Which Vitamins & Supplements Do Men & Women REALLY Need To Take?

Vitamin schmitamin…

It’s so confusing. How much? Which ones? And why?

Jim and I are beginning to feel the effects of 40-something coming down on us. So I figured, one of the better things we could do for our bodies (aside from exercise and diet, of course) is to get healthy from the inside out.

I researched a few vitamin suggestions from “the experts” and here’s what I’ve learned…

Which Ones? How Much?

The following info pertains to pre-menopausal women under the age of 50, and men under 50.

Dr. Oz (from the Oprah Show) says to take these daily:

• DHA omega-3 (600 mg) — it’s similar to Fish Oil but “doesn’t give you the anti-coagulant problems that sometimes you run into with Fish Oil.”
• Vitamin D (1000 iu) — “Vitamin D is critically important for preventing cancer and critically important for reducing heart problems … It’s one of the best ways of reducing infection rates … Your body naturally gets Vitamin D through sunlight exposure, so Dr. Oz says to get 10 minutes of direct sun exposure to your body or take a Vitamin D supplement once a day.
• Calcium (600 mg) — but always take it with magnesium (200 mg), or you might get “a little constipation.”
• Baby Aspirin (2 tablets daily; 162 mg total) — “We know it’s very effective in reducing heart disease, very effective in reducing cancer. We think it might actually reduce wrinkles. There’s a lot of things aspirin might do that are beneficial to you not only because it thins your blood, but it’s a very powerful anti-inflammatory drug.”
• A Multivitamin — “Everyone takes the basic same multivitamin with two small exceptions,” he says. Pre-menopausal women should take a multivitamin with Iron in it and 5,000 units of Vitamin A. Men and post-menopausal women can take a basic multivitamin with 2,500 units of Vitamin A.”

More From Dr. Mehmet Oz:

Some Dr. Oz books & DVDs to improve your health.

View Dr. Oz’s Anti-Aging Checklist in its entirety.

We Chose Nature’s Code Multivitamins

Jim and I decided to sign up for the auto-delivery of Nature’s Code multivitamins through QVC. I’ve used that brand before, and had good luck. I always felt cleansed from the inside out, without any noticeable side effects.

Plus, I like the fact that a new 3-month supply arrives on your doorstep via UPS every 3 months (but you don’t have to pay for the shipping each time). Some would say that’s built into the high cost of these vitamins, which may be true to some degree. But I know how we are (lazy about our health) and the more we can do to ‘automate’ things that keep us healthy, the better — for us anyway. Now where’s that hunky personal trainer that shows up on my doorstep regularly? (Kidding.)

And the vitamins & minerals that Dr. Oz mentioned are also included in the Nature’s Code product (though the amounts are slightly different). For example, in the Women Under 50 system:

• Vitamin A 2000 IU
• Vitamin C 1000 mg
• Vitamin D 400 IU
• Vitamin E 400 IU
• Calcium 1200 mg
• Magnesium 400 mg
• Folic Acid 500 mcg
• Iron 18 mg
• Zinc 15 mg
• …and others

And, to be honest, I think you could ask 10 different doctors and get 10 different answers about the exact amounts of each vitamin you should be taking. So I’m good with a few milligrams more or less here and there. Or a few IU’s difference on this pill or that pill. At least for now. Besides, a respected multivitamin has got to be better than NO multivitamin, right?

From Nature’s Code, we chose Nature’s Code Fish Oil Supplement and Nature’s Code Multivitamin System . I got the Women Under 50 formulation and Jim got the Men Under 50 formulation.

Dr. Oz says you can get all of your daily vitamins for less than one dollar a day. Nature’s Code — while it seems expensive when you buy it in 3-month increments — falls well under $1 a day… even when you add the daily Fish Oil supplement.

More About Vitamins & Supplements

• Vitamin Intake: How Much Is Too Much?
• 9 Vitamins You Need