- Know the difference between Naturally Occurring and Synthetic…
Naturally occurring vitamins are in their normal and natural biochemical state. This means that they are in the form that is matched to our genetic needs. Vitamin/mineral supplements that are whole food are as close to eating enough of the nutrients you need as you can get. Here’s some great guidelines to look for on the label: synthetic-free, plant-derived, yeast-free, certified organic, and naturally occurring.
Synthetic vitamins are not made from food or anything that humans would naturally consume. They are made from chemical products in a laboratory. They are cheap, which seems like a benefit at first. But, the reality is that they are often filled with other ingredients that are not good for you. Different dyes, fillers, and sweeteners (often artificial sweeteners, i.e. aspartame found in children’s Flintstones vitamins). If you see suffixes like the following: acetate, bitartrate, chloride, gluconate, nitrate, or succinate you are seeing synthetics. Labels should tell you the amount of each vitamin/mineral and their source. Synthetics are not easily utilized by the body because they body is made to utilize food, not synthetics.
- Know that supplements are meant to be exactly that…a supplement to what you are eating! You really should get most of your nutrients from your food, but sometimes that’s really difficult in the world we live in today. So, choosing the highest quality supplements is so important!
- Know that you often get what you pay for when it comes to supplements. So, taking a ton of cheap supplements typically they end up going right through your body and out into the sewer.
The picture you see here is the brand I take daily and the one that I recommend! It’s from Innate Choice called “Vita Sufficiency“