Multivitamins a scam?

[adamgentile]

Who else thing multi's are a scam? I was taking NOW Adam Superior for years but decided to just take Vitamin D and joint support.

[faithbrah]

maybe not a scam, but not really something you notice a difference in when you start taking it

[SuffolkPunch]

Depends on the rest of your diet. Clinicians are pretty much agreed that vitamin D supplementation is useful for most people - but as for other vitamins, it's hard to generalise out of context.

[Mrpb]

Who else thing multi's are a scam? I was taking NOW Adam Superior for years but decided to just take Vitamin D and joint support.

Yes I consider certain brand name products with large profit margins a scam.

And multi vitamins are overhyped in general. If your diet is good you don't need them.

Also vitamin D isn't that hard to get if you eat fatty fish frequently.

[keyboardworkout]

I've seen people try and put together a diet that meets the RDA for vitamins and minerals weekly and it's damn near impossible.

No way I am even close to getting the RDA for vitamins and minerals in diet alone. That's why I take a multi.

[ClaudeSpeed22]

They don´t necessarily have to be a scam. In fact, they can be helpful if you are not taking enough vitamins from your diet. Maybe when you are on a cutting diet and your intake of fruits and vegetables is low.

That said, if you eat enough fruits and vegetables, you don´t really need the multivitamin.

[Heisman2]

I've seen people try and put together a diet that meets the RDA for vitamins and minerals weekly and it's damn near impossible.

No way I am even close to getting the RDA for vitamins and minerals in diet alone. That's why I take a multi.

Keep in mind that the RDA is the estimated amount needed for ~98% of people to have adequate levels. Most people will be fine consuming quite a bit less than the RDA.

In general I consider MVIs to be pointless if you are eating several servings of fruits/vegetables daily, but if you want to take a cheap one it shouldn't be harmful. Just try not to take anything with a lot of antioxidants around when you workout.

Also prior to COVID-19 I felt vitamin D supplements were also quite overrated; there's enough correlational evidence for COVID-19 though that I'm advocating everyone take vitamin D at this time (2,000 IU's daily, up to 4,000 IU's daily if you're not getting any in your diet and think your levels may be low).

[paulinkansas]

Think of a multivitamin as insurance or a loaded gun. It's better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.

[AdamWW]

Personally I think most people when following a whole-food based, varied diet, you only need to supplement for a couple items for best results...

Vitamin D
Omega-3 if you're not getting in enough fish or flax/chia etc...
B12 if you're vegan



I actually just started adding Dulce to my diet for iodine... just 1g of the flakes is 100% of your RDA... very very cheap way to make sure you're getting it in.

Creatine obviously not a vitamin, but useful for most.

[desslok]

Think of a multivitamin as insurance or a loaded gun. It's better to have it and not need it, than to need it and not have it.

Probably more accurate to say a gun that may be partially loaded and insurance from a cheap startup company that may or may not pay. As there are a lot of conflicting info about if certain vitamins in vitamin form are actually used by the body.

[Mrpb]

Personally I think most people when following a whole-food based, varied diet, you only need to supplement for a couple items for best results...

Vitamin D
Omega-3 if you're not getting in enough fish or flax/chia etc...
B12 if you're vegan

According to Cronometer 140 gram farmed salmon (raw) delivers >300% RDA Vitamin D. So if you eat fatty fish often I don't think supplementing provides further benefits. Tuna, egg yolks, mushrooms and some fortified foods also contain some vitamin D.

[Cleveland33]

maybe not a scam, but not really something you notice a difference in when you start taking it

When I take Animal Pak I definitely see a difference when I piss.

That said, I started taking 5,000iu/day of D a few years ago, 10,000 if I feel worn down and I haven't had a cold since Feb 2019 - that's all I take now

[Mrpb]

When I take Animal Pak I definitely see a difference when I piss.

Happens with every high dose multi vitamin. IIRC it's usually excess vitamin B that colors urine darker.

[AdamWW]

According to Cronometer 140 gram farmed salmon (raw) delivers >300% RDA Vitamin D. So if you eat fatty fish often I don't think supplementing provides further benefits. Tuna, egg yolks, mushrooms and some fortified foods also contain some vitamin D.

I recently had my levels checked and I was on the low end of normal, so I added in 2000IU's and it got me up to 50, so a better level.

[Strawng]

I recently had my levels checked and I was on the low end of normal, so I added in 2000IU's and it got me up to 50, so a better level.

My levels used to be low when I still didn't eat fish, but now that I eat salmon very regularly they're at the top of the normal range. Perhaps it's because you're a Seattle bro?

