Should You Be Taking a Multivitamin? Here Are the Best Ones for Women in Their 20s, 30s, 40s, 50s and Beyond
“Take your vitamins!” You probably heard that phrase every day as a child as your mom or dad doled out your daily Flintstone tablet. Today, we’re still bombarded with this message, thanks to celebrities and influencers pushing their favorite supplements, multivitamins or gummy bears on social media. So what gives? We all know that the body needs certain nutrients, but do you really need to take a daily multivitamin?
“Most women do not need to take a multivitamin if they're eating an overall healthy and varied diet,” says Brittany Poulson, a registered dietician nutritionist, author of The Healthy Family Cookbook and founder of Your Choice Nutrition. “In doing so, they should be able to get all of the vitamins and minerals they need through food.”
Still, more than 74% of American adults take a dietary supplement, and multivitamins are one of the most popular supplements, according to the Council for Responsible Nutrition’s 2023 CRN Consumer Survey.
Taking a multivitamin should never replace healthy eating, though, Poulson says. And the nutrients you need most also may vary by age. Here’s a look at the basics of multivitamins and what multivitamins should include in each decade of your life:
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Related: The Best Time To Take Multivitamins
Multivitamins Shouldn’t Replace Healthy Eating
Multivitamins can’t and shouldn’t take the place of eating a healthy, balanced diet, and most nutritionists recommend a food-first approach based on your individual needs, says Yasi Ansari, a registered dietician nutritionist and national media spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
Diets should focus on balance and variety. “By variety, I mean an eating pattern that includes whole grains, fruits, vegetables, lean proteins and heart-healthy fats,” she says. “By balance, I mean eating them consistently throughout the day. Having said this, depending on one’s age group, the emphasis of particular nutrients may differ.”
Any need for a multivitamin depends on your age, overall eating patterns, food allergies and intolerances and if you’re taking medications, Ansari explains.
Even with the most nutritious diet, some women still need to take a multivitamin, Poulson says. If you’re pregnant or trying to become pregnant, postmenopausal, a vegan or vegetarian, or have digestion difficulty (such as Crohn’s disease), you could be missing key nutrients and need to take a multivitamin.
Always check with your doctor before taking a multivitamin, especially if you’re taking medications or have a medical condition.
Related: What Is the Mediterranean Diet?
Vitamins You Need if You're in Your 20s
“Women in their 20s are often busy and on the go, which requires plenty of energy,” Poulson says. “B vitamins help your body make energy from the food you eat, as well as help make red blood cells.”
Taking birth control can deplete certain B vitamins, including B2 (riboflavin), B9 (folic acid) and B12. “Taking B-complex vitamin supplements would cover all these nutrients, but these nutrients can also be obtained from food,” she says. The recommended daily allowance for women is 1.1 mg of B2, 1.3 mg of B6, 400 mcg of folic acid and 2.4 mcg of B12.
Multivitamins containing 400 mcg to 800 mcg of folic acid are also recommended for women of reproductive age, as they can reduce the risk of birth defects in newborns, says Megan Meyer, director of science communications at the International Food Information Council.
Magnesium, typically found in foods high in dietary fiber, is another recommended vitamin, as 20-something women typically don’t get the recommended 320 mg a day. Magnesium deficiency can cause loss of appetite, fatigue and weakness, Poulson says.
Make sure your multivitamin includes calcium, too. Getting enough calcium at this age reduces your risk for osteoporosis later, Poulson says. It helps develop bone density or bone mass, which keeps growing until the late 20s.
In your 20s, iron is important. Monthly menstrual cycles increase the risk for iron deficiency, Ansari says. Women who participate in high-intensity and endurance sports may need more iron, and Meyer says iron supplements could help prevent iron deficiency anemia during pregnancy. You need at least 18 mg of iron per day; 27 mg if you’re pregnant.
Related: How To Choose Safe Supplements and the Best Brands to Try
Best Multivitamins for Women in Their 20s
If you're in your 20s, some multivitamins worth considering include:
Garden of Life Vitamin Code Raw One for Women
Amazon
SmartyPants Women's Multivitamin Gummies
Amazon
Vitamins You Need if You're in Your 30s
Once you turn 30, your multivitamin still needs to contain iron and folic acid, Poulson says.
Choline is another important nutrient that plays a key role in gene expression, cell membrane signaling, and fetal spinal cord and early brain development. Choline is produced naturally in the liver but not enough to meet women’s daily needs of 425 mg a day and 450 mg for pregnant women, Poulson says.
