Everything You Need to Know About Multivitamins: Types, RDA, and Safety

Life in urban cities has become increasingly routine. Most of us follow a fixed schedule. Wake up, rush to work, sit through long hours, grab whatever food is convenient, and return home tired. In the middle of this daily cycle, paying attention to what our body actually needs often becomes the last priority. 

While our meals fill our stomachs, they may not always provide all the nutrients the body requires. This is where the conversation around vitamins and multivitamins begins. Many people today wonder whether they are getting enough nutrients from their diet or if they should consider supplements. 

But before picking up a multivitamin from the pharmacy shelf, it is important to understand what vitamins are, why our body needs them, and whether everyone actually needs a multivitamin. Read this blog to know everything about multivitamins.

What are Multivitamins? 

More than a hundred years ago, doctors noticed something strange. People were unknowingly falling sick and developing diseases like scurvy and beriberi. 

In the early 1900s, Casimir Funk began studying people’s diets and concluded that some foods were missing tiny substances that kept people healthy. In 1912 he called these substances vitamins. 

A vitamin is one specific nutrient that the body needs in small amounts to function properly. Later scientists discovered that our body actually needs many different vitamins. That is where multivitamins come in. A multivitamin is simply a supplement that contains several vitamins together in one tablet. 

Over time researchers identified 13 vitamins that the human body needs to stay healthy. They are called essential vitamins because the body cannot make them on its own. We have to get them from food, and sometimes from supplements. 

These 13 vitamins fall into two groups based on how they behave inside the body: 

1- Water Soluble Vitamins

Since about 60% of the human body is made of water, these vitamins dissolve easily in the bloodstream and leave the body quickly. Because they are not stored for long, they need to be consumed regularly. Water soluble vitamins include Vitamin B1 (Thiamine), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin B3 (Niacin), Vitamin B5 (Pantothenic acid), Vitamin B6, Vitamin B7 (Biotin), Vitamin B9 (Folate), Vitamin B12 and Vitamin C.

2- Fat Soluble Vitamins

These vitamins dissolve in fats and are stored in fat tissues and the liver. Since the body can store them, they do not need to be consumed as frequently. Fat soluble vitamins include Vitamin A, Vitamin D, Vitamin E, and Vitamin K.

Are Multivitamins Necessary for Vegetarians? 

This is a very common and highly searched question on google among vegetarians and vegans, especially since nearly 40% of the Indian population follows a vegetarian diet. The concerns around this question are valid. However, it is not only vegetarians who may require supplements. Even non-vegetarians may need certain vitamins in small amounts on a daily basis depending on their diet and lifestyle. 

Many vitamins such as Vitamin C, Vitamin A, and Vitamin E can be obtained from plant based foods. However, Vitamin B12 is harder to get from plant sources because it is mainly found in animal based foods like meat. 

For this reason, vegetarians and vegans are sometimes advised to pay special attention to their Vitamin B12 intake. In some cases supplements may help meet this requirement. You can buy SayaCare’s Lab Tested Vitamin B12 that comes with a quality test report. 

Which Multivitamins are Best for Men? 

If you are a man above the age of 18, the vitamins your body needs each day can vary depending on the level of physical activity you do. The table below shows the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) of vitamins for adult men based on their work activity. 

The activity levels are generally grouped into three categories: 

• Sedentary work – very little physical activity 
• Moderate work – some physical activity such as walking or light labour 
• Heavy work – physically demanding work such as brisk walking, heavy exercise, or manual labour 

Next to the table, you will also find links to some of the best tested multivitamins for men. 

Recommended Dietary Allowance for Adult Men

These supplements follow the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA), which means the amount a person should take daily to stay healthy and prevent deficiencies. You can check all the SayaCare tested supplements, along with their quality test reports and buy them at up to 80% lower price than the market value. 

Which Multivitamins are Best for Women? 

Here is a chart showing the recommended daily intake of vitamins for women, including pregnant, lactating, and non-pregnant women, based on their level of physical activity. 

Recommended Dietary Allowance for Adult Women

Explore all the SayaCare tested women supplements, available at up to 80% less than the market price, along with their quality test reports. 

Are Multivitamins Safe? 

Multivitamins are often seen as a simple way to get all the essential vitamins from a single tablet. However, before taking any supplement, it is important to understand what your body actually needs. The best way to do this is by first checking your full vitamin profile. Once you know which vitamins you may be lacking, a doctor can guide you on whether a multivitamin or a specific supplement is necessary. Taking multivitamins & supplements without understanding your body’s requirements may not always be the right approach. 

Another important concern is the quality of supplements available in the market. In India, issues of contamination and adulteration are often discussed, and dietary supplements are not always an exception. A review paper published in 2021 suggested that nearly 60–70% of the dietary supplement market in India may include counterfeit or low-quality products. Because of this growing concern, many influencers have started testing food and supplement products online. However, testing a random batch of a product does not necessarily represent the quality of the entire product. 

In countries where regulations are implemented more strictly, consumers usually rely on regulated testing systems rather than informal reviews. If stronger regulatory implementation existed, people would not have to depend on influencer testing to judge product quality. 

At SayaCare, testing is taken seriously. Every medicine, including multivitamins, is tested before being made available, and the test reports are shared for transparency. You can explore the multivitamins and supplements category on SayaCare to see the tested products. 

Conclusion

With so much contamination around us, our bodies need essential vitamins to stay healthy and keep diseases away. Choosing the right supplement based on your age, gender, and vitamin profile is important. But what matters even more is choosing supplements that are safe and properly tested. Reports suggest that a large portion of the supplement market in India may include counterfeit or low-quality products. 

That is why quality testing becomes critical when buying medicines online. Platforms like SayaCare are trying to address this by providing quality test reports before medicines reach customers, helping build greater transparency and trust. After all, when medicines are tested, people can feel more confident about what they are taking.