Supplements
You are what you eat…and that starts with how food and other natural substances that complement the diet affect your cells and influence your health. Despite a wide variety of foods, people today generally eat more but actually get fewer nutrients. Many common aspects of daily life can deplete the body of the nutrients it needs to function properly:
- Drinking – alcohol, coffee/sodas (caffeine)
- Medications – statin drugs, corticosteroids, diuretics
- Stress – work, family
- Smoking – nicotine
- Eating – junk food, refined carbohydrates
- State of Health – illness, injury, intestinal issues, pregnancy
These things can rob you of nutrients by:
- Increasing your need for certain nutrients
- Causing accelerated nutrient loss
- Impairing the absorption of nutrients from food
What You Eat Affects How You Feel! Processed foods and other unhealthy dietary habits can interfere with the dietary signals sent to cells throughout the body, which can lead to premature aging and disease. Addressing unhealthy eating patterns allows you to manage symptoms and even halt or reverse the progression of illness. Eating plans can also be tailored to specific conditions to maximize healthy signals—to help regulate blood sugar or reduce inflammation, for example.
We have spent thousands of hours researching supplements. They are not all made equal! We make recommendations based on research and clinical studies, and practice evidence based medicine. This means that when there is scientific data that supports the use of a supplement, we recommend it.
We choose the brand of supplements based on their quality. From our experience, most supplements from the grocery stores, discount stores, and commercial pharmacies are not going to help. The products at chain nutrition stores is normally better, but you may also have a 16 year old trying to help you with nutrition questions without any true knowledge. Compounding or specialty pharmacies are much more likely to give you better information.
Patients First has chosen two companies to recommend, based on their track records, quality of supplements, and willingness to have their supplements tested by third party laboratories. It is important to make sure that what is on the label is in the pill, and to make sure that what’s in the pill is absorbed into your system to it can be utilized.
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