I always thought I needed a good multi vitamin when doing low carb since I was not eating all the fruit and vegetables that are on the recommended daily allowance, blah blah blah. But with all the new research and information on low carb dieting I am wondering do I really need one? My plan is once I reach my goal to play around with the healthy vegetables I like and see how much my body will let me eat without gaining but until then I eat few if any vegetables.

I take a number of vitamins & supplements, not because I'm LC, but because I'm trying to take care of my health, and for me, this is part of it.

I take a good multi, to plug any nutrition gaps I may have. (Since the vegetables I eat tend to be very nutrient-dense, I'm not super-worried about this.)

I take calcium/magnesium supplement, because I'm a woman over 40.

I take a glucosamine, because... knees.

I take a fish oil, Vitamin E, Vitamin D, and garlic oil pill daily... General health, I have tested low on D when I don't supplement, and the garlic is both an immuno-booster and an anticoagulant. (I've got a history of DVT, so they'd LIKE me to take a daily aspirin. But I don't tolerate aspirin.) And then a bitter melon & cinnamon pill to help control blood sugar.

I take all this every morning, with my coffee and a 1 liter glass of water. If I do nothing else in the day.... I know I'm at least starting my day with a big glass of water...

From Dr. Westman's Duke clinic:
"Vitamins and Supplements Although the “no sugar, no starch” diet is very nutritious, we recommend that you take an iron-free multivitamin to be sure that you are getting all of the vitamins and minerals that you need, unless you are told to take iron by your doctor." Any generic similar to Centrum Silver is fine, e.g. Walgreen, Walmart, etc. I do take extra Vitamin D as my doctor wants me to manage it around 50-80 ng/l and need to supplement winter and summer to keep it that high.

I think they fill in some of the gaps in the things we aren't eating, and I also think that with modern factory farming methods it's impossible to get all you need from your food.

I consider them an ounce of prevention. YMMV

I use the Cronometer app to track my food and fill in with vitamins where there are gaps or where I think the RDA may be lacking. Cronometer tracks micronutrients as well as macros. You can also check out Marty Kendalls Nutrient Optimizer for more info on micronutrients.

https://nutrientoptimiser.wordpress...r/martykendall/

I supplement with Mag/Cal, Vit D, Turmeric, CoQ10 (these together for synergitic) and a probiotic for gut health. I don’t eat enough veggie I don’t think so working at that all the time. I will add a good multi Vitamin. I nuggets I got from the post. Thanks!

After researching and experimenting over the past few years, I now take magnesium, D3, K2, and fish oil in a couple different forms. My "information" tells me that these are the most likely ones to be required to supplement a healthy WOE. I stay away from calcium supplements.

I take the same as Rob.

No calcium. Get enough of that.

Usually Magnesium is low, and D3 and definitely K2 in all of us.

Calcium has been over emphasized for bone strength and this resulted in HIGHER heart attacks. The docs now recommend a lower level again. The docs did not address the other minerals to build bone: Magnesium, potassium, phosphorus , D3, K2, Vit A, and Im sure Im missing a vitamin. The ratio used in animal feed is 1.5 to 2:1 calcium to phosphorus. Doctors dont study nutrition so they dont know what they are talking about.

I take a multi vite in addition to these. Our soils are depleted of minerals and the produce is held for months in storage. Apples for example can be held for a year or more. Other produce is held for months in special refrigerated warehouses after harvest and slowly that warehouse is emptied out as the produce goes to market. Some produce has a short turnover, others much longer.

Yes, I take a multi vite.

Cronometer is awesome, love their detailed micros breakdown! You can also adjust the settings so it tracks Net carbs, which is nice. OP, maybe track for a bit on cronometer and see where you're coming in for micros. Also, you can have your doctor run blood work to check for deficiencies if you have any concerns about specific ones.

This just dropped a few days ago and is getting a lot of buzz, about the possible connection with supplements and long term health-
https://arstechnica.com/science/201...ant-you-to-see/

https://annals.org/aim/article-abst...7326%2fM18-2478

eta: edit for grammar and stuff

I’m not convinced by supplements and vitamin tablets. I feel it’s another money making, processed commodity. I have no idea how they’re made, how well they do their job or how might effect my gut bacteria.
The exception is magnesium oil applied to skin because it actually seems to help any headache.

I am concerned about trace elements and will be growing more food for family with top notch soil to try to fill any TE need.

At 72, and I've been taking a multi-vitamin forever. I'm in the category "they're cheap and it couldn't hurt." I use a "senior" formula now. What the benefits are I couldn't say. And I daresay science can't either.

On the other hand, I've also been taking some form of Glucosamine supplement for at least twenty years, for joint health. As of now, I have only the slightest evidence of osteoarthritis (big toe). And I'm the only one of four siblings not needing something replaced (knee, hip). Did I just get lucky? Probably. But I'm still taking the supplement.

I take a few other supplements as well, changing over time based on doctor recommendations and my own research and opinions. I operate on the theory of moderation and low expectations.

I've been taking a lot of vitamins and minerals since I became self-employed in 1964. I'm a musician and an older musician in the band swore by them.

Result:

I'm 72 and on zero medications. I cannot remember if I've ever had a prescription medication since I started taking them.

I can't even remember the last time I caught a cold - perhaps 10 or 15 years ago, and I know it was mild because I don't think I've caught a severe one since I started taking the vitamins. No flu either, and I don't get flu shots.

I haven't called in sick to work since 1965.

BTW, I was a sickly child and was even classified 4F when I wanted to join the military.

Of course, this isn't scientific proof, but it seems to be working for me.

Bob

I don’t do vitamins. I am lucky at 47 I take no pills save the very rare Advil, so I like to keep it that way. Since LCing, i have found a pickle to be a better headache remedy than Advil. Who knew!

I take a few things. Magnesium and Vitamin D3 (tested low), Cinnamon for blood sugar - I could just eat it but I take a capsule, cranberry for bladder health, potassium for blood pressure. That's what I've worked out over the years and it works for me.

I take Mag, D, K2, iodine, and Ubiquinol. I'm thinking about adding calcium since I'm currently off dairy, but I'm going to try that A2 cheese suggested in another thread and if it doesn't cause me any inflammation, I'll skip the calcium.

Although I've had colds since I started the D and K2 (Mk4), they're fewer and far between and nowhere near the severity they used to be. I used to get everything that came down the pike. I've been taking the D along with the K2 since 2016