Multivitamins: Are They Necessary?

An increasing number of the world’s population is now eager and interested in looking after their health and well-being. Unfortunately many younger individuals and those who are in relatively good health assume that regular one-a-day vitamins like those found in most vitamin shops or nutrition stores are all they need.

Nothing could be further from the truth. All multivitamins are not created equal. For example, many over-the-counter multivitamins do not have the precise amount of magnesium needed to fight high blood pressure. At the end of this article I will show you exactly what to look for on the nutrition label when choosing a multivitamin to ensure you are getting a high quality supplement.

For now though, let’s agree that most health care professionals will recommend a pharmaceutical-grade multivitamin to their patients or clients as opposed to an over-the-counter multivitamin you can buy at your local store.

What Are Multivitamins?

Multivitamin supplements typically include all the vitamins and nutrients essential for recommended daily dosage. They may also be formulated to meet the needs of individual conditions like pregnancy and specific age brackets.

The body needs 13 essential vitamins to function properly. In regulating the crucial performance of the body, it has to have vitamins A, B, C, D, E, K, B12, and the 7 B-complex vitamins.

Why Should I Take A Multivitamin?

So the question now is, why is it necessary for individuals to take multivitamins?

One of the biggest reasons that you need to take a high quality multivitamin on a daily basis is because of the depletion of nutrients in the soil used to grow our food.

The food that we eat can only be as good as the ground it was grown in and the farming practices used to grow and process it. Over the past century or so it has become so deprived of valuable nutrients that very little food has much more than trace amounts of the vitamins and minerals it once had.

There are a lot of farmers starting to produce organic food in recent years but it will still take a lifetime to be able to get any minerals and vitamins back into the soil. Organic food is free of pesticide and contains some more nutrients but not nearly enough to make a difference.

Another reason for taking a daily multivitamin is that most fruits, vegetables, etc. are at least 7 days old by the time they make it to the store shelves.

Regardless if they are kept in cool storage conditions, the vitamin and mineral content in the food, as little as there is, will deplete with each passing day.

The other clear benefit of taking a daily multivitamin is to prevent vitamin/nutrient deficiency. Some personal circumstances may increase dietary needs. Pregnant women, during their first trimester, are recommended by their doctors to take multivitamins. This does not only provide the mothers with sufficient nutrition but also proper vitamins to benefit the unborn child inside their womb. Taking multivitamins everyday reduces the risk of transmitting malnutrition from a pregnant woman to her unborn baby.

Other conditions such as old age, alcoholism, smoking, and exposure to excessive pollution have long-term detrimental effects to the body’s system which can be successfully counteracted by multivitamins.

Stress is also one risk factor which needs serious supplementation that multivitamins can provide. Especially with people who have so much to do and have a hard time in keeping up with their health needs, multivitamins are a must to keep them always on the go without any health complications in the long run. Stress formulations benefit both your mental ability and daily endurance. Aside from these benefits, daily multivitamins also minimize the risk of cancer or any cardiovascular disease.

Most people will testify to feeling more comfortable and confident about their health when regularly taking a multivitamin. This is due to the synergistic or combined effects of the supplemental ingredients found in multivitamins. A fat-soluble antioxidant vitamin, like the Vitamin E, works to neutralize probable harmful free agents in the body. This vitamin also maintains healthy skin through protection of cell membranes, blood circulation, heart, nerves, red blood cells, and muscles. Another antioxidant is Vitamin C which effectively fights blood cell infection and is vital in collagen formation, wound healing, and formation of bone structures, capillaries, and teeth. Vitamin C is also helpful in the iron absorption from plant sources. Vitamins A, D, K and other supplemental nutrients found in multivitamins have specific functions that benefit the bodily functions.

The bottom line is that there are so many different vitamins and minerals we all need each day and we aren’t getting them from our diet. The answer? Take a high quality pharmaceutical-grade multivitamin on a daily basis.

They may cost you a little more than the generic brand you will find at your local store, but the reward of a long healthy life makes it well worth it.

When choosing a multivitamin, read the nutrition label first. Avoid those that contain the words carbonate, oxide, sulfate, fumarate, and/or gluconate. These are poorly absorbed, cheap, and commonly found in most multivitamins you will find at your local vitamin shop or grocery store. Instead, look for words like folate, citrate, taurate, glycinate, arginate, and lysinate.

If you want my personal recommendation, I refer all of my clients to Poliquin Group as I believe their pharmaceutical-grade nutritional supplement line is of the highest quality. To buy Poliquin Complete Multi 2.0: CLICK HERE.

Committed To Your Health,

Brian Donovan is a certified fitness and nutrition coach, and the founder of Online Fitness Coach, LLC – an online fitness program where clients get direct coaching and personally tailored training plans and customized meal plans. Coach Brian was voted Chicago’s “Best Personal Trainer” by Chicago Reader magazine, Best Of Chicago 2014 edition. He has been featured in magazines such as Muscle & Fitness, Chicago Reader, Voyage Chicago, and Ezine Articles as well various health and fitness blogs.

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