Choosing the Right Supplement

Hopefully by now you have read “Why Take a Supplement?” and have seen some possibly disturbing health facts. Now comes the question, “how do I choose the right supplement?” or perhaps, “what should I look for in a quality supplement?”.

So let’s take a look at some of the important factors you want in a multi-vitamin or supplement:

1. The quality and control of the ingredients that go into it. For example, are you aware that over 90% of vitamin/supplement “manufacturers” DO NOT even make their own. This has become a deceiving practice in not just the supplement market but in other markets as well. This is what really happens, a company wants to sell vitamins or supplements (or TV’s, laptops, even cars etc.), but they do not have the manufacturing facilities nor do they have the desire to set one up because all they need to do is “contract” a manufacturer of supplements who will create a product for them that they can stick THEIR BRAND on it. The distributor does not make the supplement, all they do is MARKET the supplement.

Unfortunately, what this does is not allow the BRAND company to control the actual ingredients or their quality. Sadly, these manufacturers and distributors only seem to care about their bottom lines. Costs and quality are cut everywhere to ensure the companies are highly profitable. Has anyone recently seen all the articles of generic drugs, with none of the medication it is supposed to have in it or even worse, cases of toxins and poisons replacing those ingredients, being made in China (and other countries, yes even in the US) that are invading our market? Simply put, if a supplement company does not develop and produce their own supplements in a strict, sterile laboratory environment, then they cannot control where the ingredients and the quality of them come from.

One other thing about quality of ingredients. The manner and sources in which the herbs, minerals, vitamins, etc. are harvested has a direct correlation of its potency or what is known as its “bio-availability”. Also, especially herbs and fish oils (for Omega 3 supplements) must come from a natural environment free of the pollutants and chemicals that shroud our beloved Earth. What good would it do to take an Omega 3 supplement if the oil harvested was from fish that lived in a mercury laden ocean? I think you get the point

2. The delivery “system” of the supplement to the parts of your body where they are a.) the nutrients are not destroyed by stomach acids and b.) most readily absorbed for maximum intake and benefit. First, let me explain where nutrients are best absorbed, which is the small intestine. Most people may think that nutrients are absorbed through the stomach walls; our stomachs are much simpler organs than that. The primary function of your stomach is to contain food you eat and mix it with bile to break the food down BEFORE it enters your small intestine. Basically it just “preps” food into smaller particles and when they enter the small intestine, the small intestine absorbs nutrients from the broken down particles. In fact, the small intestine is where the majority of nutrient (or toxins, preservatives, additives and medications) ingestion takes place and then makes it way through your body via your circulation system.

So why do I bring this up? Well again, over 90% of the supplements on the market are either destroyed before ever getting to the small intestine or the ingredients they say are in it lack potency (due to the inferior quality in the first place) or are not even present in the supplement. The reason most are destroyed is due to the manufacturer not producing the supplement with what is known as an enteric coating. An enteric (meaning small intestine) coating is a special coating, primarily used in the pharmaceutical industry due to its high cost, that protects the ingredients in a pill (or in this case a supplement) from the harsh acidic environment present in the stomach. It allows the supplement to pass through the stomach intact but once it reaches the alkaline environment in the small intestine, it breaks down, releasing the nutrients at the point they are most beneficially absorbed. Most supplements do not have an enteric coating and thus the vitamins, minerals and micro-nutrients never get to the small intestine in bio-available form and simply pass out of your body as waste. So when searching for a supplement, the best and most effective ones will have an enteric coating; do not worry about the enteric coating remaining in your body, once broken down it will pass harmlessly through your body and be eliminated.

3. A couple of other things to look for when choosing a supplement:

A.) Any quality supplement will have what is called a COA or Certificate of Analysis, which will label the exact ingredients and their amounts that are present in the supplement. Think of it as a guarantee that what you are buying is really what it is. Just as a note, all the supplements on this website have COA’s.

B.) Be extra careful to look for any artificial ingredients (for flavor) or dyes (for coloring) present. Avoid any supplement that has either one. Stick to the supplements that have proven NATURAL ingredients in them.

C.) Make sure the manufacturing process takes place in an environment that follows the FDA’s GMP (Good Manufacturing Process). Just like using mercury-laden fish for Omega 3 supplements, what good is it if a supplement that is supposed to be health beneficial to you is produced in a tainted, uncontrolled environment (more common than you may have thought)?

Lastly, when starting all supplementation regiments, you should visit your physician and if possible, show him the labels of the supplements you are taking. Be your best, live well!