Do you start your day with lemon water, follow it up with a plant-based green smoothie, hit the gym, refuel with adequate protein, stay hydrated, and finish your day with a meditation and 8-hour sleep?
Is this you? Sounds like you've got balance nailed.
But here's the hard-hitting truth: no matter how healthy your diet is and how balanced your life may be, the reality is that you're never going to get 100% of the vitamins and minerals your body needs.
Why do we need vitamin and mineral supplements?
A lot of reasons, actually.
Your body is continually changing, and there are a lot of factors that dictate whether you get the nutrients you need. This includes things like:
- Nutrient bioavailability (the form it comes)
- Stress levels (yes, that includes exercise)
- Required co-factors/nutrients needed for absorption
- Medications, drugs, alcohol, etc.
- Soil quality (how much of a nutrient is actually in the food you're eating)
It's not just as simple as eating some organic greens and saying you ate your daily intake of folate.
And this is where we get to the goods.
Having an excellent plant-based multivitamin is recommended daily to maintain your health and ensure you get the nutrients your body needs to thrive.
Whether you follow a plant-based diet or not, there are some great vegan multivitamins on the market, like Performance Lab NutriGenesis Multi for Women.
NutriGenesis Multi for Women is derived from whole food sources, is non-GMO, gluten-free, contains all the essential nutrients you need, and is explicitly targeted to the needs of women - because let's face it, men and women have different needs.
Not only is this the best vegan multivitamin you can buy right now, we genuinely believe this is the best multivitamin for women on the market, period.
No other supplement can offer you nature-identical nutrients grown using probiotic cultures, delivered in a prebiotic, 100% plant-based capsule.
Why You Need a Good Vegan Multivitamin
As we mentioned, the world we live in today is not conducive to getting our nutritional needs met.
We lead high stress lives, our food isn't as nutrient dense as it was 100 years ago, we drink more, we exercise less, and we just don't eat properly.
This all adds up to deficiencies of nutrients that are critical to our health and well-being.
And on top of that, if you follow a vegan diet, your chances of nutrient deficiencies are even higher.
That's where having the best vegan multivitamin on hand is gold.
Here are four reasons a good vegan multivitamin should be the #1 in your plant-based supplement stack:
Anti-nutrients
Following a plant-based diet is excellent for both your health and that of our planet, but there's something you may not know about plant foods.
They contain anti-nutrients—compounds inherently present in plant foods that block the absorption of specific vitamins and minerals 1.
While there are several anti-nutrients, the most common ones we encounter are lectins, phytates (phytic acid), gluten, and oxalates (oxalic acid).
If not prepared properly, these anti-nutrients bind to essential vitamins and minerals and prevent absorption, and can also lead to a lot of health problems (kidney stones, leaky gut, inflammation, etc.).
And because a vegan diet is high in anti-nutrients, they can become quite problematic.
These affect absorption of these vitamins and minerals:
- Calcium
- Magnesium
- Zinc
- Copper
- Iron
- Vitamin A and E
- Vitamin B12
Stress
Stress can do a lot of damage to the body, including impairing nutrient absorption.
That's because when your body releases stress hormones like cortisol, epinephrine, and norepinephrine, the body goes into "fight or flight" mode.
This down regulates any system that isn't mandatory to your survival at that moment; this includes reproduction, digestion, immunity, and the like.
So, if you're chronically stressed and eating, not only are you not digesting your food properly, but you're probably not absorbing much either.
Ever notice that when you're beyond stressed, you don't have much of an appetite? That's why…
Physical Activity
Physical activity is another biggie for why you need to be taking the best vegan multivitamin you can find.
Exercise increases utilization and excretion of certain nutrients, thereby increasing our demand for them.
For example, sodium, potassium, and magnesium are excreted in sweat during strenuous exercise; needs for antioxidants like vitamin E, glutathione, and vitamin C may increase after prolonged exercise because of free radical production and oxidative stress.
Nutrient Poor Food
Lack of nutrients in the food we eat is something people don't touch on often, but it's an important factor in why we should take a good vegan multivitamin.
It's been established for quite some time that the health of our soil is declining and is being depleted of its valuable nutrients due to intensification of land use for agricultural production without putting much back into the soil 2.
As a result, the food we grow in these soils is that much more depleted of vital nutrients they once had.
