Sorry, but Nearly Half of All Multivitamins Don’t Do What They Say

The real skinny on multivitamins

Millions of us take multivitamins daily to make up for any nutritional shortfalls, but new research suggests that we may not be getting what we paid for. Fully 46 percent of the multivitamins tested by Consumer Lab failed to live up to their labels. Researchers tested 35 popular multivitamins for key nutrients including folic acid, calcium, vitamin A and more to see how they held up. They also tested tablets for their ability to break down fast enough in liquid (disintegration).

“Some had fewer nutrients than the label stated, some had way more, and some didn’t disintegrate properly which impairs absorption,” explains Tod Cooperman, MD, president of ConsumerLab.com in White Plains, New York, Specifically 12 multivitamins contained as much as 24 percent less or as much as 157 percent more vitamin A, vitamin D, folate from folic acid, and/or calcium than listed on labels. This is worrisome as too much or too little of key nutrients can jeopardize your health. Popping megadoses of vitamin E and vitamin A are among the vitamin mistakes you may not realize that you are making.

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