Whole Food Vitamins

Q. I am in search of a whole food vitamin supplement - one for myself (very active female, age 38) and one for my children (elementary age). Everything out there, especially for kids, is full of junk, artificial sweeteners, etc. The "natural" or "whole food" ones we have tried tend to color our urine... which leads me to believe those still contain some by-products that our bodies don't need. Do you have any suggestions for us? - Cantrell

A: Most people assume that a change in the color of urine after taking a multivitamin or B complex is a sign of low absorption, excess, or synthetic ingredients; however, bright yellow urine after taking a supplement is a good sign - it indicates that the nutrients are being absorbed. It's vitamin B2 (riboflavin) that gives urine that color. I would be more concerned if my urine did not change color (a sign of poor absorption). Liquid vitamins tend to have the least amount of synthetic ingredients. Whole foods supplements are not necessarily better. In fact, some synthetic nutrients are absorbed better than natural-sourced nutrients.