Vitamin tablets- Aldi/Lidl or more expensive brand?

dinneenp

Hi,
I've ran out of my Omega Fish oil capsules.
I was looking to get a new lot. You can get them in Aldi/Lidi very cheaply or in other stores at about 5 or 10 times the cost.

If the strength is the same are they the exact thing/is there any point in buying the more expensive brand?

Same question applies for vitamin tablets in general- cod liver oil, vitaimn D etc.

Cheers,
Pa.

curry_person

generally speaking more you pay for supplements the better quality and strength, the ones in tesco and aldi's are high in fillers etc and extremely low amount of vitamins etc only 100% of RDA usually or less.
Id suggest paying a bit more and getting a product which you will see a difference on such as Solgar multi-vitamins which are amazing, very easy to absorb and high in vitamins and minerals

ebixa82

curry_person wrote: »

generally speaking more you pay for supplements the better quality and strength, the ones in tesco and aldi's are high in fillers etc and extremely low amount of vitamins etc only 100% of RDA usually or less.
Id suggest paying a bit more and getting a product which you will see a difference on such as Solgar multi-vitamins which are amazing, very easy to absorb and high in vitamins and minerals

"Very easy to absorb"???

What do you mean by that.

How do you quantify the absorbability of a vitamin?

curry_person

vitamins and minerals are produced from many sources, some being easy to absorb and some not so much. i know with solgar products they have being longest in industry and have spent so much to ensure easy action of products, even if you leave in glass of water you find it will break down easily unlike many products. its why i often choice that brand.

Sangre

curry_person wrote: »

vitamins and minerals are produced from many sources, some being easy to absorb and some not so much. i know with solgar products they have being longest in industry and have spent so much to ensure easy action of products, even if you leave in glass of water you find it will break down easily unlike many products. its why i often choice that brand.

Your stomach isn't filled with water , its filled with an extremely powerful acid. Your stomach will make short work of any tablet.

Don't presume a more expensive brand is better unless there is evidence to that effect.

Ziphius

curry_person wrote: »

... only 100% of RDA usually or less.

Why would you need more than 100% of the recommended daily allowance?

Unless you're suffering from a vitamin deficiency no one needs to take daily vitamin supplements.

I'd recommend going with the discount brand OP. If you really feel that you're missing out why not just buy two cheap vitamins and take twice the dose?

monkeysnapper

Ziphius wrote: »

Why would you need more than 100% of the recommended daily allowance?

Unless you're suffering from a vitamin deficiency no one needs to take daily vitamin supplements.

I'd recommend going with the discount brand OP. If you really feel that you're missing out why not just buy two cheap vitamins and take twice the dose?

Your recommending taking a overdose then.?

Chancer3001

Unless you're suffering from a vitamin deficiency no one needs to take daily vitamin supplements



Why do you say this?

I take extra vitamins. The RDA is basically the amount you need not to be deficient and end up with scurvy and rickets! The more active you are the more vitamins you need for bodily functions.

The rda for vitamin Bs is about 10mg, some bodybuilders (including one from the bodybuilding hall of fame I watched his video recently) suggests getting 200mg per day if youre actively weight training.

Chancer3001

an "overdose" and taking more than the rda are two very different things

Ziphius

monkeysnapper wrote: »

Your recommending taking a overdose then.?

Nope, I was being a touch sarcastic. Many vitamin tablets already contain more than the RDA -- the vitamin C tablets I have beside me have 167% RDA! Most people don't need to take vitamin supplements at all, they get enough from their diet.

I think you'd need to take a huge over dose to experience any negative effects. Most excess vitamins will simply leave the body through the urine. Vitamin C, for example, cannot be stored in the human body.

I doubt taking vitamin supplements will cause you any harm, though it probably won't do much good. Personally, I think it's a waste of money.

Chancer3001

ziphius, if you get the time watch this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLjgBLwH3Wc

Shows the importance of vitamins and minerals in a "one womans story" kind of way.

