Are any vitamins better than others?

TexanInFlorida
TexanInFlorida Posts: 11
edited November 11 in Health and Weight Loss
I'm talking multivitamins, mineral supplements, calcium supplements, etc.

I really want to pay attention to vitamins and supplements since I'm trying to drop calories and drop weight.

There are so many claims about "higher potency", "less filler", etc. but I don't see any of these claims as FDA certified.

Are any of these vitamins any better than the standard Centrum for Men Multivitamin (or the Sam's Club generic version)?

Thanks

Replies

  • BeastReborn
    BeastReborn Posts: 13 Member
    They're all pretty much the same, but I would recommend taking both a multivitamin and multimineral.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    Experts: Don't Waste Your Money on Multivitamins
  • BeastReborn
    BeastReborn Posts: 13 Member
    http://examine.com/faq/do-i-need-a-multivitamin.html
  • cajuntank
    cajuntank Posts: 924 Member
    edited January 2015
    BeastReborn wrote: »
    http://examine.com/faq/do-i-need-a-multivitamin.html

    ^^This. I personally take one when I'm cutting as "insurance" as I am not eating 500 calories of food that I should be. So it's a "just in case" prerogative for me.
    Brand really does not matter to much to me as again, it's just a precaution and only accounts for about 1% in the thinking of my overall nutrition.
  • nuttynanners
    nuttynanners Posts: 249 Member
    I take a women's multi-vitamin despite the fact that I usually fulfill the requirements for several nutrients on a day-to-day basis. That said, I sometimes deficient in certain areas. I figure...it can't hurt to take one daily. It might be in my head, but I feel more balanced when I take a vitamin along with some breakfast in the beginning of the day.
  • aplcr0331
    aplcr0331 Posts: 186 Member
    BeastReborn wrote: »
    http://examine.com/faq/do-i-need-a-multivitamin.html

    From the article you posted: "the idea of taking a pill that contains all of the vitamins and minerals to better one's health does not appear to be supported by the literature. However, it does not appear to be significantly harmful either"

    Absence of "significant harm" does not mean it should be taken as it already states clearly that taking of multivitamins and minerals to better ones health "does not appear to be supported by the literature".

    The answer from that article is there is no need to take a multivitamin or mutlimineral.
  • SergeantSausage
    SergeantSausage Posts: 1,673 Member
    Unless you were given a prescription by a Doc for a specific deficiency, ya don't need 'em and don't need to waste the cash.

    I need a Vitamin D supplement about 5 months of the year - when it's too cold to get out in the sun regularly. It's good the rest of the year but about Nov thru March I always test as below minimum recommended levels.
  • firebloom
    firebloom Posts: 109 Member
    Most vitamin supplements are synthetic and most calcium supplements are made from rocks which humans do not ordinarily eat. Hence, there is a lot of discussion about how well they really work.

    The only decent multi that I've found is the Kind Organics, once daily by Garden of Life. I order them on iherb all the way from Australia because we don't have any comparable vitamins here. For calcium, you want a plant (algae) based supplement like the Green Nutritionals one.
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    firebloom wrote: »
    Most vitamin supplements are synthetic and most calcium supplements are made from rocks which humans do not ordinarily eat. Hence, there is a lot of discussion about how well they really work.

    The only decent multi that I've found is the Kind Organics, once daily by Garden of Life. I order them on iherb all the way from Australia because we don't have any comparable vitamins here. For calcium, you want a plant (algae) based supplement like the Green Nutritionals one.

    Sounds like you're perpetuating the "natural is better" myth. Which is a myth.
  • firebloom
    firebloom Posts: 109 Member
    segacs wrote: »
    firebloom wrote: »
    Most vitamin supplements are synthetic and most calcium supplements are made from rocks which humans do not ordinarily eat. Hence, there is a lot of discussion about how well they really work.

    The only decent multi that I've found is the Kind Organics, once daily by Garden of Life. I order them on iherb all the way from Australia because we don't have any comparable vitamins here. For calcium, you want a plant (algae) based supplement like the Green Nutritionals one.

    Sounds like you're perpetuating the "natural is better" myth. Which is a myth.

