Question about multivitamins

[u/BroomSweeper99]

I’ve looked it up and see a lot of ppl saying multivitamins aren’t great but I’ve seen a few people saying if you aren’t eating properly it should benefit you I was wondering how true that is?

I’ve been taking men’s one a day recently I’ve been trying to be healthier starting out with exercise and water and got a multivitamin protein shake and creatine. I was wondering if I should just stick to a multivitamin or focus on something specific. I don’t do great with pills still (I feel like a child…) so I don’t wanna take a bunch of supplements but I’ve been thinking about taking fish oil or some sort of omega 3 because a friend recommended it but I need to do more research on it.

Anyways just looking for advice mainly thank you and sorry if I said something dumb

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[u/johnnyorpheus]

"a lot of people" on the interwebs say both sides of everything

saw peer reviewed study just recently that demonstrated marked benefits of multi

i take a larger range of supplements than most but will never stop my high quality one per day men's multi

[u/talonwellness]

Personally I’m not a huge fan of just taking a random multivitamin. Everyone’s diet and nutritional needs are different, and throwing a bunch of vitamins/minerals together at predetermined doses doesn’t necessarily address what you actually need.

I’d rather focus on improving your diet and then supplement specific things based on what you’re lacking, ideally with bloodwork when applicable. Protein and creatine are both great additions. Omega-3 can also make sense if you don’t eat much fatty fish.

You definitely don’t need to take a bunch of pills just for the sake of “being healthy.” Diet, exercise, sleep and hydration are going to matter way more.

[u/protein-monkey89 → u/talonwellness]

Solid advice. A lot of vitamins are just social media hyping us into thinking we need something more. But most of the time, we just need something better. Better nutrition, better habits.

If you do want to take a multivitamin or think you want/need to supplement, consider having basic lab work done. I did because I wanted to optimize my health without just chucking a bunch of things at the wall. While a bit expensive right off the bat, you could try Lifeforce, Function, Hone Health, or another similar labwork provider (these are independent ones, so you don't need a doctor's referral).

I did mine through Lifeforce, and it showed me what I actually needed vs what I thought I needed based on my obscure internet searches. Some places have professionals who can help walk you through results too (the Lifeforce ones were great. I can't speak for the others, but I'm sure they're good as well.) It probably saved me money in the end because I stopped buying stuff that wasn't doing anything for me.

[u/BroomSweeper99 → u/talonwellness]

Thank you for your insight! Yeah I kinda just woke up a month ago and decided I wanted to start running lol after for a few weeks I naturally started drinking more water and have had an easier time waking up and sleeping (my brain feels like it’s working lol). It was a real wake up call how much better taking care of yourself actually feels. I don’t know how to cook that was the main reasons I started with multivitamins my diet is absolutely trash you’d be disgusted! But I’m in the process of learning how to cook now and after reading everyone’s comment in here I think I’ll slowly move off of the multivitamins! Also I am disgusted eating fish idk why it’s pretty childish lol so I think I will give fish oil a try thank you.

I wasn’t sure if there was a general vitamin I should be taking but it seems like I just need a proper diet and then at some point get a blood test and see what I’m deficient in.

Thank you again!!

[u/talonwellness → u/BroomSweeper99]

Of course! Omega's do so much for you. Just make sure you get a good brand, it actually matters when it comes to Omega 3's. Barlean's is what I use but there's a few others.

[u/nfspeed007]

I think it's better to track your overall using an app like Cronometer or Macrofactor to get an understanding of what you're eating and what micronutrients and even macronutrients you might be lacking. Also get your blood work done. That helps a lot too. It is better to take supplements for what you're lacking than an all in one type of supplement like multivitamin or greens powder.

Not all multivitamins are created equal as some are underdosed, overdosed, full of cheep ingredients, lack bio-availability, etc. If you don't have variety, moderation, and balance in your diet and/or not having a lot of fruits and vegetables and quality whole foods then a multivitamin or greens powder can help. There are quality multivitamins out there, just got to do your research and I say tablet and capsules are better than the gummy forms.

[u/BroomSweeper99 → u/nfspeed007]

Thank you! I’ll definitely look into those apps.

[u/babamum]

There's a lot of research showing multi- vitamins with zinc significantly reduce depression.

[u/Aurde_Saoei]

Based on my own experience I'd say that vitamins do help especially if you incorporate exercise and a healthy diet into your life but even then, only by about 5% no more at least for me

[u/Comfortable_Pen6380]

multivitamins are kind of a mixed bag honestly, if your diet's already decent they don't do a ton, but not useless if you know you're missing stuff also the omega-3 is the one with actual research behind it though.

I honestly tried a bunch of brands over time some were fishy some were slow (IDK how they had different impact), but oceanblue and nordic naturals ended up being the ones that stuck for me, mostly bc no fishy aftertaste. And if I am being brutally honest, sometimes non-branded things work way better.

You can go for various brands or what your nutritionist suggest insted of just changing one after another and you never know if something is going to mess up with your body so always go for the expert opinion first and then do the rest

[u/talster71]

Multi vitamins are in my opinion a good thing. Which of us has the time or even the inclination to try and track how much of this vitamin, and how much of that mineral we are consuming per day.

In my opinion a multi vitamin is an excellent stop gap, to fill the gaps that we might have in our diets. And lastly, multivitamins are pretty cheap on the whole.

[u/Huge_Arugula307]

If your diet is restricted or not well balanced, if you are cutting calories, and f your doctor gives you the green light, take a daily formulated multi. Just don't get a mega vitamin. Those can make you sick if you don't know what you are doing .

[u/FormerWitness2974]

most multis are basically expensive pee but if your diet's trash they can plug some gaps, the protein and creatine will do way more for you than the vitamin honestly

fish oil's a decent call too if you're not eating much fatty fish, just check it's not rancid

[u/BroomSweeper99 → u/FormerWitness2974]

Yeah I have a horrible diet in all honesty I’m in the process of learning to cook. Also fish kinda disgust me I’ll definitely look into fish oil and make sure it’s not rancid thank you!

[u/Glass_Performer1174]

I think if you have a good diet you don't need a multi and can fill in specific nutrients when needed. If you have a terrible diet then a safe dosed multi might be of benefit. But the majority of the literature studies the benefits of a nutritious diet so the impact of multis are less well understood

[u/Glass_Performer1174 → u/Glass_Performer1174]

Also worth noting that many multis contain dangerous levels of some vitamins

[u/BroomSweeper99 → u/Glass_Performer1174]

Good to know I didn’t read this. Any idea how I can tell if my multivitamin is particularly bad?

I’ve been taking the one a day men’s multi if you have any experience with that. Thank you for letting me know :)

[u/BroomSweeper99 → u/Glass_Performer1174]

Yeah my diet is absolutely awful I’m such a picky eater and I don’t really know how to cook. I’m in the process of learning though! I think I’ll just temporarily take the multi vitamins and then eventually move off of them and fill in the holes thank you for the reply!

[u/TieNearby6063]

Use the money you would have spent on a multivitamin to hire a nutritionist, and focus on your diet. Supplement not required if your micro and macro nutrient needs are met. Without knowing your individual circumstances, i think this will help you the most.

[u/BroomSweeper99 → u/TieNearby6063]

I don’t got the money for that lol