Dietary supplements are over-the-counter products intended to supplement a diet and are not subject to FDA oversight, unlike prescription medications.
Find a supplement with labels that provide clear and precise information, certified by an independent third-party organization to demonstrate it meets certain standards, and is certified against them.
Vitamins
Vitamins (organic molecules or groups of related molecules called vitamers) are essential nutrients, but cannot be produced in sufficient amounts by our bodies; people must therefore obtain them through diet.
There are 13 known vitamins: fat-soluble A, D, E and K vitamins as well as water-soluble B vitamins like vitamin C. While our bodies can store fat-soluble vitamins easily in liver tissue and fat cells, water-soluble ones tend to leave our system through urine more quickly than fat-soluble ones.
Supplements may contain various combinations of vitamins, minerals, herbs, probiotics, amino acids and other compounds. Dietary supplements come in many different forms such as tablets, gelcaps, capsules and powders to meet various dietary needs – for instance iron deficiency anemia or folic acid deficiency during pregnancy can benefit greatly from taking dietary supplements; always discuss them with your healthcare provider first before making decisions on their use.
Minerals
Minerals are elements found both naturally on Earth and in food that our bodies depend upon for growth, development and good health. Minerals serve many vital purposes in our bodies such as creating strong bones, transmitting nerve impulses, producing hormones and maintaining regular heartbeats.
Minerals are inorganic substances found naturally and possessing specific chemical composition and crystal structure. Minerals cannot be produced by living things (plants or animals), unlike rocks, coal and petroleum which contain organic fluids.
Potassium, chlorine, sodium, calcium, phosphorus magnesium iron zinc copper manganese molybdenum and selenium are considered essential minerals for human health. Products containing both vitamins and minerals are known as multivitamin/mineral supplements or MVMs; researchers define this term differently but usually include products containing at least three vitamins and three minerals below ULs without herbs or drugs [1]. MVMs may also be known by other names like stress tab-type therapeutic type one-a-day type products [2-3].
Herbs
Herbs are plants used for their medicinal or aromatic properties. Herbs tend to be easy to cultivate and can take many different forms: annuals such as thyme or basil; biennials like parsley and dill; perennials such as rosemary or lavender; as well as trees such as bay laurel (Laurus nobilis).
Herbs have long been used in medicine. Early herbalists in Western societies included Avicenna, Galen, Paracelsus and Culpepper as examples of Western herbalists; later came Avicenna Galen Paracelsus Culpepper among many more. Herbs also play an integral part in religion such as myrrh (Commiphora myrrha) and frankincense (Boswellia species) for Hellenistic religion, bael (Aegele marmelos leaves) used with turmeric “haldi” (Curcuma longa) while holy basil/tulsi (Ocimum tenuiflorum)/cannabis in Wicca and Rastafari beliefs respectively.
Dietary supplements are any oral substance intended to enhance one’s diet with ingredients not typically found in food, including vitamins, minerals, herbs or amino acids.
Nutraceuticals
Nutraceuticals combine nutrition and pharmaceutical science. Nutraceutical food or parts thereof that have additional health benefits over what is offered by specific foods can greatly improve a consumer’s wellbeing by helping prevent and cure diseases, reduce inflammation, or extend longevity.
Supplements may help consumers who cannot get all of the nutrition they require through diet alone, or who suffer from more serious illness or conditions. Before taking any nutraceuticals, however, it’s recommended that they first consult a healthcare provider, since FDA doesn’t regulate them as closely.
Researchers and developers are making great strides in this emerging field, from standardizing nutraceutical compounds to carefully planning clinical studies that produce health claims that make an impressionful statement about consumer preferences.
