Multivitamins: Importance and How to Choose the Best For You

Having a proper diet plays an essential role in keeping your body strong and healthy. But it still doesn't provide all the vital nutrients you need for good health.

Sometimes you’re deficient in one nutrient, so it's important to balance your diet with multivitamins. This will help you achieve a stronger immune system and increase your energy level.

If you're looking to improve your body performance or simply want to keep your body healthy, multivitamins are a great way to make supplementing easy.

In this guide, we’ll give an overview of what multivitamins are, their components, and why you should consider taking them.

What are multivitamins?

Multivitamins are a combination of different vitamins normally found in foods and other natural sources. They fill your dietary gap as supplements and contain many essential vitamins and minerals that cannot be produced within your body but are important for your health.

They're available in various forms, so you can choose your preference. They come in:

• Tablets
• Capsules
• Gummies
• Powders
• Liquids
• Injectable formulations

And each multivitamin provides a different blend of nutrients depending on the manufacturer's goals for that product. For instance, some multivitamins will have higher levels of specific B vitamins, while others may contain more vitamin D or iron.

Why should you consider using multivitamins?

Do I need multivitamins when I eat a balanced diet? And why do I need multivitamins when I can get my nutrients from food?

Multivitamins are beneficial in different ways, some of which include:

1. Completing nutritional gaps that you may have. This is especially important if you're not eating a well-rounded diet or have specific nutrient deficiencies.
2. Providing your body with essential nutrients you need to be effective.
3. Boosting your energy levels, immunity, and overall health.
4. Helping with weight so your body can function better. For instance, Vitamin B helps increase your metabolism so that you burn calories faster and lose weight easier.
5. Preventing age-related macular degeneration, a situation where cells in the eye start dying when there isn't enough blood flow to them which causes blurry vision and makes it hard to see.

What should you consider before choosing multivitamins?

1. Specific needs: When choosing a multivitamin, it's essential to consider your personal needs. Do you have specific nutrient deficiencies? Because you should choose a multivitamin that meets those needs if that's the case.
2. Easy digestion and absorption: If you have trouble digesting or absorbing vitamins and minerals, then look for a multivitamin that's easy to digest and absorb to avoid creating more problems.
3. 100% Daily Value (DV) for all nutrients: The multivitamin you choose must contain 100% of the DV for all nutrients. This ensures you're getting adequate amounts of essential vitamins and minerals.
4. Free of artificial ingredients: Be sure to choose a multivitamin that's free of artificial ingredients and comes from a reputable source.

Key nutrients in multivitamins you should look out for

Despite what you may have read on the internet, multivitamins aren't miracle pills for everyone. Each multivitamin contains different components and has various functions. Some of the key nutrients you should always look out for are:

1. Vitamin A (beta-carotene) - An antioxidant important for vision, bone growth, reproduction, cell division, and cell differentiation.
2. Vitamin C (ascorbic acid) - An antioxidant important for collagen formation, healing of wounds and tissue repair, adrenal gland function, and iron absorption. also helps build collagen, which strengthens blood vessels and supports skin health.
3. Vitamin D - Promotes absorption and metabolism of calcium and phosphorus.
4. Vitamin E - An antioxidant that prevents oxidation of polyunsaturated fatty acids in cell membranes.
5. Vitamin K - Promotes blood clotting and bone metabolism.
6. Vitamin B1 (Thiamine): Supports energy metabolism.
7. Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin): Promotes red blood cell formation and is vital for normal vision.
8. Vitamin B3 (Niacin): Promotes nervous system health and helps your body produce energy.
9. Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid): Helps your body produce energy. It also assists in hormone production and wound healing.
10. Vitamin B6: Helps metabolize protein, carbohydrates, and fats; assists with red blood cell production; and may help relieve PMS symptoms in some women by reducing levels of a hormone called prolactin.
11. Vitamin B7 (Biotin): Helps support skin and hair health, regulates blood sugar levels, and promotes a healthy nervous system.
12. Vitamin B9 (Folic acid or folate): Needed for the proper development of the human body. It's involved in producing DNA and other genetic material as well as helping cells and tissues grow and develop.
13. Vitamin B12: Vitamin B12 is only found naturally in foods of animal origin, including meat, poultry, fish, shellfish, eggs, and dairy products. Therefore, vegans and vegetarians are at risk of vitamin B12 deficiency. It's essential for the proper function and development of your brain, nerves, and blood cells.
14. Zinc: Zinc is a trace mineral that helps your immune system and metabolism function. Zinc also supports normal growth and development during pregnancy, childhood, and adolescence.

Final thoughts

Although multivitamins contain many vitamins, most have vitamins A, C, D, E, and K. If you're constantly on the go and don't have time to eat healthily or cook meals from scratch, multivitamins are a great way to get the nutrients you need. Because when you take a multivitamin, you get all your essential supplements and vitamins.

Need to sleep better? Or boost your energy? Our Essential Vitamins package is personalised to address your health concerns. A Care Specialist will help you determine the multivitamin you need and provide ongoing support.

Click here to get your essential vitamins today.