If you don’t get enough vitamins and minerals from food alone, are on a low-calorie diet, have a poor appetite, or avoid certain foods (such as strict vegetarian and vegan), you might consider taking a multivitamin. Healthcare providers might also recommend multivitamins to patients with certain medical problems.

Some people might benefit from taking certain nutrients found in multivitamins. For example:

• If you might become pregnant, getting 400 mcg/day of folic acid from fortified foods and/or dietary supplements lowers your baby’s risk of birth defects of the brain and spine.
• If you are pregnant, a daily prenatal multivitamin can help ensure you get enough folic acid, iron, iodine, and vitamin D during pregnancy. Your doctor might also recommend separate supplements of iodine and choline, which are often missing or in too small amounts in prenatal multivitamins.
• If you are pregnant and eat a vegetarian or vegan diet, your doctor might suggest other nutrients including vitamin B12 and the omega-3 fatty acids EPA and DHA.
• Breastfed babies might also need a vitamin B12 supplement if their nursing parent is low in B12 or eats a vegan diet.
• Breastfed and partially breastfed infants should receive vitamin D supplements of 10 mcg (400 IU)/day, as should non-breastfed infants and toddlers who drink less than 1 quart per day of vitamin D-fortified formula or milk.
• If you are older than 50, get recommended amounts of vitamin B12 from fortified foods and/or dietary supplements because your body might not absorb enough of the B12 naturally found in food.

Multivitamins cannot take the place of eating a variety of foods that are important to a healthy diet. Foods provide more than vitamins and minerals. They also have fiber and other ingredients that may benefit health. Talk with your doctor before taking a multivitamin and learn more.