This translates directly to us, as we heavily rely on food sources to meet our nutritional needs. Studies have shown that levels of protein, zinc, and iron have all declined in wheat and rice due to increasing atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide 3, 4.
With all of that said, our diet and lifestyle practices play a significant role in our nutritional needs, and they are all going to vary between women.
But as a general rule, there are some specific vitamins and minerals you'll want to ensure are in your vegan multivitamin.
What to Look For in The Best Vegan Multivitamin for Women
Here are the essential nutrients you should look for (at minimum) in the best vegan-friendly multivitamin for women:
Vitamin D3
Regardless of your age, vitamin D is essential in any good vegan multivitamin. Almost every cell in your body contains a receptor for vitamin D, and it has over 1000 target genes in the body, showing you just how important it is 5.
Why it's so important is due to its role in bone health. Vitamin D helps to regulate calcium absorption in the gut, but also promotes mineralization of the collagen matrix in bones to maintain bone strength 6.
When serum vitamin D levels start to decline, parathyroid hormone (PTH) triggers calcium mobilization from bone and reabsorption of calcium by the kidneys to ensure blood levels stay elevated.
But there's more. Vitamin D also plays a role in 6, 7, 8:
- Immune function
- Pregnancy
- Mood
- Preventing chronic disease
Omega-3 fatty acids
Omega-3 fatty acids are another non-negotiable in a good vegan multivitamin. And while many sources of EPA and DHA come from fish, which is obviously not vegan-friendly, algae is one of the best omega-3 alternatives; it's a more potent, safer, and cleaner source of EPA and DHA than fish.
Omega-3 fatty acids are essential not just because you can't produce them endogenously, but also because they're necessary for many biological functions, including 9, 10:
- Heart health—they help to improve triglyceride levels and boost HDL
- Improve cognitive function—DHA is the most abundant of omega-three fatty acids in the brain and is key to proper cognitive function and working memory
- Relieve menstrual pain and cramping—an important one for you ladies because omega-three supplements help to reduce inflammation by decreasing synthesis and release of pro-inflammatory compounds called prostaglandins
Folate
Folate is a vitamin you often hear about for pregnancy, but it's so much more. Don't be confused by the two familiar names: folate and folic acid.
The former is the natural (most ideal) form, while the latter is the synthetic form that must undergo conversion to be utilized.
For women of all ages, especially those of reproductive age, folate is critical in your vegan multivitamin for a few reasons 11, 12:
- Plays a role in the formation of RNA and DNA—prevents chromosomal abnormalities and genetic defects
- Assists amino acid conversion—it's an essential cofactor in the conversion of homocysteine to methionine, and in high amounts, homocysteine is toxic to cells
- Boosts blood cell production—in conjunction with vitamin B 12
- Prevents neural tube defects during pregnancy
Iron
Iron supplementation can be a tricky thing because it's easy to over-do, but unless you're eating large quantities of iron-rich foods, you may not be getting enough.
Iron plays a vital role in the production of hemoglobin, the molecule that carries oxygen around your body.
A deficiency in iron results in anemia, showing that your red blood cell count is low and oxygen transport is reduced.
Having iron in your vegan multivitamin is also essential for menstruating women. For every day of menstrual bleeding, women lose about 1-1.6mg of iron, which needs to be replenished.
And if you struggle with heavy periods, iron supplementation becomes even more critical 13.
Zinc
Zinc is the second most abundant trace mineral in the body, but one of the lesser talked about nutrients essential for health and well-being.
And while men often know the importance of it for reproductive health, turns out it's just as important for women for many other reasons.
Here's why zinc should be included in your vegan multivitamin 14, 15, 16, 17, 18:
- Boosts your immune system—involved in the production of numerous immune cells and aids wound healing
- Functions as an antioxidant—increases concentrations of potent radical-scavenging compounds (glutathione, catalase, and heme-oxygenase)
- Improves cognitive health - exhibits neuroprotective effects and has a vital role in modulating the activity of the HPA axis
- Boosts mood—responsible for synthesizing and regulating neurotransmitter activity
- Improves skin health—serves as a cofactor for collagen synthesis and DNA repair
- Boosts fertility—reduces the conversion of testosterone to estrogen and supports progesterone production
How's that for a super mineral?
