The Busy Girl’s Guide to Vitamins and Nutrition

Thanks to iHerb for sponsoring this post

You know, I had every intention of having a kale salad for lunch and salmon for dinner. But then real life sets in and lunch turns into a coffee with donut, and after a long day of back-to-back meetings all I want to do is curl up on the couch and order pizza. I do my best to eat a balanced diet on most days, but the truth is I probably don’t get there about half the time. And if you’re a busy young working professional, modern woman, juggling family, a social life and more, you’re probably in the same boat. So to supplement your what you eat, taking the right supplements will provide your body the vitamins and minerals it needs on those days when an afternoon ice cream cone sounds better than a bowl of fruit.

Today I’ve taken the liberty of rounding up some of the best vitamins I think young women should be taking. These are simply suggestions, and you might only need to add one or two to your diet depending on what foods you already eat. Eating healthy right is always the most ideal situation, but the truth is we all get busy. And when you have those off days, this list will help boost your body’s nutritional intake. So I’ve teamed up with iHerb to bring you the busy girl’s guide to vitamins and nutrition…

Let’s start with the basics. These are the 12 vitamins considered essential for proper body function. These are nutrients needed to help your body carry out the daily metabolic processes necessary for life. They help your cells make energy and support your muscles and bones so getting enough of them is very important.

• Vitamin A  – supports vision, your immune system, and your cells
• Vitamin C – helps the body form and maintain connective tissue, including bones, blood vessels, and skin
• Vitamin D  – helps your bones absorb calcium and phosphorus, and promotes bone growth
• Vitamin E  – destroys free radicals, helps prevent against heart disease –
• Vitamin K (helps keep you from bleeding too much)
• Vitamins B1, B2, B3, B5, B6, B12 and folic acid – in short, these will provide your body with the energy it needs to thrive, everything from healthy skin to memory, these are powerful!

What about minerals? Minerals are important too, just like vitamins, minerals help your body grow, develop, and stay healthy. The body uses minerals to perform many different functions — from building strong bones to transmitting nerve impulses. Some minerals are even used to make hormones or maintain a normal heartbeat. Here are the ones that you should be including in your daily intake.

• Calcium – supports your bones and vitamin absorption
• Chromium – important for metabolism and synthesis of cholesterol, fats, and proteins
• Copper – helps the body form collagen and absorb iron, and plays a role in energy production
• Iodine – supports proper thyroid function
• Iron  – carries oxygen to your blood cells
• Magnesium – detoxifies, regulates temperature, increases energy, can soothe nerves
• Manganese – supports healthy bone structure and tissues
• Zinc – immune boosting and helps with fighting off bacteria and infections
• Phosphorous – works with calcium to help build bones and is an important part of cell structure
• Molybdenum – detoxifies and vital for many processes in your body.

Gosh, all this sounds like a lot though right? You’re probably wondering how on earth you’re going to eat all of these. But lucky for you a good women’s multi-vitamin for should contain all of these. If you’re going to choose one vitamin to take, it should be a multi-vitamin that is made for women. A good multi-vitamin will give you a daily dose of all the things you should be eating in your diet…and more! One of my favorite multivitamins is the Nature’s Way, Alive! Women’s Vitamins, it contains all the vitamins and minerals required, plus I love how it comes in gummy form which makes it delicious to eat as well.

In addition to the essential vitamins and minerals, these are other supplements I also like to include in my diet. They help with overall health and have many additional benefits as well.

Biotin

Biotin is a popular supplement and often known as the hair, skin and nails vitamin. But in addition to those functions, Biotin plays a key role in the body, supporting the health of the nerves, digestive tract, metabolism, and cells. My pick:
Nature’s Way, Biotin

Fish Oil

Fish oil contains Omega 3 fatty acids, which are essential nutrients that are important in preventing and managing heart disease. They are also a supplement that is fabulous for healthy hair, skin and nails, and will support your heart and blood systems. The long list of fish oil benefits also includes helping with depression, preventing painful periods, and lowering cholesterol. My pick: Nature’s Way, Super Fisol

Probiotic

Taking a great probiotic supplement is an amazing way to maintain intestinal functions and keep your gut and stomach healthy. Probiotics are live organisms that are considered “good” bacteria, or bacteria that strengthen the immune system and help us to digest food. My pick: Nature’s Way, Primadophilus Probiotic Gummies

Greens

And don’t forget your greens! Phytonutrients like Chlorella, spiraling, spinach, and wheatgrass help keep your body alkaline, support your immune system, and help detoxify your system.

Nutritional Shake

Since we all get so busy, we all end up missing a meal or two, so I like to have a nutritional shake supplement around the home just for those occasions. Whenever, you’re on the go, or just short on time, they are easy to make by just adding some almond milk or water and they provide you all your nutritional goals in a easy and fast way to get your calories. My pick: Nature’s Way, Alive! Ultra-Shake

About iHerb

iHerb is one of the best places to shop for vitamins and health supplements online. They carry all kinds of natural products from vitamins and supplements to natural beauty products and even healthy natural snacks as well. I also love that they honest and real customer product reviews, that are written by their customers who have ordered their products, helping you make a smarter decision when it comes to buying their products.

My shopping experience with them was easy and simple. I love how iHerb had everything I need in one place and carried over 400 of the Nature’s Way products. They ship to over 150 countries and it was great that they offer free shipping to Canada as well! And if you have any questions, their customer service team also provides support in 10 languages. I’d highly recommend it for your next health and wellness purchase.

Try iHerb out for yourself!
New and Existing Customers can get a discount off their iHerb order with no minimum purchase by clicking here!

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XOXO,