Are you a regular consumer of multivitamins?
If not, maybe it is because you are not familiar with the various health benefits, or maybe you are just simply overwhelmed by the sea of supplements which exist in the market and you are unsure of how to choose the best.
How does one know if they are indeed getting the best quality or are just consuming cheap tablets with fancy labels and packaging? Here are some crucial criteria to look for when choosing the right multivitamin for you.
What are multivitamins?
Multivitamins are dietary supplements that provide your body with all the recommended important nutrients in just a single dose. They are essentially made up of different vitamins and minerals which provide support to your body all day long. These doses are important as they tend to increase nutrient intake and can ensure you are getting any nutrients you may have missed,
How to read a multivitamin label
Since there are many different types and brands of multivitamins in the market, understanding where each company gets its ingredients from is very crucial. The various types of multivitamins include the glandular, whole-food-based, and the standard type. Also, you must check whether the multivitamin contains other additives.
Most supplements contain excipients, which are inactive substances meant to serve as a medium for other active substances. Examples include binders, coloring agents, and fillers. When choosing a multivitamin, always consider the one with few excipients, as some may have a long time side effect on your body.
Things to look for in your multivitamins
It is very important to match your dose as per your lifestyle. This is because men, women, children, and the elderly all require multivitamins, but in different quantities. To get the best results, consider the below factors:
- Ensure your multivitamin contains vitamin E from mixed tocopherols.
- Consider the form of vitamin D contained in your supplement. The most preferred form is vitamin D3.
- If you happen to be allergic, ensure your supplement is free from any allergens.
- Your multivitamin label must read mixed carotenoids.
- If possible, always strive to get the biologically active forms of supplements.
- Your supplements should have the best absorbable minerals.
What you need to know about multivitamins
Absorption.
Our digestive system usually converts vitamins and other nutrients from food or supplements into small, molecule sizes for easy absorption. However, the absorption process is normally affected by factors such as sugar, which interferes with the absorption of vitamin C. Alcohol and other medicines also greatly affect the absorption process. Some ingredients which are commonly used in supplements such as magnesium oxide are poorly absorbed, but since they are cheaper to manufacture and occupy little space in a tablet, they are frequently used.
Quality.
Good quality ingredients are those which are easily utilized by the body. Unfortunately, many supplements contain ingredients that are not utilized for any health reasons, for instance, titanium dioxide. Its main purpose is to make a tablet white! Others include artificial food dyes and flavours, which aren’t really necessary.
Here is an example of a very high quality multivitamin.
Bottom line: it is always advisable to do proper research on your dietary supplements before incorporating them into your daily regimen.
