The word supplement is defined as “something that completes or makes an addition to” so it is easy to understand that in order to add a missing item, you would use supplementation. In a food diet, a supplement acts as a ‘top up’ of an ingredient that is not fully available from what is being consumed.
The Different Types of Supplements
There are a lot of different kinds of dietary supplements available. They include, but are not limited to, minerals, vitamins, botanicals, herbals, enzymes and amino acids.
They are also available in many different formats ranging from powders, tablets, capsules, drinks and energy snacks such as bars.
The Different Categories of Supplements
Dietary supplements fall under three different categories. They are identified as health, performance or weight loss. If you are considering adding supplements to your daily food intake for any of these reasons, it is important to do some homework before you begin. There are many different supplements to choose from and some will provide better results than others.
What Supplements To Take
As for what supplements you should add to your diet, it depends in part on what you are eating currently. However, some of the most popular supplements include Calcium and Iron (minerals), Garlic and Echinacea (herbs), Fish oils, Probiotics and Glucosamine (specialty items) as well as vitamins D, C and E. As well as these basic options, there are carefully blended Supplements available to offer support for a wide range individual conditions.
Do You Need Dietary Supplements?
There are three very distinct reasons why you should consider adding supplements to your daily diet. They are:
1 – Health/Deficiency
This goes back to the notion mentioned above about using supplements as a “top up” for something lacking in a diet. There is no doubt with modern stresses and soil deficiencies that even if you eat a healthy, well-rounded diet there are going to be some minerals and vitamins missing from your foods. This is one of the best reasons to use dietary supplements. And since you can easily purchase any one of the vitamins or minerals in a supplementary form, increasing even a low level is simple to do and good for your overall health. Specific formulations offer support for specific conditions.
2 – Performance
Also mentioned above as a category of supplements, professional athletes rely on supplementation to increase their sporting productivity. Many claim supplements improve performance even marginally which can mean a great deal to an athlete.
In fact, supplements manufactured specifically for athletic performance has become an industry of its own. Several ‘new’ products developed from this industry have crossed over into the mainstream including protein powders, drinks and energy bars.
Another performance reason to add supplements to your diet has nothing directly to do with athletic activities.
For those aged 50 and older, supplements assist with aging issues. For example, bone and joint health can be greatly improved through the use of certain supplements. Also, with an aging population, a mini-industry has grown from dietary supplementation to create various health-related products targeted specifically at seniors for such things as bone, joint, tissue, memory and other types of aging issues.
3 – Convenience
The reality is that trying to properly maintain the daily recommended levels of minerals, vitamins and other nutrients from our food intake is not easy. A vitamin supplement or a protein supplement is a much easier way to keep the balance without having to eat certain foods all day.
Plus, supplements don’t lose their potency as fruits and vegetables can through transit, processing, cooking and cleaning. So, adding supplements daily is a win/win for achieving complete food values with little effort.
The Regulation of Supplements
There is something of a ‘grey area’ related to the regulation of supplements. Although the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) is the regulating body, they do not have a system in place to evaluate the safety of the products. As supplements are not considered drugs, there is no need for the FDA to actually approve either the safety or effectiveness of any supplement. This basically means you are using them at your own risk and that claims made regarding effectiveness, are not officially recognized by the FDA.
This is why you will see disclaimers on our labels or advertising and promotional materials related to dietary supplements. The disclaimer will state that claims have “not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration” and will go on to point out that the product the disclaimer is about “is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease.” This is not a negative reflection on the industry itself.
Consumers recognize the benefit of Supplements, which is why it surpassed $19-billion in sales by 2009 in the United States. To meet individual needs of consumers there were also well over 29-thousand different supplements available at that time.
Trust in Supplements has continued to grow. Take a look around you. Health food stores continue to pop up in communities and even local drug stores stock a wide variety of dietary supplements. There must be a good reason for that!
But Are They Really Effective?
Back to an earlier statement, even if your daily diet does contain a nutritious variety of foods, supplementation will assist in adding extra amounts of nutrients into your system, and provide many that are missing completely
Supplements are not Drugs, and do not have instant affects. Best results from Supplements come from taking them, as directed, for at least 90 days, and continue thereafter so long as you maintain the daily recommended dose.
As for the science of dietary supplements, there is evidence that points to supplements as beneficial for your health and for helping regulate some health conditions. We have all heard that it is good for our bone health to add vitamin D and Calcium to our diet. That’s because there is scientific proof to support this. The same goes for Omega-3 fish oil acids assisting some people suffering from heart disease and Folic acid reducing the risks associated with some birth defects. The list goes on.
Be Safe with Supplements
All of our Supplements are painstakingly prepared and evaluated by qualified Chemists and are manufactured in the United States by FDA approved manufacturers.
Green Hills Health Supplements are all Therapeutic strength, so blends of ingredients may substantially exceed 100% of normal daily dietary intake, but all are safe.
Whichever of our supplements you choose to add to your diet, you should keep these safety tips in mind:
- Use only use as directed and do not use as a replacement for a prescribed medication.
- Do not take more than our recommended doses of any particular vitamin or mineral as this may become harmful.
- If concerned, by all means discuss supplementation with your health care professional, but be aware that many health professionals are not trained in Nutrition.
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