How do you make the right decision when choosing dietary supplements? It’s easy to get confused on which dietary supplement to buy. Not only are they sold in health food stores, but today, they’re everywhere, including local drug stores, supermarkets, GNC shops, Vitamin Shoppes, or even big warehouses such as Costco or Sam’s Club. If you choose to make it easier on yourself, you can even order them online at resellers such as Amazon, eBay, Craigslist, discounted e-stores or, in some cases, unauthorized online sellers or other online healthcare providers.
After all, supplement sales are big business, and everyone is fighting for that sale. But, who is looking out for you? Sure, you are told that these supplements are what you need to fix almost any problem from losing weight and fixing food addictions to curbing sugar cravings and vanishing your back pain. There’s a “fix-it” packaged for anything that wreaks havoc on your health.
Don’t be fooled! Are you really saving money on Dietary Supplements?
Let’s be real. It seems that you’re getting the best deal when you find the cheapest price with this brand or this product. They’re all the same; right? Not so fast. There are some tools you can use to arm yourself and know if the savings are still delivering what your body needs. Here are the core questions you can ask as you look at the products:
- Does every supplement bottle have the ingredients they claim to have on the label?
- Are the ingredients of high quality and delivering you the active ingredients needed for therapeutic benefits?
- Are the ingredients of “professional grade” using higher standards, best quality, whole nutrients or the most effective herbs?
Here’s a rule of thumb: Typically, the cheaper-priced dietary supplements lack the quality. When searching for quality, it doesn’t come cheap, and for good reason.
- Quality, not quantity! You can spend less money when you stop overbuying the wrong supplements that are not helping. Instead, find the RIGHT supplement and invest with fewer, not more.
Service is a primary concern. Who is there to help you wade through the thousands of supplement products and brands? Who can tell you what you should take to help you with your health condition? And who will be there after the purchase to help you measure the results? It’s important to examine this area with the right support so you can nourish, care for and heal your body with what it needs.
As a healthcare practitioner whose passion and mission is to help you, I care.
I really do care about your health outcomes. Not only is my reputation on the line, but I am committed to getting positive results with every patient I meet. I look for clinical changes and results from the therapeutic supplement programs I recommend to each patient. This can be seen by my patients’ feedback and testimonials. Reduced symptoms, positive weight management goals and improved blood work are some of the results my patients share. Most importantly, my patients speak of how much better they feel. No one falls through the cracks, and no one is a statistical number. Everyone’s health and well-being are important to me.
No two people are the same
In addition, every person differs in genetic make-up, diet, lifestyle factors and challenging health symptoms. That makes a significant difference in what each person may specifically need. Everyone’s bio-individuality matters when deciding what supplement will be beneficial to one’s health. It should not be a guessing game or a race to follow the latest trend. My supplement recommendations are based on the most current evidence-based research, which helps to determine what you need to achieve optimal health.
Too often, I see patients come in after “self-prescribing” based on something advertised online or in a magazine. Unfortunately, many of these supplements may have a fancy tagline, but they may also be lesser quality, or even toxic, causing more harm to your system. Other times, supplements are not necessary and don’t even address the individual’s health symptoms. This is a waste of money, leading to frustration and despair. Health seekers may strive to do something good for themselves, but then they’re left without evidence of positive change.
Before “self-prescribing,” it is important to ask yourself:
- Will taking these supplements provide me with the therapeutic benefits I’m looking to achieve?
- Does this supplement bottle contain the right ingredients to fix or reduce my symptoms?
- Is there something better I can take to improve my symptoms?
- Does this product guide me down the path of taking smaller doses and eventually stopping it when my body achieves the needed benefits?
These are challenging questions, but I’m here to help you through the process.
For more than two decades, I have sourced the best quality supplements
It has been my goal to find the best quality supplement brands and products that get the job done, not once but clinically repeatedly. Knowing first hand that dietary supplements can vary greatly in terms of quality and effectiveness is why I have decided to write this blog. I want to expose the truth about some of the lies and misconception that the public is led to believe about dietary supplements.
With so many choices of supplements available in the market, how do you make a smart choice? Here are some important reminders:
Quality does matter and can be the difference between health and disease. Typically the cheaper the priced options lack quality, produce poor results and can even be harmful. These are the factors that I follow as I examine products, searching for those that I can recommend to you:
- The supplement must contain quality ingredients, no additives, fillers, or chemicals
- The products must be free of harmful contaminants, including microorganisms, heavy metals, PCB’s, and chemicals
- Active ingredient must be verified to be no less than 100% of the amount claimed on the label
- All ingredients must be 100% identity-tested
- The supplement must foster easy absorption into the body
- The ingredients must be verified organic, free of pesticides or chemicals, which only increase your body’s toxic load
- The active ingredients must be properly extracted, free of toxic chemicals, which, when used during the extraction process, destroy active ingredients
- Formulations must be based on clinical research, proven to work as intended
- Products must meet the minimum specifications for potency
- The formulations must be created with ingredients that are synergist with each other to provide you with the right nutritional effect
- Products must be free of the common allergens such as gluten, soy, yeast, sugar, preservatives, artificial colors or flavors
Understanding good manufacturing safety practices is important
Patients can rely on natural health practitioners to provide not only the appropriate supplement protocol but the highest quality and safe products.
The following list of questions is what you or your healthcare provider should know about supplement manufacturers when choosing the right brands.
- What is the manufacturing process when producing dietary supplements?
- You need to trust the source and company to provide you with high-quality, safe and effective products. Do you really know who is behind the product?
