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Best Multivitamins Reviewed & Rated for Quality
Standout Picks
Criteria Used for Evaluation
Potency
Mineral source
Mineral is used more figuratively here than literal because multivitamins come from, well, a multiplicity of sources, whether from actual minerals or from whole foods. However, in recent decades, there has been a harder push for synthetic materials for the mineral sources. They’re cheaper, easier to manufacture, as well as easier to experiment with since they’re already created in a lab, so it’s not hard to see why this is. However, whole foods sources are more accessible to a wider variety of people. And this includes people who prefer organic, vegetarian/vegan or gluten-free choices. So, while they may be more expensive an option, they’re also easier to niche than synthetic sources.
Effectiveness
System of delivery
This doesn’t mean the boxes the pills are shipped in (though it’s understandable if you want those to be of high quality themselves). No this means how the nutrients within the multivitamins are delivered into your body. The usual options are either pills, tablets, gels, liquids, or powders. Preference is often given to gels since there’s no chance of a gel accidentally dissolving in your mouth and giving you the horrid taste of a multivitamin in your mouth for the next several hours. This is also why people prefer powders, which they can mix into their water or morning coffee and drink like normal without having to worry. But ultimately, there is no wrong answer here, so pick and choose at your discretion.
Ease of Use
Doses per day
With many pills, it isn’t enough to take it just one time. You need to take more than one in order to get the intended effects. And these have to be spread out, so the first dosage can make room for the next. The question is how often does this need to happen, and how many doses do you need to take per each of those times? The #7 entry is at #7 despite being, for all intents and purposes, an excellent multivitamin. It doesn’t matter how good the vitamins themselves are when they’re too big for most people to swallow comfortably, and you have to take 6 per day. The number of doses you need to take per day, and how comfortable it is to take those doses, is one of the main things that is going to separate whether or not the potential buyer foregoes you for something else on the same shelf.
Value
Price and value
Are you paying more for a quality product, or are you just flushing money straight down the toilet? Conversely, are you getting a really good deal on a high-quality item, or are you choosing affordability in exchange of quality, without doing any research into what you’re buying? These are all the questions you should be asking when buying any product, but especially multivitamins because these things can get expensive sometimes. And with many of them, it’s all worth it because they balance it out with a quality product. However, it’s important to know the difference between the two, so that you can spot it when you see it.
Bottom Line
The numbers on the back of the bottle
If you’ve seen these numbers, then you likely have trouble knowing exactly what they all mean. It likely just looks like a bunch of alphabet soup that someone spilled numbers into by accident. When you look at the back of a multivitamin bottle, you see two sets of numbers. The first set is the amount that’s available in the supplement itself, while the second one is the RDA percentage that you need. You’ll also notice that many of these vitamins, minerals, and nutrients tend to have significantly higher doses than the RDA. No need to worry, this is in no war dangerous. However, your body does not need this extra supplement, and will just expel the excess when it gets the amount it needs. That’s what a lot of your urine is made of, discarded blood and excess nutrients. If you’re an athlete, then the FDA and NIH both recommend that your supplement provide you with nothing more than 200% of the RDA per nutrient.
Product Purity
Nutrient source
Synthetic nutrients have come a long way since their inception, and thus aren’t that much of a big deal when compared to whole foods nutrients. However, the two still have their differences and advantages over the other. As was said previously, whole foods are more expensive but cater to a wider need, such as the need for gluten-free supplements, a nut that synthetic nutrients have yet to crack. While on the other hand, synthetic sources are cheaper, easier to produce, and are easier to experiment with since the compound is the scientists to play with. Believe it or not, though, the difference in how your body uptakes the nutrients between natural and synthetic nutrient sources is actually very slight. So, if you have no need for gluten-free or vegan materials, then you can basically disregard this distinction entirely.
Top 10 Multivitamins
1. Garden of Life
Starting off our list, we have Garden of Life Multivitamin. Whenever you discuss multivitamins at all, you inevitably have to talk about Garden of Life. This company has been doing it longer than many, though not necessarily the first to give it a try, definitely one of the first that continues to be successful. Why is that? Well, let’s take a look at this latest entry to find out.
Great prostate support
If you’re getting up in the years or are suffering from an illness that’s affecting your prostate, then your doctor has likely already prescribed a multivitamin like this to you. In which case, this multivitamin has been outfitted with vitamin E, selenium, and zinc. All of which are vital ingredients in any reputable prostate medication, making this multivitamin perfect.
Probiotics
This multivitamin is made with live probiotics, enzymes, and antioxidants. What this all translates into is that this multivitamin is essential for maximum health and vitality. Add onto that vitamins B, C, and E for increased heart health, and you get one of the perfect health multivitamins.
