitamins and minerals for children as well as adults.
   • Make sure your child has access to a varied, healthy diet for meals and snacks.
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   Recognize when a multivitamin may help. If your child has physical and developmental delay (i.e. failure to thrive) she may benefit from a multivitamin. Some children are allergic to milk, or have food sensitivities that result in an overly restricted diet.^[12]

   • Heartburn, reflux or vomiting can cause a child to have difficulty consuming a healthy dose of vitamins. A multivitamin will help provide her with proper nutritional requirement.
   • Children with gastro-intestinal problems may also benefit from a multivitamin.
   • Talk to your pediatrician before starting your child on multivitamins.
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   Realize that children's vitamins are unregulated. The major brands of children's vitamins do not submit to the voluntary process of USP or CL verification, relying instead upon brand identification for consumer's trust. This means that there is not an independent firm checking for quality control, ensuring that the vitamins contain what the label claims.^[13]

   • In order to encourage the child to willingly take his vitamins, children's vitamins often taste more like candy than medicine. This encourages over-consumption, which can be dangerous. Make sure you keep your child's vitamins out of reach.
   • Children's vitamins also contain additives and sweeteners, which don't benefit your child's overall health.

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EditKnowing the Risks

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   Realize the hazards of vitamin mega-doses. Taking vitamin C in extremely high amounts was a popular — and false — remedy for colds for several years. Evidence shows no benefits to taking vitamin C in large doses, and that taking too much (2000 mg or more) may result in a greater chance of developing kidney stones.^[14]

   • Researchers showed that smokers who took vitamin A supplements were more likely to develop lung cancer than smokers who didn't. For non-smokers too, taking in too much vitamin A can result in sickness and even death.
   • Vitamin E supplements have been connected with increased rates of cancer.
   • Be particularly careful with fat-soluble vitamins, such as vitamins A, D, E, K. Vitamins that are water-soluble can be regulated by your body — you will just pee out the excess. Fat-soluble vitamins remain in your fat stores, and your body cannot remove excess amounts. There is a serious risk of toxicity from A, D, E, and K levels being too high. Make sure you follow the guidelines on the bottle or set by your doctor.
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   Know that long-term use of multivitamins may not be healthy. Research suggests that people who use multivitamins over an extended period of time (over 25 years) may have increased risk of cancer and death.^[15]

   • Older research on the use of multivitamins showed only minimal risk, but no clear benefits.^[16]
   • Research showed an increase in the chances of being diagnosed with cancer for people taking supplements of vitamin D. No decrease in cancer diagnosis was found among those who took supplemental multivitamins, or other vitamin supplements.^[17]
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   Be aware of fortified foods. Most people will consume their daily requirements of vitamins and minerals from their food intake. Folic acid, for example, is added to so many food products that unless you are a pregnant woman, it's unlikely that you would need additional supplements. Yet folic acid is commonly included among the list of ingredient of a multivitamin. Your daily intake could easily rise to 1,000 mcg or more, potentially increasing the risk of colorectal and possibly prostate and breast cancers.^[18]

   • People who consume poor-quality diets are more likely to rely on multivitamins for their health, though poor-quality American diets tend to contain many fortified foods.
   • Read the labels of your food when possible. Notice what percentage of a standard dietary requirement is found in each serving size.
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   Consider the bias of labeling. Many so-called "natural" vitamins are not natural. There is yet no legal definition for natural to which the makers of vitamins and supplements are forced to adhere. Because these vitamins sell for much more than their generic or synthetic alternatives, the manufacturers have a natural incentive to brand their vitamins falsely.^[19]

   • Look for actual food sources in the vitamin. For example, if the label reads "acerola cherry powder," which contains vitamin C, it's more likely a natural vitamin. If it reads simply "vitamin C" it's likely synthetic.
   • Learning to recognize common synthetic forms of vitamins, such as chloride, hydrochloride, acetate or nitrate will help you recognize natural vitamins.
   • Some nutritional experts state that natural vitamins are better for human health than synthetic; however, research has not borne this out.