A balanced diet and the need for multi vitamins & minerals

OuluChris

Hi everybody,

I'm new to MFP and to trying to take care of myself / lose weight generally. I also know pretty much nothing about food although I've learnt an awful lot in the week I've been using the app!

I'm 193 cm and 100 kg (that's 6'4" and 220 lbs). I'm aiming for 80 kgs (176 lbs) so I have quite a long way to go! Every journey begins with a single step and all that!

During my first week I've been astonished that it's possible to substitute the stuff I usually eat with stuff that has a lot less calories for more-or-less no taste impact. Of course I've got the new obsessives habit of checking the calories on the side of everything I buy and rejecting ones that I consider too high :-)

My question regards the addition of a multi vitamin / mineral. All the information I've read online says that these are useless (they generate "expensive pee") if you have a balanced diet. But I don't know if I have a balanced diet and can't work out how to find out!

So, is it possible to use MFP to track if I am getting enough of the various vitamins and minerals that are apparently "essential". And if so how do you do that?

Thanks a lot for any assistance.


Chris

stevencloser

MFP only tracks a few of the different micronutrients and many of the database entries just don't have them filled out, so it's not really useful for that.

rosebarnalice

In the "settings" you can set up MFP so that you can track Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Calcium and Iron. That's really it. Nutritiondata.self.com is a site that gives much more detailed nutritional analysis (too much for me!!) but it is one that was recommended by a nutritionist when a friend of mine was showing symptoms of vitamin deficiencies.

LiftAndBalance

Also, beyond MFP not tracking many micros, most foods don't list them so how would you even know? I know in the US they usually give at least Vitamins A and C, Calcium and Iron but if your name is a reference to where you live, you'll quickly discover that a lot of foods here only list the basics: Carbs, fat and protein, sometimes saturated fats, sugar and sodium, rarely fibre. Except for dairy, that often has calcium and vitamin D, too. There's a state database for generic foods, though, that gives more comprehensive info at fineli.fi/index.php?lang=en. If your name is not a reference to where you live, ignore that last part