If 2025 is the year that you’ve made the personal commitment to get more serious about your health, you might want to consider taking a few vitamin supplements. The reason why I say that is because there is plenty of data to support that close to 50 percent of the population has some sort of nutritional deficiency and that can lead to all sorts of health-related issues if you’re not careful. That’s actually why supplements exist: to compensate for where we may not be getting all of the vitamins and minerals that our system needs in order to function at an optimal level.
Okay, but what if you’re someone who, for whatever the reason, can’t stand traditional vitamins? Maybe they’re too hard to swallow. Maybe they taste nasty. Maybe you’ve never really seen how they can truly benefit you. Well, for the first two issues, in just a moment, you’re going to see why gummy vitamins might be the best alternative for you. As for the last point, as I get into some of the benefits of taking gummy supplements, you may see why taking vitamins can be a really good practice overall.
Gummy vitamins have been all the rage for a few years now. If you’re wondering if they’re more hype than anything else, please read on.
Why You Should Feel Good About Enjoying Gummy Vitamins
Photo by Maria Kozyr on UnsplashEven though I don’t have a problem with swallowing vitamins, I must say that about half of the supplements that I take are gummies at this point. I mean, let’s not act like they’re not sweeter, easier to consume, and, all around more fun (I mean, if vitamin taking can be considered an enjoyable activity).
And so yeah, when it comes to the top reason why you shouldn’t think twice — or feel bad — about taking the gummies route for your supplemental health, it’s because gummies make it easier to take vitamins in the first place. Thankfully, there are other reasons, though.
- Depending on the brand (more on that in a bit), vitamin gummies have basically the same nutritional value as traditional vitamins
- Your system is able to process/digest them more easily than traditional vitamins
- They’re super convenient (because you don’t need a beverage in order to take them)
- They oftentimes are branded for specific needs like hair/skin/nails, feminine pH, and others
- Although there are vitamins that also come in liquid form and chewable tablets, gummies tend to taste much better than them all
A deliciously convenient way to get the vitamins and minerals that you need. If that’s not an awesome reason to take gummy supplements, what is, y’all? What is?
What You Should Be Aware of on the “Downside” As Well
Okay, so what if you’ve heard somewhere that vitamin gummies are something that you should do your best to avoid? Is there any kind of truth to that? The short answer (based on the “pros” that I just provided) is “no.” However, before you decide to go vitamin gummies shopping, there are a few other things to keep in mind:
- Vitamin gummies taste good because they have a good amount of sugar in them (oftentimes 2-8 grams per serving) which can lead to tooth decay or, if there are sugar substitutes in the gummies, that could lead to intestinal issues
- Vitamin gummies need additives and preservatives in order to have a decent shelf life and sometimes those aren’t the best for you overall (although the FDA did recently ban red dye in food which makes this less of an issue)
- Although vitamins don’t technically expire, many of them do lose potency after about two years — faster when they are in gummy form; that’s because gummies are more susceptible to moisture and moisture can ruin supplements faster
- Since vitamin gummies taste so good, that makes it easier to take more than the daily recommended amount (which is on the label) — and that can lead to things like vomiting and/or diarrhea
- Minerals like iron are missing from vitamin gummies; mostly because they create a metallic taste that prevents gummies from being as appealing to the palate
So, you know what all of this means, right? Although, for the most part, vitamin gummies can be beneficial for you, 1) you shouldn’t expect them to be total health life-changers and 2) you definitely need to be wise when it comes to selecting the ones that will be best for you.
And that brings me to my final point about vitamin gummies today…
5 Tips for Getting the Most Out of Your Supplement Gummies
When I first started getting vitamin gummies, I didn’t have this checklist. I wish that I had, though, because it took me a minute to figure out which gummies were going to not just taste good to me but actually be good for me. After a bit of trial and error, this is how I finally got to a brand that I am happy with.
1. Do some branding homework. Honestly, this should apply to both traditional and gummy vitamins because, as far as supplements go, they DEFINITELY are not all created equal. As far as my favorite gummy brand is concerned, it’s probably Nature Made, although OLLY, Honibe, and Smarty Pants are other ones that come highly recommended by health experts.
2. Make sure that the gummies are third-party tested. Basically, what this means is that the product has some sort of certification stamp on it. Speaking of stamps, be sure to check the expiration date on your gummies too. You’d be surprised by how many stores try to pull fast ones when it comes to not staying on top of that.
3. Pay close attention to what the label says. When you’re looking at the back of the label of any edible product, the nutrition is listed by what it has the most of. For instance, if you see vitamin C first, then it has more of that than anything else. And so, please, make sure that the additives and preservatives are very low. In fact, you’d be better off with a gummy that has none of them or has natural flavors and coloring instead.
