Questions people ask about supplements and VitaSum®.

Add the vitamin D listed on each product's label, multiplied by the servings you actually take. A tracker does this for you: you log each product, and it adds the vitamin D across all of them into one daily total. VitaSum® shows that combined total, and on a paid plan it shows which products contributed and how the total compares with the NIH daily goal and upper limit.

Yes. Each label shows only its own serving, so the same nutrient from a multivitamin, a single supplement, and a fortified product can add up past an upper limit without any one label showing it. The only way to see it is to add the servings together. VitaSum® totals each nutrient across everything you log and marks a total at or over the upper limit. It describes your log, so ask your clinician what it means for you.

Log each product and the number of servings you take, then add the amount of each nutrient across every label. Doing that by hand across a whole shelf is slow and easy to get wrong. VitaSum® adds the servings you logged into one daily total per nutrient, and on a paid plan you can tap a nutrient to see how much each product contributed.

No. A label lists the amount in one serving of that product and has no way of knowing what else you take. Overlap shows up only when the servings from every product are added together. That combined number is what a supplement tracker such as VitaSum® calculates for you.

The amounts add up, and neither label shows the sum, so the overlap is easy to miss. For nutrients with an upper limit, such as vitamin A, zinc, or magnesium from supplements, the combined total is the number to compare with the limit. VitaSum® adds them and marks the total as low, at goal, above goal, or over the limit.

Log both products. VitaSum® adds the zinc from each into one total and compares it with the NIH daily goal and upper limit for your age and gender. In its example for a man 71 or older, two products at 25 mg and 9 mg make 34 mg of zinc, shown against an 11 mg goal and a 40 mg upper limit. On a paid plan you can open zinc and see each product.

Add the magnesium on each label times your servings. The NIH upper limit for magnesium applies to magnesium from supplements, not from food, so the supplement total is the number to compare. VitaSum® totals it and turns red only when the supplement total is at or over that limit. The daily goal includes food, so a supplement total below the goal is not marked low.

Add the vitamin A from every product you take. The NIH upper limit for adults, 3,000 mcg, applies to preformed vitamin A (retinol), not to beta-carotene. VitaSum® totals retinol across your log and shows it against that limit. In its example, 4,200 mcg is 140% of the limit and shows in red. The log shows the number, and your clinician can say what it means for you.

Not by definition, but it is easy to overlap. Each product may contain some of the same nutrients, and the combined total can pass an upper limit. Whether a particular mix is right depends on the amounts and on you, so it is a question for your doctor or pharmacist. A tracker gives you the real combined numbers to bring to that conversation.

Put every product on one shelf in a tracker, set your servings, and log each day. VitaSum® adds the logged servings into a daily total for each nutrient and compares it with the daily goal and upper limit for your country, gender, and life stage. A paid plan also shows which products made up each total.

A bottle shows one serving of one product. Your total is every serving of every product you logged, which can be far higher than any single label. If a total looks wrong, check the servings you logged and whether the amount in the app matches the bottle. VitaSum® lets you correct a label amount or request a product that is missing.

Open the nutrient in your daily summary and look at each product's share. In VitaSum® on a paid plan, tapping a nutrient lists the products in that total, for example Product A at 25 mg and Product B at 9 mg of zinc. That shows you which bottle to ask your clinician about.

Keep every supplement on a single shelf in one app and log from it each day. VitaSum® keeps one shelf and one log, adds the servings together, and can turn your log into a PDF you can email or download. You can add a product by scanning its barcode, searching by name, or photographing the label.

Multiply the label amount by the number of servings, then add across products. In a tracker you add the extra serving when you log and the total updates. In VitaSum® you can skip a dose or add another serving on the day's log, and the nutrient totals follow what you logged.

Log them only on the days you take them. A daily total reflects what you logged that day, and reports that cover more than one day use average daily intake, so a supplement taken a few days a week is averaged across the period. In VitaSum®, a reminder tells you a dose is due but never logs it, so you decide what was taken.

No, they are different numbers. A US label's Daily Value is a single reference figure used for labeling. A personal reference goal comes from tables by age and gender, such as the NIH Recommended Dietary Allowances and Adequate Intakes. VitaSum® uses the NIH figures for the profile it names. Neither one is a personal prescription.