[desslok]

My levels used to be low when I still didn't eat fish, but now that I eat salmon very regularly they're at the top of the normal range. Perhaps it's because you're a Seattle bro?

Last time i was in Seattle people were literally throwing fish at me.

[AdamWW]

My levels used to be low when I still didn't eat fish, but now that I eat salmon very regularly they're at the top of the normal range. Perhaps it's because you're a Seattle bro?

Well my levels were normal but they were right on the lowest end number of the normal range... I bumped the D3 intake by 1000 (from 1000 to 2000) and I gained 10 points.

[Strawng]

Last time i was in Seattle people were literally throwing fish at me.

LOL mirin. I'd love to be hit with a nice Chinook Salmon...HNNNNG!

Well my levels were normal but they were right on the lowest end number of the normal range... I bumped the D3 intake by 1000 (from 1000 to 2000) and I gained 10 points.

I'm surprised they weren't higher, but really all I could figure is a lack of sun exposure.

[AdamWW]

LOL mirin. I'd love to be hit with a nice Chinook Salmon...HNNNNG!

I'm surprised they weren't higher, but really all I could figure is a lack of sun exposure.

Yeah I was surprised, but given the weather I guess not that crazy. Easy fix tho ;-)

I mean I haven’t been sick in like 5 years, but I hear there’s something going around

[Strawng]

Yeah I was surprised, but given the weather I guess not that crazy. Easy fix tho ;-)

I mean I haven’t been sick in like 5 years, but I hear there’s something going around

I've personally gotten sick way less often than I have in my entire life since upping my Vitamin D levels, actually. Strawng woodknock. Mine were way below range & I've had a low white cell count at times, though. Shiiiiiiiyutt tho! Imagine you don't get sick for 5 years & the first thing you get's dat dere...HELL NAH! LOL

[desslok]

I've personally gotten sick way less often than I have in my entire life since upping my Vitamin D levels, actually. Strawng woodknock. Mine were way below range & I've had a low white cell count at times, though. Shiiiiiiiyutt tho! Imagine you don't get sick for 5 years & the first thing you get's dat dere...HELL NAH! LOL

You guys keep talking about getting the D. Is it better to get the D orally or through skin exposure?

[AdamWW]

I've personally gotten sick way less often than I have in my entire life since upping my Vitamin D levels, actually. Strawng woodknock. Mine were way below range & I've had a low white cell count at times, though. Shiiiiiiiyutt tho! Imagine you don't get sick for 5 years & the first thing you get's dat dere...HELL NAH! LOL

Haha believe me this year anytime my allergies act up I’m like:

[Mrpb]

My levels used to be low when I still didn't eat fish, but now that I eat salmon very regularly they're at the top of the normal range. Perhaps it's because you're a Seattle bro?

Or maybe you're eating more and/or a different type of salmon.

When I was supplementing 10mcg my levels were too high so I stopped supplementing.

[Strawng]

You guys keep talking about getting the D. Is it better to get the D orally or through skin exposure?

Yknow I'm a big fan of just getting some nice sunlight, but my gf keeps telling me she loves getting the D in her mouth. It must just come down to personal preference.

Haha believe me this year anytime my allergies act up I’m like:

LOL this is me at least 3x per week. Srs.

Or maybe you're eating more and/or a different type of salmon.

When I was supplementing 10mcg my levels were too high so I stopped supplementing.

I'm saying I went from having low levels of Vitamin D when I ate 0 fish and was vegetarian to having high normal levels after incorporating fish into my diet, mostly in the form of salmon. I've never supplemented Vitamin D in my life & merely including salmon/fish into my diet astronomically raised my levels. That's why I'm surprised Adam needs to supplement because he spends a lot of time outside & eats fish regularly. It really benefitted my overall health to include fish in my diet, but it could also be beyond Vitamin D because I was finally getting EPA and DHA in my diet that I surely missed previously (I also never took fish oil).

[Mrpb]

I'm saying I went from having low levels of Vitamin D when I ate 0 fish and was vegetarian to having high normal levels after incorporating fish into my diet, mostly in the form of salmon. I've never supplemented Vitamin D in my life & merely including salmon/fish into my diet astronomically raised my levels. That's why I'm surprised Adam needs to supplement because he spends a lot of time outside & eats fish regularly.

Yes, I understood you the first time. I reacted by saying that maybe Adam eats fish less frequently than you or maybe he eats different types and that's why his vitamin D levels are on the low side without supplementing.