Why are vitamins essential?

Multivitamin are a preparation intended to supplement a human diet with vitamins, dietary minerals and other nutritional elements. The necessary vitamins are usually provided by a balanced and varied diet, but if any of the essential vitamins are absent from food for long periods of time, poor growth or certain deficiency, diseases can occur.

In essence multi-vitamin supplements provide the body with a blend of these vitamins and minerals to ensure the body receives the recommended dietary allowance (RDA).

There are two types of vitamins - water-soluble vitamins and fat-soluble vitamins.

Water-soluble vitamins

Water-soluble vitamins include vitamin C and vitamin B complex, the name given to all the B vitamins such as vitamin B6 (pyridoxine), B12 (cyanocobalamin), B2 (riboflavin) and B1 (thiamin)

Your body generally can't store water-soluble vitamins so it needs a regular supply from the food you eat.

Fat-soluble vitamins

Fat-soluble vitamins include vitamin A, vitamin D, vitamin E and vitamin K. Your body can store fat-soluble vitamins in your liver and fatty tissues. Whilst they are safe in the amounts found in foods and daily multivitamins, it is possible that stored amounts can build up over time. This is especially true if you eat liver or liver products once or more times per week, as these are especially rich sources of vitamin A.

Multi-vitamins usually contain at least 100%, if not more, of the recommended dietary allowance (RDA) of essential vitamins.