You’re not still grabbing the cheapest bottle of multivitamins off the shelf at a retail store, are you? You spend ungodly amounts of money, time, and energy trying to look and feel your best, and you’re skimping out on your daily multivitamin?
My man, you’re wasting your money.
Inexpensive multivitamins contain only a fraction of the vital nutrients you need to get your body running the way you want. Not to mention, many of them are filled with unnecessary, and sometimes harmful, ingredients that will work against your physical, mental, and sexual health.
In this blog, we’ll discuss how to choose the best men’s daily multivitamin for your needs.
Can a Multivitamin Affect Testosterone Production?
Yes! For both good and bad. This is why you should only be taking a multivitamin made specifically for men. General multivitamins, or those made exclusively for women, may contain ingredients that could, directly or indirectly, negatively affect testosterone production in men.
Ingredients That Could Help with Testosterone Production
If you’re worried about a dip in your testosterone levels, look for a men’s multivitamin with the following ingredients to help boost those T levels:
- Zinc
- Vitamin D
- Magnesium
- Saw Palmetto Berries
- Pumpkin Seed
- Pygeum Africanum Bark
- Omega 3 Fatty Acids
Each of these ingredients is known to either boost testosterone production or inhibit testosterone from converting to estrogen.
Ingredients that Could Hinder Testosterone Production
The last thing you need is a multivitamin responsible for killing testosterone production. Avoid multivitamins with the following ingredients:
- Soy
- Dairy
- Licorice Root
- Mint (especially spearmint)
Be on the lookout for the above ingredients if you want to be in tip-top shape in the bedroom and gym.
What to Look for in a Men’s Multivitamin?
The market is flooded with men’s multivitamins. So, how are you supposed to know which ones are worth buying and which are junk? Here are some attributes you should look at when deciding which multivitamin is best for you.
Country of Origin
What’s the best way to cut down on the cost of manufacturing multivitamins? Move production overseas to a country with little to no manufacturing regulations. This could result in inferior ingredients, contamination (think bugs and rodent feces), and less-potent ingredients.
Manufacturing
Even if your pills are manufactured in a first-world country, that doesn’t mean they’re manufactured in first-world facilities. Make sure whoever is manufacturing your multivitamins is cGMP (Current Good Manufacturing Practice) compliant. This will ensure your multivitamins are safe and effective.
Multi-Faceted Formulation
Most cheap multivitamins purchased off the shelf have very few ingredients and are only good for men who are deficient in a few key nutrients. They do nothing to address the health concerns of the typical male.
Look for a multivitamin with ingredients that address physical, mental, and sexual health, specifically for men. If your multivitamin has an ingredient list of less than 10-20 vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and herbals, keep looking.
Recommended Daily Value
Many inexpensive multivitamins are priced accordingly because they’re formulated with less than the recommended daily value of key nutrients. If your multivitamin is only supplying you with 70% or less of key ingredients like vitamins and minerals, it’s time to start shopping for a new multivitamin.
Bioavailability Enhancers
Even if your vitamins are packed with 100% or more of the daily recommended value of vitamins and minerals, that doesn’t mean you’re benefiting from that amount. Studies suggest men are only absorbing between 10%-80% of the nutrients they consume.
That’s where bioavailability enhancers come in. Bioavailability enhancers ensure that the other ingredients in a multivitamin are absorbed at rates that will actually be effective. Look for a multivitamin that’s formulated with either piperine, black pepper extract, quercetin, or coenzyme Q10.
Manufacturer’s Guarantee
If a company can’t stand behind the multivitamin they manufacture with a no-questions-asked money-back guarantee, will you trust the product they’re putting out? Not Likely. Only go with reputable manufacturers that will guarantee their product will work as directed.
Must-Have Ingredients
A good daily multivitamin for men is going to have to have dozens of ingredients to address various needs. Some absolute must-have ingredients your multivitamin should contain are:
- Zinc
- Calcium (not from dairy)
- Magnesium
- Vitamins A, B-6, B-12, C, D, & E
- Omega-3 Fatty Acids
If your current multivitamin is missing any of these core ingredients or is formulated with considerably less than the recommended daily value, it’s time to start shopping for a new multivitamin.
What to Avoid in a Men’s Multivitamin?
Aside from testosterone-killing ingredients, there are some key factors to avoid when purchasing a men’s daily multivitamin. Let’s take a look.
