Although eating nutritious foods provide you with an array of vitamins and minerals, it may become necessary for you to take multivitamins. Multivitamins for women come in many combinations tailored for menstruating women, menopausal women or pregnant women. As you age you may need to take multivitamins to increase health or to prevent medical conditions.
Adult Women
Women between the ages of 19 and 50 require the same amount of vitamins and minerals in their diet. The multivitamin you choose should contain at least 400 mcg of folic acid. Women'sHealth.gov, a website of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, recommends that all women of childbearing age consume at least 400 mcg of folic acid per day to protect against spinal bifida during pregnancy. This amount of folic acid may not be available in general over-the-counter complete multivitamin supplements, so look for one that is tailored specifically for women. This multivitamin should also contain calcium, niacin, iron, magnesium and selenium.
Seniors
Women over the age of 50 may require a slightly higher calcium intake than women under the age of 50. Purchase a multivitamin formulated for seniors, which should contain 1,200 mg of calcium. Menopausal women need to take special care in making sure they're consuming enough calcium per day to reduce the risk of developing osteoporosis. These multivitamins should also contain potassium, selenium and magnesium.
Pregnancy
During pregnancy women are advised to take special multivitamins that contain a mixture of vitamins and minerals formulated to keep both mother-to-be and the developing fetus healthy; these are called prenatal vitamins. Prenatal vitamins contain 800 mcg of folic acid, which is needed to reduce the risk of spinal deformities during pregnancy. Prenatal vitamins also carry higher iron content. Before pregnancy, adult women are required to have 18 mg of iron per day. This number increases to 27 mg per day during pregnancy.
Considerations
According to MayoClinic.com, the best multivitamins to take are the ones that are tailored to your sex, age and medical condition. If you have any vitamin or mineral deficiencies, your physician may request that you take additional supplements while taking your multivitamin.
References
- Women'sHealth.gov; Folic Acid Fact Sheet; May 2010
- Oprah; What Vitamins Should I Take; Women Age 20 to 40
- Oprah; What Vitamins Should I Take; Women Age 50 and Up
- MayoClinic.com; Is it OK to Take Prenatal Vitamins if I'm Not Pregnant and Don't Plan to Become Pregnant?; Katherine Zeratsky; November 2010
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