Do You Need Health Supplements?
We know that the ideal way to obtain vitamins and minerals is from the food we eat. In today fast paced society, very often we find it difficult to get a proper meal what’s more the contents of the food or the choices we make are much left to be desired or sadly lacking in essential nutrients. What are we doing to compensate for the lack of nutrients to meet the requirements of the body.
Nutritional supplements have come to fill the gap and before one rushes to make a purchase over the counter, it pays to understand the reasons for food supplementation and the difference between synthetic and natural vitamins.
Sometimes it remains a challenge for you to find good supply of high quality nutritious food. Not everyone can have easy access to organic pesticides-free food depending on the area they live or the country they stay. The soil where our foods are derived from are often depleted of its soil nutrients and what do we expect from the fruits that are harvested before they have ripened. Thus it is not surprising that the food supplementation industry is huge as most of us may have to resort to taking some form of supplementation as additional insurance to the diet we are taking.
The rationale for the use of food supplements is also due to nutrients depletion from the way we cook our food, for instance the use of modern day cooking methods such as microwave cooking has resulted in nutrients lost and unhealthy foods. Using frying instead of eating raw or steaming, the adding of artificial flavors to our cooking to enhance the taste, are also examples why supplementation may be very necessary. In fact, our busy schedule has causes us to eat out more often - in fast food chains for the speed and convenience aspect.
When purchasing any food supplement, you will probably have to choose between the natural and synthetic supplements. The best choices are of course the natural vitamins as the ingredients are derived from natural food sources that are closes to nature and assimilation is thus made easier.
In terms of chemical content, the two vitamin sources are about similar except that synthetics are cheaper to make because the ingredients sources are easily available Synthetic vitamins as the name implies, are manufactured in isolation from certain chemicals and they are more specific unlike natural vitamins that usually contain other essential micro- nutrients – therefore you receive more than one benefit each time you consume. Synthetic vitamins contain letters “dl” on the label. To identify synthetic vitamins, look for label with words like hydrochloride, chloride, nitrate or acetate, which are added to the product to improve stability.
Besides, it is important to look out for harmful ingredients that may cause an allergic body reaction such as artificial flavoring and coloring, coal tars, preservatives, nicotine, sweeteners and starch. It is not surprising to note that not all that claims of natural are indeed 100% natural and safe as far as the human body is concerned.
Though vitamins come in many forms, pills, capsules, gel capsules or powder, the choices are a plenty these days based on personal preferences. The natural whole food vitamins that are accompanied with some essential minerals are considered the best option. These minerals such as calcium, magnesium and potassium have each a significant role to contribute to your total well being complementing with your diets.
Sometimes we should not be overly concern if the dosage you are taking are slightly above the Recommended Daily Allowance guidelines that very often are the lower limits of daily nutrient intake. If you are unsure it is best to refer to your nutritional medicine expert for helpful advice.