List every product, then compare nutrient by nutrient. Any nutrient that appears on more than one label overlaps. Adding the servings is the real test, and a tracker does it automatically. VitaSum® shows the combined total and, on a paid plan, which products each total came from.

Log every product that contains them, with your servings. A tracker adds the zinc and selenium across products and compares each total with the NIH goal and upper limit. VitaSum®'s example for a man 71 or older shows selenium at 95 mcg, which is 172.7% of the 55 mcg goal and 23.8% of the 400 mcg upper limit.

A total is only as accurate as the label amounts on file and the servings you log. Check that the app's label matches your bottle, correct any amount that is off, and log what you actually took. VitaSum® lets you correct a label or request a product, and it describes your log rather than what is right for you.

Open the product and change the amount to match the bottle in your hand, or request the product if the match is wrong. In VitaSum®, if the barcode is missing or the match is the wrong bottle, you can correct an amount or request the product, and you can keep logging from what you entered while the request is reviewed.

A daily goal, such as the Recommended Dietary Allowance (RDA) or Adequate Intake (AI), is the amount that meets the needs of most healthy people in a group. The Tolerable Upper Intake Level (UL) is the highest daily amount unlikely to cause harm for most people in that group. Both are group reference values, not personal prescriptions. VitaSum® shows both beside your total.

For ages 9 and older, the NIH tolerable upper intake level for vitamin D is 4,000 IU (100 mcg) a day, and it is lower for younger children. The limit covers total intake from food and supplements. VitaSum® compares your logged vitamin D total with the limit for your age.

The NIH upper limit for calcium is 2,500 mg a day for adults 19 to 50 and 2,000 mg for ages 51 and older, counting food and supplements together. Because calcium goals include food, VitaSum® does not mark a supplement total below the goal as low, but it can mark a total at or over the limit.

NIH goals depend on age, so these are examples for a woman 51 or older: calcium 1,200 mg, vitamin D 600 IU through age 70 and 800 IU from 71, magnesium 320 mg, vitamin C 75 mg, zinc 8 mg, and iron 8 mg. VitaSum® shows the goals for the age and gender on your profile.

NIH goals depend on age, so these are examples for a man 71 or older: calcium 1,200 mg, vitamin D 800 IU, magnesium 420 mg, vitamin C 90 mg, zinc 11 mg, and vitamin K 120 mcg. VitaSum® shows the goals for the age and gender on your profile.

Yes. NIH sets reference values by gender and life stage. For example, the calcium goal rises for women at 51 and men at 71, and the iron goal for women falls from 18 mg to 8 mg after 50. VitaSum® uses the country, gender at birth, and birth date on your profile to choose the reference set.

It applies to supplements. The NIH upper limit of 350 mg for adults covers magnesium from supplements and medications, not magnesium naturally present in food. VitaSum® notes this on the magnesium row and turns red only when the supplement total is at or over the limit.

No. The 3,000 mcg upper limit applies to preformed vitamin A (retinol). It does not apply to beta-carotene. VitaSum® notes this on the vitamin A row and compares only your retinol total with the limit.

Some nutrients have no established upper limit because the evidence is limited, for example vitamin K, vitamin B12, thiamin, riboflavin, and biotin. No established limit does not mean any amount is fine. VitaSum® shows "No upper limit" in that column for those nutrients.

Each region publishes its own reference values, and the numbers can differ. VitaSum® follows the country on your profile: NIH for the United States and Canada, EFSA for Europe, DGE and OGE for Germany and Austria, the Nordic Nutrition Recommendations, UK reference values, NHMRC for Australia, Japan's Ministry of Health tables, ICMR-NIN for India, and WHO/FAO where a national table is not loaded.

They depend on your age, gender at birth, and country, and sometimes life stage. In VitaSum® you enter your country, gender at birth, and birth date on your profile, and the app selects the matching daily goals and upper limits. A daily goal describes a reference group and is not a personal prescription.

It means your total is higher than the daily goal and still below the upper limit. VitaSum® shows that in purple as "Above goal." It does not mark a total below the limit as approaching it. Whether that amount is right for you is a question for your clinician.

