If you’ve recently begun to put more effort into your health and wellness, you might have come across the topic of vitamin subscription boxes in your research. A monthly vitamin subscription is a group of vitamins or a daily dose - either personalized or not - that you receive at your doorstep once a month. 

A personalized vitamin subscription includes vitamins and supplements tailored to your body, lifestyle, and needs - and you give the service that information either through a personalized vitamin quiz or a blood test. 

A more generalized monthly vitamin subscription involves a multivitamin that is generally beneficial, like the one we offer at BetterFamily that includes 18 vitamins and minerals that most everyone needs more of in their lives. 

But what people want to know is if these subscription boxes are worth the money and the trouble - do they really live up to the hype? While the liquid multivitamin from BetterFamily can benefit parents, teens, and children, people are curious about those personalized boxes that seem to have taken over the internet. 

Benefits of A Personalized Vitamin Subscription

One major benefit of a personalized vitamin subscription is the fact that the supplements included in these packs are typically much more potent than what you can find on a shelf at the grocery store (1). Those traditional multivitamins typically contain doses that are too low to do much good, but what comes in a personalized pack is usually a full vitamin that takes advantage of the entire capsule, providing your body with the nutrients that it promised. 

These personalized vitamin packs also get rid of the ingredients that you don’t need. The problem with many generic multivitamins is that they contain all types of vitamins and minerals, but there might be some ingredients that don’t pertain to your needs. Personalized vitamins are tailored to you and give you a higher dose of what your body can actually use. 

There are more benefits to vitamin subscription boxes - for example, the fact that the risk for interactions or duplications of ingredients is lowered because you’re getting all of your supplements from the same place. If you’re curating your vitamin routine yourself, you could be in danger of ingesting ingredients that don’t bode well with each other, but the personalized vitamin packs are most often put together by dietitians and nutritionists who understand how different ingredients interact. 

If you develop a sensitivity to a certain ingredient within your vitamin pack, you don’t have to worry about stopping your vitamin routine entirely. Instead, you can just stop taking that one pill and alert the company - then, they can help you amend your routine around the sensitivity. 

Since dietitians and nutritionists have done the research for you, you can trust their expertise when it comes to knowing what vitamins to pair for the most efficient absorption. For example, pairing vitamin C with iron will enhance the absorption rate of both. 

Are Vitamin Subscriptions Better Than Store-Bought?

By customizing your vitamin routine to something that fits your needs perfectly, you are more likely to be successful in filling the gaps in your diet - whether they’re caused by not eating balanced nutrition or by a certain deficiency. 

Personalized vitamin packs take into account information about your specific needs, while store-bought vitamins do not. The more information that a service knows about who you are and what you need, the better quality product they’ll be able to offer. This information helps dial in on the precise nutritional needs that you may have, rather than casting a wide net with a general, store-bought vitamin that might not even do what it promises. 

If you’re looking for enhanced nutrition in your life, eating a well-rounded and balanced diet is a good place to start. But if there are nutrients you can’t get from food that your body is lacking, taking up a personalized vitamin routine is a good place to start. The service may not be perfect yet, but as the science continues to evolve, the industry improves every day. 

Are Vitamin Subscription Boxes as Customized as They Say?

It can be hard to trust that a website’s algorithm actually knows what vitamins are best for you and how much you should take. The truth is that it’s possible for these websites to make statements based on a person’s sex, age, and lifestyle, but those variables aren’t constant. 

This means that a personalized vitamin regimen that’s right for you currently probably won’t be right for you in ten years. It’s impossible to have a ‘forever vitamin’ throughout your entire life, but it is possible to have something that works for you in the here and now. 

And even though people who eat the most balanced diets can have nutritional gaps, remember that the baseline for a healthy lifestyle starts with eating your vegetables. 

Resources

1. Capritto, Amanda. "Personalized multivitamins: Worth it or no better than store-bought?" CNET, 16 Mar. 2021, www.cnet.com/health/nutrition/are-personalized-vitamins-better-than-generic-vitamins/.