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Posts Tagged ‘Dietary Supplements’

If you are one of the millions of people taking vitamins and minerals in the form of supplement tablets or capsules every day, do you ever wonder whether or not your body is actually benefiting from the routine?

In this article read some of the information you probably need to consider when you are looking to get the most from your vitamin or mineral supplements.

If you take a multivitamin:

If you take single vitamins or minerals such as Iron Supplements and Calcium Supplements:

What about chelated minerals?

Source:  When (and How) to Take Your Vitamin and Mineral Supplements. Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter [serial online]. March 1999;17(2):4. Available from: MAS Ultra – School Edition, Ipswich, MA. Accessed August 20, 2008.

In recent years, there has been lots of research into nutritional supplements and their effectiveness, and most studies have shown that liquid supplements are actually the most effective when compared to pills. The pill version of supplements takes time to break down once inside the body, and in some cases, the pill simply passes right through, with no benefit being gained at all. Liquid supplements are quickly absorbed into the body, and little benefit is lost during the digestive process.

In theory, we can get all of the nutrients we need from eating fresh fruits and veggies everyday, but very few people are actually able to eat enough to meet their daily nutritional requirements. This is why nutritional supplements are so important. Many of us lead very busy, hectic lives, and quite often, it is impossible to make the best food choices, so we have to rely on supplements to feed our body’s, and keep up healthy.

To make certain that your body gets all of the nutrients it needs each day; you pretty much have to take a supplement. There are very few nutritional supplements that can’t be found in liquid form. Thanks to the research that has shown the increased effectiveness of liquid supplements, just about every manufacturer offers their products in liquid form, so they aren’t hard to find.

Liquid supplements can boost your health, leading to a higher quality of life, and increased longevity. While we do have to make sacrifices and shortcuts in our lives, our health should not be something that we take for granted, or downgrade to a low priority status. Between trying to make enough money to pay the bills, keeping the household chores down, and taking care of your family, it is easy to lose track and forget about your own health and needs. You should make an effort each day to think about your own needs, even if that just means a ten minute walk, at least you are doing something to boost your health, along with taking supplements! Liquid supplements are more convenient and more economical, since you get the full benefit of the daily dose, rather than just having it pass through your body unabsorbed, as is common with pills.

Liquid nutritional supplements have been around for a long time, they just haven’t really been popular until the last decade or so. Your body can function as it was meant do when you provide it with the vitamins and nutrients it needs everyday. Once you start using liquid supplements and see the difference for yourself, you will wonder how you have made it without them all this time!

In general, the population of the world is becoming more and more focused on health, and health related issues than ever before. Due to that fact, millions of people are starting to rely on nutritional supplements for their nutritional needs. Because very few of us actually eat the way we are supposed to, supplements are needed to ensure that our body’s get the nutrients they need to function and be healthy everyday.

Unless you like the idea of sitting in your doctor’s office often, you should take the time to take care of yourself, and ensure your health. Your body needs vitamins and nutrients for healing and protection from disease, so it is essential you provide them, either form your foods, or in the form of daily supplements. Supplements can also help enhance your immune system, boosting overall health, and helping your body is better able to fight off illnesses. The weaker your immune system, the more likely you are to get sick, and the longer it will likely take for you to recuperate.

Healthcare costs are rising everyday, due in part to the fact that people just don’t take care of themselves as they should, requiring more visits to the doctor, and boosting costs. If everyone became more health conscious, and starting using daily supplements, some of these costs would start to decrease. Nutritional supplements, when taken properly, can help reduce the rise of national

There are currently several supplements that have been approved by the FDA, and more that are expected to be added in the near future. The FDA is evaluating supplements, the cost of healthcare, and the cost of health insurance, trying to find ways to lower the economic strain that we are all under. The theory is that by focusing more on preventative medicine, particularly the use of supplements, these costs will drop dramatically.

