Multi-vitamins?

[lucky lemons]

So I have been using Fit Day to monitor my calorie intake as well as my vitamin and mineral intake - but according to the nutrition charts I'm vitamin and mineral deficient in several areas. Particularly calcium, which doesn't make sense because I drink 1-2 green smoothies a day with spinach or kale and lots of salads. I really need calcium because I have joint and bone problems. Also, I'm low on B vitamins. So I've started taking a multi-vitamin for now until I can figure out how to up my vitamin intake through food. Any suggestions on how to get more calcium and B vitamins? Is it ok to take a multi vitamin when I'm already eating so healthy? :confused:

[RawKnitster]

I was the same way when I started tracking on FitDay. The low calcium and iron statistics were taken care of when I got the nutritional data for Vitamineral Green (same as Alissa's Green Powder), and plugged it in as a "Custom Food". One heaping Tablespoon provides 33% the RDA of calcium and 150% the RDA of iron, and 4.4 grams of protein. Claims to contain 83% the RDA of B12 as well, but if that claim comes from Spirulina it may be questionable if it is able to be used by the body.

For B vitamins in general I use a high quality nutritional yeast from Premier Research Labs called Quantum Nutritional Flakes. One Tablespoon contains 4 grams of protein, and the following RDA's of B; B1 320%, B2 282%, B3 140%, B6 240%, Folic Acid 30%, B12 75%. I use it a couple times a week in recipes like "cheezy sauces" or cheezy kale chips.

I prefer to steer clear of multi-vitamin supplements because they cannot provide the balance of nutrients and micro-nutrients (known and unknown) that are in whole foods.

I do not want to say don't take one, that should be up to you.

[LilacLavender]

Calcium...sesame seeds, tahini, kale, some sea vegetables.
B12...now that's a bit tricky since there's a debate as to what sorts of b12 are actually absorbable. The best safety net would be a supplement in this case. It's said that the b12 in things like spirulina doesn't absorb (per Gabriel Cousens, who generally has a good reason for the things he says...he's a doctor).

[lucky lemons]

Great, thank you. I'll look into get some of Alissa's green powder, maybe I can mix that with green smoothies and I'll get everything I need! My bf recommends nutritional yeast, I just don't care for the taste of it, but maybe I'm putting it in the wrong foods.

I eat kale a lot, and I'll try and get into sea vegetables more. :)

[TaupeRawMan]

Hi Lucky -

are you taking in enough calories? I find on low calorie days, I am lower in calcium.

Calcium options - broccoli, dried figs, almonds...

[lucky lemons]

Hi Taupe Man - Yes, plenty of calories - I eat nuts, avo, lots of fruit including bananas. Thanks for the suggestions, I will add more almonds, etc. :)