Multi-vitamins?

scarletfever2005
scarletfever2005 Posts: 141 Member
in Food and Nutrition
I was looking at multivitamins recently and noticed that the prices on them ranged dramatically some were about 5 dollars for a 30 day supply and some were nearly 90 dollars for a 30 day supply.

Is there really that much difference? The nutrient amounts listed were very close to the same. I noticed that most of the more expensive ones were usually packs with multiple pills while the cheaper ones were just one big pill.

Am I wasting my time with the cheaper ones or is there really not that much difference?

Replies

  • Myslissa
    Myslissa Posts: 760 Member
    Good Question. I just take the generic one a day multi.
  • baisleac
    baisleac Posts: 2,019 Member
    I take a generic... same ingredients, same DV%, less money. It works.
  • MarybethAltizer
    MarybethAltizer Posts: 226 Member
    Actually there is a HUGE difference. You get what you pay for. Most over the counter vitamins are made with synthetic materials that hold them together, this also causes them to not absorb into your body correctly. I know because we sell organic, plant based vitamins, and have had a fair amount of training on this subject. For instance when you take a mv from walmart, only 10% is being absorbed into your body. Why pay 5 bucks for that when you can find a really good, plant based vitamin that you are getting alot more of? It's worth it to pay the extra money instead of wasting your money all together. :)
  • rowbseat13
    rowbseat13 Posts: 147 Member
    All I know is that take a generic multi-vitamin (actually it's a prenatal vitamin -- my doctor's suggestion even though I've never been on and don't plan on being pregnant), at about $5 for 30, and I can tell a huge difference when I do and don't take them regularly. *shrug*
  • joejccva71
    joejccva71 Posts: 2,985 Member
    I take Orange Triad by CL. Best multi IMO.
  • aanaya56
    aanaya56 Posts: 136
    I always look at the absorption rate. If its not good then why pay $5 on something that is not doing what its suppose too..
  • MarybethAltizer
    MarybethAltizer Posts: 226 Member
    I always look at the absorption rate. If its not good then why pay $5 on something that is not doing what its suppose too..

    Exactly. You are a very smart cookie, aanaya56 ;)
  • PalmettoparkGuy
    PalmettoparkGuy Posts: 212 Member
    I take Megaman from GNC. Obviously they have women's too. What I like about it, aside from the high quality, is they are time released.
  • scarletfever2005
    scarletfever2005 Posts: 141 Member
    I always look at the absorption rate. If its not good then why pay $5 on something that is not doing what its suppose too..
    Where do you find this info?
  • aanaya56
    aanaya56 Posts: 136
    I always look at the absorption rate. If its not good then why pay $5 on something that is not doing what its suppose too..
    Where do you find this info?



    Normally I get my stuff online.. I use Bodybuilding.com to get my supplements. In the supplement selected it will normally mention the absorption rate...
  • MarybethAltizer
    MarybethAltizer Posts: 226 Member
    Go here. We do a demo like this for our vitamins, only a little simpler. We just put ours in a cup of water beside a generic and watch how fast they dissolve in an hour. This demo is a little more complex but worth it if you really care about what is going into your body,and what is just getting flushed out. :)

    http://www.livestrong.com/article/428842-how-to-test-vitamins-for-absorption-rate/
  • baisleac
    baisleac Posts: 2,019 Member
    I use the pee test. The less my urine changes after starting a supplement, the more of it is being absorbed. Safeway generic prenatals barely cause a change at all, for me.
  • Gojira74
    Gojira74 Posts: 57 Member
    Go here. We do a demo like this for our vitamins, only a little simpler. We just put ours in a cup of water beside a generic and watch how fast they dissolve in an hour. This demo is a little more complex but worth it if you really care about what is going into your body,and what is just getting flushed out. :)

    I'm not sure what this shows. You don't digest things with water. You also absorb most of the nutrients in your small intestine not your stomach. Drop them in pH 2 HCl solution and I bet the results turn out differently.
  • MarybethAltizer
    MarybethAltizer Posts: 226 Member
    They would turn out differently, but normally we don't have any gastric acid lying around for our demo's. I'm sure it breaks down faster in the stomach but a good plant based vitamin will still disolve completely and faster than a synthetic any day under any circumstance.
  • Gojira74
    Gojira74 Posts: 57 Member
    They would turn out differently, but normally we don't have any gastric acid lying around for our demo's. I'm sure it breaks down faster in the stomach but a good plant based vitamin will still disolve completely and faster than a synthetic any day under any circumstance.

    I don't mean to be argumentative, but faster doesn't mean better. Since 90% of absorption occurs in the small intestine, and the stomach will completely digest either pill long before the pyloric sphincter passes it on to the basic environment at the start of the jejunum, how does dissolving a pill in water show anything at all about how it works in the body?
  • ShellyLee
    ShellyLee Posts: 293 Member
    Does anyone take a multi-vitamin that isn't the size of a small island? I have horses.. they get horse size pills... I occasionally have issues (read I GAG!) with the huge pills. I've found most daily multi-vitamins tend to be huge and I end up not taking them because I don't feel like almost puking every morning if gag on them lol. Any suggestions?

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