Multivitamins?

[TheSmash]

o wow, i didnt know the gnc megaman sport i was taking was ****ty quality...

thanks for the comments

I didn't mean to offend with my statement. What gives you confidence that Megaman is good quality?

First of all, what do you know pros are taking?? Ain't none of them are sharing their supps chest, unless they are endorsing a product, because thats usually how you find out a pro of your choice is taking some "magic" pill.
Multivitamin has its place, but if you are eating a good, high quality diet you are not gonna make much use from your multi-v.
My comments here are specifically addressed to the main audience of college and high school age kids who really are counting every dollar they got and that 30 bucks they spend on a supplement may mean a difference between a good or bad meal they are gonna have.
They should stick to good meals and leave most of the supplements to people who have too much spare cash on them.

You're right in recommending eating healthy over taking supplements if the cost of the supplements means a person needs to live off McDonald's to afford them. However, for people that understand the benefits of a quality multivitamin and the impossibility of getting those levels of nutrients through food alone, there is no alternative but to supplement.

As for what the pros are taking, I was making a general comment, although there are several top pros whose specific supplement regimens I am familiar with. Any competent nutritionist or strength trainer will be recommending a multivitamin, thus it stands to reason that any top pro uses vitamin supplements. Some years ago, the American Medical Association published the results of a 38 year study and concluded that everyone should be supplementing their diets with a multivitamin. Food alone doesn't cut it.

[Amiller]

I just take a Centrum once a day. Unless you are a body builder, the super expensive GNC type vitamins probably aren't worth the hassle.

[drade]

Most athletes take multivitamins especially when training hard. Having said that if someone is on a budget its better to spend his money on good food. Multivitamins are supplements not replacements but yes most serious athletes take them along with other supplements.

[hayZ]

Multivitamins are not only needed for exercise, but for everyday life, even if you are an outstanding eater. The bad thing is that most multivitamins do more harm than good over the long run. Brands like Centrum, GNC, big name brands, etc. don't make their vitamins with whole foods and instead the vitamins and minerals in them are chemical and synthetic. Additionally, probably 95% of vitamins on the market contain fillers, artificial flavors and colorings, chemicals, etc. The economy-level, affordable, good brands of vitamins and minerals are Nature's Way, TwinLabs, Swanson, and Natrol. At least that's what I prefer. If you're rich and spendy, go for Usana, Advanced Bionutritionals, and there are a few other brands.

Things to look for in a vitamins:

- No GMOs.
- Made from whole foods and not chemicals.
- Organic.
- Contains no fillers.
- Contains no artificial colors (especially red dyes and "lake" dyes, those are the worst.)
- GMP certified, or at least USP certified, but GMP is best.
- Vitamin B12 should not be made with cyanocobalamin, but this isn't mandatory. It just means the company spends less on their ingredients.

I take around 30 different pills total a day, but at a minimum you want to try to get at least this much of the following daily:
Vitamin C - 1,000 mg
Vitamin D (can be obtained by softgel supplement or sun exposure) - 2,000-8,000 IU
Magnesium - 500 mg
And a good multivitamin to fill in the gaps.

Good luck.

Name a few good makes or certain types of vitamins from companies which are good

[T.Horton]

since i was a kid, all the way until last year, multi-vitamins have been making me nauseous. I am guessing i am allergic to something in it.

[NECK SNAPPER]

multi vitamins are only good when your on a strict diet to lose wt.

[GymRat]

Name a few good makes or certain types of vitamins from companies which are good

That's one problem is that a lot of companies make a good quality product but have insufficient levels of vitamins and minerals within that multivitamin. Lots of people think "oh, then I'll just take two or three to make up for the fact that it doesn't have a high levels of everything in it" but they don't realize that it has high levels of a single or few vitamins in it that can't be taken more than once a day. That's why you really can't just stick to a multivitamin for more than filling the gaps and getting the B-complex vitamins and a few small other things. You have to take additional things.

