VITAMINS
So we have discovered earlier that regular fruits and veggies (non-organic) do not contain a large amount of vitamins. And if your diet does not consist of regular intake of raw fruits and vegetables, most likely your body does not get enough of nutrient goodies. Vitamins is the first thing that you would think of getting in order to maintain your health. However, there is a "tiny" part that you should look at when buying your vitamins. Are they natural or synthetic?

Let's start by looking at Synthetic vitamins. Most of the vitamins that you would see on the shelves of your supermarket are synthetic. They are produced by chemical reactions and that is why they do not contain all the micro-nutrients that the natural vitamin would have. Human body cannot utilize about 50% of the synthetic vitamins. And on top of everything else some people are actually allergic to those synthetic products. Now here is the best part that will make you think twice before buying vitamins - many synthetic vitamins are made out of COAL TAR derivatives. Is that something that you think your body would approve of? Think of smokers (if you smoke-shame on you!), they get throat cancer cased by this COAL TAR!!!

Now, how do we tell them apart? We need to learn how to read ingredients. Be careful, even if the label says 100% organic, still read the ingredients because it is not always the case. If you will see "dl" on your vitamin package, leave it, it is synthetic. Letter "d" on the other hand means natural.

Here are some sources of vitamins that are natural, co-natural and synthetic:
Vitamin A
Fish Oil - Natural
Lemon Grass - Co-natural
Acetate, Palmitate and if source is not given - Synthetic
Vitamin B - Complex
Brewers Yeast - Natural
If source is not given - Synthetic
Vitamin B1 (Thiamine)
Yeast - Natural
Thiamine Mononitrate and Thiamine Hydrochloride - Synthetic
Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin)
Yeast - Natural
Riboflavin - Synthetic
Pantothenic Acid
Yeast, Rice Bran and Liver - Natural
Calcium D-Pantothenate - Synthetic
Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine)
Yeast - Natural
Pyridoxine Hydrochloride - Synthetic
Vitamin B12
Liver - Natural
Micro-organism fermentation and Cobalamin Concentrate- Co-natural
PABA
Yeast - Para-aminobenzoic Acid - Natural
Aminobenzoic Acid - Synthetic
Folic Acid
Yeast and Liver - Natural
Pteroylglutamic Acid - Synthetic
Inositol
Soy Beans - Natural
Reduced from Corn - Co-natural
Biotin
Liver - Natural
d-Biotin - Synthetic
Niacin
Yeast - Natural
Niacinamide - Co-natural
Niacin - Synthetic
Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid)
Citrus, Rose Hips, Acerola Berries - Natural
Ascorbic Acid and if source is not given - Synthetic
Vitamin D
Fish Oil - Natural
Irradiated Ergosteral (Yeast) and Calciferol - Synthetic
Vitamin E
Veg oil, Wheat Germ Oil, Mixed Tocopherols, d-alpha tocopherol - Natural
dl-alpha tocopherol - Synthetic
Vitamin F
Essential Fatty Acids - Natural
Vitamin K
Alfalfa - Natural
Menadione - Synthetic

Many thanks to an article on "Natural Vs. Synthetic Vitamins" for informative info and google for a vitamin picture!