Not necessarily. A daily goal is a target that meets needs, not a ceiling. The upper limit is the line to watch. Being above the goal and under the limit is common with supplements. A log shows where you stand, and your clinician can say what is right for you.

Those goals are set for total intake from food and supplements. A supplement alone often looks low beside the goal because food supplies the rest. So VitaSum® does not mark a supplement total below the goal as low for calcium, magnesium, or potassium. Magnesium still turns red when the supplement total reaches its upper limit.

They come from national and international nutrition bodies. In the United States they are the Recommended Dietary Allowances, Adequate Intakes, and tolerable upper intake levels set by the National Academies and summarized by NIH. Other regions publish their own. VitaSum® uses the table for the country on your profile.

Look for barcode scanning, combined nutrient totals, comparison with goals and limits for your age and gender, reminders, and a report you can share. VitaSum® scans a barcode, searches by name, or reads a photographed label, adds your servings into totals, and builds a PDF. The free plan lets you try it with up to 5 supplements.

Yes. VitaSum® scans a supplement's barcode, and you can also search by name or photograph the label. If the barcode is missing or the match is the wrong bottle, you can correct the label or request the product.

Yes. In VitaSum® you can photograph a supplement's label as one of three ways to add a product, along with scanning a barcode or searching by name. You can correct an amount if it does not match your bottle.

Set a reminder for each dose in the app. In VitaSum®, a reminder tells you a dose is due but does not log it, so your record shows only what you actually took.

Yes. That is VitaSum®'s main job. It adds the servings you logged across all your products into one total per nutrient. The free plan shows the combined total, and a paid plan adds the daily goal, the upper limit, and which products contributed.

On VitaSum®'s Today screen, one tap logs everything still due. You can then mark anything you skipped or add another serving, and the nutrient totals follow your log.

Use a tracker on your phone and log each day, with reminders to help. VitaSum® keeps a log by day, and you can build a PDF for a day, 7 days, 30 days, 3 months, 6 months, or a custom range up to about six months.

Correct the label or request the product. In VitaSum®, if the barcode is missing or the match is wrong, you can correct an amount or request the product, and you can log from what you entered while the request is reviewed.

Mark it as skipped instead of logging it, so your record reflects what you actually took. In VitaSum® you can skip a dose on the Today screen.

Yes. VitaSum® is on the App Store for iPhone and on Google Play for Android.

Yes. VitaSum®'s free plan costs $0 and has no trial. It lets you keep up to 5 supplements on your shelf and shows combined daily totals. Daily goals, upper limits, and the per-product breakdown are on a paid plan.

Log each day, then choose a time frame. VitaSum® builds a report for a day, 7 days, 30 days, 3 months, 6 months, or a custom range up to about six months. Reports that cover more than one day use average daily intake, and you can email the PDF or download it.

Keep everything on one shelf in one app, with each product added once, and log from it daily. VitaSum® keeps one shelf and one log, so you can see what you take in one place and turn it into a PDF when you need to share it.

Use reminders and one-tap logging so the habit takes seconds. In VitaSum®, reminders tell you a dose is due, and one tap on the Today screen logs everything still due. You can skip a dose or add another serving.

Scan the barcode or search for the exact product so the app uses that product's label rather than a generic one. Different brands of the same supplement can contain different amounts. VitaSum® uses the label on file for the product and lets you correct any amount that does not match your bottle.

Make a list with each product's name, the amount per serving, and how often you take it. A PDF from a tracker does this cleanly. VitaSum® builds a PDF for a period you choose, and you can email it or download it.

Bring the names of your products, the amount per serving, how many servings you take, how long you have taken each, and anything you take that is not a vitamin, such as peptides. A log or PDF report keeps it accurate and saves time in the visit.

Yes. VitaSum® builds a PDF of your log for a day, 7 days, 30 days, 3 months, 6 months, or a custom range. Consumer PDFs are watermarked, and Family and Professional PDFs are clean. You can email the PDF or download it.

Yes. VitaSum® lets you email the PDF to an address you enter or download it. It sends the report only to that address. Ask your doctor's office how they prefer to receive it.

Supplements can interact with medicines, affect test results, and add to nutrient totals from food and other products. A clinician can account only for supplements they have been told about. A written list with amounts helps them give you better guidance.

