The Best Time to Take Vitamins – Health Essentials from Cleveland Clinic

Taking vitamins can be a great way to support your nutritional needs but there is a right way to do it.

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When people dont take vitamins the proper way, they dont see improvement, says family medicine doctor Rodolfo Perez-Gallardo, MD. Your body cant fully absorb vitamins unless you know the best time to take them.

Dr. Perez-Gallardo says its less about time of day and more about syncing the habit with your eating and drinking schedule. He explains how.

Vitamin C and vitamin B12 are water-soluble vitamins, which means you need water to absorb them. Take water-soluble vitamins on an empty stomach with a glass of water, recommends Dr. Perez-Gallardo.

And since it can be energizing, Dr. Perez-Gallardo says that the best time to take vitamin B12 is in the morning, so it wont affect your sleep.

Fat-soluble vitamins require fat for your body to absorb them. They include:

For maximum absorption, the best time to take vitamin D and other fat-soluble vitamins is after youve eaten foods that contain fat. And you dont need much: Dr. Perez-Gallardo says even small amounts of low- or whole-fat milk or yogurt will do the trick. So will eating food cooked with oil.

Multivitamins can be trickier: They often contain both water- and fat-soluble vitamins. The best time to take a multivitamin is with food so any fat can help with absorption. You can also drink a water-based beverage to wash it all down, notes Dr. Perez-Gallardo. But the drawback is that your body wont absorb the water-soluble vitamins as well as fat-soluble ones.

The reverse is true when you take a multivitamin on an empty stomach with water your body cant properly absorb the fat-soluble vitamins. You could also end up with an upset stomach. So for full absorption, Dr. Perez-Gallardo recommends taking water- and fat-soluble vitamins separately.

While they are important throughout pregnancy, the best time to start taking prenatal vitamins is before youre pregnant when youre planning to conceive, says Dr. Perez-Gallardo.

And while youre at it, also take 400 micrograms of folic acid daily three months before you plan to get pregnant. Folic acid is essential for the development of your babys neural tube. Not having enough can lead to neural tube defects, he says.

Many people consider calcium to be a vitamin, but its actually a mineral. So, youll want to be careful and not overdo it with calcium. Most people can get a sufficient amount of it from food. But if youre not eating enough calcium-rich foods or youre postmenopausal, Dr. Perez-Gallardo says youll need to take calcium the right way to decrease bone loss and osteoporosis.

Calcium supplements come in two forms: calcium carbonate and calcium citrate. The best time to take calcium depends on the kind you take, explains Dr. Perez-Gallardo.

Before you start a daily vitamin habit, Dr. Perez-Gallardo emphasizes that not everyone needs them. If you eat a nutritious, balanced diet, you do not need these supplements. The best source of vitamins and minerals is a plate that is one-quarter fruits, one-quarter vegetables, one-quarter protein, such as fish and poultry, and the other quarter grains.

If you cant eat this way at least one meal a day, you may benefit from taking vitamins. Doctors may also recommend taking vitamins if you:

But talk to your healthcare provider first, says Dr. Perez-Gallardo. Your provider can check your levels to see if and where you are deficient, then get you what you need.

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The Best Time to Take Vitamins - Health Essentials from Cleveland Clinic