This is a common question. Others include: does it matter if it is a capsule or liquid or tablet? Does it matter what brand it is? Does it matter if there is 100% RDA vs 5000%? And what do those percentages actually mean? How do I know if the supplement is being absorbed properly? How do I know if the supplement is working for me?
Let’s start with the basics.
RULE#1: Choose a nutritional supplement from a reputable company.
You want to feel good about the supplements you are taking and you want to trust that the ingredients listed actually are the ingredients in the supplement. By choosing a well known, reputable supplement brand, you will be able to put those questions to rest (hopefully). It is obviously impossible to test the ingredients of all the supplements out there, but if you choose well known brands such as Whole Foods Brand or Earth Fare Brand or Carlson’s or Thorne or Udo’s or the Organic Performance Lab brand, then you can know that your supplements are full of 100% the ingredients listed and nothing more or less. I know for a fact that all of the supplements I sell are tested and 100% pure–they are the absolute highest quality supplement you can purchase–my brand is the only brand I personally take.
RULE #2: When in doubt, start with a Multivitamin and Fish Oil.
Everyone, including children, benefit from a comprehensive multivitamin and fish oil. There are no downsides here. Yes, there are literally thousands of different natural nutritional supplements you can choose from, so start slowly and simply. A multivitamin fills the gap for all that you are not getting from food and fish oil is so powerfully anti-inflammatory that every cell in your body benefits.
RULE #3: Forget about RDA
RDA or Recommended Daily Allowance tells how much of a vitamin or nutrient is needed to prevent disease. We don’t really care about this. We are shooting for optimal health and well-being so we want large doses of vitamins and minerals. For the water soluble vitamins such as Vitamin B and Vitamin C, there is no upper limit–you can take as much as you want. For the fat-soluble vitamins (A,D,E,K) you don’t have to watch (somewhat) how much you take in. However, for Vitamin D, we know that most people are severely Vitamin D deficient, so chances are you are not going to take too much. Compare a comprehensive multivitamin ingredients with a Centrum multivitamin to see what I am referring to.
RULE #4: At first, don’t worry about formulation (liquid vs. capsule vs. tablet)
The reason I say this is that we don’t really know how you are going to absorb what you are taking unless we test. So start with one that seems to be a good fit for you. If you are taking that particular one for a little while and notice that you feel worse, then it is time to switch or test and see what your vitamin/ fatty acid status is. Certainly don’t switch because you don’t necessarily feel better–I don’t think most people feel much better from adding a multivitamin and fish oil–the benefits are there and certainly accumulate so that if you supplement well, you are setting yourself up for a healthier aging process. There are times when we need to switch formulations (poor absorption is the number one reason) but that generally takes time to figure out. If you are concerned at all, go with the liquid formulation up front as it is the best absorbed.
RULE #5: Pay extra for high quality ultra-pure Fish Oil
You don’t want your Fish Oil to contain any mercury or other metals and you don’t want your Fish Oil to be impure and taste fishy. So pay extra for high quality fish oil that is tested to ensure purity. Fish Oil is such a crucial part of a supplement program that it is the foundation for which the entire supplement foundation rests upon, so make sure you choose this one wisely.
Those are five basic tenets to get you started. I will go into more detail about other categories of supplements including Adaptogens, Essential Phospholipids, Botanicals, and Amino Acids to name a few. I will also go over why I think lab testing is critical to formulating a balanced and optimal supplement program.,
Tags: fish oil, multivitamin, supplements