Holland & Barrett Ultra Woman Daily Multivitamin Caplets
The Ultra Woman multivitamin helps cover the vitamins and minerals a woman needs each day and commonly falls short of, in one caplet taken with a meal, and it contains 18mg of iron, which is the single fact that decides whether it is the right product for you.
Iron is what separates a women’s multivitamin from a men’s one, and it is not a universal benefit. For a woman who menstruates it replaces what is lost each month. For a woman past the menopause it is iron she is no longer losing, and iron is the one mineral the body cannot readily get rid of once it is in. That distinction comes first because nothing else on the label matters as much.
Who the Iron Makes This Right For
If you menstruate, the iron is the point. Monthly blood loss is the commonest cause of low iron in women anywhere, and 18mg a day covers the increased requirement. Combined with the vitamin C in the same caplet, which improves iron absorption, that is a sensible daily arrangement.
If you are past the menopause, ask us before taking this. Iron requirement falls sharply once periods stop, and a daily 18mg on top of food is more than needed. Holland & Barrett make a fifty-plus version without the same iron load, and that is usually the better product.
If you have ever been told you have too much iron, or have haemochromatosis, thalassaemia, sickle cell disease or a transfusion history, do not take this without medical advice.
And the manufacturer’s own warning, which belongs on every iron product. Accidental overdose of iron-containing products is a leading cause of fatal poisoning in children under six. Keep this caplet where a child cannot reach it, and treat that instruction more seriously than any other on the pack.
The Calcium Works Against the Iron
There is 500mg of calcium in the same caplet, and calcium reduces iron absorption. This is a well-established interaction and it is the reason iron tablets are normally taken away from milk and dairy.
It does not make the product useless. It does mean you are not getting the full benefit of the iron, and it is worth knowing if iron is the reason you are buying it. If you have been told your iron is low, a separate iron supplement taken away from calcium will do more than a combined tablet, and our pharmacist will go through it with you.
In practice: take this caplet with a meal, but not with a large glass of milk or a cup of tea, and not at the same time as a calcium supplement if you take one.
What the Rest of the Caplet Gives You
Vitamin D at 1000 international units and calcium together support bone maintenance, which matters more for women than men across a lifetime. The full B group supports the release of energy from food. Folic acid at 800 micrograms is a generous amount, which is deliberate in a women’s product, and it is worth knowing that the adult upper limit is 1000 micrograms a day, so this is most of it. Do not add a second folic acid source without asking us.
The vitamin A is beta-carotene rather than preformed retinol. This is a real quality point. Beta-carotene is converted by the body only as it needs it, so it does not accumulate the way retinol can, and products built on retinol carry warnings about pregnancy and about eating liver. This one does not need them.
The Botanical Blend, Honestly
The cranberry and grape seed on the front of the pack are part of a 48 milligram blend shared between twelve ingredients. Boron, bilberry, grape seed, pomegranate, citrus bioflavonoids, cranberry, coenzyme Q10, flaxseed, lutein, lycopene, silica and zeaxanthin.
Split twelve ways, that averages about four milligrams each. For comparison, lutein is studied at ten to twenty milligrams, lycopene at similar amounts, coenzyme Q10 at one hundred to three hundred milligrams, and cranberry for urinary health at several hundred milligrams of extract.
So buy this for the vitamins, the minerals and the iron, which are at real amounts. The botanical blend is a garnish, and if cranberry for urinary health is what you actually want, you need a cranberry product rather than a trace of it in a multivitamin. Ask us and we will show you one.
If You Take Warfarin, Tell Us
This caplet touches warfarin twice. It contains vitamin K, which is precisely what warfarin works against, and it contains cranberry, which has been reported to change INR readings.
Neither means you cannot take a multivitamin. It means your clinic should know, and your intake should be steady rather than starting and stopping, so that a changed reading is understood rather than investigated as a mystery. Bring the pack to us or to your anticoagulation clinic first.
Before You Start, Check These
Speak to our pharmacist first if any of these apply:
- You are past the menopause — because of the iron. There is a version made for you.