One of the more popular supplements being used today is Vitamin C. This supplement have been proven to be a powerful antioxidant, and is currently being researched for it’s role in lowering the risks of developing certain types of cancer and even heart disease, two of the major killers in the world today.

For healthy skin, Vitamin A supplements are highly recommended. Vitamin E is also great for the skin, and has also been shown to help lower the risks of developing diabetes for some people. For those who are worried about the signs of aging, selenium is a good option, and it also helps protect against prostate cancer.

If you want to be healthy, and cut your healthcare costs, think about boosting your health with nutritional supplements! They really aren’t that expensive, and can go a long way towards helping your body get the nutrition it needs!

Our body needs a balanced diet to get all the nutrients required by the body. For that one should eat a variety of food. Foods that contain green vegetables, fruits, grains, dairy products, meat, fish and little bit of fat normally meet this requirement. But when these foods fail to meet the nutritional needs, you require dietary supplements.

Before going in depth about dietary supplements, you should know little more about what exactly is a dietary supplement?

A dietary supplement is actually compensating for vitamins and minerals in food by consuming capsules, pills or liquids. Dietary supplements include vitamins, minerals, amino acids, herbs or botanicals, an extract or a combination of these as a part of their ingredient. It is not a natural way of taking nutrients and does have some side effects.

So, the next question that may come in your mind is when do you really require a dietary supplement?

Some of the common reasons for taking nutritional supplements in an artificial way are gaining weight, healing after a surgery and bone fractures, recovering from illness and for strength during cancer. It is always recommended to take nutrients in a natural way but at times you have to also take dietary supplements. You should always remember not to take these dietary supplements for a very long duration as they do have negative effects.

Next thing to know is who all actually require dietary supplements?

• It is recommended for certain age groups such as people above 50 years so that they get extra strength as with age the body becomes weak.

• It is recommended to those you do not take proper diet.

• It is taken by pregnant women or nursing moms as they require extra nutrition.

• It is prescribed to the ill and people who have undergone some surgery.

Dietary supplements are supplements and are not meant to replace some of the food needed in a healthy daily diet. Thus, remember that no dietary supplement can ever replace a healthy diet.

Note – Looking at your physical health, a dietitian can help you decide to take a particular dietary supplement. It is always best to consult a doctor as the dietary supplements have side effects and may be they do not suit you.

Disclaimer: The reader of this article should exercise all precautionary measures while following instructions on the home remedies from this article. Avoid using any of these products if you are allergic to it. The responsibility lies with the reader and not with the site or the writer.

Copyright © Nick Mutt, All Rights Reserved. If you want to use this article on your website or in your ezine, make all the urls (links) active.

Get the Best multivitamin for men and women to provide essential nutrients to the body. Also find Vitamins and minerals supplements to provide nutrients to the body that are generally not fulfilled from you diet at Natural cures guide – Free information for your healthy life style!

