Do I need to track vitamins and minerals?

Most people don’t need to count vitamins and minerals. A varied diet with enough food covers most of them, and a food log measures several of them poorly anyway. A few deserve a plan: vitamin D in the darker months, B12 if you eat vegan, iron if you menstruate, run long distances or eat meat-free, and iron and calcium when you eat less to lose fat.

Do macros cover vitamins?

Not on their own. Hitting your calories and protein says nothing about the iron, calcium or vitamin D on the plate. The joint position of the American College of Sports Medicine (ACSM), the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and Dietitians of Canada says athletes should eat at least the recommended amount of every vitamin and mineral. Those who cut energy hard, drop whole food groups or follow extreme diets are most at risk of falling short.

The US Dietary Guidelines name calcium, potassium, fibre and vitamin D as nutrients of public health concern, because Americans as a whole eat too little of them. They also say a healthy eating pattern can meet the calcium, potassium and fibre. Variety does most of the work: different vegetables, pulses, grains, dairy or fortified alternatives, eggs, fish or meat across the week.

In Nume: meals come from the cuisines you eat, inside the food rules you keep. Suggested plates differ from your other meals today and over the last few days, so the week stays varied. Every meal you log shows its fibre and added sugar, and Progress shows both over the weeks. See how much fibre you need.

Why counting them is hard

Food logs are good at some numbers and weak at others. A validation study compared a popular tracking app with a national food-composition database. The log matched well for energy (r = 0.96), the macros (0.90), fibre (0.80) and sugar (0.79), but only weakly for sodium (0.53) and cholesterol (0.51).

How much you absorb varies too. The NHS notes that large amounts of tea, coffee, milk and dairy make iron harder to absorb, and that iron from plant food is absorbed less well than iron from meat. So a log gives a rough idea at best. A blood test shows your actual iron, B12 or vitamin D.

The ones that matter, by group

If you...	Plan for	How much a day (US / UK)	From food
get little sun, or it’s autumn or winter where you live	vitamin D	15 µg (600 IU) / 10 µg	oily fish, egg yolks, red meat, fortified spreads and cereals
eat vegan	B12, calcium, iron, iodine, selenium, vitamin D, omega-3	B12: see below	fortified plant milks and cereals, nutritional yeast, calcium-set tofu, walnuts, chia and linseed
eat vegetarian	iron, zinc, B12, calcium, riboflavin	B12: 2.4 µg / 1.5 µg	eggs and dairy for B12; pulses, tofu, nuts, seeds
menstruate	iron	18 mg / 14.8 mg (men 8 / 8.7)	meat, fish, beans, lentils, tofu, fortified cereals, dried fruit
run long distances or train hard	iron, vitamin D, calcium	iron above the amounts above	as above
eat less to lose fat	iron, calcium	calcium (US): 1,000 mg	pulses, dairy or fortified alternatives at your eating times

The US amounts are for adults 19 to 50; the UK iron figure for women is for ages 19 to 49.

On vitamin D, the NHS says that in the UK most people make enough from sunlight from late March or early April to the end of September, and that everyone should consider a 10 µg supplement in autumn and winter. Few foods carry much of it.

If you eat vegan or vegetarian

B12 isn’t found naturally in fruit, vegetables or grains. People who eat eggs and dairy usually get enough from them. Vegans need fortified food or a supplement, and the Vegan Society gives three ways:

fortified foods two or three times a day, for at least 3 µg a day
a daily supplement of at least 10 µg
a weekly supplement of at least 2,000 µg

The NHS lists calcium, iron, B12, iodine and selenium as nutrients vegans can miss without planning, says vitamin D is hard to get from vegan food, and points to walnuts and seeds for omega-3. For calcium, it names fortified soya, pea and oat drinks, calcium-set tofu, sesame and tahini, pulses and dried fruit. For iron, eat vitamin C foods with the meal and keep tea and coffee away from it.

The ACSM position adds that vegetarian athletes may run low on iron, calcium, riboflavin, zinc and B12.

In Nume: your food rules hold on every plate: vegetarian, vegan, eggs but no meat, a meat-free day, or anything you don’t eat. A plate without meat or fish stays that way, and its protein comes from the foods your rules allow, such as eggs, dairy, pulses or tofu. See protein as a vegetarian.

If you train hard

Iron, vitamin D and calcium are the three the ACSM position names as of key interest. Some athletes in hard training lose more iron, and distance runners, vegetarian athletes and regular blood donors are most at risk. The position says they should aim above the usual recommended amount: more than 18 mg a day for women and more than 8 mg for men. Building up to a race? See your first 5k or 10k and training for a marathon.

The same position is plain about pills: vitamin and mineral supplements don’t improve performance unless they correct a shortfall.

In Nume: if you take iron or vitamin D, add it as a regular item in your own words, such as “vitamin D 10 µg at 8 am”. It sits on your day at that time, with a reminder if you want one. It has no energy, so it never changes your numbers. For whey and creatine, see whey and creatine.

If you’re eating less to lose fat

A typical diet carries about 6 mg of iron with every 1,000 kcal (ACSM). At 1,500 kcal that is about 9 mg, against 18 mg for women aged 19 to 50. The deeper the cut, the harder every amount is to reach. A moderate cut with pulses, dairy or fortified alternatives at most eating times keeps the gap small.

In Nume: a fat-loss plan sits 15% under what your body uses, and never more than 750 kcal under. Each day keeps real meals at your own eating times. See how to choose a goal and the calorie calculator.

Do I need a multivitamin?

For preventing heart disease or cancer, the US Preventive Services Task Force found the evidence on multivitamins insufficient to recommend for or against them. It recommends against beta-carotene and vitamin E for that purpose. And for performance, the ACSM position says supplements help only when they reverse a shortfall.

So the targeted ones guidance names, such as B12 if you’re vegan, vitamin D in the darker months and iron when a test shows it low, do more than a general multivitamin.

In Nume: a multivitamin or any other supplement can be a regular item at its time, in your words, with a reminder.

Vitamins and minerals in Nume

Nume plans your days from food you enjoy, inside the rules you keep, and varies the plates across the day and the week. Your fibre and added sugar show on every meal you log and on Progress over the weeks. Your supplements sit on your day at their times, with reminders if you want them.

Tell Talk a health fact that lasts, such as “I’m iron deficient”. With “Remember what you tell Nume” on, Nume keeps it with your health details, and the meals it suggests take it into account from then on.

See how Nume works across a week.

Common questions

Do vegetarians need B12 supplements?

Most people who eat eggs and dairy get enough B12 from them, according to the NHS. Vegans need fortified foods or a supplement.

Is tea or coffee with meals bad for iron?

Large amounts make iron harder to absorb. If your iron runs low, have them between meals rather than with them.

Can I get vitamin D from food alone?

It’s hard. Oily fish, egg yolks and fortified foods carry some, but most people rely on sunlight. That’s why the NHS suggests 10 µg a day in autumn and winter.

Checked on 12 November 2026 · The Nume team