Are Your Nutrition Supplements Beneficial Or Bogus?

Do Supplements Work or Are You Wasting Your Money?

In this nutrition bite, we navigate the billion dollar industry of nutrition supplements, and reveal our tips to finding a product worth your money…

Have you ever wondered if you’re just wasting your money on those supplements in your cabinet?

Are they even working? Are they safe? What is really in them? Are you taking the right supplement for your best health?

You aren’t the first to wonder these questions, not by a long shot.

Millions across the globe take supplements daily, and at times feel they are stuck in a hopeless chase for better health, performance, and overall well-being.

So what IS the truth?

Do supplements work?

Or are you wasting your money?

The short answer is…YES and NO.

Supplements can work, but you need to be taking the right ones.

The supplement industry is worth over 3 billion dollars and growing, with over 80,000 known products on the market. The idea of improving health, alleviating ailments and prolonging longevity all in the easy-to-take convenience of a pill or powder has certainly found its appeal for millions.

Unfortunately, people’s desire to live healthily becomes exploited, and this is where the efficacy of supplements comes into question.

This billion dollar supplement industry is also a wildly unregulated industry, with many brands out there lacking integrity, good manufacturing practices, and third party certifications. It’s these ill practices that put supplements under scrutiny, and rightfully so. People want what’s stated on the label!

Navigating through over 80,0000 choices, consumers have to traverse through mountains of marketing, misinformation, false advertising, and, in many cases, outright lies.

For instance, did you know that something that claims to be 100% vitamin C can legally only be 20% vitamin C, with the rest of the ingredients being sneaky fillers?!

When seeking out a supplement you can trust, here’s some criteria to determine if a product is worth your money…

How To Find A Good Quality Nutrition Supplement

Choose a reputable and trusted retailer that sells brands with integrity. Typically, the sourcing team does all the work for customers in finding quality supplements that work.

Choose organic where possible, as supplements aren’t exempt from pesticide residue making its way into the final product.

Read the label and find the manufacturer. You can do your own research on the manufacturers and figure out which ones have good practices. Pair this with checking consumer reports and reviews to help you weed out the lower quality options.

Educate yourself on what benefits supplements give. Supplements aren’t necessarily ‘more is better’ and aren’t meant to substitute whole-food nutrition. Supplements are to plug nutritional gaps and compliment a well-rounded diet so it’s important to find the right supplements that can cover where your diet is lacking.

Check with your healthcare provider or registered dietitian nutritionist to help find the right supplement combination for your individual health goals and needs. This is especially important if you have any underlying health conditions or are taking medication.
Certain supplements don’t mix well with others as they can negate each other’s benefits. Common examples of this include calcium and magnesium, iron and caffeine-containing products, and antibiotics and iron.

LUCKILY, there are more and more resources to empower consumers. Sites such as pubmed are a fantastic and reliable resource to help you navigate the world of supplements and determine what brands are worth your money.