College students have all been there before: first the over-indulgent late night, followed by an almost mockingly early morning and a quick trip to Starbucks, then right back into the rush of academia. To counteract the previous 12 hours of poor nutritional choices, you might pop one or two multivitamins throughout the day.

Currently the largest supplement market in the United States, multivitamin use has been increasing in all age categories, most notably among college students and college graduates. According to a study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association last year, almost 90 percent of the college-educated respondents used multivitamins. With such prevalence, the question begs to be answered: Should we all be consuming multivitamins?

In 1994, President Clinton signed the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act. Congress stated there "may be a connection between dietary supplement use, reduced health-care expenses and disease prevention." This act placed the responsibility of ensuring supplement safety into the hands of the manufacturer and not the government body.

Still, experts are divided on whether individuals should take multivitamins.

Pete Anderson, a lecturer in nutritional sciences at UW-Madison, said supplements never provide nutrients as well as a balanced diet does.

"With some medical exceptions, there's no reason to take vitamins if you have a decent diet," Anderson said.

Although Dr. Chad Oler, N.D. of the Natural Path Health Center, shares Anderson's recommendation of adequate nutrition through food alone, he often recommends multiple vitamin supplementations to his patients.

"I would much rather people get the nutrients from the food we eat; it's just that most people don't," Oler said.

Oler suggested we "think of a multivitamin like an insurance policy."

After all, he stated, "You wouldn't let your apartment burn down, much less set a fire, just because you have renters insurance."

But as Anderson pointed out, as soon as this "insurance policy" leads to reckless dietary habits, "maybe we should stop taking the vitamin."

Whatever the reasons for supplementation use, the market is rallying around them. The dietary supplement market went from a $14 billion industry in 1999 to a $22.4 billion industry in 2007, according to Nutrition Business Journal. Vitamins and minerals alone are nearly a quarter of that industry.

Advertising and marketing significantly contribute to this rise. Walk into Community Pharmacy, 341 State St., and you will find hundreds of colorful bottles with catchy labels, all organized by brand, gender and age target, function claim, price and pill design. From stress support, to prenatal care to vegetarian men's formulas, these pills are customized for every subgroup of the population. Among all the choices, there is a lot of room for confusion and misinformation.

According to Jack Siepert, a nutritional consultant from Community Pharmacy, there are three basic kinds of multivitamins: whole-food vitamins cultured through probiotics or nutritional yeasts or taken from actual food, synthetic vitamins mixed with some whole-foods and purely synthetic vitamins. Additionally, because the support they provide is to "fill in the gap" of a poor diet, it is best to go with the type as close to real food as possible-whole-food vitamins.

Oler narrowed this down even more, "There are really two distinctions between multivitamins: whole-food multivitamins and everything else." Most pills are in the "everything else" category, making choosing the right pills difficult.

"Ninety-five to 98 percent of the stuff over the counter is crap  they use cheap, raw materials that are not bio-available, meaning that the body, even if it can absorb it, cannot utilize the nutrients very well," he said. The whole-food multivitamins, however, come at a price.

Although a monthly supply of whole-food vitamins from Community Pharmacy can run upward of $50, an Internet search can bring up a seemingly similar product for less than $20.

These sites do not have any way of guaranteeing either the safety or efficacy of their products, but then again, with the passing of DSHEA in 1994, neither does an over-the-counter product. This fact is what makes Anderson consider the act "totally stupid" and leads Oler to believe that more regulation needs to be put in place by the industry. Until that happens however, consumers are stuck in the hunt for that perfect multivitamin.

In the interim, if considering a multivitamin, Anderson suggests improving your diet first.

"Try to incorporate more whole grains as much as possible. Try to increase fruits and vegetables-as many more fruits and vegetables as possible. You can keep it as simple as that," Anderson said.

However, if you cannot get adequate nutrients by diet alone-be it medical concerns or otherwise-stick to a multivitamin that has 100 percent of the daily value or less. Avoid anything in a mega-dose-those listed as 1000 to 3000 percent of the daily value. Taking in too much could risk overdose of the fat-soluble vitamins A, K, E and D and cause an imbalance and potential toxicity of minerals.

Pregnant women or women who could become pregnant should avoid supplementation of vitamin A because of toxicity properties of some forms, particularly vitamin A palmitate, according to Anderson. Too high intakes of water-soluble vitamins, commonly C and B, will not likely cause much damage, but they could lead to gastrointestinal distress.

There is no definitive answer as to whether an individual without special dietary needs or restrictions should take a multivitamin. Many dietary factors contribute to this decision such as an individual's eating habits and how willing he or she is to change the diet to incorporate more vitamins through whole grains, fruits and vegetables. One thing is certain: All the vitamins and minerals an individual needs can be found in a grocery store, but making those dietary changes can be a challenge.

"It requires a little effort, a little work, and a little learning," Anderson said.

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