Allergens
This should be pretty obvious, but numerous multivitamin manufacturers still use known allergens as fillers in their products. Check to ensure your multivitamin is free from the following allergens:
- Wheat
- Corn
- Grains
- Gluten
- Soy
- Dairy
- Egg
- Yeast
- Seafood
These are just common allergens that might be found in some inferior multivitamins. If you have a specific allergy, please consult your physician before starting any new multivitamin.
Artificial Colors or Flavors
Dude … you’re not a child any longer. Gone are the days of daily multivitamins that contain unnecessary, and sometimes harmful, artificial colors and flavorings. Your multivitamins should be free from all these ingredients that work against your health.
Additives and Fillers
Cheap, off-the-shelf multivitamins are cheap for a reason. Instead of formulating them with expensive vitamins and minerals, they’re full of inexpensive additives and fillers that do nothing to get you healthy. Make sure your multivitamin is free from:
- Corn Starch
- Maltodextrin
- Magnesium Stearate
- Starch
- Microcrystalline Cellulose
- Vegetable Gum
- Talc
- Propylene Glycol
If your multivitamins cost less than $30 for a month’s supply, chances are you’re getting more of these fillers than nutrients.
Proprietary Blends
This one is a bit tricky. If the multivitamin you’re looking at has all of the must-have ingredients listed above, plus a proprietary blend, you should be ok. If it has only a few ingredients, and one of them is a proprietary blend, you may want to exercise caution.
Manufacturers use proprietary blends because they don’t have to list the ingredients or dosage of the ingredients in the blend. If your multivitamin is formulated with “a proprietary blend of vitamins, minerals, and nutrients,” that could mean anything in any amount.
One-Pill Formulation
This should be a huge red flag when buying a daily supplement. There is no way a manufacturer can formulate one pill with all of the nutrients you need in the correct dosages. The pill would be the size of a golf ball and impossible to ingest. If the multivitamin you’re looking at suggests just one pill a day, you can be sure you’re not getting enough nutrients to make it worth your money.
Sweeteners
Again, we’re not kids anymore. Our daily vitamins shouldn’t have any sugar in them to make them easier to get down. Firstly, it’s nothing but a waste of money. Secondly, we get more than enough sugar in our diets without adding them to our vitamins. Be on the lookout for any multivitamin that contains:
- Fructose
- High Fructose Corn Syrup
- Dextrose
- Maltodextrin
If you see any ingredients that end with the letters “-ose”, it’s most likely an added sweetener.
Must-Avoid Ingredients
Other ingredients that are in numerous multivitamins that should be avoided are:
- Collagen
- Gelatin
- Talcum Powder
- Titanium Dioxide
- Magnesium Stearate (regular magnesium is essential for a multivitamin, not magnesium stearate)
- Hydrogenated Oils
- Potassium Sorbate (regular potassium is ok for a multivitamin, not potassium sorbate)
- Dl-alpha tocopherol (d-alpha tocopherol, as Vitamin E, is essential for a multivitamin. dl-alpha tocopherol (notice the “L”) is a harmful synthetic version)
One other ingredient we should note that shouldn’t be in men’s multivitamins is iron. While iron is popular in kid’s and women’s multivitamins, it should not be listed as one of the main ingredients for men. We get more than enough iron from our diet, and consuming more iron than is necessary can be dangerous.
Avoid Known Multivitamin Rip-Offs
Something you should note when shopping for multivitamins. It’s always best to buy quality products directly from the manufacturer. If you’re buying your multivitamin off the shelf in a discount retail store, chances are you’re buying a product that isn’t formulated with enough nutrients to make a difference.
Buying from online, 3rd part retailers presents a whole new list of challenges. Anyone can open a storefront on these 3rd party sites. If you’ve found a popular multivitamin that can’t be found in stores, and you see it on one of these sites for a fraction of the price, run.
Chances are the product is either expired or counterfeit and not worth buying.
Which is the Best Men’s Daily Multivitamin?
We’re somewhat biased, but we’re confident that our Men’s Daily Pack is the best multivitamin on the market right now. We’ve formulated it with massive (yet safe) amounts of the vitamins, minerals, and amino acids that every man needs.
In addition, we’ve added the extract of over 40 fruits and vegetables to the formulation to ensure you’re getting all of the nutrients you need in one easy-to-take multi-pack. Our Men’s Daily Pack is the only multivitamin you’re ever going to need to improve your physical, mental, and sexual health.