- Haemochromatosis, thalassaemia, sickle cell disease, or a transfusion history — because of the iron.
- Warfarin — vitamin K and cranberry, as above.
- Diabetes or low blood sugar episodes — the manufacturer says to consult a doctor, because of the chromium content.
- Levothyroxine, a tetracycline or quinolone antibiotic, or a bisphosphonate — iron reduces the absorption of all of these. Separate them by at least four hours.
- Pregnancy, or trying to conceive — a prenatal preparation is formulated for that and this is not one. Ask us.
- Another multivitamin or a separate folic acid, iron or calcium product — these stack, and the folic acid here is already most of the daily ceiling.
How to Take It
One caplet a day with a meal. Do not exceed one. Take it with food, because the fat-soluble vitamins are absorbed alongside fat and because iron on an empty stomach makes a fair number of people feel sick.
Avoid taking it with a large glass of milk or with tea, both of which reduce iron absorption. A pack of ninety is three months.
Side Effects
The common ones come from the iron: mild nausea, constipation, and darker stools, which is expected and harmless rather than a sign of bleeding. Taking the caplet with food settles most of it.
Tell us about persistent constipation, stomach pain, or nausea that does not settle after the first week.
What Is in the Caplet
A one-a-day caplet supplying vitamin A as beta-carotene, vitamin D at 1000 international units, vitamins C, E, K, the full B group, folic acid at 800 micrograms and biotin, with iron at 18mg, calcium at 500mg, magnesium, zinc, selenium, iodine, copper, manganese, chromium, molybdenum and potassium, plus a 48 milligram botanical blend. Ninety caplets in a pack. Suitable for vegetarians.
Storing It
Keep the pack closed, cool, dry and out of direct sunlight, away from the bathroom and the area beside the cooker. Keep it out of reach of children, and with this product in particular treat that as an instruction rather than a formality.
Where to Buy Ultra Woman Multivitamin in Kenya
Order online and we deliver countrywide, or collect from our pharmacy at Kahawa Sukari Shopping Center, Nairobi. We send orders to Nairobi and every neighbourhood around it — the CBD, Westlands, Parklands, Gigiri, Muthaiga, Runda, Rosslyn, Kitisuru, Lower Kabete, Lavington, Kileleshwa, Kilimani, Karen, Langata, South B, South C, Eastleigh, Buruburu, Donholm, Embakasi, Ngong Road, Kasarani, Roysambu, Zimmerman, Githurai, Ruaka, Banana Hill, Two Rivers, Village Market and Pride Lands — and across Kiambu, Thika, Juja, Ruiru, Kikuyu, Limuru and Ngong.
Beyond the capital we deliver to Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Eldoret, Nyeri, Machakos, Athi River, Kitengela, Kajiado, Naivasha, Narok, Kericho, Bomet, Kisii, Migori, Homa Bay, Siaya, Bungoma, Busia, Kakamega, Vihiga, Webuye, Kitale, Nandi Hills, Iten, Kapenguria, Embu, Meru, Chuka, Kerugoya, Murang’a, Othaya, Nyahururu, Nanyuki, Maralal, Isiolo, Marsabit, Moyale, Wajir, Mandera, Garissa, Lodwar, Kitui, Mwingi, Makueni, Emali, Kibwezi, Voi, Taveta, Wundanyi, Mariakani, Diani, Ukunda, Kilifi, Watamu, Malindi, Lamu and Hola. Packed to travel, cool-boxed where the weather calls for it, and tracked from our counter to your door.
Across Africa, ask us before you order. We have sent orders to Uganda, Tanzania, Somaliland and as far as Malawi, and we will quote for Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Mozambique, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and the rest of the continent. What we need to know first is your country’s import rules for food supplements and how long the parcel will be in transit; we will tell you plainly if a destination is not worth the shipping cost.
Living abroad? Order from wherever you are and we deliver to your family here in Kenya. Kenyans in the UK, the United States, Canada, South Africa and the Gulf order from us regularly for parents and relatives at home. You pay online from where you live, we deliver to their door anywhere on the list above, and we confirm with you once it has arrived. Give us their name, their phone number and the estate or town they live in, and we will do the rest.
