• You don’t like certain foods, or are a vegetarian or vegan.

• You are allergic or intolerant to a particular food.

• Your food intake is erratic and unbalanced.

Even if one of the above applies to you, it would still be better to adapt your diet to include more dietary sources of vitamins and minerals, rather than resorting to taking a supplement.

Do You Need Extra Vitamins If You Exercise?

If you're exercising or leading an active lifestyle, you'll need to eat more food to meet your increased energy demand.  More food means you'll also be getting more vitamins and minerals.

Even athletes, providing their diet is adequate in terms of both quantity and quality, do not need extra vitamins and minerals to improve their performance.  So far, the only improvements in athletic performance that have been observed in research studies have been in people whose diets were previously deficient in one nutrient or another.  

If you aren’t deficient in any vitamins or minerals, supplementing your diet won’t bring about any improvement in performance.  Nevertheless, if you do have some sort of deficiency, correcting it may be beneficial.

Choosing A Supplement

Rest assured that most of us are probably lacking in vitamins and minerals to an insignificant degree.  Gross deficiencies are very uncommon in this country.

However, if you do decide to take a supplement just in case, choose a well-formulated multi-vitamin and mineral supplement that contains all the main vitamins and minerals.

For most of us without specific diet concerns, it is best to avoid supplements that contain just one or two specific vitamins or minerals.  This is because vitamins and minerals work in harmony and an excessive amount of one can impair the absorption or effectiveness of others.  Correct balance is important.

                         
stay natural

Don’t fall under the misconception that taking a good multi-vitamin can offset all your bad food choices.  Take the time to prepare well-balanced, healthy meals and snacks, because your body metabolizes vitamins and minerals best when they’re naturally present in food.  And remember, variety is the spice of life!