4. Prefer what’s low in sugar. It’s not that we shouldn’t have ANY sugar in our life, it’s that we shouldn’t have more than 36 grams as a man and 25 grams as a woman on a daily basis. That said, if a gummy contains more than a third of what you should be consuming every day…can you see how that is already potentially problematic? Moral to the story: definitely look at the label for the sugar content too. Because it doesn’t make a lot of sense to take something for nutrition reasons if a ton of sugar is going to jack it up.
5. (Probably) go with bottles. Although gummy vitamins come in different types of packaging, you probably should go with bottles. Why? Because they typically have a seal that lets you know, beforehand, if the bottle has been tampered with or not. Pouches and jars don’t typically give you that kind of reassurance.
Unsplash
____
Even if it wasn’t on your bingo card to learn about gummy vitamins today (LOL), I’m hoping that you can feel more confident about them, the next time you see a bottle at Target or your favorite pharmacy. Shoot, being able to consume something that tastes great that is actually good for you — how can that not make reading all of this totally worth your time?
I’m sayin’.
Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Featured image by Grace Cary/Getty Images
RELATED
Anyone who remembers the movie (and sequel) isn’t shocked by that because those two had trust issues to the 10th power — and that’s kind of why I’m starting this article out by bringing them up. As far as what you should think long and hard about before getting all up in your partner’s phone, I’ve covered that before in the article, “Before You Go Through His Phone, You Should Know What The Law Says About It.” Today, though, let’s talk about whether or not it’s a good idea for you and your partner to follow each other on social media.
Because although you might think this is a “duh” kind of topic, it actually…isn’t.
Here’s What Data Says About Social Media and Relationships
GiphyLet’s start all of this with a brief social media history lesson.
If you’re someone who happens to remember the social media platform Six Degrees, I’m impressed because it’s considered to be the first solid evidence of social media; the real ones are going to recall that Black Planet made its way into cyberspace in 1999 (a couple of years after Six Degrees). By the early 2000s, we had MySpace, Friendster, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and even LinkedIn. Before we knew it, by 2015, at least 65 percent of Americans had at least one social media platform with almost 70 percent of them hanging out on Facebook alone. This meant that now, more than ever, folks had access to more information and individuals at one time than ever before — and as with most things in life, there were pros and cons to that.
Since today, what we’re focusing on is the impact that social media can have on long-term romantic relationships, I’ll share some of the downsides of it when it comes to things like marriage.
Whether it’s jealousy, insecurity, infidelity, having unrealistic expectations, making unfair comparisons, or even experiencing low-key paranoia, sadly, we are now at a point where some studies say that social media is a top issue (if not a main cause) in at least one-third of divorces (other studies say that social media significantly impacts one in seven divorces and a particular study even cited that Facebook plays a huge role in one in five divorces).
And although some of these situations can be debated based on what one’s personal perception is (for instance, one study says that 45 percent of Americans consider their partner following an ex on social media to be a form of infidelity), one thing that I think we all can agree on is social media has proven that it can complicate matters, as far as relationships go.
So, while keeping all of this in mind, what do research and relationship experts say when it comes to whether you should get a front-row seat to whatever may be happening on your partner’s social media pages?
Well, this HuffPost article features a woman who says that she and her man spend enough time together offline that engaging online isn’t really necessary. Independent’s article, “If you love someone, don’t follow them on social media” shares that social media can easily get you caught up in the “un-realness” of it all that your relationship could end up becoming a soap opera without you even noticing it.
A relationship expert who was featured in Men’s Health’s “Stop Following Your Significant Other on Social Media” article said that if your relationship already has some pressures and stress in it, social media isn’t going to do it any favors. Plus, it can negatively impact how two people in a relationship communicate with one another.
Hmph. Sounds to me like you and your bae following each other online seems like it could ultimately do more harm than good. And although this certainly doesn’t apply to everyone, I do think there are some things that you should really ponder before requiring this in your own relational dynamic.
Know Your WHY
GiphyWanna get to the root of why you want or are about to do something? Know your why. “Knowing your why” basically consists of figuring out the true motives and/or underlying reasons for why you’re about to say or do something — and when it comes to following your partner on social media, you should definitely spend some time contemplating this.
If you need a bit of help with figuring your true why out, in the business world, there is something known as “the five whys” (some use “5” instead). It’s basically about resolving a problem by asking enough whys that will help you to get to the root of it.
For instance, if I said to you, “Why do you think that you and your partner should follow each other on social media?” and you said, “Because I want to be aware of what they are doing on there,” then my next question would be “And why is that?” and if you said something like, “Because I trust my man but I don’t trust the strangers that he engages with” (if you trust him, that should be enough, by the way) and then I said, “And why is that?” and you say, “Because one time I went on his page and saw some comments from people that I didn’t know and it bothered me” and I say, “Why?” and you say, “Because it reminded me of a time when an ex cheated on me and I never really got over it” and I follow up with a fifth why, “And you say, because, deep down, I think all men are unfaithful” — BAM, we just got to the root cause of WHY you want to follow your partner and it actually has little to do with wanting to engage in some light online fun and entertainment.
