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Advantages of Multivitamins

Multivitamins are pills or capsules that contain a combination of different vitamins and minerals your body needs to stay healthy. There is increasing evidence, however, that multivitamins may not provide all the health benefits they promise. While many doctors advocate getting most of your vitamins and minerals from real foods rather than in pill form, there are several benefits that are offered by multivitamins.

  1. Health Benefits

    • Despite some studies that suggest that there are no benefits to using multivitamins, especially in relation to heart health, other studies show cases where multivitamins have helped prevent cancer, age-related macular degeneration, bone density loss, birth defects and other health issues. Choose vitamins made by reputable companies or recommended by a health professional to ensure you are getting products that can support their health claims.

    Convenience

    • Multivitamins contain a combination of a number of vitamins and minerals in a single serving. This makes it convenient to get your needed nutrients without having to eat a variety of different foods. People with low incomes are especially at risk of not being able to eat all the fresh foods--such as vegetables, fruit and fish--required to get their daily vitamin needs.

    Dosage Accuracy

    • Multivitamins contain a specific dose of each vitamin and mineral and this information is clearly stated on packaging. This information makes it easy to know if you've gotten your 100 percent daily dose of all the nutrients you need. Be aware, however, that just because a multivitamin contains a certain amount of a nutrient does not mean you are digesting that full amount. Taking your multivitamin with milk or products containing calcium, for example, makes it harder for your body to absorb certain vitamins.

    Scarce Vitamins

    • Vitamin D and folic acid are two vitamins often contained in multivitamins that are hard to get from diet alone. In fact, the body does not use the natural form of folic acid as easily as the man-made form. Considering folic acid is an important nutrient during pregnancy in preventing birth defects, it is essential for pregnant women to supplement with this vitamin. Vitamin D is only naturally present in a few foods so, you may have to supplement or eat fortified foods to get your daily dose.

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