Before you panic at the picture on the left, I promise you there will be no chemistry lesson here! Breathe... Ok.
So there you are in the supermarket looking at two bottles of vitamins. Both have the same amount of B12, folate, or Vitamin D. Why is one so much more expensive than the other? One reason (among many) could be the form of the vitamin that you’re getting. Let's just look at a few examples.
B12: methylcobalamin vs. cyanocobalamin. Cyano, as in cyanide, is one of the breakdown products when you take the cyanocobalamin form of B12. (although toxicity is unlikely). But it's so much cheaper to make the cyano form, which is what most B12s on the shelf will be. But if possible, get the methylcobalamin form of B12. As a general rule, methyl-forms of vitamins are always better for the body.
B9: L-methyl folate vs. folic acid. What did I just say about methylated vitamins? Up to 50% of the population have some difficulty converting folic acid to the active form that your body can use simply due to their genetics (If you’re interested: it’s called a SNP- single nucleotide polymorphism named MTHFR). Of course, this info on folate is of note if you're pregnant or know someone that is, since they're probably taking a prenatal vitamin with folic acid.
Vitamin D : D3 over D2. Remember what I said when I featured Vitamin D? Click HERE for a reminder.
Vitamin K: K2 vs. K1 vs. K3. K2 has been the form shown to be helpful in bone health, and the form that prevents of calcification of arteries. K3 has been shown to be toxic at higher doses, so I wouldn't recommend that form. K1 is the form that you get from plants, which is fine, but is not the form you’re looking for if you’re wanting the bone-building benefits.
I could go on, but I think my point is made: Vitamin ___ on two bottles may be entirely different entities. Truly, there’s more than meets the eye when comparing vitamins.
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