subject: How To Select The Ideal Vitamin And Mineral Supplements For Yourself [print this page] How To Select The Ideal Vitamin And Mineral Supplements For Yourself
The world of healthcare products can be confusing, especially if you have little understanding of nutrition, but also want to do the best you can to support your long-term vitality. Here are some guidelines to consider prior to deciding on vitamin and mineral supplements:
Firstly, you will notice that alternative company's supplements are made up of different ingredients and at different levels. As an example, some products may included recommended daily allowances, but some include much more, advanced quantities. Taking in insufficient quantities may give you little benefit, where too much can be harmful, so what is the solution?
In addition, your lifestyle may play a major role in defining what levels of vitamins and minerals you need on a day to day basis. As an example, if you smoke your needs may be increased. As well as this, are you aware that if you train consistently, at high heart rates, then your body's requirements is also higher? This is due to the fact that vitamins (AKA antioxidants) are required to counteract the damaging waste products created as we process oxygen. Intense exercise increases oxygen usage and hence, increases potentially volatile by-products called free radicals.
A further important element to note is the quality of the supplement. As nutritionals only need to be manufactured to food standards to satisfy industry's legislation, it is relatively hard for manufacturers to control exactly what goes in to their nutritional supplements. Products might get contaminated, or might not end up with identical ingredients in each individual tablet and our bodies' ideally need consistency!
As a former personal trainer I am of the opinion that it is more sensible to provide our body with a surplus, providing that the levels that we intake are not in toxic ranges. By providing our bodies with surplus, it can use as much as it requires and reject what is not required. Vitamins and minerals that are not needed will be excreted and so should not adversely affect our health.
Some nutritionals suppliers produce products to pharmaceutical standards, so they have improved control of the consistency of each tablet. This also significants decreases the chance of contamination with harmful, or illegal ingredients. With this in mind, I also suggest consuming supplements that are of a pharmaceutical standard.
In summary, it is best consuming pharmaceutical grade nutritionals, which have advanced levels of vitamins and minerals.