5 replies to this topic

[AlxM]

Can anyone recommend a good multivitamin to have daily for men over 40? Would rather take a partial dose of a good multivitamin, instead of individual vitamins. Thanks.

[Dorian Grey]

Sorry you're not getting a better response to your query.  Everyone is so into the specialty supps, they don't get too excited about the basics.  

 

For a male over 40, my advice would be to avoid multi's containing Vitamin-C and take a separate C supp on an empty stomach.  Most multi's are best taken with meals, but Vitamin-C GREATLY increases absorption of dietary iron if taken with meals.  Males tend to accumulate iron over the long haul, so taking a multi with C with meals over the long haul would greatly exacerbate iron accumulation issues.  Supplementing C is important, but seriously, do not take C with meals over the long haul.  A cheap 500mg drug store C taken separately on an empty stomach is much better.  

 

Minerals in general are unwise to supplement, so I'd also avoid multi's with minerals.  They often contain copper, which is unwise to supplement, as most folks get excess copper from copper plumbing already, so adding more copper is unwise.  Likewise, avoid supps containing iron like the plague.  Men accumulate excess iron and adding more is very unwise indeed.  Donating blood to lower iron is actually a good practice for males.  A couple of times a year is all it takes.  Donate only whole blood (not plasma or platelets).  The iron is in the red cells.  Google "ferrotoxic disease" for more on this.  

 

I would also avoid "high potency" formulations; particularly those with more than 400mcg of folic acid.  A little folic acid can be a good thing, but there have been reports that excess folic acid might promote growth of cancers in the colon should you develop this.  The folic acid doesn't cause the cancer, but excess folic acid might feed a cancer that appears for other reasons.  Most multi's have either 400mcg or 800mcg folic acid, with few other options, so just make sure you choose a 400mcg formula.  

 

More isn't always better with a lot of vitamins, so I'd avoid all the hyped-up super mega potency supps.  All you really need is a little something to cover the gaps in nutrition from dietary sources.  Likewise, more money doesn't always mean "better" either.  Keep it simple with multi's.  

 

Hope this helps, & best of luck!  

Edited by Dorian Grey, 28 April 2019 - 03:50 PM.

[experimenting]

Seconded. You probably don’t need/want a multi.

Targeted supplementation is probably better. Get a blood test, find out what you’re lacking, go from there.

If you want a blunt one-size-fits-most approach, taking ONE a day of the LEF two per day is a decent way to go. Fits DorianGrey’s criteria fully, doesn’t even have folic acid (all methylated forms only). But I’d advise against it. Components of a multi are MUCH better absorbed than food forms (esp in the mineral department) so you may find yourself with side effects you can’t quite pinpoint.

[pamojja]

 

Would rather take a partial dose of a good multivitamin, instead of individual vitamins.

 

The problem with multis is, that they usually don't provide sufficient amounts of Magnesium, vitamin D2, vitamin K2, omega-3 or preformed vitamin A. All deficiencies which are most common in todays society. So if you would get over that dislike of taking some as individual doses, in this post my thoughts on multies: https://www.longecit...-mineral-stack/

[experimenting]

Agreed. You need to find what you are deficient in and dose individually accordingly. This isn’t an easy process, I’ve terrorized poor pamojja along the way in my case

But it’s worth it.

[WillNitschke]

Based on the research I've done I don't take a multi-vitamin although I can see an argument for them for the elderly whose bodies are operating sub optimally. This is what I'm taking:

2000 IU of Vitamin D (may change subject to my next blood test for Vitamin D levels)
500mg magnesium.
1000mg Vitamin K2 MK-4 and 185mg Vitamin K2 MK-7

Everything else I believe I can obtain from a balanced diet. But comments on that welcome.