Helping you age gracefully: A look at helpful dietary supplements for older adults (2025)

There are so many varieties and brands of dietary supplements on the market these days, and many who take multiple supplements everyday, but is that really necessary?

While these supplements can be helpful for people who have a deficiency of certain essential vitamins and minerals, it is recommended that people try to get these nutrients naturally through the food they consume.

But as people age, the way their bodies absorb certain nutrients can change making it difficult to consume the needed amount through food. For this reason, some dietary supplements might be helpful for older adults.

Some health experts say dietary supplements could act as a boost for older adults.

Tips for taking supplements

Here are some helpful things to know before starting to take a dietary supplement, according to The National Institute on Aging and Healthline.

• Check with your doctor before deciding to take a dietary supplement to treat a health condition. Some supplements can cause side effects or can interfere with medications.
• Choose supplement brands that are recommended by your doctor, dietician or pharmacist.
• Choose brands that have gone through third-party testing to ensure safety, purity and quality, because supplements don’t have to be approved by the FDA. You can check this by looking for a seal on the packaging from organizations such as NSF International, USP or ConsumerLab.
• Check the ingredients list and don’t buy products with large amounts of sugar, additives or fillers.
• Follow a healthy lifestyle; stick to a healthy diet, keep your mind active, see your doctor regularly and stay physically active.
• Too much of a vitamin or mineral can be harmful.
• Try to have most of your vitamins, mineral and other nutrients come from the food you eat.

Which supplements can be helpful for older adults?

Calcium

Calcium is an essential mineral that has a key role in bone health, which is important for everyone, including as you age. It can help preserve bone density, especially if you’re not ingesting enough calcium through your food.

According to Healthline, women have a higher risk of osteoporosis — bone loss — as they get older.

There are multiple types of calcium supplements that should be taken differently. Calcium carbonate supplements should be taken with meals, but calcium citrate supplements are easier to absorb and do not need to be taken with meals, per Healthline.

You can incorporate more calcium in your diet without taking supplements by eating tofu, broccoli, collard greens, kale and a variety of dairy products. You can also find foods that have calcium added, such as breakfast cereals, per the National Institute on Aging.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is often called the “sunshine vitamin,” as it is a fat-soluble vitamin produced by your skin when exposed to the sun.

According to the National Institute on Aging, most Americans consume less than the recommended amounts of vitamin D. This is due to the fact that very few food sources contain the vitamin naturally.

Older adults are often at risk of a vitamin D deficiency as they tend to avoid sun exposure because of the risk or skin cancer, or just spend less time outdoors than younger people.

Vitamin D also can help your body absorb calcium and some supplements have both vitamin D and calcium.

Supplements of vitamin D can help increase muscle mass, enhance immune function and decrease symptoms of depression, per Healthline.

You can incorporate more Vitamin D into your diet without taking supplements by eating yogurt, milk, fatty fish, beef liver and mushrooms. There are also some breakfast cereals that are vitamin D-fortified.

Vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 helps to maintain the health of your red blood cells and nerves, per the National Institute on Aging.

Older adults need just as much of the vitamin as other adults, but some have trouble absorbing vitamin B12 naturally from food. Doctors may recommend those with this issue to take a supplement or eat fortified cereals with the vitamin added.

Since vitamin B12 is only found in animal foods, vegetarians and vegans tend to be at a greater risk of developing a vitamin B12 deficiency.

You can incorporate vitamin B12 into your diet without taking supplements by eating poultry, meat, clams, dairy and eggs, per AARP. Taking too much of the vitamin can be dangerous.

Vitamin B6

Vitamin B6 is essential to the body’s ability to form red blood cells.

According to the National Institute on Aging, men 51 and older should consume 1.7 mg of the vitamin a day and women in that age group need 1.5 mg.

You can incorporate more Vitamin B6 into your diet without taking supplements by eating salmon, eggs, bananas, milk, chickpeas and avocado, per Healthline. The vitamin can also be found in potatoes and other starchy vegetables.