Posts tagged supplements
Should You Take Supplements with Food?
Sep 9th
How should you consume your nutritional supplements each day: with food, with water or on an empty stomach? The short answer is, for most supplements, it doesn’t matter too much. If you prefer to take supplements without food and it doesn’t upset your stomach, stick with that method. If you’d rather take them with a meal, that is typically fine, too. However, there are some supplements that are known to cause upset stomach when taken alone. And other supplements are better absorbed by the body when taken with specifics amounts of food or water. Below are a few of the more common vitamins and supplements with recommended methods of consumption:
Zinc
Zinc, thought to support healthy immune system and aid wound healing, is known to cause nausea when taken on an empty stomach. Take zinc with a light meal for easier digestion. Source: The Vitamin & Nutrition Center
Water-soluble Supplements
The daily recommendation of water-soluble supplements (e.g., vitamins C and B) should not be taken all at once; instead, the dosage should be spread throughout the day because they are quickly removed from the body. The good thing about water-soluble vitamins moving so quickly through your system is that the likelihood of toxicity is lower—you body just flushes the extra out. Source: Healthy Vitamin Choice
Iron
For best absorption, iron should be taken on an empty stomach, especially if a doctor has recommended it for anemia. If you are only taking a small amount, say in a multivitamin, and iron bothers your stomach, you can take it with a light might or snack. Source: About Nutrition
Probiotics
Probiotics, used to support a healthy digestive system, should typically be after a meal. Probiotics are considered “friendly bacteria.” They are live microorganisms naturally found in the intestinal tract; however, some people take them to help balance bacteria levels and aid GI issues. It is recommended to take them after a meal because your stomach’s pH level will be higher (read: less acidic) thus allowing more probiotics to survive the acidic stomach environment. Source: MayoClinic.com
The MayoClinic’s website is a great resource for learning proper usage of supplements.
Consumer Reports: Supplements to Avoid and Consider
Aug 10th
Consumer Reports recently released an article regarding dietary supplements and the adverse affects that some ingredients may have on your body. The article discusses the “dirty dozen”–12 ingredients that they warn consumers not to consume due to cardiovascular, liver and kidney health risks. The article also goes on to list 11 supplements you should consider taking, as they have been shown to likely be safe for most people and possibly or likely be effective in appropriate does for certain conditions. Omega-3 fish oil is one of these likely safe supplements and is listed effective for reducing triglyceride levels, decreasing risk of heart attack, stroke and progression of artery hardening in people with existing heart disease.
The dirty dozen includes such ingredients as aconite, bitter orange, colloidal silver and several more. Rather than memorizing this entire list, they recommend steering clear of any supplements that promote weight loss, sexual enhancement and bodybuilding as they are often problematic and some contain steroids or prescription drugs.
Steve Mister, president and CEO of the Council for Responsible Nutrition, provided a counterpoint article on USA Today last week, stating that the risk of supplements was grossly overstated by Consumer Reports. He said that, “The dietary supplement industry has been a strong supporter of more resources and muscle at the agency [FDA].” He went on to say, “We prodded FDA for 14 years to get higher manufacturing requirements for our products, and we strongly support mandatory recall authority for the agency.”
The debate on whether or not these dirty dozen are truly that dirty still rages on. However, no one has questioned the efficacy of the 11 supplements that you should consider. What do you think about this Consumer Report and the debate surrounding it? Please leave your comments below.
Even a Small Business Can Do Big Things for The Planet!
Apr 21st
NutraOrigin cares about the earth, we care because of what we sell.
The success of our advanced nutritional supplements is closely tied to the health of the planet. For Earth Day, I would like all our friends to know, that without a healthy planet, NutraOrigin could not craft high-quality supplements to support your health. Our products are comprised of hundreds of ingredients, made of plant and mineral, from land and sea, originating from all corners of the globe. The purity and potency of these ingredients matters to us. We want quality, just like you.
We source plant-based ingredients, like aloe vera,artichoke, bilberry, caraway, ginkgo, and maca, as well as papaya and wild yam. We search for key minerals, like boron, calcium, folic acid, silica, vanadium and zinc. To bring this really close to home – literally to my backyard on sunny Long Island, New York – my garden happens to have many of the plants that we also get from suppliers around the world. They are familiar to many of you and include black cohosh which has really nice white flowers, but spreads like crazy! Echinacea which is one of the most colorful and toughest flowers I have. These are planted in reds, purples, whites, and oranges. You should grow them too. There is also feverfew, a beautiful, really easy to grow daisy as well as bold and bright red clover which are usually found in expensive flower arrangements from on-line flower sellers. My Garden also includes peppermint, another active spreader, but everyone loves the smell and a few sprigs in some lemonade during the summer is really refreshing Finally valerian is big and a little weedy, but great looking. The point of all this is to say that we are not all about beakers and lab coats at NutraOrigin. Our feet are firmly planted in the natural world. Whenever possible, we use the products of the earth to make products for your health. Yes, chemistry will always be in play. You can’t get certain critical enzymes, for example, without a bit of science. But NutraOrigin is about the natural world.
We care because we share this earth.
