Nutritional Supplements - when we need them and when we don’t.
Nutritional supplements are an important part of a holistic practitioner’s tool kit. In today’s hectic world, they allow us to provide the body with doses of nutrients and antioxidants much more concentrated than can be found in food.
In an ideal world, we’d be eating high-quality, nutrient dense food and that would provide us with everything we need. But unfortunately, that’s not the case. And that’s a result of a few factors.
Why do we need supplements?
We’re getting less nutrients from our food due to not eating particularly high-quality or healthy food a lot of the time - at the end of the day, it’s harder work to eat healthy and we’re generally time poor.
We’re also getting less nutrients from out food because even if you ARE eating a good diet and plenty of ‘healthy’ food, it’s usually contains less nutrients than it used to, due to nutrient deficient soils, long-term food storage and other factors.
We have a higher demand for nutrients due to the modern day stressors (toxins, medications, busy stressed lives).
This article originally appeared in OrganicNZ but I’m popping it here again as it’s a topic that I come back to with clients over and over again….
So, what are the factors to to consider when choosing a supplement and who may benefit from supplementation. Read on to find out.
Supplements are considered anything that is ‘supplemented’ on top of the food you consume as part of your regular diet - from protein powders, to magnesium, to ashwagandha and can come in the form of capsules, tablets, liquids or powders.
And just like food, the quality can range massively.
What makes a supplement high - quality?
Where it comes from - the raw materials it uses to create the supplement. For example, this is particularly important for a fish oil supplement. They extra the active ingredients (EPA and DHA) out of fish oil - but the quality of fish and the processing is vitally important to the quality of the end product.
The form it’s in - for example, minerals are best absorbed when they are chelated (which means bound to a protein) like magnesium glycinate (magnesium bound to a glycine) which is much better absorbed compared with a magnesium oxide which isn’t well absorbed.
What it’s combined with - some nutrients are better absorbed alongside other nutrients for example iron and zinc are better absorbed alongside vitamin C
The scope of this article isn’t to go into the details for every single supplement you may be considering but to give you an idea of the factors that are worth contemplating. I’d recommend talking to a qualified and experienced practitioner about your particular health concerns and/or the supplement you’re considering. I’m here if you have questions.
Who should consider supplementing their diet?
Vegans and Vegetarians. Consider: Protein powder, iron and B12
Omnivores should be able to get the recommended amount of daily protein in without a supplement, but if you’re vegan/vegetarian (or time poor!) then protein powder is an easy way to get in protein.
Milk based protein powders are the most common and are a good choice, as long as you don’t react to dairy (as a surprising amount of us are reacting to dairy....!). If you’re vegan or dairy intolerant, choose a fermented pea protein.
Optimal amounts of protein per day can be as high as 1.8-2g/kg of body weight. So for a 70kg person that’s 126-140g of protein per day (for context 2 eggs have 12 grams of protein....!). A usual serving of protein powder contains about 25gram of protein which is a good start towards your daily recommendation.
Iron and B12 are nutrients that are a lot harder to get in a vegan or vegetarian diet. I’d recommend supplementing. For iron, look specifically for an iron biglycinate and for b12, ideally a methyl-cobalamin.
Post-Partum. Consider: Well rounded high quality multi-vitamin
Growing a little human is tough work! And generally, life with a new born is just as tricky. I highly recommend all mum’s take a all-round nourishing multivitamin to top up their depleted levels or minerals and vitamins.
A well-rounded multi should contain the full spectrum of minerals, and vitamins. Minerals in chelated form and vitamins in the active form (e.g. methylated b-vitamins, vitamin D3 and active vitamin A).
Busy, tired or stressed? Consider: magnesium + relaxing herbs
The ultimate chill nutrient - magnesium. Support short term periods of stress (ideally we would make lifestyle changes to prevent the stress hanging around long term..) with a high-dose magnesium at night time. We need so much of it because we're living highly demanding, full lives! Magnesium is the mineral that helps us sleep deeply, supports our muscles to relax and allows for optimal neurotransmitter production.
People taking a medication long-term. Consider: Liver support
If you’ve taken any medication long-term; from the OCP, to an anti-dpressant to reflux medication - this is taking a toll on your detoxification pathways through the liver.
A broccoli sprout extract (active ingredient sulphurophane) or milk thistle are lovely herbs to support the
People who struggle with bloating. Consider: Digestive enzymes
Bloating is a symptoms that something isn’t quite right in the digestive system. The philosophy of a holistic/funcitonal practitioner is finding out the root cause so digestive enzymes are definitely a band-aid solution (just one with no adverse effects...!) so these should be taken temporarily while identifying and addressing the root cause for the bloating in the first place.
Send me an email Laura_hett@icloud.com if you have any questions about your own supplement regime.
Image credit goes to everyday health.com