Ingredient directory

The most concentrated and least expensive common calcium salt, supplying about 40% elemental calcium by weight.

Typical: 250–600 mg

The most concentrated magnesium source at about 60% elemental magnesium, which is why it dominates in multivitamins and small tablets.

Typical: 200–350 mg

A calcium salt of citric acid that does not rely on stomach acid to dissolve, so it can be taken with or without food and is often chosen for older adults and people on acid-reducing medication.

Typical: 200–500 mg

The most common zinc salt in multivitamins, lozenges, and immune products, containing about 14.3% elemental zinc.

Typical: 10–25 mg

Trivalent chromium chelated with three picolinate ligands, the form used in most human trials and the best seller in blood-sugar and weight-management formulas.

Typical: 200–500 mcg

Ferrous iron chelated with two glycine molecules, the form most prenatal and gentle-iron products now use.

Typical: 18–30 mg

The organic selenium form found in Brazil nuts, grains, and selenium yeast, in which selenium replaces sulfur in the amino acid methionine.

Typical: 50–200 mcg

The reference iron salt used in most clinical research and public-health programs, inexpensive and reliably absorbed.

Typical: 18–45 mg

The standard iodine source in multivitamins, prenatals, and thyroid-support formulas, about 76.5% iodine by weight and absorbed almost completely.

Typical: 150–300 mcg

A zinc salt of citric acid with a relatively high zinc content of about 31%, giving it a compactness advantage over gluconate and picolinate.

Typical: 10–25 mg

A ferrous salt of fumaric acid that carries about 33% elemental iron, the highest of the common iron forms, which keeps tablets small.

Typical: 18–45 mg

Brown seaweed, usually Laminaria or Ascophyllum species, used as a whole-food iodine source in thyroid and multimineral formulas.

Typical: 150–300 mcg

The densest zinc source at about 80% elemental zinc, which is why it is the default in multivitamins and low-cost tablets where space is tight.

Typical: 10–25 mg

A water-soluble calcium complex formed with both citric and malic acids, originally developed for fortifying juices and later sold as a supplement ingredient.

Typical: 250–500 mg

A copper salt of gluconic acid, about 14% elemental copper, and one of the most widely used copper sources in multivitamins because it is water soluble, inexpensive, and has a long safety record.

Typical: 0.5–2 mg

Potassium bound to gluconic acid, a mild-tasting salt with only about 16.7% elemental potassium, so it is bulky per milligram of potassium.

Typical: 99–300 mg

An inorganic selenium salt that is about 46% selenium by weight, inexpensive, and readily converted to selenide for selenoprotein synthesis.

Typical: 50–200 mcg

A whole-bone extract made from bovine bone that keeps the natural hydroxyapatite mineral matrix together with collagen and other bone proteins.

Typical: 250–700 mg

Manganese chelated with glycine, about 15% elemental manganese in commercial grades, used in bone, joint, and antioxidant formulas where manganese serves as a cofactor for enzymes involved in cartilage and bone matrix formation.

Typical: 1–5 mg

Trivalent chromium bound to niacin (nicotinic acid), marketed as a food-like glucose-tolerance-factor form and sold under trade names such as ChromeMate.

Typical: 200–400 mcg

A water-soluble manganese salt of gluconic acid with about 11–12% elemental manganese, common in multivitamins and bone formulas as an inexpensive, mild-tasting source.

Typical: 1–5 mg

Molybdenum chelated with glycine, one of the forms NIH ODS lists for supplements along with sodium molybdate and molybdenum chloride, with no comparative bioavailability data among them.

Typical: 45–150 mcg