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Nutrition Supplements?

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Marcus Aurelius

Marcus Aurelius

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Hello Everybody,

So a few months ago I began taking vitamin d, fish oil and magnesium citrate.

I feel pretty much the same as when before I took the supplements. Sometimes I think to myself, people have lived long lives and were strong before vitamins and supplements came about.

How do you know if supplements are working?

Do you take supplements or vitamins yourself? If so which ones do you take?

Thank you, Marcus
 
Good question.

I add ground flax seeds into my porridge/shakes to ensure I get a decent amount of Omega 3. I can't say I've noticed any real difference, but just because I haven't noticed it doesn't mean it isn't there.

I also (intermittently) take Vitamin B12 to no immediately apparent effect, but they're cheap and a B12 deficiency is no picnic so I'll stick to it.

I've also used a variety of plant-based protein powders (I'm using hemp protein at the moment) but, again, I don't think it makes that big a difference as long as I'm eating enough. I'm probably going to stop buying protein powders once the current lot runs out and see what happens.
 
In most cases I don’t think supplements are going to give you a dramatic change in the way you feel unless you are extremely low on a vital vitamin/mineral such as iron or B vitamins. A lot of people use them to completely replace key aspects of their diet when imo they should only be used to fill in the gaps of an already healthy diet.

I try to keep it simple
Whole food multi vitamin without iron
Vitamin D (I work nights and sleep days so I don’t get much sun)
Quality fish oil
Digestive enzymes
Curcumin
 
I've tried those and not felt any difference, so I stopped. Currently all I take is Onnit's Total Gut Optimization. I cycle through some different things as I have 3 autoimmune issues and am still dealing with gut issues. As far as vitamins, I eat meat and veggies.
 
There are some supplements that I, or somebody close by who I trust, has found useful enough so that I can endorse them. Vitamin D is one of them, magnesium also. But these two examples are something that I don't claim to be of universal use to everyone. Like if one gets Vitamin D from the sun, it may be useful to take it around here, where I don't see it for half of the year.

Then, there are of course supplements and some dietary concerns that have a decent amount of science behind them. Science is great. Of course, there are bad studies, but I see no reason to be unnecessarily sceptical.

I don't believe that individual well-being itself can be a good measurement if a supplement or whatever like it actually works or not. I can understand that someone then asks if it makes sense to take them, but I see it as a matter of health and recovery in the long term. If I'm allowed to make a bad comparison, I've never found any use in a seat belt, but I've always faithfully worn one. And like a lot of things in the World, the utility of the seat belt does not only depend on me, but all the other people on the road as well. Likewise, it may be that I will never feel any concern for my heart health before it gets really bad all at once, so I like to take care of it beforehand, even if I do not notice the effects of my actions.
 
Thank you everyone for the responses. A great website that's unbiased is www.examine.com

I also feel that the less variables involved in your diet or supplements the easier it is to pinpoint a problem if you have one. My father takes lots of medication and has to carry around a little book in case the EMTs need to know what he's on.

I might just eliminate the supplements since I already eat a allot of good food.
 
I would say you cannot really "feel" omega 3. However in my opinion it is one of the most beneficial supplements.
I'd say omega 3 and vit d3 are the only supplements you really need given the fact that one does not eat enough fatty sea fish or get enough sunlight.
As for omega 3 shoot for ~0.5-3g of EPA/DHA daily. Make sure it is EPA/DHA and not ALA which is found in flax seed since your "net win" is only 3-8% of EPA/DHA obtained from ALA.
@mprevost did a great video on omega 3 recently
 
The only supplements I've taken that I could actually "feel" working were BCAAs and creatine.

That definitely doesn't mean other nutritional supplements aren't valid, but since hard efficacy data is pretty sparse on most of em I'd rather put the $ into a more varied diet.
 
I think the problem with a lot of supplements, and eating healthy for that matter, is you don't really notice the effects in the short term. But after 40 years of eating junk food you might wonder why you're not aging as well as someone who has eaten healthy their whole life. And then it's too late to go back and eat less junk food your whole life.
 
I used to regularly take 1000mg of krill oil a day. I am a little sporadic now, and to be honest don't feel too much of a difference whether I take it or not. I wish I had taken bloodwork before and after to see if it helped. Other than that, I've never used supplements.
 
I think it depends on the supplement and the dosage. For me, if I don’t take my 800mg of magnesium each night, I feel it the next morning recovery wise.
 
I think it depends on the individual. Look at the research regarding any supplement, and it always comes up "inconclusive." I think that is due to individual variation. We're all different, so for any supplement, some benefit, some don't. I've experimented with all kinds. Creatine works, but makes me heavy. I generally find a multi makes me feel better, but it doesn't take much. I take B12 since I'm vegan.

In this case, I define "supplement" as some substance extracted and concentrated, like creatine. A multiunit is similar, though it tries to mimc real food. But some foods can be used like supplements. In this category I found turmeric and ginger to be beneficial. The last couple months I upped my running frequency to six days a week, more than ever before. I expected some soreness, but I had recently developed a taste for turmeric, both ground and fresh. I used some at most meals. I always liked ginger, but also increased that too. No real soreness, so there might be something to that anti-inflammatory effect. No way to quantify it as I ate it with food in varying amounts each day.

Something else similar are Chinese tonic herbs. I have taken various combinations, and they have always had modest, subtle, but real effects.
 
Living in a cloudy rainy place I feel better taking vitamin D. Being slightly anemic, I feel better taking iron. I sleep better taking some melatonin, I have noticeably better training using ZMA, BCAAs and creatine when the session dictates it.

I do notice that it takes a few weeks to notice a difference when starting or stopping. It also matters what dose, generally for me the amount on the package is often conservative and I don't notice a difference until I start to up the dosage of some things like fish oil and vitamins. Minerals don't seem to need higher doses though.

I think some are worth taking if you have a specific reason to take them, I avoid anything that is a proprietary blend - higher doses of the specific things I need make more of an impact and its significantly cheaper.
 
All of my supplement usage except glucosamine/chondroitin is monitored via blood-work on a fairly regular basis. So that is how I know its working.
 
Creatine, pre-workout caffeine, and magnesium are supplements that "I can feel" and seem to have a tangible benefit. Zinc too.
 
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