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04-23-04 10:14 PM - Post#2030
The best supplementation plan would depend on a person's goals and eating habits. Some supplements, for example, creatine, are more performance-oriented, and would do little or nothing for a person not engaged in weight-training, or suffering from certain neurological diseases. Other nutrients are dificult to get from a normal food intake, such as vitamin E. The therapuetic dose of E starts at 400 units, and to try to get this level only from food is nearly impossible. If you don't eat fatty fish, then omega-3 fats are vital, since about 90% of people seem to be deficient in these fats. To say that "supplements don't work," or to make the equally broad statement that "supplements are snake oil" is just nonsense. While some supplements don't provide much benefit, you can't say that about them all. After over 40 years of studying applied nutrition, I've yet to meet even a single person who follows the so-called balanced diet plan. How many people eat the optimum 9 or more servings a day of fruits and mainly vegetables? Without eating these foods, you're lacking certain elements that may protect against cancer and cardiovascular diseases. I would say that minimally, anyone engaged in exercise should consider a good multi-vitamin, multi-mineral, vitamin C, and vitamin E.Other supps depend on financial and personal considerations. Protein supps are great for dieting and meal purposes. Most fat-burning supps don't work at all. The most effective of this genre were the ephedrine/ma haung, which the FDA removed. Losing fat is a matter of decreased calories and increased exercise, no magic involved. Some diets are better than others. I like low carb plans, but with minor adjustments, such as some intake of vital veggies, and substituting good fats for saturated fat.For year-round health and fitness, the best plan is probably the Paleolitic style eating plans. The idea of supplementing B6, folic acid, and B12 is good,since these nutrients neutralize the toxicity of homocysteine, thought to be responsible for about half of all cardiovascular deaths.But these would be included in the multi-vitamin. Ingesting omega-3 fats without vitamin E may be somewhat risky for some, since DHA, one of the omega-3 fats raises LDL cholesterol about 7% and lowers the activity of certain immune cells. Glutamine and HMB may be of help to beginners or those training especially hard. To recreational exercisers, they are largely a waste of money. This is what I mean by "specialized." I've experimented with certain OTC supplements to see their effect on blood lipid values. Doing this led to a drop in total cholesterol from a starting value of 205 to 150 with no change in diet, and while eating plenty of saturated fat and cholesterol. I used no drugs, made no changes in my exercise routine. I used red yeast rice, garlic, and policsanol. This was just an experiment, but I was surprised at the result.Women should be conscience of their calcium intake, since they rarely eat enough of the foods rich in calcium, such as milk and cheese, to meet their minimal daily requirements. But not only is the form of supplemental calcium important, but also the accompanying nutrients needed for calcium assimalation. This includes vit D, magnesium, the proper ratio of phosphorus and others. That's the problem with using Tums, you get only calcium, not the acessory nutrients. If you are low in gsatric acid, as many older people are, the other forms of calcium, such as citrate or glycinate are better, since they don't require acid for uptake. Also, keep in mind that you can only absorb a maximum of about 500 milligrams of calcium at one time. Taking a dose before bed is prudent.
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