Ziphius

Chancer3001 wrote: »

ziphius, if you get the time watch this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLjgBLwH3Wc

Shows the importance of vitamins and minerals in a "one womans story" kind of way.

Thanks, I'll take a look. Don't get me wrong I'm not saying that vitamins aren't necessary for human health just that supplements aren't needed for most healthy people. The question in the OP was if brand name supplements are superior discount own-brands and warrant the premium tag. My one word answer is "no".

Chancer3001

Mine is also no.

I buy tesco vitamins.

byhookorbycrook

The fact that so many of our vegetables are no longer farm fresh means that the vitamin content can be reduced hugely.

Ziphius

Chancer3001 wrote: »

ziphius, if you get the time watch this.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLjgBLwH3Wc

Shows the importance of vitamins and minerals in a "one womans story" kind of way.

An interesting video. I'm glad it illustrates the benefits of a healthy well balanced diet rather than some quick and easy fad. Did the change in diet cure her MS? Maybe, maybe not. We can't say for certain.

Chancer3001

been a while since I watched it, but basically changing her diet was all she did differently.

Ziphius

Chancer3001 wrote: »

been a while since I watched it, but basically changing her diet was all she did differently.

Well she was taking medical treatment.

Ziphius

byhookorbycrook wrote: »

The fact that so many of our vegetables are no longer farm fresh means that the vitamin content can be reduced hugely.

Well I guess if I'm to be fair, removing fruit and vegetables entirely from your diet and replacing them with vitamin supplements would be the most economical solution.

Chancer3001

been a while since ive watched it.

whirlpool

Referring to vitamin tablets of the same/similar strength, why is there such a difference in price between store-brand vitamins and branded vitamins, if the branded ones are no more effective than the store-brand ones?

implausible

whirlpool wrote: »

Referring to vitamin tablets of the same/similar strength, why is there such a difference in price between store-brand vitamins and branded vitamins, if the branded ones are no more effective than the store-brand ones?

Sure you could say the same about any product! It's effective marketing.

cgarrad

Huge difference in the quality of vitamins. Just like cheap food is bad for you so are cheap vitamins.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/nutricon/qa.cfm

TheChizler

cgarrad wrote: »

Huge difference in the quality of vitamins. Just like cheap food is bad for you so are cheap vitamins.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/nutricon/qa.cfm

But vitamins have a defined molecular makeup, the only difference will be the strength and possibly fillers involved.

whirlpool

Regardless of fillers, lets say the listed amount of active ingredients are the same. There is often a huge price difference between, say, Lidl brand and, say, Sona brand for example.

ebixa82

whirlpool wrote: »

Regardless of fillers, lets say the listed amount of active ingredients are the same. There is often a huge price difference between, say, Lidl brand and, say, Sona brand for example.

There's a huge price difference between loads of Lidl products vs Branded products even thou Lidl are miles better in terms of taste and quality.

It boils down to peoples' ignorance, lack of knowledge and level of brain washing.

whirlpool

ebixa82 wrote: »

There's a huge price difference between loads of Lidl products vs Branded products even thou Lidl are miles better in terms of taste and quality.

It boils down to peoples' ignorance, lack of knowledge and level of brain washing.

It's a lot more difficult for us as regular consumers to test the difference in quality of vitamins, though, compared with other products such as food and cleaning products, with which the difference in quality between brands is glaringly obvious.

Ziphius

To point out that a that a brand name will charge a premium for its own goods seems tediously glib at this stage.That people are happy to be fleeced by the high price brand name is there own prerogative. Compare the packets next time you're shopping (the make-up is on the package). It's the same chemical. Whatever makes you happy.

whirlpool

Ziphius wrote: »

To point out that a that a brand name will charge a premium for its own goods seems tediously glib at this stage.That people are happy to be fleeced by the high price brand name is there own prerogative. Compare the packets next time you're shopping (the make ip is on th package). It's the same chemical. Whatever makes you happy.

