Today, people are highly inclined toward supplements for maintaining their health and wellness. They rapidly incorporate supplements into their diets. According to a global survey, people spend around $300 per year on vitamins, minerals, and other dietary supplements, and 24% of people consume more than three different supplements a week.
So, it’s very important to know which supplements should be taken or not and which are the best ones to choose.
Different Formats of Supplement
Today, there is a wide range of supplement formats like capsules, powders, gummies, chews, and beverages. With different options, it may be difficult to choose the best one. Here is the list of most common forms of supplements that are available in the market:
- Tablets: These pills are made by grinding active ingredients without any coating, sometimes they have an aftertaste.
- Capsules: in capsules, active ingredients are enclosed in an outer shell. They prevent an aftertaste.
- Chews: some people prefer chewing supplements. This can be more desirable.
- Gummies: Gummies are easy to chew and tasty format with different flavors.
- Powders: Most consumers prefer powder supplements because they are easy to swallow and can be mixed with beverages or other liquids for simple consumption.
- Beverages and Liquid Supplements: These types of liquid supplements contain nutrients and active ingredients. They are a convenient alternative to other formats. After opening them, consume them as soon as possible.
With the different options, we have the choice and convenience to determine what works for us and go with our schedule and lifestyle. And also choose those formats that help you maintain consistency to supplement a nutritious diet and exercise routine.
What is an all-around approach to Wellness?
Some consumers may be wondering why there are varieties of dietary supplement products available in the market. Should we take all or only a single multivitamin enough in a day?
If you have these types of confusion, we would like to say that nutritional needs vary from person to person; they depend on our age, gender, life stage, dietary restrictions, wellness goals, and so on. It helps to consider an accomplished approach to wellness- targeted nutrition to support our organs, our sleep, and our mood – all these things are necessary for our overall well-being.
Like vitamins and minerals, some dietary supplements offer functional benefits that we may not obtain from our everyday diets. There are various options of supplements to consider beyond the daily multivitamin, including probiotics, amino acids, phytonutrients, herbs, and botanicals. These are often known as specialized or targeted nutrition supplements because they target a specific wellness goal.
A List of Targeted Nutrition Supplements
In a survey, it is found that consumers take supplements for a variety of reasons like
- To support general immunity – 62%
- For general health and wellness – 46%
- For digestive health- 32%
- For skin health, hair, and beauty – 27%
- For brain health – 24%
- To support energy and focus – 23%
- To support sleep – 20%
To target these what are the types of supplements you need? Let’s know deeply about targeted nutrition supplements.
- Brain Health
As we age, we need supplements like B vitamins (B6, B12, and B9-Folic acid), amino acids, omega-3s, vitamin E, Curcumin, and more to support various functions of the brain including memory. They help and support short-term memory and cognitive resilience as people age.
- Heart Health
To maintain your heart health with a healthy diet and regular exercise, you need some supplements like omega-3s, CoQ10, garlic, and supplements containing nitric oxide precursors.
- Digestive Health
To work our digestive system properly, we need probiotics, prebiotics, and synbiotics, they all maintain our gut health. Fiber is also important for digestion, it gives a feeling of fullness, curbs your appetite, and helps to thrive beneficial digestive bacteria. But most of us can’t take the required amount of fiber and other nutrition because of different reasons, so taking a supplement can help to achieve daily intake recommendations.
- Sleep and Relaxation
When we take a good sleep and rest, our body and mind get rejuvenated and regulate our mood. Many of us take herbal teas made from chamomile or other herbals such as jujube and passionflower to get quality sleep and relaxation. Other people support their sleep by supplementing with melatonin.
- Healthy Aging
As we age, our body starts to work slowly, many compounds found in our body reduce with age including Glucosamine, which supports joint health, and lutein support eye health and vision. Supplementation may help.
Who needs Supplements?
If your diet fulfills your daily requirement of nutrients, then you don’t need any supplements while some may struggle to do so.
Besides these, there may be other reasons to take supplements like.
- Women who are pregnant or breastfeeding
- Exclusively or partially breastfed infants
- Adults or children with diagnosed nutritional deficiencies
- Individuals with conditions causing nutrient malabsorption
- Vegans and vegetarians
- Who is restricted access to foods
If you’re concerned about getting the right and adequate nutrients from food alone, talk with your healthcare provider.
Supplements for children
In general, healthy children get their nutritional needs through a varied diet alone.
However, there are certain age groups and circumstances in which supplements may be recommended.
To give any supplement to your kids, it’s important to speak with a pediatrician for recommendations on the types of supplements – and dosage – that are safe.
Other Factors to Choose Best Supplement
Safety and quality are the most important factors to consider when shopping for vitamins and supplements. Besides these, there are some other aspects to think about as well.
Like, if you are a vegan, look for products that are certified vegan. Because some coatings and added ingredients in supplements may be derived from animal products. Also, supplements products may contain gluten or other common allergens, such as soy or dairy. Those who have gluten intolerance or celiac disease should choose a product that’s certified gluten-free.
Takeaway:
It’s recommended that if you can get your nutritional needs through your diet alone, you don’t need any supplements.
However, there are some instances in which supplements may be required, such as pregnancy, breastfeeding period, nutrient deficiencies, conditions like malabsorption, inadequate access to food, and more.
So, before starting any supplementation, talk to your healthcare provider.