Why Buy Your Ultra Woman Multivitamin from HealthAlone Kenya?
HealthAlone is a pharmacist-led health ecosystem licensed by the Pharmacy and Poisons Board, and our stock is original, sealed and correctly stored.
We will ask whether you still menstruate before selling you an iron-containing multivitamin, because that is the question that decides it. We will tell you the calcium in the caplet works against the iron beside it, that the botanical blend is a garnish, and that the iron makes this a product to keep well away from children. If you are pregnant or trying to conceive, we will point you to a prenatal preparation instead.
It is one more step in our vision: building Africa’s most trusted health ecosystem, accessible to everyone, everywhere.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the Ultra Woman multivitamin contain iron?
Yes, 18mg per caplet. That is the main thing separating a women’s multivitamin from a men’s one. It suits a woman who menstruates and replaces what is lost each month. It is usually the wrong product after the menopause.
Can I take it after the menopause?
Ask us first. Once periods stop the iron requirement falls sharply, and a daily 18mg is more than needed. Holland & Barrett make a fifty-plus version without the same iron load, and that is normally the better choice.
Is it safe in pregnancy?
It is not a prenatal preparation and should not be used as one. Pregnancy needs specific amounts of folic acid, iodine and vitamin D and a careful ceiling on vitamin A. Ask us and we will show you a product made for it.
Why does the calcium matter?
Because calcium reduces iron absorption, and there is 500mg of calcium in the same caplet as the iron. It does not make the product useless, but if low iron is your reason for buying, a separate iron supplement taken away from calcium will do more.
What is the cranberry in it for?
Very little, honestly. It is part of a 48 milligram blend shared between twelve botanical ingredients, so roughly four milligrams each. Cranberry for urinary health is studied at several hundred milligrams of extract. If that is what you want, you need a cranberry product rather than a trace in a multivitamin.
I take warfarin. Can I take this?
Tell us and tell your clinic first. It touches warfarin twice: it contains vitamin K, which warfarin works against, and cranberry, which has been reported to change INR readings. Steady intake and a clinic that knows about it is what makes this manageable.
Can I take it with my thyroid tablets?
Separate them by at least four hours. Iron reduces the absorption of levothyroxine, and the same applies to tetracycline and quinolone antibiotics and to bisphosphonates.
Can I take it if I have diabetes?
Ask your doctor or our pharmacist first. The manufacturer says people with diabetes or low blood sugar should consult a doctor before taking it, because of the chromium content.
Why are my stools dark?
That is the iron and it is expected. It is harmless and not a sign of bleeding. Constipation and mild nausea are the other common iron effects and taking the caplet with food helps both.
How many caplets are in a pack?
Ninety, at one a day, so three months.
Is it suitable for vegetarians?
Yes.
Where can I buy the Ultra Woman multivitamin in Kenya?
From HealthAlone, online for delivery countrywide or over the counter at Kahawa Sukari Shopping Center, Nairobi. We deliver across Nairobi — the CBD, Westlands, Parklands, Gigiri, Muthaiga, Runda, Kitisuru, Lavington, Kilimani, Karen, Langata, South B, South C, Eastleigh, Kasarani, Roysambu, Githurai, Ruaka and Banana Hill — and to Kiambu, Thika, Juja, Ruiru, Kikuyu, Limuru, Ngong, Mombasa, Kisumu, Nakuru, Eldoret, Nyeri, Machakos, Kitengela, Naivasha, Narok, Kericho, Kisii, Migori, Homa Bay, Bungoma, Busia, Kakamega, Kitale, Embu, Meru, Nanyuki, Nyahururu, Isiolo, Marsabit, Wajir, Mandera, Garissa, Lodwar, Kitui, Makueni, Voi, Taveta, Mariakani, Diani, Ukunda, Kilifi, Watamu, Malindi and Lamu. Outside Kenya we have delivered to Uganda, Tanzania, Somaliland and Malawi, and we quote for Rwanda, Burundi, South Sudan, Ethiopia, Zambia, Nigeria, Ghana, South Africa and the rest of Africa on request.
