Discount Food Supplement Vitamin: Getting Your Vitamins at a Discount

According to the Harvard School of Public Health, the vitamins most likely to be missing in average diets are folate, B6, B12, D and E. This means taking a basic multivitamin could be beneficial for you. But you don’t have to pay big bucks for name-brand vitamins.  Discounted store-brand vitamins are just as good. Consumer Reports’ tests on major brand-name and reputable store-brand multivitamins have found that both are reliable, meaning the vitamins on the labels were in the products. Other ways to save are watching for sales, and then buying in bulk. But always check the expiration dates first. You won’t save money buying vitamins at a discount if you have to toss them out before you can use them. It always makes sense to comparison shop, selecting the cheapest of several similar products.

Discounted Store Brands of Vitamins

If you’re one of the many Americans who need vitamin supplements to help maintain a healthy diet, you don’t have to spend a fortune buying them. You need not pay premium dollars for name-brand vitamins, but can turn to discounted store brands to save a few bucks. Don’t worry about a difference in quality. According to Consumer Reports, its tests on major brand-name and reputable store-brand multivitamins have found that both are reliable. What this means is that the tests found that the vitamins on the label were actually in the products, in the promised amounts.

More Ways to Save

Another way to save money is to watch for sales on store-brands, and then buy your supplements in bulk. Most vitamins can keep for more than a year, but be sure to check the expiration date. If you won’t be able to use a product before the expiration date, don’t buy it You also might save money by comparison shopping. Find several supplements that meet your requirements, and simply select the cheapest one.

What to Look for in Discounted Vitamins

A good basic multivitamin contains vitamins A, thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, B6, B12, folate, C, D, E, and K, at or near levels recommended by the government’s Dietary Reference Intakes guide levels.  Don’t ignore vitamins at a discount in favor of pricier varieties with “megadoses.” These tend to cost more, but for vitamins, more doesn’t necessarily mean better. The Harvard School of Public Health cautions against supplements that have greater than 200% or 300% of the Dietary Reference Intakes guide. Doses this high can actually prove a detriment to your health. Don’t ignore discounted vitamins in favor of more expensive supplements that boast claims of special benefits, such as helping with weight loss or providing extra energy. The Harvard School of Public Health says such claims typically aren’t substantiated.