Cost and value
These multivitamins come in two different sizes, either of 120 or 240 capsules per bottle. And they can get pretty pricey either way, so make sure you budget accordingly when you go to buy.
2. NOW Foods
In our 2nd place spot, we have NOW Foods Multivitamins. These days, a lot of supplements that you find on the modern market put far too many excipients and unnecessary ingredients. NOW Foods multivitamins contain as little of these superfluous ingredients as it possibly can, in order to make room for the following benefits.
High calcium
Not to worry, the calcium gathered to make the calcium for this multivitamin was ecologically gathered from above ground sources, to ensure that this was as ecologically friendly as possible.
Alpha Lipoic Acid
What’s so special about Alpha Lipoic Acid? Well for starters, it’s really good for helping your body better use its insulin. This helps you manually lower your blood sugar, which can be very helpful if you’re a type 2 diabetic. On top of that, Alpha Lipoic Acid is very rarely found in multivitamins, making this multivitamin stand out even more.
Cost and value
With these pills you actually get 3 options; you can go with 60, 90, or 180 tablets, with differing prices depending on what you choose. However, the prices of these multivitamins are much more of a fair deal across the various sizes.
3. Nature’s Way Alive! Max3
Finishing up our top 3, It’s Nature’s Way Alive! Max3 Multivitamins. Now Nature’s Way is one of the biggest names in pill production and distribution out there, at least when it comes to over-the-counter drugs. So, what is it that makes these multivitamins something to get so worked up about? Let’s take a look.
Maximum Potency
This multivitamin does not mess around at all, delivering potent, nutritionally diverse ingredients that come together into a multivitamin that in turn delivers a maximum amount of potency in its effects. Combined with food-based blends and high potency B-Vitamins, this multivitamin can also convert food into energy.
Food-based
The premium formula that makes up this multivitamin blends together Orchard Fruits, Garden Vegetables, Daily Greens, and an assortment of other nutrients to help support the health of your bones, eyes, heart, and immune system.
Cost and value
Unlike the previous two entries, instead of buying this in different sizes, you can buy it in packs of one or two bottles. The single bottle is generally pretty affordable, but the 2-pack is quite the jump in price, so be careful.
4. Twinlab Daily
In our #4 spot, we have Twinlab Daily Multivitamins. Unlike other multivitamins, this one has a very hard set schedule of how often you’re meant to take it: that being once after every single meal. But what does this end up doing for you as a result?
Extra Folic Acid
As you get older, it gets harder and harder to keep the old ticker motivated. However, this multivitamin contains a larger amount of folic acid than the normal brand, which means it’s one of the best multivitamins on the market when it comes to supporting heart health.
Helps Promote Eye Health
Another thing you need multivitamins to help with is eye health, which can become deteriorated under certain circumstances. However, this multivitamin will make sure that you keep yourself pumped full of the necessary nutrients required to keep healthy eyes.
Cost and Value
The price range of the various sizes of this multivitamin, ranging from 60-180, is a fairly standard price range for a multivitamin of such high quality. Not too low, but not unreasonably high either.
5. Evlution Nutrition
In the dead center of the #5 spot, is Evlution Nutrition Multivitamin from Vitamode. This here is a jack of all trades kind of multivitamin. If a multivitamin can help with it, it has something in each of its pills that can help out with it. What are the benefits of such action? Let’s take a look and find out.
Core Antioxidant Support
This multivitamin contains vitamins A, C, and E. Vitamin A supports your vision, immune system, and cell growth, C helps your immune system as well but also your cardiovascular health, and finally, E Helps your immune system, skin, and eyes. This multivitamin provides you with the full range of antioxidant support.
Bone Health Support
But don’t think your bones are left out to dry, as this multivitamin also contains vitamins D and K. Vitamin D, in this case, 5000 UI of vitamin D, supports your bone and dental strength and health. Next, 80MCG of Vitamin K also supports your bone health, but adding them both together increases the potency tremendously.
Cost and value
This is actually one of the cheaper products on this list, rarely costing you as much as the other retailers will charge you for other multivitamins that provide equal amounts of power to this one.
6. Optimum Nutrition
Coming in at #6, a change of pace with a sports multivitamin. In this case, it’s every sports fan’s favorite supplement company Optimum Nutrition with their own brand of a multivitamin. So, what do these experienced athlete supplement makers have to offer for multivitamins?
Fast Dissolving Capsules
Since this is an athlete’s multivitamin, apparently the one taking it would need to get to its effects as soon as possible. But with other multivitamins, there’s typically a waiting period for the pill to dissolve and distribute throughout the body. But this capsule is faster to dissolve, and while that means you can’t take your time with swallowing this vitamin, it does mean that your body will reap the benefits of this multivitamin faster and longer.
