The Best Multi-Vitamin For Women

Buying Guide

Taking a women’s multivitamin is a great way to add essential nutrients to your diet. While a multivitamin doesn’t replace the food you need to eat to be healthy, it can be beneficial under specific circumstances.

If you’re on a restricted or limited diet due to allergies or because you’re vegan or vegetarian, multivitamins can help you get nutrients such as vitamin B12 and calcium. Older women, particularly those over 50, may benefit from supplements because the body begins to absorb less vitamin D and B12 as it ages. Women who have other health conditions, such as cancer, liver disease, celiac disease or alcohol dependence can also see advantages from taking multivitamins to maintain or improve their health.

Also, if you’re pregnant or thinking about getting pregnant, taking a multivitamin specifically designed for women can be important. Women require additional iron and folic acid during the early stages of their pregnancy. Folic acid taken even before conception prevents neural tube defects and promotes healthy cell growth. Women who are taking care of an infant or young child can also use a multivitamin to get extra vitamin D and iron.

Other key ingredients in multivitamins for women include iron, calcium and iodine.  Women are more likely to experience iron deficiencies than men due to menstruation and they need more calcium as they go into menopause, while iodine helps with thyroid issues.

• Women’s multivitamins are available in capsule form and as gummies and chewable pills. Capsules need to be swallowed whole, while gummies and chewables can be chewed and then swallowed. Some capsules can be particularly large, making them difficult to ingest for many women. If that’s the case, opt for a gummy or chewable.
• If you’re looking for a women’s multivitamin, opt for one that says “CGMP” on the label. This stands for Current Good Manufacturing Practices, so you can rest assured that the multivitamin follows the Food and Drug Administration’s guidelines for quality, accuracy in labeling and the absence of contaminants.
• Consider women’s multivitamins with the most active forms of nutrients. For example, they might have methylfolate instead of folic acid or methylated B vitamins instead of regular synthetic versions.
• Multivitamins for women that have been tested by a third party are known for their high quality. For example, some may state that they are approved by National Sanitation Foundation International or Consumer Lab.
• Some women’s multivitamins contain fillers, binders, artificial flavors, sweeteners and other unnecessary ingredients. People can have allergic reactions to some of these ingredients, so it’s best to always read the label to understand all of the ingredients in each vitamin, not just the nutrients that are included.
• Women’s multivitamins come in varying quantities, such as 60 pills per bottle or 180 pills per bottle. Be sure to consider how many pills you need to take and how often to determine how big of a bottle you need. Also, check the expiration date on the bottle to make sure you can finish it before it should be discarded.
• For best results, keep your multivitamins in a cool and dry location, not somewhere there is a lot of moisture or heat.
• Sometimes, it can be hard to remember when to take your multivitamin. Instead of trying to establish a new routine, combine it with an existing one. For example, if you always do your hair in the morning or have a sit-down breakfast, keep the bottle near your hairbrush or on the kitchen table. You can also set a reminder on your smartphone or smart device.
• .For some women, especially those in early stages of pregnancy, taking a multivitamin in the morning can lead to nausea or vomiting. Try taking it at night before you go to bed instead.