Natural vitamins versus Synthetic vitamins

[tripletots]

Does anyone know the difference between the two? I read an article yesterday on the internet and I can't find it today. It said that most vitamins purchased in the grocery store/discount store are synthetic and really do no good or aren't absorbed like natural vitamins would be.

Would buying vitamins from GNC or Vitamin Shoppe be better? I am buying vitamins for my daughter from a compounding pharmacy, so I ASSUME they are natural, but I will be calling to check on Monday. However their vitamins are very expensive. So I can't afford to buy all vitamins from them.

Does anyone have information on the topic or web articles I can read to educate myself? How do I know the vitamins I'm buying are natural and not synthetic?

Thanks.

 

[Wishing on a star]

These!

LifeEssence
www.swansonvitamins.com/PEL006/ItemDetail?n=0

I can tell you that most any cheap synthetic vitamin supplement that you pick up a WalMart or CVS might even make me feel sick....

These I KNOW that I can take them, and they are great.
Others here on the DIS have also posted the same thing on similar threads in the past.

I don't know if Swanson is cheapest.
These are fairly widely available, online, and at health food type stores.

I very HIGHLY recommend!

 

[Bilberry]

I try to obtain most of my nutrition through diet. Personally, synthetic multi vitamins make me feel tired and worn down.

What I do to obtain good nutrition is to eat a paleo diet, which is rich in vegetables, fruits, and meats. It can be read about here:

http://thepaleodiet.blogspot.com/

But there are a few nutrients that are tough to obtain through diet. So I take 8000ius of vitamin D3, the sunshine vitamin, a day. D3 is unique in that there are few food sources for this important vitamin/hormone. I'd prefer to obtain my D from the sun, but have two problems - I live in the north were the sun doesn't shine much for 6 months and I'm getting older. Once one reaches the age of 40, your skin is not able to produce much vitamin D3.

What I like about natural D from the sun is that D3 is not the only substance made in the shin. There are 5 to 10 other important nutrients being made - which can not be obtained from a pill. Thought this article explained this well:

http://www.proteinpower.com/drmike/supplements/sunshine-superman/

I also take iodine from kelp, and a number of fish oil capsules each day.

Don't know if that helps with your question exactly, but hope it does!

 

[Christine]

All vitamins are synthetic. What the real difference is:

1. the form of the vitamin that is used (for instance there are different types of vitamin D, there are different types of calcium, etc).

2. the quality of the ingredients used to bind the vitamins into the pill or capsule form and how easily the vitamin breaks down or is digested.

Some are higher quality than others.

 

[LuvOrlando]

The main job our digestive system does is break down the food and drinks we consume to molecules so they can be recombined as our bodies require. The notion that or bodies can differentiate between one calcium atom and another after the source makes it's way past the small intestine is dubious at best.

Now, vitamins and supplements are combined with fillers to make the pill or powder or drink keep over time and then covered in something to either help them keep their form or go down easy. Sometimes those fillers bother people and sometimes it's the dye in the pill wrapping or the glycerin wrapping itself. I'm one of those people, I can't take anything but it's not the nutrients themselves that bother me or whether they are called synthetic or natural, it's the stuff they are wrapped up in that is the problem.

An atom is an atom and a molecule is a molecule, where they come from has nothing to do with how our body deals with the atoms and molecules themselves. Our cells do not know the difference. We get into trouble if we don't have enough intake and we get into trouble if we have too much of some but that's pretty much all our bodies really care about, designer supplements are... well... of questionable value.

Ask a pharmacist and/or your Dr and I think they'll tell you it isn't necessary to pay top dollar, your body will only use what it needs and where it comes from isn't all that important. This is basic biochemistry, our bodies are elegant machines capable of fascinating chemical reactions.... they know exactly what they are doing.