Fiber
Fiber can help keep you full, reduce risk of colorectal cancer and enhance digestive health. Whole foods are best source of fiber; however if you’re having difficulty meeting daily intake requirements with diet alone then supplements like Psyllium (Metamucil/Konsyl/Methycellulose etc) and Methycellulose may provide assistance; please consult a healthcare provider prior to using these. Additionally, their laxative effects could interfere with some medications; Chia seeds offer a great source of dietary fiber.
Vitamins & Minerals
Vitamins and minerals are micronutrients, essential components your body requires in small amounts for proper functioning. You can get them through food sources as well as supplements or medical treatments.
Some vitamins are fat-soluble, meaning they dissolve in fat and can be stored in your fatty tissues and liver for later use. Examples include vitamins A, D, E and K. You can obtain them through eating various fruits and vegetables that contain these vitamins; or by adding foods rich with additional vitamins and minerals into your diet such as flour with added vitamin A or iodized salt to your daily routine.
Minerals are inorganic elements found in soil and water that are consumed by plants or consumed directly by animals, including humans. Your body needs certain minerals in greater amounts – calcium, phosphorus, potassium and sodium among them – for healthy development and functioning; others such as iron, chromium copper zinc selenium iodine need only small amounts of these essential elements for good health.
Herbal Supplements
Herbal remedies have long been used for their medicinal benefits, from anxiety relief to immune support. But just because a supplement bears the label “herbal,” doesn’t guarantee its safety or efficacy – not least since herbal products don’t undergo the same rigorous testing process as prescription or over-the-counter drugs, while some, such as comfrey and ephedra can actually cause serious harm.
Herbal supplements may also interact with certain medications. Curcumin, an extract from turmeric, may reduce the effectiveness of some anti-inflammatory drugs while potentially interfering with CYP3A4 inhibitors, protease inhibitors, digoxin, and warfarin treatments.
Dietitians are encouraged to promote nutritional supplements with scientific evidence of safety and efficacy, but when dietitians endorse and sell herbal products there can be conflicts of interest that compromise the integrity of their professional advice. Dietitians should disclose any financial ties with supplement companies as well as providing clear, impartial information regarding benefits and risks for all their advice given; furthermore they should educate patients on reporting any adverse reactions immediately to their physician.
Whole Food Supplements
Supplements provide a quick and convenient way of getting essential vitamins, minerals and other nutrients into the body. Unfortunately, not all supplements are created equal: some include ingredients sourced directly from food while others are made using synthetic and isolated materials.
These supplements often carry misleading claims of being “raw,” “whole food,” or featuring pictures of fruits and veggies on their labels; however, this is often just marketing hype. Most products using such labels contain additives to keep them stable or to fill the capsules more easily than would be ideal – these should ideally dissolve in liquids or powders to be taken into the body as whole foods.
Folic acid or iron bis-glycinate supplements not naturally found in nature don’t need to be added, and synthetic vitamins or spray-drying carriers offer no benefit compared to whole food supplements from companies like Standard Process.
