Skip to main content

Dietary Supplements: To Use or Not To Use?

Saying that we now live in an extremely fast world may sounds like a cliché, but it is true. We no longer have patience for sitting calmly in a cafe. We drink coffee to go. We eat food to go. If people have no more patience to look at one TV channel for more than five seconds, how do you expect them to care about their diet, to plan it and devote some time to making it successful?

Besides, today we can find a vide variety of food on the market. But, market increase has also resulted in the appearance of genetically modified food which often does more harm than good. Let’s face it – unless you pay very close attention, chances are your diet is lacking some basic nutrients. What do you do then? Do you build all of your life around adhering to a carefully planned diet?  Do you start growing your own vegetables and becoming obsessive about the amount of X or Y in your every meal? Or do you simply take a pill, or a powder?

Supplements(1)

photo credit

 There are a few things one must know about dietary supplements. First, their sole purpose is to compensate specific ingredients the human body needs. Therefore, they are true friends to human health, but the way some people use them is just not friendly at all. And this is how we get to the second lesson one must learn: dietary supplements are not food and they will never ever compensate a meal, even when you`re trying to lose weight.  Before taking any kind of supplements it would be advised to ask for doctor's opinion.
Just to check off the list, dietary supplements include everything from vitamins, minerals, fatty acids, botanical supplements (commonly known as probiotics), to various protein based muscle builders, weight gainers, weight burners etc. It is safe to say that vitamins are most commonly used. It is a popular opinion that a multivitamin pill is all the health a person needs. This is as far away from the truth as possible. What most people forget is that we don't need the equal amounts of all vitamins, nor everybody has the same needs.

Every single person that decides to use some specific supplement needs to know exactly which supplement he or she needs, in which dosage and in which form (besides tablets there are capsules, powders, softgels, gelcaps and liquids). The need for supplements varies and that depends on various factors such as age, sex, weight, specific physiological state and many other factors. More so, if you lack Vitamin C during winter, it doesn't mean you will need more of it forever.

It's important to know that all the ingredients found in dietary supplements have to be 100% natural. They cannot contain chemical additives such as colorants, fragrances, additives or sugar. These ingredients not only reduce the quality of the supplement, but are, in fact, contrary to its purpose. Therefore, read the ingredients list carefully.

Supplements were primarily meant to address a lack of certain matters in the organism. Doctors will always tell you that, given a choice, you should always go for natural food sources instead of supplements, because they usually contain other beneficial nutrients. However, they are a good alternative in case you are unable to consume certain foods due to allergies or various medical conditions.

As for various sports supplements, the important thing is to be informed and always know what you’re taking. Many products promise to get you “buffed overnight”, but you should always keep in mind that supplements are only there to aid you on your path to a perfect figure. The main factors that are going to lead you there are discipline and commitment. Know what you’re introducing into your body, and whenever in doubt, consult a doctor. Do your best to stick to trusted brands with a proven track record and trusted suppliers of sports supplements.

The bottom line is, dietary supplements can play a big role in helping you restore the chemical balance in your body, but they do have their limitations and they can never fully supplant natural food sources. So, be smart, eat healthy, and choose your supplements wisely. Get them to be your friends, not an obstacle in your path to a healthy life.

Contributed by Jenny Hahn

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Highly Effective Indian Home remedies For Delayed Periods

Delayed periods or Irregular menstrual periods have become very common these days for a lot of women in their reproductive age and they suffer great agonies when their period does not come on time. A delay of 4-5 days may be fine but if it exceeds 8 days, then it's certainly a cause for concern. In this post, I'll be sharing highly effective Indian home remedies for your delayed periods . I'd been a long sufferer of irregular periods during my teenage to early twenties. I've tried most of the recipes here, along with Kapalabhati pranayama, yoga poses, mudras and other lifestyle habits. Now my periods are extremely regular like clockwork; not a day less or more than 28. When I look back, I'm surprised how I managed those years of anxiety and fear about my late periods. 

Pore shrinking mask recipes from home

A face with large open pores when seen from close quarters doesn’t look so good. While it’s quite common for oily skins to have a tendency towards open pores, an attack of pimples also leaves ugly scars and open pores behind.  Even though the scars may fade away after some time, open pores appear to be more obstinate and hardly show any signs of shrinking.  Age also takes its toll by giving an uneven/pigmented tone to the skin and making the open pores more prominent. Heredity could also be a contributing factor in determining your pore size. It’s not easy to get rid of these pores or shrink them completely or permanently using serums, lotions or face packs. Even resorting to drastic chemical/surgical procedures at the dermatologist’s isn’t quite capable of giving satisfactory results.  Nevertheless, you can try and minimize their appearance at least temporarily with clever makeup and a few natural skin care masks such as these: * Cleanse your face with a mild ...

Home remedies for sleeplessness

The day dawns beautifully for those who have had a night of good sleep. But the same day drags on for those who have spent a disturbing, sleepless night. Sleep is a biological necessity even as eating and drinking are. Sufficient sleep renders a person normally sociable, lively and high-spirited. It’s a nature’s way of rejuvenating the person for the next day. Realize all this, and make sleep a physiological habit. The consequences of long time sleep deprivation can be very grave. Lack of sleep takes its toll on the skin and hair. It causes acne-breakouts and makes one look aged and haggard beyond years. Experts opine that during sleep as our metabolic rate falls, blood goes to those areas which need the most repairing. This also steps up the production of collagen and keratin, which aid the regeneration of skin cells and help resist premature ageing. So for a younger looking and a problem free skin you need to have a good quality of sleep every night.

Aspirin for acne-prone skin

Aspirin has been around for a long time and its health benefits are wide and varied. Aspirin , or acetylsalicylic acid is a salicylate drug, often used as an analgesic to relieve minor aches and pains , as an antipyretic to reduce fever , and as an anti-inflammatory medication. Aspirin's greatest benefit is reducing cardiovascular events including heart attacks and strokes. According to the American Heart Assoc. virtually all women are at risk of heart disease and doctors should more strongly consider prescribing a daily aspirin for their female patients. There is growing evidence to suggest regular aspirin use may reduce cancer and dementia as well. Investigators from the Women's Health Study have reported important new findings demonstrating that aspirin reduces the risk of a first stroke in women. When given to someone immediately after a heart attack, aspirin decreases death by 25%.

Kapalabhati Pranayam for wrinkle-free, radiant complexion

Did you know that Kapalabhati Pranayam / kriya can also be used to enhance your beauty and ward off skin aging? Done the right way,  Kapalabhati Pranayam can be used as a beauty aid - it can give you a wrinkle-free, luminous forehead and radiant complexion. Kapalabhati For Beauty   ‘Kapalabhati’ Pranayam breathing exercise is an excellent way of maintaining good health and fighting diseases. ‘Kapala’ means ‘skull’ (and ‘forehead’ also) and ‘bhati’ means ‘shining’. By doing kapalabhati, the ‘nadis’(nerves) of the brain get good exercise. This is achieved by exercising the diaphragm. There will be a glow on the forehead. After the age of 25, the tell-tale signs of ageing start making their appearance in the form of fine lines on the forehead. A regular practice of Kapalabhati for 10-15 minutes everyday will give you a tight forehead sans wrinkles for many years to come. Avoid Botox, try Kapalabhati Why resort to Botox   and other expensive chemical or surgica...