High Calcium and Iron
Considering that this is meant for high octane athletes, calcium and iron are very important for these pills to have in their ingredients. This means that these pills are a boon for recovery time and performance ability. Add onto that some other assorted nutrients that help to support these effects, and you have the perfect multivitamin for athletes.
Cost and Value
Some may find the price tag for these pills rather high, but for athletes, it’s more than worth the price.
7. Controlled Labs Orange Triad
In the #7 spot, we’re keeping with the athlete multivitamins with Controlled Labs Orange Triad Multivitamins. Orange Triad multivitamins are even more specifically tuned to being for athletes than the previous entry and have a few drawbacks the previous entry didn’t have as a result. But that’s for the cons section, as for the pros.
No Noticable Taste
This is very important, especially for big pills like these that some may find hard to swallow. There is little to no taste in these pills, which makes swallowing them all the easier. This is because if you don’t like the taste of a vitamin, and you rarely will, there’s a chance that your taste buds may freak out and, as is their job, scream at your brain to spit it out. So, it’s good that these pills have no taste.
Full of Necessary Vitamins
Yes, unfortunately, these pills that are supposed to be catering to athletes have a complete lack of any calcium or iron, which are vital to performance and recovery time. Thankfully, though, this multivitamin makes up the difference with enough specialized nutrients and vitamins that provide as close to the real thing as possible.
Cost and Value
This multivitamin sits comfortably on the edge of pricey without actually going over the edge. So, it inhabits a comfortable grey area when it comes to price.
8. Life Extension
Starting off our final 3 is Life Extension Two-Per-Day Multivitamin. It is to be appreciated how straightforward this multivitamin at least is with the dosage per day, outright putting it in the title of their product. Of course, that isn’t all there is to it, as there are plenty of other things to like about it.
Low Dose Rate
After the last entry required you to take 6 very large pills per day in split doses of 3 at once, how refreshing it must be to coming back to a dosage rate designed and planned by people of sanity. At 2 per day, this multivitamin remains non-intrusive while also remaining effective.
Effective
Besides the easy to deal with dose rate, this is a pretty standard multivitamin in terms of what it can do. At the very least, it does what it sets out to do well, and you won’t be disappointed with the results. It will get what you need it to get done, and it will do it in a satisfactory manner.
Cost and Value
The best part about this multivitamin is the price, which is generally very reasonable, regardless of the size you want. Whether you want a single or double pack, the price range won’t break the bank, and the highest it tends to go, you’ll find reflected in single packages of other multivitamins.
9. Rainbow Light One
In our second to the last spot on the list, we have what is probably one of the most recognizable names in multivitamins; Rainbow Light. When you’re a kid, and you have a mom or dad that had an always packed medicine cabinet, you likely caught a glimpse of that instantly recognizable logo. But what exactly do these multivitamins offer you? The answer is: quite a lot actually.
Whole Food Consruction
Lots of multivitamins, especially these days, like to go completely synthetic for their mineral sources. And while that is fine (many of the entries on this list are synthetic) synthetic minerals, for as far as they’ve come, just cannot compare to using the real thing. This multivitamin uses lots of fruits and vegetables in its supplement, while still making sure to contain no allergens of any kind.
Good for Both Regular Folks and Athletes
Considering how limited the calcium and iron is, you would think that this would not be the multivitamin for the athlete. And yet, this multivitamin appears on many sport medications lists as one of the best multivitamins for athletes. So, clearly, it must be doing something right for them.
Cost and Value
The big downside to this multivitamin is the cost, which many will look at and consider unsatisfactory for how much you actually get out of it in terms of quality and dosage amount.
10. Carlson Super 2 Daily
And in our final entry, we have Carlson Super 2 Daily. While technically in the last place, that does not discount any of the great things this multivitamin manages to do for your body. What are those things exactly? Well, to boil it all down:
Constantly Updating Formula
This multivitamin is in a constant state of evolution. Every few years or so the units are recalled as much as possible because the scientists who work at Carlson have found a way to improve its effectiveness. This means that Carlson’s multivitamins will always have some kind of place on the cutting edge of vitamin science.
Strictly Protected Nutrient Content
The nutritional content of this formula is protected like most government protect their treasury. That’s because Carlson understands what happens to these ingredients and nutrients when exposed to too much heat or moisture. As such, these pills almost never experience the problems thereof.
Cost and Value
The biggest problem is its price. It’s easily the priciest item on the list, and while we discussed the merits of the company’s work ethic, you’ll notice that little mention was made to the merits of the actual content. For pills this average, the typical price you find for them is impractical, to say the very least.
Sources
- , Why You Need A Multivitamin To Achieve Your Health And Fitness Goals, Webpage
- , MultiVitamins, Webpage
- , FAQ's About Dietary Supplements, Webpage
