|
How to Eat for a Healthy Lifestyle
Multivitamin / Supplement Information
Individuals eating a healthy, well-balanced diet do not need multivitamins; unfortunately many American diets are not well-balanced and are lacking in some key vitamins and minerals. Besides people that are not eating a well-balanced diet, other specific groups of people may also benefit from adding a daily multivitamin to their diet. Consider taking multivitamin if you are in one of the groups listed below.
- People over 60- People over 60 years of age may not be getting all the vitamins/minerals they need because their bodies do not absorb and use the vitamins/minerals as well.
- Women of childbearing age-Women of childbearing age benefit from taking a multivitamin for many different reasons. It is often difficult for premenopausal women to meet daily recommended intakes for iron from food alone. Also, folate from multivitamins helps prevent neural tube birth defects, in the event that a women was to get pregnant.
- Strict Vegetarian-Vegetarians that do not eat any animal products may have diets that are lacking in Vitamin B12, Zinc, Iron and Calcium.
- People on a very low-calorie weight-loss diet-People on very low-calorie diets often are not eating enough variety or food to get their recommended daily recommended intake for vitamins/minerals.
- Anyone not eating a balanced-diet-Anyone not eating a well-balanced diet can benefit from taking a multivitamin to make sure that they are getting all the vitamins/minerals they need to lead a healthy, active life.
What to Look for in a Multivitamin
- Multivitamins do not need to be expensive!! Generic multivitamins work just as well as name-brand multivitamins.
- Look for the USP symbol. The USP symbol means the multivitamin has been approved by the United States Pharmacopeia and has been tested under laboratory conditions. Many name-brand products do not have this symbol because companies rely on the name to sell the multivitamin. You are more likely to find a USP symbol on a generic or store-brand multivitamin.
- Make sure you are getting 100% of the Daily Value of these vitamins and minerals. Vitamin D, Thiamin (B1), Riboflavin (B2), Niacin (B3), B6, B12, folic acid, Vitamin K (no more than 20 micrograms) Copper, zinc, iodine, selenium (no more than 200 micrograms) and chromium (no more than 200 micrograms). Women of childbearing-age should also look for 100% of the DVI of iron.
- More of 100% of the Daily Value isn’t necessarily good. Getting more than 100% of the daily value of some vitamins and minerals, like Vitamin A and zinc can be dangerous. Remember, you are also getting some vitamins and minerals from food products.
Sources
| |