    Eh. Not really. I don't eat clean or follow any of the "natural" hype on things. I would just rather boost my intake of vitamins with something that actually resembles food since that's what it's replacing (the nutrients lost in food/eating at a deficit).
  • peleroja
    peleroja Posts: 3,979 Member
    There are some claims that certain kinds of vitamins (type of calcium, for example) are more easily absorbed by the body, yeah. But you should research each type individually for each supplement you take. Multis...I'm of the "might not help but can't hurt" school of thought, so I take a kid's one, but not an expensive one because I'm somewhat skeptical.

    I do take a sublingual B-complex as well as iron, both recommended by my doctor, as well, and vitamin D in the winter (which might just be placebo effect but really does seem to substantially improve my mood.) I did the math to make sure I'm not overdoing it with the multi and the extras, so yeah.

    Just look for reputable scientific sources when you do your research on it, don't listen to people like me giving anecdotal or secondhand advice on the Internet, and talk to your doctor or a registered dietician if you think you're deficient in something.
  • elphie754
    elphie754 Posts: 7,574 Member
    TexanInFlorida wrote: »
    I'm talking multivitamins, mineral supplements, calcium supplements, etc.

    I really want to pay attention to vitamins and supplements since I'm trying to drop calories and drop weight.

    There are so many claims about "higher potency", "less filler", etc. but I don't see any of these claims as FDA certified.

    Are any of these vitamins any better than the standard Centrum for Men Multivitamin (or the Sam's Club generic version)?

    Thanks

    Not sure if you know this or not, but please be careful about adding extra vitamin supplements on top of a multivitamin. Just because they are vitamins doesn't mean they can't harm you. Too much calcium can cause kidney stones as well as a condition called hypercalcemia which can be fatal. Other vitamins can also be fatal if taken in excess for a long period of time. I'd discuss with your doctor which vitamins you need to add in terms of a supplement.
  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member
    edited January 2015
    I take multivitamins plus supplements for vitamin D, krill oil, magnesium and fish oil. (I might be forgetting one or two.) I used to think that vitamin supplements were unnecessary, but later changed my mind after reading what others had to say. One of those is Dr. Rhonda Patrick. Below is a link to her Found My Fitness page and a youtube response to the above article that claims vitamin supplements are ineffective:

    foundmyfitness.com/about-dr-rhonda-patrick/

    https://youtube.com/watch?v=o0u8UdZeOhc&autoplay=1

    I'm a fan of Dr. Patrick even though she sometimes speaks like the medical biologist she is, leaving me wondering what the hell she's talking about.
  • TexanInFlorida
    TexanInFlorida Posts: 11
    A quick thank you to everybody that has taken the time to answer.
  • EatPaleoStyle
    EatPaleoStyle Posts: 49
    segacs wrote: »
    Sounds like you're perpetuating the "natural is better" myth. Which is a myth.

    So.. let me see... so natural, it means, what we are, because we are natural, is a myth, but sinthetic is what we are... I wonder were did humans get all the "non-natural" vitamins trough millions of years of existence.

    Vitamins are found in foods, not in laboratories, we can't create what is not real.
  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member
    EatPaleoStyle wrote: »

    So.. let me see... so natural, it means, what we are, because we are natural, is a myth, but sinthetic is what we are... I wonder were did humans get all the "non-natural" vitamins trough millions of years of existence.

    Vitamins are found in foods, not in laboratories, we can't create what is not real.

    All dogmatic assertions aside, you got me wondering just how vitamins are made.

    madehow.com/Volume-3/Vitamin.html

    Apparently some are natural derivatives and others are purely synthetic. The difference between the two?:

    There is no chemical difference between the purified vitamins derived from plant or animal sources and those produced synthetically.


  • jim180155
    jim180155 Posts: 769 Member
    TexanInFlorida wrote: »
    I'm talking multivitamins, mineral supplements, calcium supplements, etc.

    I really want to pay attention to vitamins and supplements since I'm trying to drop calories and drop weight.

    There are so many claims about "higher potency", "less filler", etc. but I don't see any of these claims as FDA certified.

    Are any of these vitamins any better than the standard Centrum for Men Multivitamin (or the Sam's Club generic version)?

    Thanks

    Getting back to the original question, I've been thinking about buying these:

    muscleforlife.com/product/legion-triumph-multivitamin/

    I have no doubt that they're better than the One-A-Day multivitamins I'm currently taking, but they are so expensive, even after considering that I could quit taking the separate Vitamin D and magnesium supplements. Maybe one of these days I'll give them a try.

  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    The really expensive vitamins are great for... making vitamin sellers rich.

    Seriously, save your money. It's all marketing.
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