What to Consider When Buying Herbal and Vitamin Supplements

Adding supplements to your diet is a great way to improve your health, but there are a few things to consider before you purchase any health products. Consuming second-rate supplements usually won’t be dangerous, but you might end up wasting quite a bit of money if you aren’t careful. Here are a handful of variables that you should think about while you are shopping for vitamins and herbal supplements. 

<h2>Fat-Soluble or Water-Soluble Supplements</h2>

One of the first decisions that you will need to make when purchasing supplements is if you want fat-soluble or water-soluble products. Fat-soluble supplements are dissolved by the fat in your intestines and stored in your body’s fatty tissue. Those products don’t need to be taken as often, and you might experience unwanted side effects if you take high doses. When buying fat-soluble vitamins, the best thing to do is get very low doses that you can take on an as-needed basis or on a spread-out schedule. Water-soluble supplements can be taken more often, and your body will expel any excess nutrients that it doesn't use. Getting supplements that have a single-day’s dose that you can take regularly will generally give the best results with the water-soluble variety.

<h2>Doses</h2>

Finding the perfect dose of a particular supplement is going to take some experimentation, and you will need to carefully track how your body reacts to each product. Most people benefit from sticking to the nutrient recommendations that have been laid out by the Institute of Medicine. You should also consider speaking with a certified nutritionist who can help you determine how much of each nutrient your body is actually absorbing. While checking the label can also give you a percent daily value estimate, recommended daily dosages do change, and it can take time for the labels to catch up. If you’re supplementing for a nutrient that your body has trouble absorbing or that you don’t get enough of in your daily diet, it is especially important to speak with a nutritionist to ensure you’re getting the right amount for your particular needs.

<h2>Additives to Keep an Eye Out For</h2>

It is an unfortunate fact that many companies fill their supplements with unnecessary additives, fillers, and binders. Those fillers are usually harmless, but they can affect how your body reacts to vitamins and minerals. As a general rule, you should try to stick to products that only have a few basic ingredients. Some unusual binders and preservatives are necessary for certain supplements, and that means you will need to do some research. If you have any sort of reaction to certain binders or fillers, it could affect your ability to absorb the supplement’s contents properly. This is of particular concern for those with gluten, dairy, or soy intolerances, as these are commonly added to many supplements and even over-the-counter medications. Checking online for herbal supplement capsule manufacturing company websites can help you find what companies are using all natural and allergen-free capsules, and manufacturer websites can also detail binder and filler ingredients for non-capsule supplements.

<h2>Dissolve Rates</h2>

Many supplements will only make a difference if they can make it to your intestines intact, and that is why you should always consider how quickly the pills or tablets will dissolve. This is especially important for probiotic supplements that tend to be very susceptible to stomach acids. For optimal gut health, you will need to invest in probiotic supplements that are in slow-release capsules. Certain probiotic and prebiotic supplements come in capsules that are specifically designed to withstand stomach acids so that the nutrients reach your intestines. However, with many herbal and vitamin supplements, having it digested further up or lower down in the digestive tract won’t make much of a difference.

 If you have been diagnosed with any serious health problems, then you must speak with a doctor before you take a new supplement. While most supplements are completely safe, you should always be careful about what you put in your body. Knowing your own allergies or intolerances, your absorption rates and needs, and what you need your supplements to do will be important to choose the right ones, and a professional nutritionist or dietician can help you do that.