Multivitamins Reviews

Choosing a multivitamin can be as difficult as swallowing a horse pill. Consumer Reports has good reporting when it comes to vitamins, and along with Consumer Lab, tests vitamins by chemical analysis. Testers break down vitamins to determine if labeling is accurate, and if multivitamins dissolve in time to be absorbed by the body. Nutrition Action Healthletter is another good source, with helpful information about what to look for in a multivitamin and each vitamin/mineral's daily values (DV).

There's also an interesting book by Lyle MacWilliam called "NutriSearch Comparative Guide to Nutritional Supplements," which includes details on nearly every multivitamin available in the United States and Canada. The author's ratings system is based on input from "12 independent nutritional authorities" (who aren't otherwise identified) and each multivitamin is scored according to how well it measures up to a "blended standard" of intake recommendations. What's useful about these ratings is that they're detailed, comprehensive and easy to understand; the downside is that the book is written from a more-is-better standpoint, so supplements with the highest nutrient doses do much better than commonly-available multivitamins like Centrum and One-A-Day. While the case for higher-dose supplements can be compelling, most mainstream experts still recommend staying within the recommended Daily Values until researchers know more about the benefits and risks. Lyle MacWilliam was once a member of the medical advisory board to the company whose vitamins are ranked number one in the book and has endorsed their products on the company's website.

Some multivitamins contain too little rather than too much. Consumer Reports warns about buying ultra-cheap vitamins from closeout and dollar stores. In testing, half the tested vitamins did not contain the claimed amount of at least one nutrient, and several didn't dissolve enough for the nutrients to even be absorbed by the body. However, store brands from well-known retailers like Wal-Mart, Walgreens, Kroger and Eckerd aren't included in this group. In fact, many generic and store-brand vitamins from major retailers perform just as well as well-known brands like Centrum and One-A-Day in analysis by Nutrition Action Healthletter.

In another case, ConsumerLab.com found a children's vitamin, Hero Nutritionals Yummi Bears, contained 5400 IU of vitamin A in the form of retinol per daily dose. According to the Institute of Medicine, the safe upper limit is just 3000 IU for four-to-eight-year-olds and 2000 IU for kids between one and three (they only need around 1000 IU a day). That puts Yummi Bears' vitamin A content at more than double the labeled amount. Since excess doses of vitamin A, especially if it's in retinol form, are considered dangerous, ConsumerLab.com editors say the mislabeling is cause for concern. Hero Nutritionals has since agreed to review its manufacturing process and is offering a refund for anyone who bought Yummi Bears from batch number HN60881, the one tested by Consumer Lab.

Other vitamins that failed Consumer Lab's testing include: Eniva VIBE (only 54% of its claimed 5,000 IU of vitamin A), Healthy Moments Mint Cream Flavor Vitamin Strips (none of its claimed vitamin A and 180% of its claimed 2 milligrams of niacin), Swanson Daily Multi-Vitamin & Mineral (only 77.5% of its claimed 400 micrograms of folate), The Greatest Vitamin in the World (only 85% of its claimed 800 micrograms of folate), WEIL Andrew Weil, M.D. Daily Multivitamin for Optimum Health (only 73% of its claimed 10,000 IU of vitamin A), Nature's Plus Especially Yours Women's Multi-Vitamin (failed to break apart properly), Now Adam Superior Men's Multi (failed to break apart properly), Win Fuel Men's Formula (only 75% of its claimed 400 micrograms of folate), and AARP Maturity Formula (failed to break apart properly.)

Several multivitamins have been recalled because they did not have child-resistant packaging despite containing iron, which can cause serious injury or death if ingested by children. These include Long's Central-Vite Multivitamin sold between March and December 2004, Nature's Bounty and Natural Wealth Brand Multivitamins sold between July 2004 and March 2005, and H.E.B. vitamins with iron sold in Texas between December 2003 and April 2005. While these brands' packaging has now been corrected, look for a childproof cap on vitamins -- especially on those containing iron.

Experts warn that liquid and chewable vitamins are often lacking compared to their pill-form counterparts, so don't assume that different forms of the same multivitamin are equal without comparing the labels. It's also best to avoid vitamins that contain herbs or that make extra claims on the label for weight loss, energy, stress or "maximum" benefit. Such claims haven't been proven in testing.

Consumers are lambasted by advertising for vitamins that help you lose weight, vitamins that lower cholesterol and vitamins that give you energy. However, none of that advertising answers the essential question: Do you really need a multivitamin? Health experts agree that certain groups of people can clearly benefit from a multivitamin. These include pregnant or breastfeeding women, or women who are trying to conceive. Multivitamins are also recommended for people with nutrient-depleting diseases of the gastrointestinal system, diabetes or cancer. Those who are strict vegetarians and people on restricted diets should also consider a multivitamin to replace nutrients they may not be receiving through diet alone.

However, for most other people, getting vitamins and minerals from food is best because interactions between foods may offer benefits that can't be matched by supplements. The reality, however, is that many of us don't eat healthy enough diets to get all of our DV of vitamins and minerals. In 2002, the Journal of the American Medical Association recommended that all adults supplement their diets with a multivitamin, but a review by a federal panel in May 2006 concluded that there's no evidence to recommend for or against multivitamins for people who don't fall into one of the risk groups mentioned above. This leaves the decision squarely in consumers' laps. To help you decide, we'll break down the most important vitamins and minerals for each age group and teach you how to decipher a multivitamin label.  ... Continued

Our Consensus Report shows how many times products are top-ranked by reviewers included in our
All The Reviews Reviewed chart.

Well-known brands like One-A-Day and Centrum are mentioned the most by reviewers. However, several reviewers point out that store brands like Walgreen's, Equate

(Wal-Mart) and Kroger often do just as well in multivitamin testing at a much lower price.