Can You Take Gummy Vitamins While Intermittent Fasting?

Gummy vitamins are fun ways to make sure that you’re getting your daily recommended amount of vitamins and minerals. They’ve often easier to take on an empty stomach than traditional vitamins, which can leave a sour taste in your stomach. Some even taste like fruit snacks, making you feel like a kid again! 

Unfortunately, if you’re intermittent fasting, you’ll want to pass on the gummy vitamins – at least until your eating windows. They contain calories and sugar, among other ingredients, all of which will break you fast. Let’s explore more about why you want to skip these types of vitamins during fasting windows. While some supplements may break fast in one area but not others, gummy vitamins typically break fast in all areas, and here’s why. 

Calories 

Gummy vitamins contain calories, though the amount depends on the brand and type of gummy vitamin. On average, a typical serving size will include between 15 and 30 calories, which is enough to break your fast. 

Sometimes, you can make an exception. For example, if you are an avid coffee or tea drinker, a cup without milk or sweeteners may have about five calories in it. This is generally accepted for intermittent fasting without breaking your fast. However, you don’t want to make an exception for gummy vitamins. The calories aren’t the only reasons these supplements will break your fast. 

Sweeteners 

We already discussed that gummy vitamins taste better than traditional coated supplements, but do you know why? You guessed it. Sugar. Many gummy vitamins contain sweeteners to help make them taste better. Even if they used no-calorie sweeteners – which they don’t – gummy vitamins would still break your fast.

This is because sugar and sweeteners prompt a metabolic response in your body. They cause your insulin to spike, impact your gut health, and break autophagy and ketosis. This is the trifecta when it comes to breaking fast, so it’s best to avoid it. You can take calorie-free supplements and multivitamins to get similar benefits of a gummy vitamin without breaking your fast. 

Protein, Carbs, and Fats

You’ll want to check the label, but some gummy vitamins contain protein, carbs, and fats as part of their ingredients, which automatically excludes them from taking during fasts. Even the gelatin that the gummy vitamin is encased in contains protein! All around, gummy vitamins contain hidden ingredients that can hinder your progress while fasting.

Breaking your fast with gummy vitamins will make you crave sugar and food, causing more harm than good when you take while fasting. Because of that, it’s best to get your vitamins and nutrients elsewhere during an intermittent fast. 

What If My Doctor Recommends I Take a Multivitamin?

Your doctor may recommend that you take multivitamins to fill any nutritional gaps you have from your diet itself, and that’s okay. There are supplements that you can take while intermittent fasting that won’t break your fast. As long as your supplement does not need to be taken with food, it should be safe to take. 

Again, review the nutritional label to ensure it does not include sugar, fats, and proteins. If there are calories, know that it may technically break your fast; however, it may be okay as long as it doesn’t trigger an insulin response, break autophagy or ketosis, or upset your gut. 

Ultimately, intermittent fasting is about improving your overall health; however, if your doctor recommends you take specific medicines or supplements, it should never take precedence. Work with your doctor to ensure your intermittent fasting plan won’t interact with their treatment. If it does, don’t hesitate to make adjustments based on your needs.