The need for calcium and vitamin D—which work together to maintain strong bones—increases as women age since the risk of osteoporosis increases, Ansari says. “When women reach menopause, estrogen decreases,” she says. “Estrogen helps protect bone health in women. Prevention can begin while women are younger.”
Related: 4 Supplements Experts Say You Should Avoid
Best Multivitamin for Women in Their 30s
365 by Whole Foods Market, Multi One Daily Adult, 90 Tablets
Amazon
Nature Made Prenatal with Folic Acid + DHA
Amazon
OLLY Women's Multivitamin Gummies, Health & Immune Support, Berry
Amazon
Vitamins You Need if You're in Your 40s
Calcium and vitamin D remains vital nutrients into your 40s. “Vitamin D absorption decreases with age, starting in the 40s,” Poulson says. It helps the body absorb calcium, boost the immune system, reduce inflammation and could help maintain respiratory health. Women in their 40s should get 15 mcg of vitamin D a day.
Many women in their 40s are facing perimenopause, and omega-3 fatty acids are an essential nutrient, Poulson says. Fish oil is a supplement often rich in omega-3s. These nutrients have been shown to reduce the risk of heart disease, which is the No. 1 killer of women, and support brain health.
Related: Your Guide to Perimenopause
Best Multivitamins for Women in Their 40s
Pure Encapsulations O.N.E. Multivitamin
Amazon
New Chapter Women's Multivitamin 40 Plus for Energy, Healthy Aging + Immune Support with 20+ Nutrients
Amazon
Vitamins You Need if You're in Your 50s, 60s, 70s and Older
Once you reach age 50, calcium, vitamin D and vitamin B12 are still essential vitamins.
After menopause, estrogen production drops, causing bone breakdown and heightening the risk for osteoporosis, Poulson says. “It’s recommended that women over the age of 50 consume at least 1,200 mg of calcium per day in order to preserve bone mass,” she says. “This could be through food or in the form of supplement.”
Women over 50 also may struggle to get enough vitamin D since it’s found naturally in relatively few foods, Meyer explains, “Vitamin D can also be obtained through sun exposure, which may put older women at a higher risk for a vitamin D deficiency because the skin loses its ability to synthesize vitamin D over time.”
Once you turn 70, your need for vitamin D increases, and women need 20 micrograms per day, Meyer says.
Vitamin B12 absorption also decreases with age, so taking a B12 supplement of 2.4 mcg could be helpful after age 50, Poulson says. B12 deficiency can cause weakness, fatigue, anemia and peripheral neuropathy.
Related: The Most Important Supplement for Brain Health
Best Multivitamins for Women in Their 50s, 60s, 70s and Older
MegaFood Women's 55+ One Daily Multivitamin for Women
Amazon
New Chapter Women's Multivitamin 50 Plus for Cellular Energy, Heart & Immune Support
Amazon
Garden Of Life, Vitamin Code 50 Wiser Women's Multi
Amazon
Ritual's Essential for Women 50+
How to Shop for Multivitamins
Shopping for multivitamins can be overwhelming. There are so many products out there, and vitamins and supplements are not regulated by the Food and Drug Administration. But there are a few things to look for to make sure you’re getting a quality multivitamin.
Related: 8 Facts You Didn’t Know About Supplements
“Some supplements may contain less of the vitamin, mineral or ingredient that is claimed,” Meyer says. “To make sure you get what you pay for, look for a ‘USP Verified’ mark on the product, which shows that a product has been tested and verified for purity, strength, safety, dissolvability and manufacturing quality by the United States Pharmacopoeia, an independent authority that analyzes dietary supplements.”
Also, look for multivitamins with third-party certification labels and testing from NSF International, Informed Choice or ConsumerLab.com, Ansari says, “Certification programs help to ensure products contain the ingredients listed on the label, in addition to quality assurance of the products.”
You should also avoid multivitamins that claim to treat or prevent a disease or illness, Poulson says, and labels like “all-natural” are often meaningless. Another red flag: if the multivitamin doesn’t list out its ingredients with quantities and uses phrases like “proprietary blend.”
Next, read about 17 immune system boosters.
Sources:
Yasi Ansari, registered dietician nutritionist and national media spokesperson for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Megan Meyer, director of science communications, International Food Information Council
Brittany Poulson, registered dietician nutritionist, author of “The Healthy Family Cookbook” and founder of Your Choice Nutrition
Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics: “Quality Certification Programs for Dietary Supplements”
National Institute of Health: “Multivitamin/nutritional supplements”
Council for Responsible Nutrition: “2020 CRN Consumer Survey”
The Cleveland Clinic: “Vitamins: The Basics”
Harvard Medical School: “Listing of Vitamins”