Dietary supplements refer to any health products that can supplement our diet. They include vitamins, minerals, amino acids, digestive enzymes, Probiotics, herbal supplements, glandular extracts and dietary fibers etc.
The consumption of dietary supplements has been rising every year. Whereas many people believe that dietary supplements can improve their health or prevent certain diseases, some consumer groups or medical professionals have warned that dietary supplements can be dangerous. So, the question is: are dietary supplements really dangerous? Unfortunately, the question does not have a simple answer.
Dietary supplements, by its broad definition, include thousands of different products. In 2004, Consumer Reports listed 12 potentially dangerous dietary supplements. Many of them are herbal products. Some of these herbs have been used by herbalists for hundreds of years and are considered as safe. However, when the active substances in these herbs are extracted in pure or concentrated form and consumed over prolonged period, they can be dangerous to some people.
Many dietary supplements such as vitamins and minerals are safe and can supplement what is missing in our diet. However, even the benign supplement can become dangerous in overdose. In local news, a woman was reported to give her two teenage daughters mega dose of vitamin A for prolonged period, thinking that the supplement is good for the eyes. Both suffered from acute liver failure and one required a liver transplant to save her life. Vitamin A is not dangerous but mega dose of vitamin A is hepatotoxic. In this case, ignorance itself is dangerous!
The quality of dietary supplement is also an important factor. The presence of contaminations, such as heavy metal, drugs, and toxic substances can make a benign supplement dangerous. One example is the presence of microcystin toxin in blue green algae dietary supplements. Microcystins are natural toxins from certain strains of blue green algae that can cause liver damage and liver tumors. According to the research conducted by Health Canada, only one strain of blue green algae, Spirulina, is free from microcystins as Spirulina is harvested from controlled ponds. Most of the non-Spirulina blue green algae supplements are contaminated by microcystins, especially those harvested from natural lakes. Daily consumption of these dietary supplements would exceed the acceptable level of microcystin intake established by Health Canada and WHO.
Good manufacturing practice (GMP) is another key factor to safeguard the quality and safety of dietary supplements. Dietary supplement manufacturers in compliance of GMP standards have to test the identity of raw materials, implement a quality control unit, provide expiration date for the finished products, maintain good records of batch production and written procedures, and hire personnel who are trained to understand and follow GMP. This practice can reduce the chance of having batch to batch variation in strength, composition, purity and quality of finished products.
To sum up, although most dietary supplements are safe when consumed according to the label, consumers are advised to educate themselves before taking these supplements. What are the functions of these supplements? How long should I be taking them? Are they manufactured by reputable companies in compliance of good manufacturing practices? Never consume more than the recommended dose unless supervised by health care professionals. If you are pregnant, breast feeding, or suffering from pre-existing health conditions, you should also take extra precaution and consult with your doctors or nutritionists.

Drugs may interact with herbs, and even vitamins and minerals, causing adverse reactions. The first step in avoiding drug-vitamin interactions is to know where the risks are.Are you at risk?

If you take both dietary supplements and medicines, then there is a risk of drug-supplement interaction. However the very young, and the very old, run a greater risk for physiological reasons. Particularly heavy use of medication, and regular supplementation, also increases the risk. Therefore the need for precaution is especially important for elderly people, pregnant women and those who may become pregnant, nursing mothers, and people with chronic health problems.

Dietary supplements can interact with both prescription medicines and over-the-counter drugs such as aspirin and cold remedies. Many drug-supplement interactions reported in the medical literature have involved herbal supplements, such as licorice, and St. John’s Wort. However, the problem of drug-supplement interactions is not limited to herbs. Vitamin E, folic acid, calcium, and zinc, are also known to interact with certain types of drugs.How can drugs and supplements interact?

There are three main ways in which a supplement can interact with your medication:1. A supplement may strengthen the effects of your medication. If both a supplement and a drug have similar actions in the body, then taking both together can cause an excessively strong effect. In this case, the supplement dosage should be limited to avoid interactions. To take an extreme example, combining an anticoagulant drug such as warfarin with a supplement that also inhibits blood coagulation, such as fish oil, could increase the risk of abnormal bleeding. 2. A supplement may reduce the bioavailability of your medication. A drug can either alter the breakdown of a supplement in your body, or prevent proper absorption of a supplement into your blood. Both of these effects will reduce the bioavailability of the supplement in your body, and so lower potency. Therefore it is best to increase the dosage of a supplement in these circumstances. 3. A supplement may seriously interact with your medication. Potentially the most dangerous type of interaction, sometimes a supplement has an excessively strong reaction with a drug, causing either adverse side-effects or drug overdose type symptoms. Where this is a concern, it is strongly recommended to avoid these supplements completely. Taking control: how to avoid drug-supplement interactions

Despite the risks, there is no reason you should stop supplementing your diet, or taking your medication. All that is needed to avoid drug-supplement interactions is awareness and consultation with leading authorities on nutritional health before you start. Mitamins is a professional online resource for anyone who wants to know more about vitamins, natural herbs, and other supplements. Our drug checker uses a comprehensive database of 6000 interactions to avoid harmful drug-vitamin interactions.

