Why do you recommend supplements?
I will always first encourage a whole foods based diet. While eating whole, unprocessed, local and fresh or frozen produce and meat will dramatically improve your health; there are circumstances where you might need more. Many people need more than the Recommended Daily Allowances (RDA) of vitamins and minerals. The RDA was established to prevent diseases such as rickets (lack of vitamin D), scurvy (lack of vitamin C) and pellagra (lack of Vit B3). It is very important to get base levels of nutrients to prevent these serious health problems. Many people still need more vitamins and minerals than the base levels to prevent diseased tied to serious deficiencies. Here are some reasons someone might need extra vitamins and mineral:
- Genetic SNPs or mutations that are unique to you might require extra vitamins and minerals for you to feel your best and be healthier. SNPs can compromise your health. Adding extra nutrients can support better function. Tracey can help your analyze your nutrient needs from your raw genetic data. See her
- What if you do not absorb nutrients well or digest and break down your food well? An example is a client of mine with severe Vit B12 deficiency. She was exhausted, had poor ability to think and stay focused, had tingling in her hands and feet and a burning tongue. While sorting out problems with her ability to absorb Vit B12 I was able to get her started on a special Vit B12 that helped her symptoms within a week.
- Chronic diseases may require extra nutrient support. Examples are people with liver disease, cancer survivors, and inflammatory bowel disease.
- Acute sickness or injury often is supported with extra nutrients. Extra nutrients can support healing from an accident, during and after cancer treatment, surgery or long bout with the flu for example.
- Athletes who train at high intensities may need additional nutrient support to break down inflammation from overtraining and improve recovery and performance.
Why should you use pharmaceutical grade supplements?
If you are going to invest in and use extra vitamins and minerals it is important to avoid barriers to effectiveness. The biggest obstacles can be:
- How well the nutrients are absorbed
- How pure they are
- How convenient they are to take
- Whether or not they have synthetic additives and fillers
Poor quality supplements may not be absorbed well and may simply produce expensive urine or stools. Here is one example: one older adult I was working with would commonly see her calcium supplement in the toilet after having a bowel movement – completely intact!
Pharmaceutical grade supplements are more expensive because they are manufactured to meet guidelines set by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, the Natural Products Association, the National Sanitary Foundation, and the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration and other certifying organizations. The top pharmaceutical grade companies that make vitamins and minerals verify strict practices to test ingredients to make certain they are clean, pure and what they say they are on the label. These guidelines help ensure that what you take is free from harmful additives and that the ingredients end up in your blood stream where your body can use them.
Tracey works with you, your unique needs and budget to suggest supplements that can benefit your help after first addressing how you can optimize your dietary intake of nutrients.
