In theory, we could get all of the nutrients we need from our well-balanced diets, if only we ingested a wide array of fruits and vegetables — with an emphasis on dark, leafy greens — lean protein, and lots of fiber every day. In reality, we just don’t. There are days we only eat tofu burritos and other days when we subsist on salted popcorn and chocolate covered pretzels. It has also become increasingly difficult to obtain nutrients from healthy food. Pollution and pesticides have diminished the nutrient content in our soil and hormones in meat have lowered its nutritional value.

Multivitamins were invented to fill in the gaps in everyday nutrition, to ensure that we are meeting the Recommended Daily Intake (RDI) of vitamins. The RDI was established during the First World War when food supplies were limited there was great concern about diseases caused by vitamin-deficiency.

Though vitamin-deficient diseases like scurvy are rare today, proponents of multivitamins have turned their focus to the vitamin’s ability to protect against degenerative diseases and to maintain overall health. Studies have linked multivitamin use to a lower risk of colon caner and cardiovascular disease and improved immune response. There are several categories of people who should invest in a quality multivitamin: those over 60, women of childbearing age, pregnant or breast-feeding women, strict vegetarians, people on weight-loss diets, and anyone who does not eat a balanced diet — i.e. most of the population.

Once you’ve decided to go multi, what should you look for in a vitamin? Only purchase vitamins that have “USP” on the label. This means that the product is up to U.S. Pharmacopeia standards. Your multivitamin should also have 100% of the Daily Value of vitamin D, B1 (thiamin), B2 (riboflavin), B3 (niacin), B6, B12, and folic acid, and at least 20 micrograms of vitamin K. A solid multi will also have 100% of the Daily Value of copper, zinc, iodine, selenium, and chromium (but not more than 200 micrograms). For vitamins C and E, go ahead and supplement your multivitamin with good old fruits and vegetables.

Links:

RDI

What is Scurvy?

U.S. Pharmacopeia