Different Types of Multivitamins

Multivitamins help a person get the complete nutrients needed for a healthy body. But, with many supplements available today, it’s easy for the average person to get confused. To help you get educated as to what type of multivitamin you should purchase for your specific needs, here is a list of the different types of supplements, what you can get from them and what you should remember before buying any.

1. Basic Multivitamins

The basic all-in-one pill contains a complete load of all the vitamins and minerals you need for the whole day as recommended by the Institute of Medicine (National Academy of Sciences). Basic multis will be able to benefit your body with what a recommended daily allowance (RDA) table suggests like folic acid and vitamins A, B, C, D and E. The best part is you don’t need to take several tablets a day to get the necessary nutrition. However, there are certain minerals that a multivitamin pill contains as well but somehow do not meet the RDA. Examples of these minerals are calcium, magnesium and iron. You can take additional supplements of these minerals but only under your doctor’s advice.

2. Chewable Multivitamins for Adults

These are like basic multivitamin tablets but the only difference is you can chew them first instead of taking them in whole. This is a great feature especially for someone who doesn’t have the skill of swallowing pills. They also work for those who have a hard time breaking down pills and ending up with a queasy feeling in their stomach. Please take note that adult chewable multivitamins are totally different from those tasty candy-like chewables for kids. Naturally, children’s vitamins do not contain the same amounts of vitamins and minerals that an adult body requires. Sadly, they do not taste anything close to the chewable ones your kid takes.

3. Food-Based Supplements

This type of multivitamins is mainly powdered fruits, vegetables and other food elements combined with vitamins and formed into tablets or capsules. Its advantage is that it lessens the possibility of causing an upset stomach because the vitamins are combined with real food which the body can absorb a lot easier. In effect, food-based supplements are safe to take in even on an empty stomach. You might think that this type of vitamins are the more “natural” stuff but the truth is, they are almost just the equivalent of synthetically manufactured ones.

4. Specific Multivitamins

Specific multis are specially formulated for a targeted condition like pregnancy or for someone who is going through a certain condition like osteoporosis, eye problems or heart disease. For these people, there are certain vitamins and nutrients that their bodies need more or need less. A good example is a pregnant female who needs to take pre-natal vitamins that contain higher amounts of folic acid which helps prevent defects on babies. What you need to keep in mind about specially-formulated multivitamins, especially the ones made for joint problems, is that they do not have enough scientific proof to back up their therapeutic claims. Even if they are not harmful in general but it is best to seek your doctor’s approval before including them in your daily diet.

5. Multivitamins for Women

These are enhanced vitamins that contain higher levels of nutrients specifically needed by a woman’s body. Women’s multis may come in different formulations for certain age groups. But in general, this type of vitamins can definitely give any female the required daily allowance of nutrients such as calcium, iron and folic acid. For women aged 50 and above, you will notice that it contains more iron and vitamins E and C. Make sure that you ingest these tablets with a full stomach because iron can rub your stomach the wrong way.

6. Multi-Pill Packs

These are individually packed tablets of different vitamins and minerals that should work collectively. Vitamin D, Omega-3 fatty acids, and calcium are just some of the good stuff that is not regularly included in basic multivitamins but can be found in multi-pill packs of multivitamins.

7. Powdered Multivitamins

This kind of multivitamins is like powdered juice that you have to mix with fluid, but the difference is it has a bitter aftertaste. One tablespoon to be mixed with water, fruit juice or smoothie can go a long way since it’s already packed with nutrients that you can get from a number of tablets. Multivitamins in powder form contain nutrients that can be absorbed a lot easier by the body compared to tablets that contain binding agents and fillers that make it harder for the body to break down.