What for the calcium? Well, the stuff about it not really helping older women came out really recently. I tried to find the specific article that suggested young women continue with it but can’t.
There is debate about the protective effects of dairy. If you look at Asian countries, they have very little osteoporosis and also consume very little dairy. They do get some calcium through leafy greens and, more importantly, they don’t eat nearly as much protein which can cause calcium to be excreted.
Here, where everyone eats half a pound of meat at each meal, a little extra calcium might be warranted. I’d say get it from a supplement (something cheap like Tums) and not extra dairy unless you have a problem with kidney stones. But everyone needs to make up their own mind. Here’s a recent article on calcium from the Harvard School of Public Health.
I’d still recommend the multivitamin (which is really whatt the OP asked about, all the rest of this stuff is kinda a hijack) but, definitely improving one’s diet and adding exercise is the ultimate way to go.
One thing to take into consideration is that Vitamins and supplements aren’t regulated. They can make just about any claim, and due to the paucity of any real studies they can get away with it. Baby aspirin has been studied (My dad was one of the ones involved in the massive Phyicians Study) and been shown to be beneficial, but aspirin is also a regulated drug, so there is alot more research. There is a little more information on fish oil due to the recent interest in statins and cholesterol, mostly showing it to be beneficial. But keep in mind. Any study that shows even the slightest improvement is so over-hyped by these companies that one would think they are fountain of youth pills.
I’d say that the best multi vitamin for you is the one that is on sale. And if it isn’t on sale the next time, buy the one that is.
Also, don’t confuse ‘daily recommended’ as meaning you have to stuff your pie-hole with all that in one day. Eat a big steak today? Well, don’t tomorrow. Eat a pile of broccoli? Well, you’re covered for a few days. Look to average out over time what your daily intake would be.
And for gawds sake, don’t forget your vitamin beer.
I disagree with this. I track what I eat on Fitday. To lose weight, I eat 1400-1600 calories a day, and I do fine on getting my RDA of nutrients. I have to keep an eye on my weekly averages and be sure to choose a balanced diet, and to get enough calcium I usually have to eat a cup of nonfat yogurt a day, whether I want it or not. When I eat junk food, obviously, which has a lot of calories and no nutrients, I get screwed. But, honestly, it’s not that hard to get all the nutrients you need at 1600 calories a day.
When I was eating 1800-1900 calories a day to keep my weight stable, I didn’t have think about nutrients at all. I just ate reasonably healthy foods, and when I looked at the nutrient totals at the end of the day and I was at or over 100% in just about everything, and if not, if I checked my weekly average, I was fine.
A “serving” of chopped fruit or vegetables is only half a cup, and a cup of raw spinach or salad greens is a serving, too. Have a large apple or pear or banana for breakfast, and you’ve got two servings right there. For lunch, a cup of vegetable soup or a salad is a third serving. For dinner, have some stirfry with meat and vegetables for two more servings, and you’re at the recommended 5. If you had a soup and a salad at lunch, and/or a healthy snack of baby carrots or yogurt with berries stirred in, there’s another serving or two. You have to seriously work to fit in nine, but five’s not a problem, even on a restricted diet.
How about one of those fortified cereals, like Total? It’s like eating AND taking a multivitamin. If you’re on a budget, it’s like getting something for nothing. Sort of.