Hello friends, welcome back to my blog.
When was the last time you looked at your medicine cabinets? Just in the past week, my wife and I got a cold. We looked for some cough and cold medication and vitamins to increase our immune system. To my surprise, I found multiple brands of Vitamin C, a few expired meds (eye drops, prescription meds, ointment, just to name a few), so many kinds of cough drops… The one thing that we looked for (Emergen-C) wasn’t there. I realize that we overbought vitamins and did not track our inventory correctly.
Dietary supplements are a great way to increase your nutritional intake and support your immune system. You are likely taking multiple supplements to help maintain various aspects of your health.
In the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, industry leaders report that millions of Americans took multivitamins, vitamin C, and other supplements.
Here are five tips to save money on over-the-counter vitamins without sacrificing quality to help you maintain this healthy habit.
1. Consult your doctor about your needs
Having a list at the grocery store makes it easier to resist the temptation of impulse purchases and avoid purchasing items you don’t need or won’t use. In the same way, shopping for supplements can be costly when you don’t have a plan. Ask your physician about what your body needs before buying vitamins and supplements.
If you’re planning on taking vitamins, it’s always a good idea to consult with a qualified healthcare professional. It is recommended to get your blood test done every year at your annual health visit. The Complete Blood Count (CBC) and Basal Metabolic Panel (BMP) can be a foundation for advising on which supplements and vitamins are best suited to your needs.
It is a waste of money to buy supplements you don’t need, but it can also be detrimental to your health.
2. Purchase in bulk
If you decide you want to take certain supplements regularly, you should buy them in bulk. When purchasing 200 tablets compared to 100, you may often find that you can get discounts of up to 50%.
Costco is an excellent place to purchase Vitamins and supplements. For instance, Centrum Silver Adults 50+ is $19.99 for 395 counts at Costco versus $20.99 for only 200 counts at Walgreens. There are tons of daily deals to choose from, plus excellent customer service and return policy as a member.
3. Get Organized
If you don’t know what vitamins or medication you have on your shelves, you will continue to purchase extra. A pill organizer is a great way to let you know what to take daily if you have difficulties.
Another way is to keep a list of what medication you are taking. Keeping a med list is very helpful, especially when you go to the hospital and the doctor wants to know what you take at home. Hospital medical staff often face challenges when obtaining and reconciling patient home medication. While you are in the hospital bed, we must contact your local pharmacy, family members, or even your primary care physicians to get your medication history. A medication list comes in very handy.
- Save money by using coupons
Although supermarket deals that offer cents off can always be beneficial, you can often find much better prices by shopping directly with the manufacturer of the vitamins you prefer.
But how do you know which vitamin brands or products are trusted? Dr. Yeung, pharmacist and herbalist, suggested that a good way to ensure a dietary supplement is of high quality and not contaminated or adulterated with other materials is to purchase products with labels indicating they have been tested by either the independent, nonprofit US Pharmacopoeial (USP) Convention Dietary Supplement Verification Program or ConsumerLab.com
Additionally, you can choose how soon you would like your next shipment to arrive. By signing up for a subscription service, subscribers can save money and avoid running out of their favorite supplements. My wife testified that hair, skin, and nail vitamins from Halo Beauty work well for her. She notices differences in her skin and nails if she is off the product, so she decided to sign up for a monthly subscription.
5. Maintain a healthy lifestyle
Vitamins or supplements cannot replace a healthy lifestyle. Prevention is the best and cheapest medicine through proper nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle changes.
Discuss what changes you can make to your diet and habits with your doctor if you think your health could be improved. A little bit of prevention can save you quite a bit of money, as they say!
Conclusion
Taking vitamin supplements are an easy way to improve your health. Be sure your diet contains a wide range of essential vitamins and minerals if you cannot budget for supplements or choose not to take them.
Even though vitamins can be costly initially, you will save money over time. The use of vitamins and minerals that are essential will help you become healthier and save you the expense of long-term health care.
