The Danger of Synthetic Vitamins

Author: Jessica Gremley

Nutritional supplements are one of the cornerstones of healthy living and for good reason: it’s difficult to get all the nutrition your body needs from diet alone. If you have acne or other skin problems, certain vitamins and herbs can pay huge dividends in the way your skin looks and feels.

So all you need to do is get one of those one-a-days from the supermarket and you’re good, right?

Unfortunately, that’s not the case. The lure of these cheap multivitamins can be hard to resist. But they’re certainly no bargain if they don’t work.

These products reflect their price tags

For starters, these vitamins are completely synthetic. According to the Organic Consumers Association, 95% of vitamins contain some synthetic ingredients. 

While conventional wisdom may say that synthetic vitamins are almost chemically identical to the nutrients found in herbs and food, the production process is very different. These products are manufactured completely from chemicals – about as far moved from nature as you can get.  

What’s more, synthetic vitamins contain isolates of each nutrient. Nutrient isolates contain only the chemical ingredient. They don’t include any of the naturally occurring transporters and co-factors that will help your body absorb them.

The Organic Consumers Association emphasizes that “Isolated nutrients cannot be used or recognized in the body the same way as natural versions.”  They are not as bioavailable or absorbable as the manufacturers claim. Your cells, muscles and tissues have to work quite hard to utilize a mere fraction of the nutrients in the supplement.

Even worse, these synthetic vitamins are usually filled with binders, fillers, wax, flow agents and artificial colors. Many times they include the ingredients in levels that are too low to do much good.

This is why you can take a well-known multivitamin or drugstore supplement and not notice any difference in the way you feel.  

Naturally-derived vitamins and herbs deliver the benefits you need

While natural vitamins may cost more, they make a world of difference when it comes to getting results.

The best supplements contain ingredients derived from herbs and whole foods. That means every nutrient also includes its related phytonutrients, metabolites, trace elements, and other co-factors just as they are found in nature.

With synthetic supplements, you are consuming only the specific chemical it contains. When you consume herbal or food based vitamins you also take in various other health-boosting compounds along with them. These can include additional fiber, healthy fats, phytochemicals, naturally-occurring immune-boosters and more.

And since your body recognizes natural supplements as food, it breaks them down much more easily than isolated chemical nutrients. Your body absorbs and metabolizes them more effectively -- and you experience better health benefits.

For example, our Clove Hill Multivitamin for Acne-Prone Skin contains Rose Hips, which is an abundant source of Vitamin C as well as Vitamin A, Calcium and Magnesium.

We also include Horsetail and Oat straw. These herbs are packed with Vitamin A as well as silica, antioxidants and other beneficial compounds which also help promote smooth skin. 

Alfalfa is incredibly nutrient dense with high levels of essential vitamins and minerals. Meanwhile, turmeric is a potent antioxidant with natural anti-inflammatory and anti-microbial compounds.

Our Clove Hill herbal formulas are created using organic herbs, just as nature intended. Plus, these herbs deliver all the vitamins and minerals you need for healthy skin, without the acne-triggering potential of added biotin or B12.

Synthetic vs. natural: How can you tell?  

Some product labels may contain the words "natural," but manufacturers can claim "natural" on their nutritional products if at least 10 percent of the product comes from natural food sources. 

So check for the words "100% natural", 100% food based or 100% plant based on the product's label.

 Product labels and their small type can add to the confusion.  Sometimes the difference between synthetic vitamins vs. natural vitamins is only a couple of letters. If you see “dl” in front of the name, or if the ingredient ends in “-ide” it’s probably synthetic.

How to easily identify the fakes 

Here’s a quick “cheat sheet” of synthetic vitamin names.  If you see any of these on the label--don’t buy it!