Multivitamins on a budget

[blond_betty]

Does anyone know of a brand of multivitamin that is comparable to GNCs? I started taking them when I was more committed to my weight loss routine, and found that they really helped my hair and nail health as well. I ended up buying a bottle of generic One-A-Day and looking at the labels on both I am feeling a bit let down by the new bottle. I haven't been able to make myself open it to even give the new bottle a chance, but I don't have the receipt anymore so I can't even take them back to the store to get a refund. I guess if bad comes to worse, something is better than nothing right?

I guess I'm looking for suggestions for the next time I run out and have to go shopping for pills again.

[Kaelee]

I use off brand vitamins from the grocery store and I check the ingredients on the bottle before buying...that's all you can do really.

[Maizzy]

I used to work at GNC, and 8 months out from when a product is supposed to expire the store has to mark it down 33%. Then, once it's 6 months out (if I remember correctly - might be 5 months), it goes down to 50% off the original price. THEN when it's 2 months out from expiring, they knock it down to 75% off.

SO BASICALLY, what I'm saying is that you should work hard to get on those deals, because they're awesome. Especially for the smaller size bottles of multivitamins, because they only have 60 tablets, which is exactly enough for a month.

Also, if you took regular drugstore vitamins + the GNC hair, skin and nails tablets (which are more concentrated for what you want than the regular multivitamins anyway), they should have the same effect, and they are cheaper (especially if you get those discounts!): http://www.gnc.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3943821&cp=3593185.3593203.2104777

Still take a multi-v, though. The hair skin and nail dealios don't cover all of your nutritional needs alone.

[SurferB]

I buy mine from Whole Foods, and it's actually cheaper than GNC. Btw, do you know that it's best to get unsynthesized vitamins, meaning not made in labs by chemicals. Places like walgreens, walmart, etc., use synthesized vitamins. It can cause damage to organs, hormonal imbalances, etc.

[amanda_the_tall]

the pharmacists always say centrum is pretty good. i've used the name brand and off- brands and haven't noticed any difference. i think the main thing is try to get most of your vitamins through foods, and just use the supplement as a supplement, rather than trying to makeup for it, if that makes sense.

[jeanniet]

Improve your diet; the money's better spent that way. There are several nutritional trackers online that can help you if you're not sure what you should be eating. People have deluded themselves into thinking that the only way to be healthy is to take vitamins, and it's really not true. Fresh fruits and veggies provide so much more than anything you can get from a pill (plus fiber!), and they taste a whole lot better, too! :)

[blond_betty]

Thanks everyone!

Maizzy - I will definitely be remembering that little tip in the future! I love the vitamins that they sell, but hate that I can no longer afford them at full price. This should make it MUCH easier to get them if I can hit my timing right! :D

[Sunny_side_up]

My sister bought some cheap one-a -day multivit (big container) from 'superdrug' not realising it was without iron, so let me have them:),i had stopped taking the ones with iron because they result in my stomach getting upset:rolleyes:

After not taking tabs for many months and now getting back into a routine again i am noticing the benefits with my hair and skin. The last few months have reduced processed food and eaten so many more varieties of veg, but didnt really notice any growth, even with the good weather we had a month ago, pretty much had a stall since feb, and then negative thoughts creep in that it looks dry and feels tangly.

so after a teeny trim, vitamin daily and a semi perm colouring its in tip top form, a balance of what goes in your body- quality veg and meats plus a tab and what you apply can work wonders. Hope you see results from what you try.:)

[natural_shine]

You could get royal jelly, directly from producers (they come packed in syringes-qith the needles cut off-, you'll have to squeeze it and taste it raw, and it tastes bad) or in capsules, from pharmacies.

I'm going for the first option cause it's cheaper. Hope I'll see an improvement. There are articles about it on the internet.

But- people who have stomach or kidney problems should never take royal jelly, it will worsen their problems.

[blond_betty]

The reason I take a multivitamin is not that I don't eat well; actually, over the last year or two I have been eating better than I have since I was a kid. But I also know that I don't get everything that my body needs with the diet I do have, so I decided I would get what I could from food and supplement the rest. And since our family budget has been significantly reduced with me not working outside the home, it would be good to know a few brands that can give me the same kind of results that the GNC vitamins could, on the assumption that I have bad timing and miss their sale. ;)