I’ll start with the bottom line: you don’t NEED supplements to burn fat or build muscle. The human body can function and make excellent athletic progress on nothing but quality food and proper training.
But you CAN use supplements to help the process along faster. The real key is knowing what works, what is garbage, and when an advertiser is simply trying to take your money.
Let me put it this way…in a recent muscle magazine, I counted 120 pages of full-page (in some cases 3 to 6 page), high-powered supplement ads. If you were to buy all these products, you’d be laughing all the way to the bank…laughing maniacally, because you’d have to rob it in order to pay for all those supplements!
There ARE good supplement manufacturers who make good products…they put in what they say they’re putting in and don’t try to fool you with advertising. But this article is about the BAD ones and it’s more fun to talk about them…
So what sneaky tricks do advertisers use to separate you from your money?
1. Unprovable Testimonials
How many times have you seen testimonials like “I lost 10 pounds in a week” or “I gained 20 pounds of muscle in a month.” These testimonials prey upon the desire in all of us for fast and easy results. Who wouldn’t want results this quickly? After all, if this person did it, I should get those same results too, right?
To me, this is like a car commercial that uses special effects to catch your attention then has an official disclaimer like “car should not be driven underwater” or “does not imply resistance to meteor strikes.” It looks and sounds cool but you know it’s just not real – you want to believe but…
And believe me, I would LOVE to think that results like this are possible with just a supplement. But how do you prove that those results even happened? You can’t. How do you prove it was due to that supplement? You can’t. How do you know the person wasn’t “on” something? You can’t. And how do you get your money back when it doesn’t work? You can’t.
About 10 years ago, I did an experiment on myself to see just how much weight I could gain in a week (keep in mind, I was just aiming for total bodyweight, which includes muscle, water and fat). By going on a very strict diet and training program for 2 weeks then completely reversing everything and loading up, I was able to gain 25 pounds of bodyweight in 7 days. And I owed it all to the incredible new supplement I was taking called Hydrogen Dioxide (a.k.a. H2O).
2. Before and After Photos
Before and after photos can be very inspiring and offer proof that a product works. Or they can fool you like the time Homer Simpson opened a can of beer that had just been in a paint shaking machine.
Here’s a before and after picture technique you can try at home:
Your Before Picture:
- slouch as much as you can
- let your gut hang out and down, push it out if you can
- bow your shoulders in, hunch your back over, and bow your knees in
- stand directly square to the camera so you look as wide as possible
- frown or look miserable
- have a messy, unflattering hairdo
- wear the most unflattering clothing you can find – make sure the clothes highlight every bulge
- don’t flex or tighten up anything – make yourself feel as flabby as possible
Your After Picture:
- stand up straight and tall
- suck in your gut and flex your abdominals
- keep your shoulders back
- look happy and wear a big smile
- stand slightly sideways (tilting your body at angle makes it look thinner)
- wear flattering clothing and have your hair neat
- flex all your muscles and keep everything tight
You can make quite a change in yourself pretty quickly!
3. Pay An Athlete To Get Fat Then Pay Them To Get Back In Shape
It is a little-known fact that some supplement companies have been known to actually pay well-trained athletes to stop training and get fat. Why? To get a really awful-looking “before” picture.
Then, when the athlete starts training hard again, eating right and, of course, taking their magic supplement, they get into great shape very quickly. The goal is to convince you that it was the supplement that was the key to the transformation, not the fact that it was a well-trained athlete in the first place. But an average person is NOT going to be able to make a transformation like this, no matter how good the supplement is.
When you’re already a well-trained athlete, you can make dramatic changes to your body extremely quickly (as evidenced by my own 25 pounds in a week weight gain I talked about above). To me, it’s like telling a professional boxer that he can only punch with his face for a few rounds. When he starts up with the fists again, he’s going to make a pretty rapid improvement!
4. 6 Page Special Ad Reports
Have you ever started reading an article in a magazine only to realize partway through that you’re being sold a supplement? These styles of ads are VERY common – informative enough to make you believe it’s the magazine itself writing the article but, lo and behold, the best solution to the topic in the “special report” is the supplement they’re trying to get you to buy.
