Do Gummy Vitamins Really Work?

Health Benefits of Gummy Vitamins

Gummy supplements taste better and are easier to swallow than regular vitamins. So, more people are choosing them for their daily vitamin needs.

Gummy supplements may have less nutrition than traditional vitamins. They usually contain fewer vitamins and minerals per gummy than old-school pills. But, they are a more proactive way to take supplements. Gummy vitamins are a good option for children and the elderly, who may have difficulty taking vitamins through food or who have a restricted diet.

Gummy supplements are, to some extent, gentler on the stomach. They lack the binders in traditional tablets.

People prefer to take gummy supplements in their diet as compared to traditional capsules and pills for the following reasons;

• Provide nutritional support
• Liked by kids & old people
• Easy to digest by the stomach

1. Provide nutritional support

Different vitamins have different effects on the human body. B vitamins are involved in energy metabolism, vitamins C and D help fight infection, and vitamin A helps with vision and skin health.

If you don’t get enough vitamins, your body may have health problems, such as fatigue and bleeding gums. Therefore, adequate vitamin intake is very important for maintaining overall health and preventing diseases.

Most people eat a balanced diet of meat, vegetables, and fruits, so they don’t need supplements. In contrast, some people don’t eat enough, or their bodies have a disease. So, they need a boost, which can be provided by pills/gummy supplements – the category of people who fall in this category are;

• Old people
• Sick people
• Alcohol addicts
• Pregnant women
• Vegans/Vegetarians
• Who doesn’t eat enough fruit or vegetables

2. Easy to digest by the stomach

Dietary pills and capsules contain binding agents that strain the stomach and may cause nausea and pain. In contrast, gummy supplements have a soft and chewy texture, and as a result, they can easily be broken down compared to traditional capsules or pills.

Moreover, they are gelatin-based pills ( which are proteins derived from animal collagen ), which plays a crucial role in making these supplements digestible for the following reasons;

• It contains glutamic acid, which the body uses to make glutamine. This compound helps promote healthy mucosal lining, making these supplements easily digestible.
• Gelatin, being hydrophilic in nature, holds water, which softens the pills. They easily pass through the digestive tract and are thus considered best for people suffering from constipation.

3. Liked by Kids & old people

In this era, kids are picky about eating and may not eat different fruits, vegetables, and cereals. All of this is essential for a balanced diet at a young age. In addition, kids don’t like pills or liquid supplements because of their bad taste and smell.

According to a research report, most kids’ diets lack calcium and iron, crucial nutrients for a healthy life. For example;

• Iron is primarily present in beans, spinach, beef, and other foods. It is necessary to build muscles and produce red blood cells.
• Similarly, calcium is found in milk, dairy products, etc.; lacking it may cause muscle cramping, weak bones, fatigue, dry, scaly skin, etc.

Fortunately, Gummy supplements are like candies, available in various fruity flavors, shapes, and colors. Kids chew them with fun, filling their nutrient deficiencies. Similarly, old people can’t digest pills due to their foul smell, sour taste, and complex effects on the stomach. So, gummy supplements may be the best option for them.

Moreover, you should only take these supplements after consulting a professional healthcare provider. Cheap ones may contain a lot of sugars, artificial colours, etc., and their long-term use may harm health.

Taking Gummy Vitamins Has Potential Risks

The American Heart Association says, women should limit sugar to 25 grams per day. Men should limit it to 36 grams. Although gummy vitamins are delicious and easy to take, they are usually high in sugar, and each serving may contain 2 to 8 grams of sugar. As you can imagine, this will take up a lot of the recommended daily sugar intake. Excessive sugar intake may lead to health problems such as obesity, type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

Even if sugar alcohols are used as a substitute, it may cause digestive problems such as bloating and diarrhea.

In order to improve the taste and appearance, artificial colors and flavors are often added to gummy vitamins. The taste is delicious, but it masks the true taste of nutrients, and their nutritional content may weaken over time.

Gummy vitamins taste like candy, which is easy for children and people who like sweets to overdose, so it is still necessary to control the intake carefully.

And when sugar is taken in high amounts, it may lead to health damage. So some of the significant harmful effects of gummy supplements are discussed below:

1. High Sugar content
2. Overeating
3. Problems associated with added dyes and flavors

1. High Sugar content

To mask the taste of vitamins & minerals, some brands add more sugar to gummy supplements to sweeten their taste. But it may lead to serious health issues like;

• Obesity
• Tooth loss
• Depression
• Heart disease
• Liver diseases
• Type II diabetes
• High blood pressure

2. Easy to Overdose

“Because of their sweet fruity taste, they are easy to eat, and most people, especially kids, use them as candies, consuming them all day, which results in overdosing.”

As we know, excessiveness in everything is terrible and ultimately leads to drastic effects.

Similarly, these supplements contain zinc, magnesium, and manganese. So, if you take them in excessive amounts, they may become toxic to the body, causing problems like loss of appetite, headache, weakness, gastrointestinal discomfort, and cardiovascular problems.

Moreover, fat-soluble vitamins like A, D, E, and K also build up in the body, which may affect different body systems.

For example, overconsumption of vitamin E causes bleeding. Similarly, high levels of vitamin D lead to hypercalcemia, which causes muscle weakness and cramping.

3. Harmful effects of added dyes and flavors

Some companies and brands may add artificial food color and flavoring agents to make their products more pleasing and tasteful.

However, these agents may also lead to serious health issues. For example, artificial food dyes contain sodium benzoate, which forms benzene when mixed with ascorbic acid ( vitamin C).

This benzene can cause stomach irritation, vomiting, dizziness, convulsions, etc.

Similarly, eating supplements containing artificial flavours activates the taste receptors.

As a result, our brain releases dopamine, and we feel a craving for them again and again, and their overeating is alarming for our health.

For example, if you are craving oranges but take orange slush ( artificial flavour), your mind feels satisfied, but your body still needs vitamin C.

Similarly, eating supplements containing artificial flavours activates the taste receptors; as a result, our brain releases dopamine, and we repeatedly crave them, and their overeating is alarming for our health.

For example, if you are craving oranges but take orange slush ( artificial flavour), your mind feels satisfied, but your body still needs vitamin C.