Your pharmacist should know every product you take, with amounts and how often, including anything that is not a vitamin. They check for interactions with your prescriptions. A shareable log saves you from reciting a long list from memory.

Log what you take for a few weeks, build a report, and send or bring it with a short list of questions. VitaSum® can produce a PDF for the period you choose, with average daily intake for periods longer than one day.

VitaSum®'s Professional plan exports a FHIR R4 bundle for an EHR workflow, and patient-reported research compounds can be included in that bundle. Most people share a PDF. The FHIR export is designed for clinicians who want the data in a structured form.

FHIR (Fast Healthcare Interoperability Resources) is a standard format for exchanging health data between systems, and R4 is a version of it. A FHIR export lets a clinician's record system read a supplement list directly instead of someone retyping it. VitaSum®'s Professional plan can export one.

Log once in the app, then build a PDF instead of typing a list each time. VitaSum® creates the report from the log you already kept, and you choose the time frame and who receives it.

Yes. VitaSum® sends a PDF only to the address you enter, or you can download it. VitaSum® does not choose the recipient.

It shows the average daily intake of each nutrient over the period you chose, instead of a single day. VitaSum® builds reports that cover more than one day this way, so a day with a higher or lower total does not distort the picture.

Keep peptides on their own list with their own schedules, and note where each came from and the route you use. VitaSum® keeps peptides and transdermal products on separate lists from vitamins, with a record of where you got each one and the route you report.

Yes. VitaSum® logs peptides and supplements in one app, with peptides and transdermal products on separate lists from vitamins, so your whole record is in one place.

Record them next to each product. VitaSum® keeps a record of where you got each peptide or transdermal product and the route you report, so the information is ready if a clinician asks.

Yes. VitaSum® keeps transdermal products on a list separate from vitamins, with their own schedules and a record of the route you report.

Record what you actually take, as you take it, so your clinician has the full picture. On VitaSum®'s Professional plan, patient-reported research compounds can be included in the FHIR export. VitaSum® records what you report and does not endorse any product.

A clinician can account only for what they know about. Products that are not vitamins can still matter for interactions, test results, and treatment decisions. Keeping a complete record means nothing important is left out of the conversation.

No. VitaSum® states that a catalog entry is not a statement about safety, effectiveness, or legal status. It records what you report taking. For questions about safety or legality, talk to a qualified clinician.

Note it when you add the product. VitaSum® keeps a record of where you got each peptide or transdermal product, so you do not have to remember later.

No. VitaSum® does not suggest a dose for peptides or anything else. It adds up what you logged and compares nutrient totals with reference values. Dosing is a question for your clinician.

A clinician can review what a patient reports taking, look for overlap or interactions with prescribed treatment, and discuss it. They can account for supplements and compounds they have been told about, which is why a complete patient-reported record is useful.

With your parent's permission, use a family plan so each person keeps their own account, shelf, and log. VitaSum®'s Family plan has Off, View, and Manage access that each person controls, so you only see their record if they allow it.

Yes. VitaSum®'s Family plan is $9.99 a month for up to 5 members. Each member has their own account, shelf, and log.

With her permission, connect her account to yours on a family plan. At View, you can look at her shelf, log, and nutrients. At Manage, you can also log, edit, and share a report for her. She can turn access off at any time.

With their permission, set up family access. At Manage, you can log, edit, and share a report for them, for example by emailing a PDF to their doctor. Access stays closed until both of you allow it.

Yes. In VitaSum® each member has their own account, shelf, and log, and the admin does not take over that data. You and the member each choose Off, View, or Manage.

In VitaSum® you and the other person each choose Off, View, or Manage. Access stays closed until both sides allow it, and you can open their record only at the lower of the two choices. Either person can turn it off.

VitaSum®'s Family plan covers up to 5 members, each with their own account, shelf, and log.

Get a complete list, keep one log, and share it with their clinician and pharmacist. VitaSum® can keep the supplement side of that record and build a PDF for the appointment. VitaSum® does not track prescriptions, so ask the pharmacist to review those.

Yes, but only if they agree. At Manage level in VitaSum®, you can log, edit, and share a report for a family member. Access stays closed until both of you allow it, and either of you can turn it off.

