Is there a difference between genuine, food-based vitamins and chemically reproduced, synthetic vitamins? As a fitness and health nut for over 20 years I have some very strong opinions in the field of health and fitness. When it comes to supplements, I have to agree with many of the experts in the field, that natural vitamins that are extracted from real food are always better than chemical reproductions.

The problem with many synthetic vitamins is that you don't truly know what you are putting in your body, do you? Did you know that at one time Eastman Kodak was the largest manufacturer of synthetic vitamins? Why was that? Because they wanted to create revenue from the chemical waste of making photographic film. Do you really think that chemical copies of vitamins are equal to the natural ones that are found in healthy food?

It is my opinion, and I am not a doctor, so that makes my opinion worth about what you paid for it, that chemical reproductions are no more valuable to the body than a photographic reproduction of a car is for transportation.

A major point that happens to be a good reason for sticking with all natural, food-based vitamins is the absorption factor. Your body absorbs the natural vitamins more readily because it recognizes them as nutrients.

There are a lot of products on the market now that say that they are 100% natural. Unfortunately, the giant food corporations have lobbied Congress to relax the standards of what can be labeled as "natural" to the point that that label doesn't mean anything anymore.

Many of these natural foods are very good for you and give you the nutritional requirements that your body needs such as enzymes and anti-oxidants. All of these components work together to give your body the nutrients that it needs. The only way to know for sure exactly what you will need for your body is to consult a nutritionist and have them create a regimen for you. The best nutritionists that I have found have told me that your blood type is a very large factor in determining which types of food you should eat for best nutrition and which natural vitamin supplements you should consider. It would be worth your while to ask for suggestions with this in mind.

The best way to get started on a routine to keep your body healthy is a well balanced natural diet that focuses on foods that are as close to their natural state as possible. The natural vitamin supplements (such as acai capsules) available on the market can provide your body with all the nutrients your body needs to be healthy and perform optimally. Read the fine print of any label to determine if the vitamins have been extracted from food, or created chemically and are therefore synthetic.

The best course of action is to consult a nutritionist who can take a close look at your current nutritional habits and help you to create the right nutritional program just for you. My opinion based upon substantial research, is that vitamins extracted from food will bring good health to your body whereas chemically produced, synthetic "vitamins" are not indeed vitamins at all and are merely an image of the genuine.