MS Speaks

Supplements:  Why most chewable and gummy multivitamins may not be a good choice



David Schardt
 
An estimated 2,500 Americans end up in hospital emergency rooms each year because of trouble swallowing supplements, usually vitamins and minerals. Nearly half are adults 65 and older.

Easier swallowing is one reason why multivitamin gummies, chewables, mints, and liquids are flying off shelves, even though they cost more than tablets. Another is obvious: they taste like candy.

Chewables

Too bad these easier-to-swallow alternatives don’t measure up to ordinary multivitamins. Many contain far less than recommended levels of vitamins and minerals, and some are missing key nutrients like zinc, magnesium, and chromium.

The best

Of more than forty products we looked at, only two came reasonably close to a good multivitamin tablet:

Centrum Silver Chewables Adults 50+ and its cheaper copycat CVS Spectravite Adult 50+ Chewable Tablets.

They were missing only vitamin K, which a lot of tablets also lack.

How do gummy multivitamins stack up?

They were the worst. Most were missing at least five nutrients that a satisfactory multi should contain. So taking more than one at a time won’t help.

So, you and your pocketbook will be better off if you can swallow a multivitamin tablet, or if you can break the tablet up into smaller pieces that are easier to swallow.

If that’s not possible, your best bets right now are the Centrum Silver and CVS Spectravite Chewables.

Note: We do not have any financial relationship with any dietary supplement company, so we can call them as we see them.