vitamins!

[mayuko]

do you need to take vitamins with food even if it doesn't say to on the package? i bought this kind specifically because it's chewable (i'm getting so sick of swallowing pills all the time) and it didn't say to take it with food (because i kind of just take vitamins whenever i remember to take them, which is not always with a meal), and i chewed one and an hour or two ago i was feeling mega nauseous, but i didn't know if it was from the vitamin or something else entirely (and i *am* just getting over being sick...), so i figured i'd ask. whee!

[slynny]

Hmmm...is it just a regular multi vitamin? If so you shouldn't have to take it with food. I take several vitamins every morning with a glass of juice, I don't usually eat anything till later in the day, and I've never had a problem.
But, if you think it's the vitamin causing the nausea, you might want to try eating before you take it and see if that helps.

[MollyGoat]

I disagree, I think it is always a good idea to take ANY kind of pills with food, unless food interferes in the absorption of a particular medication or supplement (I currently take L-5-HTP which is absorbed better alone.) But doesn't it make sense to digest your vitamins while you're already digesting food?

Vitamins are very concentrated and can have that effect on your tum. Just take it with a meal or a piece of toast next time.

[rabid_child]

I can't take vitamins on an empty stomach. they totally quease me out if i do. i think not ALL vitamins will make you nauscious, but zinc, for example, goes craptacular on an empty stomach. makes it feel all churny and gross. i usually pop a vitamin (chewable too :)) before bed cause there's usually some food in there and if i'm queasy, i'll just sleep through it anyway.

[mayuko]

i usually pop a vitamin (chewable too :)) before bed cause there's usually some food in there and if i'm queasy, i'll just sleep through it anyway.

that is the most spifftacular idea ever, and i can't believe i didn't think of it before. thank you! :lovesign:

[eggplant]

Iron in a vitamin can sometimes make you nauseous too...

[mayuko]

oh. ta-dah, 100% daily allowance of iron per pill!

[webbum]

Dont' over do it!
What your body doesn't use you well expel.
I take 500 mg C, Multivitamin, Aspirin, in the morning.
500 C at night.
Women should take extra Iron and Calc.

[mayuko]

yeah, there's not much calcium in these vitamins, so i'm gonna pick up a supplement some time today -- yay for calcium ^.^

[missleigh]

It is quite possible to get too much iron in a supplement. You should never get more than 15 mg per day via supplementation, unless your doctor has specifically diagnosed you as anemic, or you are prone to extra heavy menstrual periods. So you may want to consider going for an iron-free mulit, Mayuko.
Too much iron in supplements can cause you to feel faint, nauseous, constipated, and can be toxic. More info on iron supplements here:
http://content.intramedicine.com/dse/consumer/monoAll-style.asp?objID=100103&ctype=ds&mtyp=4

[mayuko]

eep, thanks for the info :/ sucks that i already bought these ones, and wouldn't want them to go to waste...

though my mom *does* always worry that i'm anemic because i'm all pale and stuff.. i'm really close to the "anemic" level in the last blood test i got done.

but "can be toxic" is bad. very very bad.

[missleigh]

Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you! If you bought just a regular multi vitamin and you know that you are borderline anemic, then I'm sure that you're fine. I just wouldn't want you supplementing with extra iron unless directed by a doctor.

[strawberry]

I get really sick to my stomach from vitamins, and one thing that I find that helps is to take a children's vitamin. They are very gentle on the stomach and usually have comparable amounts of nutrients. I also take a calcium supplement.

[mayuko]

that's what i take! children's vitamins! :D flintstone's vitamins to be exact *cough* but i didn't want to say that and get the vegan police on my case. and i picked up a calcium supplement today, too -- i figured between that, the little bit of calcium in the vitamins, and all the hot chocolate i drink which is calcium-fortified, i'm golden :)

i'm pretty sure the nausea was from something else at this point, anyway. so yay!

thanks for everyone's help, though :lovesign:

[strawberry]

Hee hee I did used to take Flinstone's... I accidentally bought a bottle without realizing that they had gelatin, which is not vegetarian. But I found a different brand, which is called Sundown Kids (I think) which I am pretty sure are vegan. And a warning- don't buy the Freeda kids' vitamins from online. They taste so bad. Reaaaaly bad. Blech.

http://www.sundownkids.com/pages/prod/prod_main.aspx?CategoryID=1&SubCategoryID=1&UPC=030768027568

[mayuko]

ah thanks! :) with supplements, i've always had to resort to ones with gelatin in them due to no others that i could find.. always had a twinge of guilt, but for my nutrition then.. eh. you know? you do what you can. and now i know i can do it differently, so yay! ^_^

[strawberry]

You're welcome. :shy: