Best Self Magazine

What Are the Right Vitamins? Natural vs. Synthetic Sources & Supplements

What Are the Right Vitamins? Natural vs. Synthetic Sources & Supplements, by Austin Winder. Photograph of fruits and vegetables by Ella Olsson
Photograph by Ella Olsson

While we all know that vitamins are essential to our health, not all sources and supplements are created equal. Learn what’s best for you.

Introduction

‘The Importance of Natural Vitamins’ is a topic we have heard again and again throughout our lives, and after a while, it can be tempting to just push it under the rug. Some people think they can eat unhealthily and make up for it by taking a vitamin pill or just exercising a little bit more. I remember a time in my own life when I considered synthetic vitamins to be a perfectly healthy alternative to eating vegetables or other sources of natural vitamins. This, of course, was an extremely inaccurate (and unhealthy!) view.

While synthetic vitamins may be able to benefit you in some ways, they are usually far inferior to the benefits you receive from natural vitamins, or to the vitamins you obtain eating whole foods and vegetables. For me, learning about superfoods and the natural benefits your body receives from organic sources, as opposed to synthetic pills, opened up a new world of implementing simple changes in my diet

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