VitaSum®'s Family plan gives up to 5 people their own account, shelf, and log, with each person choosing how much a caregiver can see or do. That keeps every record separate and under the control of the person it belongs to.

VitaSum® stores data encrypted and sends a report only to the address you enter. Family access stays closed until both sides allow it. Read the privacy policy at vitasum.health/privacy for the full details on what is collected and how it is used.

By default, only you. Someone else sees your log only if you email them a report or approve family access. In VitaSum®, a report goes only to the address you enter, and family access is off until both people allow it.

VitaSum®'s privacy policy says VitaSum® does not sell personal data and does not sell health data, and that it does not use health data for advertising. A report is sent only to the address you enter. The policy at vitasum.health/privacy explains what is collected, which services help run the app, and how the data is used.

Ask what the app collects, how it is stored, who can see it, and where it is sent. VitaSum® says it stores data encrypted and sends reports only to the address you enter. Read its privacy policy and terms before you decide.

HIPAA is a federal law that governs health care providers, health plans, and their business partners. A supplement log you keep yourself is not the same as a doctor's chart, but your privacy still matters. VitaSum®'s privacy policy does not describe the app as a HIPAA-covered service. It says a report is sent only to the address you enter. Read the policy at vitasum.health/privacy for how data is handled.

VitaSum® states that it is not a medical device and does not provide medical advice. It adds up what you log and compares totals with reference values. A daily goal is not a personal prescription.

No. It can show how your logged total compares with a reference value for your group, but it cannot know what is right for your health. A daily goal is not a personal prescription. Ask your clinician, and use the log as the starting point.

Ask VitaSum® is on paid plans. It answers questions from your own log. For example, "Which of my products contribute to my magnesium total?" returns Product A at 200 mg, Product B at 220 mg, and a combined 420 mg. It names what you logged and does not decide whether that total is right for you. The privacy policy describes it as an informational tool powered by the Anthropic API: your question and the nutrient context needed to answer it are sent to generate a response, VitaSum® does not use those queries to train AI models, and it does not provide medical advice.

VitaSum® has a free plan at $0 with up to 5 supplements. Consumer is $3.99 a month or $38.49 a year, Family is $9.99 a month or $95.90 a year for up to 5 members, and Professional is $14.99 a month or $143.99 a year. Annual prices shown are US App Store prices.

On VitaSum®'s paid plans, the App Store or Google Play offers a one-month trial. It requires a payment method on your store account, and you cancel in the store. The free plan has no trial.

Yes. VitaSum®'s free plan shows combined totals, and the daily goals, upper limits, and per-product breakdown are on a paid plan.

A food tracker logs meals. A supplement tracker logs products and adds up the nutrients on their labels. VitaSum® tracks supplements, peptides, and similar products, and it does not track food or prescriptions. Goals for calcium, magnesium, and potassium include food, so a supplement total below the goal is not marked low.

No. A tracker gives you a clearer record to discuss, but it cannot replace your doctor or pharmacist. VitaSum® is not a medical device and does not provide medical advice.

Look for barcode scanning, combined nutrient totals, goals and upper limits that fit your age, gender, and country, a breakdown by product, reminders, a PDF report you can share, and clear privacy terms. VitaSum® has all of these on its paid plans, with combined totals on the free plan.

Use reminders and make logging take one tap. VitaSum® reminders tell you a dose is due, and one tap on the Today screen logs everything still due. A reminder never logs a dose for you, so your record stays accurate.

Check with your clinician or pharmacist first, especially if you take medicines. Look at the label, and look at your current total for that nutrient. Logging the new product shows the combined total before you take it. VitaSum® shows your totals and does not suggest what to take.

Overlap. Multivitamins, fortified foods, powders, and single-nutrient supplements often contain the same nutrients, and each label shows only one serving. The combined total is invisible unless the servings are added together, which is what a tracker does.

VitaSum® is a supplement and peptide log for iPhone and Android. You add products by scanning a barcode, searching, or photographing the label. It adds your logged servings into daily totals, compares them with the daily goal and upper limit for your country, gender, and life stage, and builds a PDF you can email or download. It is not a medical device.