If you identify yourself as a woman and accidentally pick up a bottle of men's multivitamins, you won't lose control of your body. However, since those small differences can add up over time, you probably don't want to buy them on a regular basis. Men can safely take multivitamin supplements for women if they choose formulas that are low in mineral iron or without it. Eating too much iron can lead to life-threatening conditions, such as liver disease, heart problems and diabetes, according to the Mayo Clinic.
So can women take men's vitamins? Yes, because there is no specific vitamin for each gender.
Now, you're probably more curious about multivitamin supplements.
Multivitamins are a combination of vitamins, minerals, and often several other ingredients. With the exception of iron and folate (or folic acid), men's vitamins are richer in nutrients and may exceed the recommended daily dose for women. If your doctor determines that you have a deficiency, short-term or long-term supplementation may be recommended to address the problem.Iron deficiency is common (especially among women), and in many cases, supplements are recommended to bring blood levels back to normal. The RDA guidelines vary by sex and age, because men and women require different levels of nutrients. Eating well-balanced meals throughout the day and avoiding non-nutritious foods will help you meet all your nutritional requirements in most cases. When iron stores build up in the body, they can damage organs and cause life-threatening conditions, such as liver problems and heart disease, according to the Mayo Clinic.
Men need 15 more milligrams of vitamin C a day, an additional 30 milligrams of vitamin K and an additional 3 milligrams of zinc. The differences between multivitamins for men and women come down to the amounts of each individual vitamin and mineral. Vitamins for men and women are different in that they are made based on the recommended daily value (DV) of nutrients as designated by the USDA. But not only is the recommended daily dose different between men and women, but health problems and what is important for each one also vary from gender to gender.
There are many coincidences when it comes to the vitamin needs of men and women, for example, when both men and women need approximately the same amount of vitamin B12. It is recommended to use multivitamin formulas for men and women, given the different nutritional needs of men and women. If you've just run out of vitamin supplements, you might be tempted to snatch a few pills from your partner. In fact, the recommended dietary amounts are divided into men and women, as well as age groups. The Food and Nutrition Board defines different recommended dietary amounts (RDA) for men and women.
Centrum's One-A-Day for Women contains more folate, vitamin B, which is an important nutrient for reproductive health and pregnancy, according to Johns Hopkins Medicine.
