Who needs these super supplements and are they effective?
We all know about superfoods (yes, these are the famous acai berries, quinoa, chia seeds, spirulina and much more) and try to eat right, but our body still lacks micronutrients. Many nutritionists are sure that if a person eats five fruits and vegetables every day, then the situation will improve markedly. But for a modern girl, it seems too complicated and it is better to drink a supplement in the form of a pill than so many healthy products.
Even 10 years ago, everyone thought it strange and dangerous to take dietary supplements (there were rumors that as soon as you stop taking them, your health deteriorates sharply), now everyone seemed to be hooked on them. The specialist helped us understand what food supplements are, who needs them and how to choose the right health pills.
Head of the Consultative and Diagnostic Department of the Austrian Health Center Verba Mayr, nutritionist, general practitioner.
Food additives, according to legislative norms, are concentrates of natural or identical to natural biologically active substances, which are offered for direct intake or addition to food products to enrich the diet with useful substances. The main thing to remember is that dietary supplements are not a medicine and rather refers to food products.
These include not only vitamins, but also various trace elements, minerals, probiotics and enzyme preparations (in this case, extracts from herbal preparations, such as papaya).
First of all, a food supplement must have a certificate of conformity and a registration certificate. The additive must be registered and tested at the Institute of Nutrition of the Russian Academy of Medical Sciences. The products are checked for the presence of poisonous or narcotic substances, as well as plants that are not used in official medicine.
When choosing, you need to pay attention to the label. First of all, it must have a complete ingredient composition, including excipients. Further – a single and daily dose of consumption. It is important to pay attention that the label also contains instructions on the inadmissibility of self-exceeding the dosage, as well as a warning about the need to keep the drug out of the reach of children and the expiration date. The label must show the address and the name of the manufacturer.
Although dietary supplements are not drugs, it is advisable that they are prescribed by a doctor after a laboratory examination.
This is especially true when it comes to vitamins and micro- and maro-elements. What does the patient need? Vitamin D, potassium, calcium, magnesium, zinc, or something else? There are also tests for gut microbiota or omega-3 index. This will allow you to assess in what dose and in what regimen you should take dietary supplements. To accept is not to normalize. The doctor should prescribe not only the dosage, but also the regimen: morning-afternoon-evening, frequency, method of administration, compatibility with other drugs. Each food supplement has its own method of application and, if there are no contraindications, the doctor is guided by these very recommendations.
Nutritional supplements must be properly combined, because some promote assimilation, others compete. For example, alpha lipoic acid is not advisable to be taken with iron supplements.
The main mistakes in self-administration are the wrong dosage. This is often the case with vitamin D or omega-3 supplementation, as patients are taking less than the required dose and, consequently, supplementation does not have the desired effect. Also, iron supplements with vitamin C are not always used. Or, they take all dietary supplements in the morning or at other times of the day without taking into account the frequency.
Enzymes belong to “unpretentious” dietary supplements – they are shown to many. Coenzyme Q10 is also shown almost without exception in people over 40 years of age. Magnesium preparations are useful. Vitamin D, but this is the case when you need to choose the right supplement. Also in this series are omega-3s given the correct dosage.