I recommend the following per day at a minimum per day:
-A quality multivitamin.
-Magnesium - 500-700 mg
-Vitamin C - 1,000-2,000 mg
-Vitamin D (softgel form only) - 4,000-10,000 IU (depending on how much sun you get).

Most people don't realize that you can't even absorb calcium without good vitamin D and magnesium levels (and even so, you shouldn't consume too much calcium, I make sure not to go over 500 mg a day).

But, reliable brands of vitamins:
Nature's Way
Natrol
TwinLab
Advanced Bionutritionals
Swanson
Usana

Swansonvitamins.com is where I get my stuff. Top level organic vitamins for cheaper than you can find anywhere else.

My preferred multivitamin for a fair price is Alive Whole Food Energizer tablets (not capsules because you get twice as many tablets than capsules). But I also take the other essentials in addition, and I take many other things on top of that.

Good luck.

Edit -

since i was a kid, all the way until last year, multi-vitamins have been making me nauseous. I am guessing i am allergic to something in it.

I've been trying to karma you back for about a month or so now, but no matter how many people I hit back, it always says I have to spread more around before giving to you again. Anyway, they make you nauseous because you're probably taking the generic brands, which are made of chemicals and are completely synthetic. They also contain fillers and artificial additives and other bad ingredients such as dyes (Red 40, Blue 1, etc. - Reds are the worst, but all are bad). It's your body's natural way of rejecting poisons, which in this case, it's more than needed.

[T.Horton]

That's one problem is that a lot of companies make a good quality product but have insufficient levels of vitamins and minerals within that multivitamin. Lots of people think "oh, then I'll just take two or three to make up for the fact that it doesn't have a high levels of everything in it" but they don't realize that it has high levels of a single or few vitamins in it that can't be taken more than once a day. That's why you really can't just stick to a multivitamin for more than filling the gaps and getting the B-complex vitamins and a few small other things. You have to take additional things.

I recommend the following per day at a minimum per day:
-A quality multivitamin.
-Magnesium - 500-700 mg
-Vitamin C - 1,000-2,000 mg
-Vitamin D (softgel form only) - 4,000-10,000 IU (depending on how much sun you get).

Most people don't realize that you can't even absorb calcium without good vitamin D and magnesium levels (and even so, you shouldn't consume too much calcium, I make sure not to go over 500 mg a day).

But, reliable brands of vitamins:
Nature's Way
Natrol
TwinLab
Advanced Bionutritionals
Swanson
Usana

Swansonvitamins.com is where I get my stuff. Top level organic vitamins for cheaper than you can find anywhere else.

My preferred multivitamin for a fair price is Alive Whole Food Energizer tablets (not capsules because you get twice as many tablets than capsules). But I also take the other essentials in addition, and I take many other things on top of that.

Good luck.

Edit -


I've been trying to karma you back for about a month or so now, but no matter how many people I hit back, it always says I have to spread more around before giving to you again. Anyway, they make you nauseous because you're probably taking the generic brands, which are made of chemicals and are completely synthetic. They also contain fillers and artificial additives and other bad ingredients such as dyes (Red 40, Blue 1, etc. - Reds are the worst, but all are bad). It's your body's natural way of rejecting poisons, which in this case, it's more than needed.

i swear though, i always grab the 'all natural' vitamins which, to my understanding, are not supposed to have quite so much of that junk.

i have just been sticking to the usuals which, sadly, don't include a multi-vitamin.

[GymRat]

i swear though, i always grab the 'all natural' vitamins which, to my understanding, are not supposed to have quite so much of that junk.

i have just been sticking to the usuals which, sadly, don't include a multi-vitamin.

Ah. A big secret is that companies can call something all natural while having it be not all natural they will (and are allowed to) get away with it, especially since the FDA doesn't oversee vitamins. There are tons of brands that claim to be all natural or organic or whole food when really, they're not. But you could also be rejecting them for numerous other reasons. Sometimes a person can have so many toxins in them that their body gets used to them and rejects anything that could help, as if what could help was the toxin. If I were you, I would at the minimum get the Alive! Whole Food Energizer without iron, by Nature's Way. It's the best **** for the buck and is truly a great vitamin.