Which multivitamin should i take?

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Request for Question Clarification by feilong-ga on 12 Nov 2002 13:25 PST

There are different multivitamins available in the market. It would
surely be helpful if you can give us some details about yourself, work
or daily activities.

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Clarification of Question by anw559-ga on 12 Nov 2002 13:39 PST

I am 27 male. By profession I am computer programmer, I work in a
consultancy firm. My physical activity is very less, because I sit
9-10 hours in front of computer in a day, after that watching TV and
sleep.
In my diet fruits and raw vegitables are not involve very much. I take
sometimes grapes in week or two, and same as vegitables.
Mostly I take meat and bread.

http://www.sbwise.com/healthinfo/Multivitamin.htm

This site contains very useful information regarding choosing a
multivitamin.  I do believe that the information will be relevant to
your situation because the site lists some guidelines when choosing a
multivitamin.


Basically, your multivitamin should have a wide variety of vitamins
and minerals and they should be listed on the bottle with their
percentages.
Make sure that your vitamin does NOT contain items that could cause
allergies (ie yeast, egg or soy).  Always get your multivitamins from
a respected source, like a drug store chain, and talk to the
pharmacist if you need to before choosing your multivitamin.  Don't
shop for the cheapest product, because you may not be getting a the
best product.  Centrum has a variety of multivitamin products suited
to different needs.  I would recommend checking out this variety
first.  Antioxidants are widely recommended for many different types
of people with many different lifestyles.

I have also found a website that allows you to type in some
information into a questionnaire and get a vitamin recommendation from
a doctor.  It can be found
at:http://www.mycustompak.com/cgi-bin/cns.dll/frontpage/main.jsp?BV_SessionID=@@@@1334795981.1037146562@@@@&BV_EngineID=cccfadcgjdlgjmecgfkcfimdhjmdfoo.0&DISP_PAGE=/questionnaire/questionnaire.jsp

This is a really intensive questionnaire but it should provide you
with an answer to your question.  The information is too personal for
me to be able to fill out the questionnaire for you.

I found the following multivitamin online that caters to those who do
NOT get enough fruit and vegetables so I am including that link as
well:
http://www.metasure.com/page5.html

Do you have a regular doctor?  Asking a doctor and/or pharmacist who
knows you or to whom you can relay your diet and lifestyle factors
would be the best way for you to make your final decision.

From checking on several medical websites and through magazine
articles and common knowledge, the conclusion is that the multivitamin
will NOT replace eating a wide variety of healthy foods.  Ten servings
of fruit and vegetables daily is recommended (although not many people
eat this many servings on a regular basis).  Also, fibre, calcium
(from dairy products), protein and carbohydrates.  If you cannot get
all your nutrition from food, then you are wise to be researching
multivitamins.

Exercise is another necessity for good health and you have stated that
your job and lifestyle lean toward a more sedentary than active
physical existence.  Is it possible for you to get out of your office
and walk for even 10-15 minutes on your lunch hour?  Walking uses the
entire body and can provide great health benefits and it can be done
by absolutely anyone.

There are many sites online that offer exercises that can be done in
front of your computer and even while watching television that could
help you increase your physical activity, however, I am only
mentioning this in addition to your inquiry on multivitamins.

In my search strategies, I used google.com and dogpile.com and plugged
in the following terms:

multivitamins
medical advice
nutrition

and found more than enough sites that could be helpful to you when
making this most important decision.

In short, I would recommend any brands that are well-known like
Centrum or One-A-Day but these likely cater to the average person. 
Knowing that your diet is not rich in fruits and vegetables and that
you do not lead a physically active lifestyle, I would recommend
seeking medical advice.

It is unlikely you can find reliable advice, even from a medical
doctor as they typically get miminal nutrition training and generally
there is no requirement for continuing nutrition education. You might
swap a few vitamin and mineral supplement pills with a few of your
friends. That way you will get a different formula daily = the shot
gun approach. Some of the multivitamin formulas from health food
stores are quite different but not necessarily safe if taken every
day. Most experts agree you should depend more heavily on fresh fruit
and vegetables. Modern science still has much to learn about good
nutrition from pills.   Neil