Oh I wish it were that easy. Just eat real food and you’ll get all the nutrients you need.
I would be the world’s biggest advocate for that if it were possible. The problem is that the quality of our food system (at least here in the US) leaves a lot to be desired. It’s mostly conventionally grown (meaning your produce is sprayed with pesticides, herbicides and fungicides which are known carcinogens), most large farms use monoculture practices which deplete the soil of nutrients (and lead to a host of other issues), a growing number of our crops are GMO (which I recommend avoiding), and let’s not even get into factory farming and Confined Animal Feed Operations- we don’t have nearly enough room here!
In short, our food is not what it used to be. The number of Americans meeting the recommended dietary intake is shocking low. See here. Not only are there less nutrients in the food we eat, but most of us don’t come anywhere near consuming the 5-9 servings of vegetables recommended by the USDA. If you do, awesome for you! But I still question the nutrient content of that food. Add to this the onslaught of stressors we encounter in our modern lives (think traffic, pollution, EMF’s, chemical exposure, heavy metals in your vaccines and fillings, chemicals in your carpet and furniture, electronics off-gassing…you get the idea), and the nutrients we need to overcome these insults just grows and grows. So, we need more nutrients than ever before, and we’re getting less than every before.
So while I love the idea of not needing supplements at all, for most of us we’re going to need some nutritional support in the realm of vitamins, minerals, herbs or phytonutrients. The health of the US population is becoming more and more fragile, we have more inflammation than ever before, so helping our bodies do what they need to do is not a bad thing.
I do NOT however, recommend going to the local drug store, or big box store in the hood and picking up the cheapest vitamins or herbs you can find. This is a case where quality is quite important. Saving a few bucks on your fish oil for example is a risk you probably don’t want to take. In the last few years I have seen a number of articles and new’s stories reporting that the supplement industry is unregulated and you have no idea what you’re going to get. This is largely false, the FDA does indeed regulate the finished product, and product ingredients in supplements. Now are there supplement ‘companies’ that scam the system? Absolutely. And does the FDA have enough time and resources to test all those supplements it should be? Definitely not. There are bad players in all industries, and this is unfortunate. Which is why it’s even more important to pay attention to quality.
There are a few things to look for when buying supplements. Many supplements will get third party testing to verify the quality and purity of the ingredients. They usually list this on the bottle because it’s a good selling point! There are also Good Manufacturing Practices which are a set of guidelines put out by the FDA. If your bottle doesn’t have GMP on it, do some investigating, or don’t buy it.
An easy tip that will make all of this easier is to become knowledgable about a few brands. Once you have a brand you can trust, you can get most of what you need from that one brand. Or, you can find a store you trust. For example, I worked at Natural Grocers for 5 years. You can find about 150 stores across the country. As a family run business, they are deeply committed to quality. They go through a rigorous process to ensure the safety, efficacy, quality and purity of each supplement before they put it on the shelves. For this reason, you can feel good about anything you purchase there. So once you find a store or brand you trust, buying your supplements will be a snap.
One last thought- I don’t recommend you purchase your supplements on Amazon. For one, good quality supplement companies don’t allow sales from their vendors to be sold there. So who is selling them and how? A few years back I bought some melatonin on Amazon, when I received the bottle there was a sticker covering the ingredient label. The sticker had ‘melatonin’ typed on it, but when I pulled back the sticker, the ingredients imprinted on the bottle stated ‘DHEA’. WHOA! That’s not cool. DHEA is a hormone that you do not want to supplement with if you don’t know what you’re doing. Obviously I sent it back. There are numerous stories like these.
I also like to support local businesses. As convenient as Amazon is, it has done a great disservice to our small ‘mom and pop’ stores in our communities. What are they doing to small businesses in your community? What are they doing for your communities jobs? And then there’s the environmental impact of all that packaging and delivery. I know Amazon is cheap and convenient, but at what cost? Support local!
So there you have it- yes, you likely need some supplements in your daily life. Not sure what to take? That’s a whole other conversation. But suffice it to say that I don’t make blanket recommendations on what people should be taking. That is highly individual. You have unique needs based on your unique self. If you want help figuring this out, just give me a call and we can schedule a health consult just for you!
Cathy Cooke, BCHN, BBEC Holistic Nutritionist and Building Biologist is the founder of Whole Home and Body Health which provides EMF Assessments, Mold Testing, and Nutrition and Health Consulting located in Boise, Idaho. Cathy is available for consulting via skype and phone, and is also willing to travel as needed for home assessments. Schedule an appointment today!