Should I log vitamin supplements?
 

I did a search to even see if any were in the database. I see protein and meal replacement supplements, but nothing for things like vitamins. I was curious if I should log these since I do take the and vitamins and minerals from our food are logged.

I also take extra vitamin D in the winter to prevent colds, glucosamine/chondrontin for my achy knees, and ginko for my quirky brain.

Anyway, I wanted to see if you guys did this as well, and if so what's the best way to do it, or if you think it's not so important.

How to log supplements:

Permalink: http://www.fitday.com/fitness/forums...html#post68619

I think I'll have to dedicate an afternoon to read through that FAQ, haha. Thanks.

Sorry if you were "killed with kindness" but I take health seriously and if I can help a few people along the way it's even better. :)

Welcome to the Forums, don't be a stranger. Strange is OK, that's me. :D

I say definitely log your vitamins. If you look at some of the graphical display options, %RDA is one of them. This will help you see if you are meeting your vitamin and mineral requirements. Be aware, however, that not all foods have all of the vitamins and minerals printed on the package, so sometimes it FitDay may indicate you are low of something (phosphorus comes to mind) simply because it isn't commonly reported in foods.

All you need to do is set up a "custom food", type in the values on the vitamin bottle, and then you will have that available for your food tracking.

There isn't really any place to record the ginko and gluco/chon, however - they aren't standard RDAs. You can, however just set up a custom food for them with nothing in the table if you want to keep track of your intake. Some people do this for water.

Thanks for all the help guys :cool:

The nutrition tab has really helped me. I've noticed what I've been lacking in, but I was also unaware as to how much I was getting through food already. I thought it would have been a lot lower in many areas. However, I've also been eating better food, but I wouldn't have truly known my nutrient intake otherwise.

Also, this multivitamin I've been taking says to take it 3 times a day, but I've been doing it twice. Now that I know what I get from food already, I can actually take the mutli once a day! It fills in a couple of areas that I'm lacking in, but I really don't need to take 3 a day to have a balanced diet. I can save even more money buy making it last longer.

I notice I'm almost always lacking in potassium, maybe that's why my leg muscles cramp when I'm just walking up a hill. I'm looking into foods which are high in potassium, and I'm going to integrate them into my diet more consistently.

What a great site feature :)

Yes! Log your vitamins!
 

I have put my vitamins in under my custom foods. I take Amway vitamins (Nutrilite and Ocean Essentials) for the most part, and they are loaded with micronutrients. I found that when I compared my fitday nutrition log (average for two weeks) with the blood tests done at my doctor's office, the nutrition log was very accurate. I check my nutrition log at the end of the day--and it tells me if I need to take an extra supplement to reach my goal. The only one that consistently falls short is folic acid, I believe, because there is no way to enter it in the custom foods--and it is in my supplments AND in my protein shake powder.

Great thread, super information! Thanks! :D

I don't track my vitamin, actually.

I really try to get the majority of my vitamins through food. If I don't log my vitamins I can see where I'm falling short. Of course I do take my vitamin almost daily but I let it fill in the holes in my diet instead of trying to fill in the holes in my diet with a vitamin.

Hope that last line makes sense.

Yes, it makes sense. A multivitamin's purpose is basically to fill in the empty spots that you didn't fill when eating food during the day. You can get all of your vitamins by eating the right foods. A multivitamin just helps a little. Don't think you can eat junk food all day and then get your vitamins from a multivitamin though. You do need to eat good healthy food too. :)
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