Should You Take a Multivitamin?

Eating right, getting regular exercise and managing stress are all vital to achieving optimum health, but sometimes these just aren’t enough. While vitamins and supplements shouldn’t be taken as substitutes for a healthy diet, they can act as insurance against nutritional gaps in the diet and as added defense against increasing toxic pressures from the environment. If you use drugs like alcohol, tobacco or caffeine, if you are under a great deal of stress or if you are sick, your need for some micronutrients and protective phytonutrients may be greater than your diet can supply. Because of all these variables, a daily multivitamin and mineral supplement is the best way to ensure that you are getting what you need.

Read: Multivitamin for kids?

Comments

[Health Blog]

I think you can take multivitamins if you have or expect a vitamin deficiency. You can also take if you are drinker or chronic smoker.

[Vita]

Well said.

[The Natural Health Doc]

Multi-vitamins are a reasonable substitute to fill in the nutritional gaps in your diet. However, you MUST buy quaulity vitamins from reputable sources. Many vitamins, especially the cheapy multivitamins you can get as the grocery store or Costco are of little or no value as they do not actually digest and absorb properly in your digestive system and are passed, undigested, in the feces.

Read your labels and look for information on guaranteed release or absorption information ;-)