Sure, you may be taking your vitamins…but are you taking them in the most bioavailable form?

Bioavailability refers to the amount of a nutrient that has an active effect within our bodies. The higher the bioavailability of a nutrient, the more of it that will get sent to the parts of the body that need it. The bioavailability of a vitamin actually depends greatly on the form it comes in. Keep reading to learn more!

Vitamins are nutrients that our bodies do not naturally produce, but are needed to function best. Many of these nutrients are absorbed into our body through the foods we eat and occasionally through our environment. 

Here’s an example: D3 is an important vitamin for immune function and bone and muscle strength, and it can be absorbed through your skin from sun exposure. However, if you use sunscreen on a daily basis, that reduces the body’s natural ability to absorb D3 from the sun. Additionally, skin color affects Vitamin D3 absorption: the darker your skin is, the less your body will be able to absorb D3 from the sun. 

Other crucial vitamins, such as Vitamin A, C, E, and B12 (each important for vision, free radical protection, skin health, and nerve function, respectively) can be found in the foods that we consume. However, due to a variety of factors, modern food sources are not as vital as they could be. This makes it even more important to supplement nutritional deficiencies by adding vitamins to our daily routine. 

Once a vitamin is consumed and enters the bloodstream, the body will then send it where needed. For example, maybe you’ve taken a vitamin to help grow your hair and nails. Before it can begin making a difference, it first needs to get into your body’s bloodstream. 

While we are seeing more liquid varieties of vitamins (such as the sprays at Sprayology), the majority of vitamins on the market today come in pill or capsule form, which have lower bioavailability. Let’s break down the difference between these two forms:

Vitamin pills and capsules can be coated with a variety of ingredients that allow them to stay in pill form and maintain a long shelf life. Unfortunately, there is very little regulation as to what can be used to coat vitamin pills and capsules, so you don’t always know what you’re consuming along with your nutrients. Frankly, some of these materials are things that you definitely don’t want in your body, such as: titanium dioxide, artificial preservatives, gelatin, wax and even shellac.

Another problem with pill and capsule form is that the same things that help their coatings keep everything stable inside, makes it very hard to break it down inside your body. So, depending on the coating, you may end up absorbing very little of the nutrient; and if you do get to absorb it, it could take a long time to start working.

Although there are more liquid forms of vitamins available on the market, many come in large bottles that require you to swallow a large amount of liquid in order to actually get the dose you need. While this is better than pill form because it’s already liquid and broken down, it still does not get into the bloodstream as quickly as possible. Another downside of these liquids can be the bottle size and the cost to ship them, which puts a bigger strain on the environment.

In contrast to the above vitamin forms, sublingual vitamins - that is, vitamins in spray form taken under the tongue - have an absorption rate of up to 90% according to numerous studies, compared to the mere 10% absorption rate that comes from vitamins in pill-form. When you take spray vitamins, they bypass your gut and go straight into your bloodstream. This allows your body to use them faster and more effectively. Many studies about how quickly it is available for your body to use have also shown that it can be anywhere from 3 to 10 times faster!

This is why Sprayology exists: we sought out to make a micro-concentrated vitamin in liquid form that can be absorbed immediately, so that you get more vitamin in every dose. Our spray is sprayed under the tongue and absorbed into the cheek and soft tissue for fast-acting distribution into the bloodstream. When you shop with us, you can rest assured that you’re using a spray vitamin that has optimal bioavailability, high ingredient standards, and is manufactured within the U.S. under strict lab standards.