Note to supplement companies: even a good product can be wrecked with too much slick advertising.
5. Misrepresenting Legitimate Scientific Studies
Here’s the set-up: take an ingredient that showed some positive results in an isolated scientific study that has nothing to do with actual weight training, e.g. malnourished toddlers in Lithuania showed an increase in lean tissue when given nutrient “X”.
Now assume that the same results will also happen in a 200 lb healthy male athlete. Tell people that nutrient “X” is backed by scientific studies. They know that you’re not going to actually READ those studies!
Here’s the kicker… now include 10 mg of it in your product when the effective dose in the toddlers was actually 1000 mg!
And here’s a fun way to kill an afternoon: call up these companies and ask them to send you copies of the studies they’ve used to prove their supplements are effective. I’ve done that…they don’t stay on the line very long. Oh, they’ve sent me “studies,” but where I went to school, legitimate scientific studies don’t generally include price lists.
6. Name Your Product Similar to a Drug and Claim It’s “Almost Illegal”
Luckily for them, it’s not illegal to be useless. If the only thing a product has going for it is a mashed-up name similar to a drug, pack up your underwater car and go driving through a meteor shower. It’s going to be a long day.
7. Proprietary Formulas
I have no problem with people keeping the lid on the specifics of an effective formula to keep others from copying it. But when that is used an excuse to include next to nothing of the active ingredients that actually do anything…
You see, I don’t want to pay for a pill that is 95% methylbullcrapsomethingorother and 5% active ingredient. When the phrase “proprietary formula” is used, the manufacturer doesn’t legally have to say exactly how much of each of the ingredients is in the formula.
The best part is when the scientific study they used to prove their product works shows a dose of 5 grams is needed to be effective and their serving size/pill size is only 1 gram…AND they have 10 other ingredients listed as being in the pill.
8. Professional Bodybuilder Testimonials
Because I’m quite sure that a pro bodybuilder weighing 280lb at 4% bodyfat really gained all that muscle from a couple of scoops of some fruity powder that is supposed to give you a better pump.
9. The “Latest” Supplement
There was a time when the AMC Pacer and the Gremlin were the “latest” cars to come off the assembly line. Just because something is the “latest” doesn’t mean that it actually works.
The current craze: Nitric Oxide (a product that is supposed to increase circulation to muscles, resulting in a greater “pump”/blood flow to the muscles for increasing muscle growth). Let me put it this way…I’ve tried it, I’ve researched it and don’t waste your money on it.
The only way it’ll work is if you mix it with something else that DOES work (like creatine, for instance). Then you’re just paying extra for the privelege of combining the two supplements.
You want a better pump? Drink more water – that’s what blood primarily is. The better hydrated you are, the greater your blood volume will be. Need proof? One of the primary dangers of diuretic use for reducing water levels to show muscles better is thickening of the blood, which basically is reduced blood volume. The more water you have in your body, the greater your blood volume will be and the stronger your pumps will be.
Heck, if you REALLY want to build muscle, half your day should be spent sloshing around because you’ve drank so much water!
10. “Eat What You Want And Still Lose Weight”
Chances are, a product like this contains something to speed up your metabolism (most likely a herbal stimulant) and/or something to block the absorption of fat or carbs. You will probably lose weight but you may be a nervous insomniac with debilitating cramps and greasy diarrhea. What a great way to promote good health!
Conclusion:
Bottom line, I have no problem with supplements or supplement ads that are legitimate. What I do have a problem with (and you probably gathered this from the article) is the way people are manipulated through clever advertising into spending their hard-earned money on useless products. It gives weight training a bad name makes even good products look suspicious.
You see, a supplement can only do so much – it can only SUPPORT what you’re doing with your weight training and nutrition. If your training program or nutrition don’t work without supplementation, no supplement is going to fix that.
I use supplements every single day. They can help tremendously in your training, especially when you use supplements that are effective and have proven to be so! There are plenty of good supplements and good manufacturers out there (more on that below)!

