Tips For Choosing Supplements

Most people in the United States take one or more supplements either regularly or occasionally. Dietary supplements come in forms of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, enzymes, herbal products, and many others. The preparation can be a tablets, capsules, soft gels, powders, and liquid. Because there are so many varieties out there, choosing the right kind of supplement may be challenging. Here are a few basic tips to consider before you decided to start consuming one.

Do some preliminary background check

Research the benefits and possible side effects of the particular compound you’re planning to take. Always consult a health care professional beforehand. Dietary supplements are products intended to supplement the diet. They are not drugs and, therefore, are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any diseases. Do not believe whatever claims the manufacturer made before doing some research of your own. Some supplements promise to help make us thinner, smarter, stronger or faster without making any other changes in lifestyle. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

Consider the effectiveness of the supplement

Find out how much you need to consume in order to bring out the health benefits for your body without risking the side effects. Many popular products include ingredients in miniscule quantities, just so a much-publicized ingredient can be listed on the label, or vice versa, they include a very high amount of a particular ingredient while in reality our body only needs a minuscule amount. A good, but not perfect guide is to look up the recommended daily allowances (RDA) of that product. However, keep in mind that a product’s chemical formulation and how it is prepared affect how our body is able to take in the ingredients. This is called bioavailability. A high-dosed product, but low bioavailability is not very effective.

Soft capsules generally have a better bioavailabilty than traditional tablets.

Be aware of safety and risk issues

The term ‘natural’ doesn't always mean safe. Many supplements contain active ingredients that can have strong effects in the body. Always be alert to the possibility of unexpected side effects, especially when taking a new product. Dietary supplements can also interact with certain prescription drugs in ways that might cause problems. Watch out for other catch phrases like ‘clinically tested/proven’ and ‘pharmaceutical strength’. Unlike drugs, which must be approved by the FDA before they can be marketed, dietary supplements do not require premarket review or approval by the FDA and the manufacturers do not have to provide any evidence about the claims they made before the product is marketed.

Look for quality assurance

Since the quality of nutritional supplements can vary widely, one strategy is to choose an established brand name, or one that's recommended by a health professional. Not every product uses high quality raw materials, or is manufactured according to accepted good manufacturing practices. Besides the FDA, several independent organizations like U.S. Pharmacopeia, ConsumerLab.com, and NSF International offer quality testing and allow products that pass these tests to display their seals of approval. These seals of approval provide assurance that the product was properly manufactured, contains the ingredients listed on the label, and does not contain harmful levels of contaminants.

The Benefits of Antioxidants

What is an antioxidant?

Antioxidant is a molecule that inhibits the oxidation of other molecules, preventing the production of free radicals. Free radicals are produced when our body breaks down food, or by environmental exposures like tobacco smoke and radiation. They can start a chain reaction that eventually damage cells, and may play a role in the aging process, development of heart disease, cancer, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, and other degenerative diseases.

What are the sources of antioxidants?

Plants and animals can produce its own antioxidants or obtain them from food. Examples of antioxidants are gluthatione, beta-carotene, flavonoids, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, selenium, lutein, lycopene, coenzyme Q10, and enzymes like superoxide dismutase, catalase, and peroxidases. Antioxidant are also available as food supplements, but these synthetic forms may not have the same effects on the body as antioxidants that occur naturally in foods.

Listed below are a few examples of antioxidants and their natural sources:

• Beta-carotene is found in colorful fruits and vegetables such as carrots, peas, cantaloupe, apricots, papayas, mangoes, peaches, pumpkin, apricots, broccoli, sweet potatoes and squash. It can also be found in some leafy green vegetables, including beet greens, spinach and kale.
• Vitamin A is found in milk, liver, butter and eggs.
• Vitamin C is found in most fruits and vegetables such as oranges, papayas, strawberries, cantaloupe and kiwi.
• Vitamin E is found in wheat germ and vegetable oil, cereal, liver, eggs yolk, green plants, milk, and.some nuts and seeds, including almonds, sunflower seeds, hazelnuts and peanuts.
• Lutein is found in green leafy vegetables, such as spinach, collards and kale, broccoli, corn, peas, papayas and oranges.
• Lycopene is found in pink and red fruits and vegetables, such as tomatoes, pink grapefruit, watermelon, and apricots.
• Selenium is found in tuna, cold water fish (cod, halibut, salmon), turkey, calf liver, barley, garlic, broccoli, and seeds. Brazilian nuts have especially high selenium content.

How does antioxidant benefit your health?

Antioxidants benefit your health by cleaning free radicals out of your bloodstream. Different antioxidants benefit act on different parts of the body. Beta-carotene found maintain eye health and may prevent age related macular degeneration, lycopene can contribute to prostate health, while flavonoids are good for your heart.

Before you decide to start taking antioxidants supplements, remember these supplements are not a replacement for healthy diet or conventional medical care. The best sources of antioxidants are from natural products. A varied diet containing at least 5 servings of fruits and 6-11 servings of grains, including at least 3 servings of whole grains per day will provide you with enough antioxidants to keep oxidative stress away. Be sure to consult your physician before you start taking supplements. High levels of some nutrients, such as vitamins A, vitamin E, or selenium can be harmful for your health.

The ABC of Vitamins

The word vitamin speaks for itself.

In 1912 Cashmir Funk, a Polish scientist first named that special substance he found in food as 'vitamine' from the two words 'vita' meaning life and 'amine' from thiamine, a compound isolated from rice husks. Today, we all know that vitamins are important for our health. They are needed for normal growth and body function.

Vitamins are a group organic substances occurring naturally in small amounts in every organism. They may be water or fat soluble. Vitamin A, D, E, and K are fat soluble, while B and C are water soluble.

Vitamin A 

Also known as retinol, vitamin A is important for your eyesight, skin and mucous membranes, bone and teeth, and immune defense system. Avoid taking high dosage of vitamin A when you're pregnant. It's found in diary products, eggs, liver, orange-colored fruits and vegetables like carrots and apricots.

Vitamin B

There are many types of vitamin B, namely thiamine (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin (B3), pyridoxine (B6), cobalamine (B12). Even pantothenic acid and biotin are actually vitamin B. Generally they're important for energy metabolism, nerve function, and red blood cell formation. They're found in a variety of foods, mainly cereal and diary products, leafy vegetables, poultry, beef, fish. Except vitamin B12 that are not found in plants. That's why vegetarians are prone to B12 deficiency.

Vitamin C

Also known as ascorbic acid, is a major antioxidant in our body important for immune system, tissue repair, skin health, and cartilage formation. It is found only in fruits and vegetable especially citrus fruits.

Vitamin D

Vitamin D is needed for absorption of Calcium and bone health. It's found in liver, eggs yolk, milk, and fatty fish. The skin can make vitamin D when exposed to enough sunlight.

Vitamin E

It is an antioxidant and protect the cell wall from damage. It is also important for reproductive function. Vitamin E is found in wheat germ and vegetable oil, cereal, liver, eggs yolk, green plants, and milk.

Vitamin K

Vitamin K is needed for blood clotting. It is found in leafy green vegetables, butter, cheese, and egg yolk. The bacteria in our digestive tract also produces vitamin K and prolonged antibiotic therapy can cause deficiency.

The most important source of vitamins is our diet- not from supplement pills or injections. You can not hope to replace a healthy and balanced diet with a bunch of high dosed supplements.

As stated before, vitamins are required only in a small amount. Taking high dosage of vitamins surpassing the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) will not not make your body function better. In fact, it can lead to over-dosage, especially for vitamins that are fat soluble because they are accumulated in our body, mainly in the liver.