Accepting that why can help you to work through some issues that you are putting on social media that actually don’t have a ton to do with it (or your partner) at all.
Now, am I saying that every person who follows “their person” online has some deep-rooted issues? Absolutely not. Some couples follow each other and don’t think any more about it beyond following any other person who they care about. All I’m saying is if you are unbending about doing it, you should look into what that is all about. Your “why” could be quite telling.
Social Media Could Possibly Jack Up Your Intimacy
GiphySomething that kind of irks me is when people say that social media is not the real world. Chile, being social is real and media is real, and if it was just play-play, why are so many folks so consumed with and by it? Just like there can be “fake folks” at your job, in your church, and even in your social circles offline, there can sho ‘nuf be disingenuous individuals out in the social media streets; however, that doesn’t mean that social media isn’t…REAL. And the reality is that people, on average, spend somewhere around 2.5 hours daily on social media.
And if one of the people who you are “checking for” online is your partner, that can waste precious time that the two of you could be spending together. It can also cause you to communicate more online than face-to-face. Don’t believe me? Chile, I can’t BELIEVE how many clients I’ve had who argue via text. SMDH. You can’t read tone in text. Messages are oftentimes abbreviated in text. Lawd, although text was created to be a “get to the point” convenience via cell phones, it was never supposed to replace authentic communication and dialogue about serious matters. And for some people, social media pretty much does the same thing.
Couples will “fight” on social media. Couples will throw passive-aggressive shots on social media. Couples will get mad at each other and then DM each other based on things that they saw on each other’s pages via social media. Does any of that sound healthy to you?
Another way that social media can mess your relationship up? Not too long ago, I was talking to an older married man about why divorce rates seem to be higher now than back in his day. He tickled me when he said, “We used to miss our spouses because we weren’t on the phone or on some damn computer interacting with each other all damn day long.” He’s got a point. If you’re engaging, one way or another, with your partner throughout the day, that could result in you having little to say once you get home. That’s not good.
Some other things to consider when it comes to being connected on social media: well, while reading an article on a legal mediator’s website about how social media can cause breakdowns in marriage, the author said that it can be due to things like unwarranted jealousy via comparing yourself to other people, trying to control your partner’s social media (or how they choose to engage in it) and/or misinterpretations that can cause conflict (like getting mad when they like a picture or misreading an emoji that someone puts in the comments).
Drama. All this drama that could be avoided if you both agreed to let social media be one thing separately so that the two of you can build a solid foundation and spend some genuine quality time offline.
When It Comes to Healthy and Long-Lasting Relationships, Privacy Is King
GiphyAnother reason to not follow your partner online: is to keep everything private. Think that isn’t a valid point? Well, Hip-hop artist Method Man has been married to his wife, Tamika for 24 years (this year) and he has said on multiple occasions that the key to marital success is not to talk about your relationship. Actor Morris Chestnut will celebrate 30 years of marriage in 2025 to his wife, Pam and he has also said that “It’s best to keep my private life under wraps because the more you put out there, the more stories get made up.” (Interestingly enough, he also once said that flirting on social media is a deal-breaker.)
Actor Kerry Washington has been married to her husband, Nnamdi Asomugha since 2013 and they are also notorious for not discussing their relationship. Reportedly, she once told Glamour, “I have girlfriends in this business who talk about their personal lives, and it works for them, and I love it. But not for me. I learned through experience that it doesn’t work for me to talk about my personal life.” And y’all, I don’t really get how privacy is effectively and consistently maintained if you and your partner are all up on and in each other’s social media all of the time.
Indeed, if you want to set (and maintain) healthier boundaries, keep outside influences down to a minimum, and reduce the amount of opinions, perceptions, and negativity from infiltrating your relational bond — privacy is king. Online as well as off.
_____
Chile, I already know — some of y’all read all of this and you’re not budging. LOL. You’re going to require that you and your partner follow each other on social media and that’s all there is to it. To each their own. I just hope that you at least now see that there is a method in the madness of opting not to do it and it could actually bring more peace to your relationship by choosing not to do so.
Besides, no one said that you need to block each other. I simply said to consider the benefits that come from them not popping up in your feed nonstop. I mean, you do have each other’s number and you are a huge part of each other’s lives, right? In a healthy and solid relationship, for many…that is more than enough.Let’s make things inbox official! Sign up for the xoNecole newsletter for love, wellness, career, and exclusive content delivered straight to your inbox.
Featured image by Adene Sanchez/Getty Images