Can You Take Vitamins While Fasting? How to Do It the Right Way?

With any type of diet, you take the risk of nutritional deficiencies if you are not eating properly.

If you are practicing intermittent fasting to improve your health, vitamin supplementation is a key part of achieving this.

There is a right way to include them in your diet without interfering with fasting. Learn the tips that the Health Reporter team has gathered for you here!

What to avoid while fasting?

Multi-vitamins are less recommended because they contain more ingredients, and the dosage of each vitamin is low. Choose supplements that contain vitamins and minerals separately so that you can consume 100% of your daily requirement. 

During the eating window, consume various foods such as nuts, vegetables, fruits, and seeds. These foods provide water and fat-soluble vitamins. 

Fat-soluble vitamins are stored in the body and can remain in your liver and body fat stores longer. Meanwhile, water-soluble vitamins are quickly diluted in body water and the body flushes out what it doesn’t need. This is why it is important to consume them daily. 

Fasting is the reduction of caloric intake to achieve a state of autophagy in which the body can use its reserves. Thanks to this, the body purifies toxins and allows the loss of body fat.

Does Magnesium Break a Fast?

Magnesium is a non-caloric mineral that is essential to maintain muscle and nerve function. It is not able to break the fast, and in fact, it is one of the most recommended supplements to accompany this type of diet.  

Including it during fasting will keep your immune system healthy and will enhance the anti-aging effects of autophagy that occurs during caloric restriction. This mineral is also beneficial for weight loss.

In addition, if you are following an exercise routine, magnesium supplementation will prevent cramps and will allow the development of muscle mass. 

Do Probiotics Break a Fast?

Food is one of the most important elements that favor or worsen gut flora. When we modify our eating patterns, it is possible for our flora to change.  

During the fasting period, it is important to take care of our intestinal health as this is a key point to allow the body to detoxify.

Supplements containing different probiotic colonies do not contain calories; therefore, they are not able to break the fast.

Due to the wide variety of supplements on the market, we always recommend checking labels to make sure they do not contain ingredients that can sabotage your progress.

Do Gummy Vitamins Break a Fast? 

Of all the supplements on the market, we believe that the gummy presentation is the least convenient. Not only because their sugar content can break the fast, but also because some brands contain dyes and other harmful ingredients.

Vitamins in their gummy version have a great appeal; they are preferred by those who find it hard to swallow pills and want a supplement they can chew. But, to make it chewable, they add ingredients to improve the taste. We end up consuming much more than just a low dose of vitamins. 

Beyond the vitamins in pretty presentations, we must be attentive to consume the right doses accompanied with the right foods. Vitamin D, A, E, and K are fat-soluble, so it is better to eat them together with fat-containing foods.

Water-soluble vitamins can be taken with an empty stomach at any time of the day. These vitamins are vitamin C and B complex vitamins.

Conclusion

Whether on an empty stomach during fasting hours or accompanying your meals, taking your vitamins and minerals is essential.  

There is an abundance of intermittent fasting supplements on the market that promise significant benefits. Don’t fall into the trap of a pretty presentation. Turn the bottle and read the nutritional label – there is all the information you need.

Avoid supplements that contain sugar, and remember that there are many other names you should avoid as they are also sugar. Say no to supplements that contain maltodextrin, cane sugar, fruit juice, corn syrup, and brown sugar.

Proper supplementation will help you achieve the health benefits you are looking for when implementing fasting as part of your lifestyle change. In addition, a healthy body fueled with nutrient-dense foods will allow you to lose weight faster than you expect.