- Are the products manufactured by a facility in compliance with the Good Manufacturing Practices?
- Do they conform to one or more of the industry standards and/or certifications: NPA (National Products Association), NSF (National Sanitary Foundations), OTC (Over the Counter Drug GMPs), and the FDA Dietary Supplement
- Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs)?
- Specifically, do the products meet GMP requirements? This means cGMP, as codified in the 21CFR Part 110 and 21CFR Part 111 regulations.
- Are the manufacturing facilities FDA registered?
- Does the manufacturing facility have good internal quality assurance?
- Have the products been thoroughly tested at every level of production and in compliance with FDA cGMPs?
- Are the products tested as they are released?
- Do the manufacturers perform stability testing?
- What criteria are used in setting “expiration dates” for finished products?
Is the product Excipient-Free?
What are Excipients? Excipients can cause harm to our bodies. They are the binders, fillers and “glues” that are typically non-nutritive substances used to make dietary supplements. Many nutritional supplements contain potentially impeding excipients, sometimes listed under “other ingredients” on the label, or not listed at all.
It’s important to know about this and other potentially harmful byproducts in our supplements. In fact, I have even seen patients react to the outer capsules of the supplements or the tablets, while their bodies can easily process the ingredients in the supplements. For instance, one of my patients had severe skin rashes, brain fog, ear infections and increased blood pressure. Over time, the supplements she was taking resulted in toxic overload for her body. Under my treatment, she began to take only the supplements while disposing of their casings.
Within two weeks of treatment, her symptoms completely disappeared. What a relief to stop the toxicity and deliver what the body needs.
Unfortunately, some excipients may or may not be included on the product label. When they are listed, they may be disguised by their unfamiliarity. Here’s a translation guide to help you recognize the culprits to beware of:
- Magnesium stearate – an undesirable hydrogenated oil used as a lubricant
- Methylparaben – a benzoate family member
- Silicon Dioxide – a cheap flowing agent
- Triethyl citrate – a plasticizer
- Titanium dioxide – used for color
- Talcum powder – used for lubricating machines
- Methylparaben
- Propylparaben
- Polyethylene glycol
- Sodium acetate
- D&C red #33
The above lists a few examples of questionable excipients commonly found in dietary supplements. Forewarned is forearmed. None of us would consciously consume these non-nutritive agents, which may cause health problems or even carcinogen effects when consumed over time.
These are all important questions to ask and get the right answers on
As a patient, choosing dietary supplements from the massive array of available products and companies can be bewildering and complex. It is like a maze, and you’re stuck sorting out the information.
It is my personal goal to answer these questions before I select any supplements that enter my body or any of your bodies. As new supplements and brands become available, I use this same standard to review the most current evidence-based research before introducing it in my therapeutic protocols.
There is always new and improved research, which is a consideration for improving best practices. Finding the best answers to treating health conditions is not a stagnant field but a highly dynamic evidence-based clinical knowledge research which I use as the underpinning of my treatments for you.
Beware of unauthorized online resellers of supplement products
- Some sellers are selling old, expired or past-their-freshness date
- Counterfeit products are often sold at discount prices, but these products contain unknown ingredients
- Damaged goods may be offered with broken seals or packages re-sealed after previously being opened
- Sold by “bait and switch,” meaning you purchase a product one time, and the seller offers you an inferior brand as an alternative
Not all supplements are created equal, so be informed to make the best decision for you and your loved ones.
As a healthcare practitioner, my mission is embodied in my slogan, Unlock Your Healing Potential™. I pledge to seek out manufacturing companies that provide dietary supplements that are of professional grade, are guaranteed pure and safe and are of the highest quality. In addition, I search for cutting-edge supplements that put science first. Research is my guide for measuring the clinical performance and effectiveness of every dietary supplement to improve my patient’s health.
This is combined with knowing that each patient is unique and, therefore, their supplement needs will be based on their own bio-individuality along with the best remedies to meet their challenges. This leads to you spending less money experimenting with what might help you and, instead, be taking the right supplements that will attain results.
To be assured you are receiving the best, quality brand supplements, visit my estore online.
Click on my SHOP tab and you will find my favorite brands under my “Nutrition I Love” logo.
- I only list brands that are the highest quality, safest and most effective. This means therapeutic levels of ingredients that deliver results.
- My estore is consistently updated as new scientific research announces proven studies that really work. I work to stay on the cutting edge of this information and use it to help all of my patients and consumers.
Save! Use the promo code: FIRST10 to get 10% off your first order (if you are new to my estore or some of the manufacturer brands).
I’ve been wanting to try taking health supplements. However, it’s been a little hard to figure out what I should take. I’ll make sure to remember that my bio-individuality will play a big part in deciding what to take.
Yes, everyone has a unique biochemistry that determines what supplements are right for them. In addition, other factors come into play such as your genes, epigenetics (meaning your lifestyle habits), and dietary intake. Lastly, the state of your gut will determine whether you are actually absorbing any of the supplements you are taking regardless of how good they are for you. Lots to consider when developing your supplement program.
Hi Becca,
Thank you for your comments. I meant to reply to your comment directly so I am paraphrasing my comments.
It is true that everyone has a uniqueness to them and taking supplements is no different. When taking supplements there are lots of factors to consider. The quality of the supplements is foremost important since this is something you are putting into your body. However, it is also important to look at your own genetics, lifestyle habits, diet, and environment. This does not include any physical health issues you may be encountering. Lots to consider when putting together the appropriate supplement program for anyone.