The price differences are colossal between Lidl/Aldi vitamins and branded "equivalents." Yes, we all know that branded products are more expensive. However, in the case of vitamins the price differences are abnormally large (that is why this thread exists) and for that reason I think it's a highly justified query.

You don't see similar threads about other types of products in other forums, do you? No.

Ziphius

whirlpool wrote: »

The prices difference are colossal between Lidl/Aldi vitamins and branded "equivalents." Yes, we all know that branded products are more expensive. However, in the case of vitamins the price differences are abnormally large. That is why this thread exists. And I think it's a highly justified query.

I've no idea what the prices are. Do they diverge from the regular price differnce of Aldi/Lidl products from the mainstream. IMHO anyone paying over €2 for a packet of vitamins is being ripped off.

Ziphius

cgarrad wrote: »

Huge difference in the quality of vitamins. Just like cheap food is bad for you so are cheap vitamins.

http://www.organicconsumers.org/nutricon/qa.cfm

This's nonsense.

ebixa82

whirlpool wrote: »

It's a lot more difficult for us as regular consumers to test the difference in quality of vitamins, though, compared with other products such as food and cleaning products, with which the difference in quality between brands is glaringly obvious.

I think this is the crux of your problem.

You seem to think that there is a major difference in quality in favour of branded products. However the opposite is usually the case.

Aldi/Lidl are not only cheaper but very often (not always) of a far superior quality.

There is no reason why vitamins should be expensive apart from big brands such as Sona, Seven Seas etc. taking the piss and charging exorbitant prices having fooled people like yourselves into believing the prices are justified.

ViveLaVie

I thought the price difference was due to the fact that the Lidl vitamins are synthetic and therefore not as good i.e. it is harder for the body to absorb synthetic vitamins?

Ziphius

ViveLaVie wrote: »

I thought the price difference was due to the fact that the Lidl vitamins are synthetic and therefore not as good i.e. it is harder for the body to absorb synthetic vitamins?

A vitamin is a vitamin. Whether it was synthesized by in a factory by a human or in cell via some natural biochemical process is irrelevant. It's the same compound.

What is the provenance of the premium brand vitamins? Polar bear livers?

TheChizler

Ziphius wrote: »

What is the provenance of the premium brand vitamins? Polar bear livers?

A liver a day for your vitamin A! Seriously though, it'll kill you.

hardCopy

whirlpool wrote: »

Ziphius wrote: »

To point out that a that a brand name will charge a premium for its own goods seems tediously glib at this stage.That people are happy to be fleeced by the high price brand name is there own prerogative. Compare the packets next time you're shopping (the make ip is on th package). It's the same chemical. Whatever makes you happy.

The price differences are colossal between Lidl/Aldi vitamins and branded "equivalents." Yes, we all know that branded products are more expensive. However, in the case of vitamins the price differences are abnormally large (that is why this thread exists) and for that reason I think it's a highly justified query.

You don't see similar threads about other types of products in other forums, do you? No.

You've just pointed it why this thread is completely pointless. There is no justification for those prices, as long as The nutritional info on both are equivalent.

Anything medical tends to have a huge premium on branded product.

Look at Nurofen vs Buplex.

However, in some cases, the premium brand pills are much smaller, which is a deal breaker for some people.

hudhastings

Regarding lidl or Aldi omega 3s only have certain amount epa/dha . There dirt cheap though or they have ones in dunnes 8 euro for 150 ... 120/120 epa/dha.

Good quality costs a fortune for 250/320 epa/dha. Or get them on bulk powders high quality omega 3s.

What I do is buy good quality one cheap on bulk powders and buy cheap one in Aldi and take 3 cheap ones and one good one.

Beats forking out like 30/40e a month.

Another thing you buy in Aldi is magnesium. Be careful magnesium oxide is much. And it's not good for stomach. Only buy the other magnesium saturate

Magnesium oxide only 4%can be absorbed.