Trust tool
Do you actually need this supplement?
Pick a supplement and your life stage to get the honest NHS and EFSA position: clearly recommended, situational, or no good evidence for most people, along with the cheaper or free alternative such as diet, sunlight or a GP blood test. The right answer is often not to buy anything. Information only, not medical advice; speak to your GP or pharmacist.
How the verdicts are decided
Each verdict reflects the NHS recommendation and the EFSA-authorised health-claim position for that supplement at that life stage. Recommended means the NHS actively advises it; situational means it helps only in defined circumstances, such as winter or a confirmed deficiency; weak means there is no good evidence or no authorised claim for most women, so marketing claims should be treated with caution. We always name a cheaper or free alternative because that is frequently the honest answer.
Information only, not medical advice. This tool is educational and is not a substitute for a registered clinician. It does not diagnose anything and does not recommend that you take any supplement. Always read product labels and speak to your GP or pharmacist before starting, stopping or combining supplements. This summarises public NHS and EFSA guidance for general education; it cannot account for your medical history, medicines or symptoms. Anything situational, and any decision on iron or in pregnancy, should go through your GP or pharmacist.
Read more
If you have decided to buy, check you are not overpaying with are you overpaying for vitamins, score a product's claims with the ingredient evidence scorecard, and read the evidence by life stage from trying to conceive to menopause. More on the tools hub.
Frequently asked questions
How does this tool decide if I need a supplement?
It gives the honest NHS and EFSA position for each supplement at each life stage: clearly recommended, situational (useful only in defined circumstances), or weak (no good evidence for most people). It deliberately points you to the cheaper or free alternative, including diet, sunlight and GP blood tests, because the right answer is often not to buy anything.
Why would a supplement site tell me not to buy?
Because honest value advice is the whole point of Her Vitals. We earn from some affiliate links, but a tool that pretends everything is worth buying would be useless and untrustworthy. Telling you when the evidence is weak, or when food or a blood test is the better move, is what makes the value tools worth reading.
Is this a diagnosis or medical advice?
No. It summarises public NHS and EFSA guidance for general education only. It cannot account for your medical history, medicines or symptoms. Anything in the situational category, and any decision about iron, pregnancy or interacting supplements, should go through your GP or pharmacist.
What if my supplement is not listed?
We cover the supplements women most often ask about. As a rule of thumb: if a supplement has no EFSA-authorised health claim and the NHS does not recommend it for your situation, treat marketing claims with caution and ask your pharmacist whether it is worth your money.
Editor, Her Vitals
Oliver leads Her Vitals's editorial coverage of women's life-stage health and supplements. He curates and reviews existing branded products across trying to conceive, pregnancy, postnatal, perimenopause, menopause and the senior years, weighing what the evidence supports against guidance from bodies such as EFSA, the NHS and NICE, and is clear that the content is information rather than medical advice.
Last reviewed: 13 June 2026