A Guide to Nutrition Supplements for Your Health
The right amount of daily nutrients is essential for your perfect lifestyle. It is only possible if you have a diet that includes a wide range of edibles.
According to dieticians, a wholesome diet is best for being healthy and reducing the chance of chronic diseases.
Food is the best way to get your vitamins and minerals. But it is not enough for your body, considering the Indian diet. Most of us need dietary supplements to give our bodies the proper nourishment. The supplements include vitamins, fish oil, herbs, sports nutrition, weight management, and more.
A visit to a doctor can be overwhelming, even when you know what your body needs. However, a visit to a dietician helps a lot in planning suitable meals and taking the right supplements if required.
There is a wide range of products available in the market when we say supplements. Every product has its effects, some help to heal you from deficiencies and some have benefits that can help you live longer.
Did you know?
Supplements that include vitamins, minerals, and herbal products, are also known as botanicals.
More than half of all Americans take at least one dietary supplement daily or on occasions. Supplements can be consumed without a prescription and usually come in pill, powder, or liquid form.
Do You Need Supplements?
Around 70% or more adults consume a day-to-day multivitamin or individual vitamin or mineral.
“It’s important to know the chemical makeup, how it’s prepared, and how it works in the body—especially for herbs, but also for nutrients,” says Carol Haggans, a well-known dietitian and consultant to NIH. “Talk to a health care provider for advice on whether you need a supplement in the first place, the dose, and possible interactions with a medicine you’re already taking.”
While supplements are beneficial for individuals diagnosed with deficiency or have medical issues, most sound individuals get their vitamins and minerals from food.
Supplements During Pregnancy
Even supplements can help conceive. Taking folic acid supplements while planning for a child helps improve the odds. Folic acid can prevent neural tube defects such as spina bifida and many others.
Your doctor may recommend you intake folic acid supplements every day until you are 12 weeks pregnant.
Supplements for Kids
A child needs all types of vitamins for healthy growth. A baby needs vitamin D and iron the most.
In general, kids who consume a healthy and balanced diet don’t need vitamin supplements. Infants may need supplements that older kids don’t need, like vitamin D for breastfed babies.
Many health organizations suggest that kids eat varieties of fruits, dairy products, vegetables, grains, and protein foods. They contain all the necessary nutrients for proper growth and development in children.
Above Age 50
After getting into middle age, you need to take extra care of yourself to stay healthy. Men and Women above 50 may need more vitamins and minerals than younger adults. A doctor or a dietitian can tell you better whether you need to change your diet or take a vitamin or mineral supplement to help you stay on top of your game.
Common Supplements:
Nutritional supplements have an extensive range, each catering to different health improvements. You can get the products from an offline store or buy nutritional supplements online.
Fish Oil
Fish oil contains a lot of Omega-3s in it.
Omega-3s is a group of polyunsaturated fatty acids vital for several functions in the body. It contributes to brain and eye development and fights inflammation. Fish oil also helps prevent heart disease and a decline in brain function.
Including fatty fish in your diet is one of the best things you can do for healthy aging and a healthy brain. And if you cannot include fish in your diet, fish oil can be a great source to get the health supplement your brain and eye needs.
Fish oil also helps improve metabolism, so you can consider it if you are trying to lose weight.
Vitamin D
Did you know? Your body needs 13 essential vitamins to function correctly. And a significant portion of our Indian population has a vitamin D deficit.
Vitamin D also called “calciferol”, is a fat-soluble vitamin present in multiple food sources and even produced in our body from direct sunlight. Still, the body of most of us lacks it.
Vitamin D is essential to absorb calcium and promote bone growth. Deficiency in vitamin D results in soft bones in children (rickets) and fragile, misshapen bones in adults (osteomalacia).
Luckily, there is a wide range of supplements containing Vitamin D. You can take Vitamin D tablets, liver oil, or opt for multivitamins that contain it.
Calcium
As we age, our bodies typically don’t absorb vitamins and minerals. Calcium is one of the minerals that that gets imbalanced easily. A calcium deficiency can lead to bone fractures and other bone-related issues.
When your calcium gains are not enough from dairy, leafy greens, and other calcium-rich foods body will source it from your bones, making them weaker.
How Much Calcium Do You Need?
- 1,200 milligrams (mg) calcium per day for women age 51 and older
- 1,000 mg calcium per day for men aged 51 to 70
- 1,200 mg calcium per day for men age 71 and older
Vitamin B12
43% of older adults who have a vitamin B12 deficiency will be more likely to develop anemia.
A B12 deficiency can also lead to neuropathy or nerve damage balance issues, depression, confusion, poor memory, and even dementia.
How Much Vitamin B12 do You Need?
Adults should get, on average, 2.4 mcg per day of vitamin B12. You can also get it from food like fish, meat, poultry, eggs, milk, clams, beef liver, and some fortified cereals.
Many multivitamin supplements contain this major nutrient.
“Deciding whether to take dietary supplements and which ones to take is a serious matter,” says Dr. Paul M. Coates, director of NIH’s Office of Dietary Supplements. “Learn about their potential benefits and any risks they may pose first. Speak to your health care providers about products of interest and decide together what might be best for you to take, if anything, for your overall health.”