People need dietary supplements for a variety of reasons. Bodybuilders, for example, would need supplements to aid muscle buildup and strengthening of muscles such as concentrated protein, glutamine, creatine and weight gain powders. Athletes take in supplements to optimize or enhance their performance.

People with illnesses often require dietary supplements such as concentrated iron for anemia. And those on a diet also take supplements to ensure they get the required amount of minerals, vitamins, amino acids, herbs, enzymes and other nutrients. Most however take supplements for optimum overall health. A lot of people also take them to relieve stress and to boost their energy.

What are dietary supplements and how are they different from medicines and over-the-counter drugs?

The Congress in the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, which was enacted into law in 1994, defines dietary supplements or nutritional supplements as supplements to the diet. These supplements contain one or more ingredients or their constituents. These are taken orally in the form of liquid, capsule, pill or tablet and are labeled as dietary supplement in the packaging.

Dietary supplements come in different forms, thus the confusion with over-the-counter drugs. The market is flooded with different types and forms of supplements such as capsules, tablets, drinks, energy bars and powders. Most can be purchased even without a prescription. They are available in drug stores, supermarkets, grocery stores, natural food stores, merchandise retailers and in health stores. One can even buy supplements on line. In order to distinguish these supplements from over-the-counter drugs, always read the Supplement Facts label.

Unfortunately, most of these dietary supplements are not regulated. Unlike with drugs, the US Food and Drugs Administration does not check the safety and effectiveness of supplements before they are sold to the public. In fact, the FDA only has authority over supplements once they have already entered the market. Usually, actions are taken by the FDA once a complaint against a certain brand has been received.

Many dietary supplements are guilty of false claims. Testimonials and so-called proofs of the efficiency and effectiveness of supplements abound in print, broadcast and on line media.

Worse, some are even unsafe. And so, extra precaution must be taken when choosing which dietary supplement to take. Always check with the manufacturer for more information. With the tons of promotional materials that abound, always be wary of the information being presented.

Keen in mind that dietary supplements are not intended to cure or prevent illnesses. In addition, although some supplements have beneficial effects, a significant number of them have potential health risks. Some supplements contain active ingredients that can have negative effects on the body, specially when taken in large doses and with other supplements and medicines. Supplementslike calcium, for example, interact with heart medicines like Digoxin, vitamin K counteracts with blood thinners etc.. In addition, too much intake of certain vitamins and minerals such as oil-soluble vitamin E and A, can be toxic to the body.

Pregnant women, nursing moms, those undergoing surgery and people with chronic illnesses should take extra care in deciding whether to take dietary supplements or not.

And so, when choosing supplements, it is always best to consult with a health care provider to avoid serious side effects. Remember, safety first!

The very first step is to undergo a nutritional assessment or evaluation with a health care provider. This will find out what your nutritional needs are and what dietary supplement is best suited to your medical condition.

Dietary supplements are supplements and not are not meant to replace some of the food needed in a healthy daily diet. Thus, bear in mind that no supplement can ever replace a healthy diet.

Never assume that “natural” is always safe. Some natural ingredients, specially if taken in large doses, can interact with medicines and may even result to life-threatening situations.

In addition, there are certain considerations in purchasing dietary supplements such as the quality, availability, your nutritional needs and price.

On a final note, dietary supplements are meant to supplement the body’s nutritional needs. It can never replace the overall health benefits of regular exercise and a healthy diet. And in choosing supplementary diets, safety should always be the main consideration.