Are Centrum Vitamins Good For You?

Centrum offers a variety of multivitamin supplements, with each product designed for a specific age, gender or lifestyle. Centrum vitamins also are relatively inexpensive and widely available at many drugstores and supermarkets. While some people might benefit from taking a Centrum vitamin supplement, others might find them unnecessary or even harmful. Always consider your individual circumstances when deciding whether to take a multivitamin supplement like Centrum, and ask your doctor if you have specific questions or concerns.

Benefits

While people with a healthy and well-balanced diet might not need a multivitamin supplement, some people find it difficult to meet their recommended dietary allowances through food alone. This can be due to not getting enough calories or having a poor or restricted diet. Other people might have a medical condition that makes it difficult or impossible to properly absorb vitamins or minerals from foods. Taking a Centrum vitamin supplement can help these people meet their vitamin and mineral needs.

Considerations

The recommended dietary allowances are based on age and gender. Centrum offers multiple products and each might contain a different amount of vitamins or minerals in an attempt to best meet the RDA amounts for a specific population. For example, since elderly women have an increased need for calcium and vitamin D, Centrum Silver Ultra Women's tablets have 800 IU of vitamin D and 500 mg of calcium, while the original Centrum tablets amounts are only 400 IU of vitamin D and 200 mg of calcium. Selecting a Centrum product that is specifically designed for your gender, age and lifestyle might make it easier to meet your specific vitamin and mineral needs.

Drug Interactions

Some Centrum vitamin supplements might negatively interact with certain medications, including acitretin, anticoagulants, levodopa and penicillamine, according to Drugs.com. Some other supplements or medications also might interact negatively with Centrum supplements. Because of this, it is important to always report all medications and supplements to your doctor or pharmacist before taking a Centrum vitamin supplement.

Overdose

When it comes to taking any vitamin supplement, it is possible to get too much of a good thing. The Institute of Medicine establishes a tolerable upper intake level, which is the amount of a vitamin or mineral a person can safely take without increasing the likelihood of experiencing an adverse reaction. People who take other vitamin supplements or eat a number of fortified foods might surpass the tolerable upper intake level when taking Centrum vitamin. Symptoms of a vitamin overdose include stomach pain, gastrointestinal issues, a rash or flushing of the skin, irritability, fatigue, headache, confusion, fainting, dizziness, mental or mood changes, joint or bone pain, muscle weakness or pain, rapid or irregular heartbeat, increased sensitivity to light and frequent urination. If you believe you might have taken too much, call a doctor.