Performance Lab NutriGenesis Multi for Women
Performance Lab NutriGenesis Multi for Women is the best vegan multivitamin you can get that has been specifically designed for women.
It's a high-quality vegan vitamin and mineral supplement designed to restore nutrients that may be missing from your diet using whole foods, and in doing so, supports healthy cell performance body-wide.
NutriGenesis® is ultramodern nutrition technology unique to Performance Lab. Our vitamins and minerals are bioengineered with cofactors that boost absorption and maximize benefits.
NutriGenesis® Multi supplies 100%+ DV of over 17 essential nutrients specifically tailored for women, all encapsulated in NutriCaps®--prebiotic-infused and vegan-friendly for digestive comfort and peace of mind.
References
- KE Akande, UD Doma, HO Agu, HM Adamu. Major Antinutrients Found in Plant Protein Sources: Their Effect on Nutrition. Pak J Nutr. 2010; 9(8): 827-832.
- ZX Tan, L Rattan, KD Wiebe. Global soil nutrient depletion and yield reduction. Journal of sustainable agriculture. 2005; 26(1): 123-146.
- DE Medek, J Schwartz, SS Myers. Estimated Effects of Future Atmospheric CO2 Concentrations on Protein Intake and the Risk of Protein Deficiency by Country and Region. Environ Health Perspect. 2017 Aug; 125(8): 087002.
- SS Myers, A Zanobetti, I Kloog, P Huybers, ADB Leakey, et al. Increasing CO2 threatens human nutrition. Nature. 2014 Jun; 510: 139-150.
- S Sirajudeen, I Shah, A Al Menhali. A Narrative Role of Vitamin D and Its Receptor: With Current Evidence on the Gastric Tissues. Int J Mol Sci. 2019; 20(15): 3832.
- C Aranow. Vitamin D and the immune system. J Investig Med. 2011; 59(6): 881-886.
- I Anjum, SS Jaffery, M Fayyaz, Z Samoo, S Anjum. The Role of Vitamin D in Brain Health: A Mini Literature Review. Cureus. 2018; 10(7): e2960.
- A Mithal, S Kalra. Vitamin D supplementation in pregnancy. Indian J Endocrinol Metab. 2014; 18(5): 593-596.
- A Chaddha, KA Eagle. Omega-3 Fatty Acids and Heart Health. Circulation. 2015 Dec; 132(22): e350-2.
- MK Weiser, CM Butt, MH Mohajeri. Docosahexaenoic Acid and Cognition throughout the Lifespan. Nutrients. 2016; 8(2): 99.
- KS Crider, TP Yang, RJ Berry, LB Bailey. Folate and DNA Methylation: A Review of Molecular Mechanisms and the Evidence for Folate's Role. Advances in Nutrition. 2012 Jan; 3(1): 21–38.
- JA Greenberg, SJ Bell, Y Guan, YH Yu. Folic Acid supplementation and pregnancy: more than just neural tube defect prevention. Rev Obstet Gynecol. 2011; 4(2): 52-59.
- MJ Ofojekwu, OU Nnanna, CE Okolie, LA Odewumi, IOU Isiguzoro, MD Lugos. Hemoglobin and Serum Iron Concentrations in Menstruating Nulliparous Women in Jos, Nigeria. Laboratory Medicine. 2013 May; 44(2): 121–124.
- AH Shankar, AS Prasad. Zinc and immune function: the biological basis of altered resistance to infection. Am J Clin Nutr. 1998 Aug; 68(2 Suppl): 447S-463S.
- M Jarosz, M Olbert, G Wyszogrodzka, K Młyniec, T Librowski. Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory effects of zinc. Zinc-dependent NF-κB signaling. Inflammopharmacology. 2017; 25(1): 11-24.
- M Piao, X Cong, Y Lu, C Feng, P Ge. The Role of Zinc in Mood Disorders. Neuropsychiatry. 2017; 7(4): 378-386.
- M Gupta, VK Mahajan, KS Mehta, PS Chauhan. Zinc therapy in dermatology: a review. Dermatol Res Pract. 2014 Jul.
- D Stamatiadis, MC Bulteau-Portois, I Mowszowicz. Inhibition of 5 alpha-reductase activity in human skin by zinc and azelaic acid. Br J Dermatol. 1988 Nov; 119(5): 627-32.