We all have to do our part. What’s the alternative? I will be the first to admit, there are actions we can take that we haven’t yet. We need to look at shipping material, for example. We have recyclable bottles, but we have not explored using recycled materials in their manufacturing. There is more, but I want to focus your attention on some of the more earth-friendly decisions we have already made. One area to spotlight is our vegetarian products. They make up the majority of our products, except where, by definition, the product cannot be vegetarian. What do I mean? Going back to my explanation about plants and minerals above, most of our products have plant-derived ingredients. The ones that can’t are fish oil and our joint health product, which includes shellfish-based ingredients. Further, something that sets us apart from the competition, is that we choose to use vegetarian capsules. Most capsules are gelatin-based. This means they are animal-based, a by-product of pigs and cows. This doesn’t necessarily mean gelatin is bad, of course. We just feel it is unnecessary. If you are taking a product made from plants, why encase it in pig? For vegetarians, as well as for those who follow certain Jewish and Muslim religious practices, this at least makes it possible for these groups to take some of our supplements. It costs us more to do this, but you – and the earth are worth it!
We want to make a difference: Help us with your ideas and we will help you!
We have a modest headquarters in an office complex on Long Island. These offices are pretty earth-friendly – lights are motion-sensitive and fluorescent; there is a recycling program; lot’s of natural light, and so on. But I am sure we could do more. Post a real, doable, concrete idea here on our blog and I will thank you with a special offer code. Personally. After you post, just email me: tim@nutraorigin.com and I will respond. Help us make a difference, we will be glad to help you!
Cheers, and Happy Earth Day!
Tim
Timothy Peterson is the Vice President of Marketing for NutraOrigin. He has over 20 years of experience as a merchant and a marketer. He has founded and operated two businesses and was in retail for over a decade before moving into e-commerce and the multi-channel world. Today he is focused on promoting natural supplements as a key part of a healthy lifestyle. Timothy has a B.A. from Yale and currently resides in Long Island, New York.
Allow Me to Introduce My Story…
Dec 23rd
“Optimum health addresses the mind, body and spirit. Through small adjustments in lifestyle, nutrition and prudent supplementation, you can better adapt to the changes that time brings, and achieve and maintain optimum health over your lifetime.”
- Andrew Weil, M.D.
I firmly believe that no matter what your age, appearance, or health problems, it is still possible to look and feel better. Furthermore, I believe that it is never too late to start. However, this leads to the question “Start doing what?” I have invested a lot of personal time and effort into coming up with the answer, and as a result, many years later, NutraOrigin’s set of goals was outlined and the product line was created.
Here is the story:
I became a health enthusiast after joining the army. Being a part of the Special Forces, I quickly came to realize that my performance completely relied on my physical condition. This led me to believe that being in better shape equals better health. Such a naïve consideration collapsed after my term of service came to a close and I moved on to begin college. It was shortly after that when I started to experience a number of unpleasant symptoms, which gradually increased in severity over time.
I went to doctors first and, then hospitals, with no resolution. I was in much better physical shape than most of my friends and I never smoked, while some of them did. My family had an excellent health history which was not the case for some of the healthier guys I knew. I held a routine training regiment as a number of my friends never even exercised. The doctors could not help and as my symptoms continued to get worse my list of activities began to shrink and life was becoming less and less appealing. I quickly came to realize that I had no other choice but to rely on myself. I began reading books about alternative medicine and I met with scientists who were conducting research in the field. As a result, I was able to develop a program, the foundation of which was the intake of nutritional supplements and soon enough I got my life back. It was a good lesson on what nutraceuticals can do and one that would change my life forever.
There were many factors that influenced the formation of my own concept on health related issues we all face as individuals and as a society as well. I spent many years working as an Environmental Engineering Consultant leading a number of large projects aimed to reduce pollutions for industrial and urban zones. I also worked hand in hand with many health organizations and agencies which had a lasting effect on my thinking as well
As time passed, I advanced in my career, I raised a family, and, my interest in nutritional supplements and a healthy lifestyle was always a big part of my life.
Knowing my passion and willingness to help, led many of my friends, colleagues and neighbors to ask me to help them build supplement regiments that would optimize their health. This was how I became the sort of “nutritional guru” in this small circle of people. Being involved in such a process, I faced a number of challenges:
- There were very few quality complex formulations designed for specific health concerns.
- Many products on the market contain such an ineffective concentration level of the formula’s ingredients (due to the production cost restrictions), that it would require the intake of several bottles per month in order to reach the needed effect.
- It takes a significant investment of time and logistic efforts from the average consumer to do research, build a needed regiment, and obtain nutritional products, unless you consider involving health professionals and dealing with expenses usually not covered by insurance.
The next logical step in my mind was to form a company that specializes in the development of state-of-the-art comprehensive formulations designed to nutritionally address some of the most devastating health concerns in North America.. The result was the birth of NutraOrigin.
Years later, I find myself fortunate enough to work with a great team of dedicated professionals who prides themselves on manufacturing only those products that provide legitimate results for the consumer.
We are a performance oriented company which means that all of our new product introductions arise from genuine advances in technology and performance. We have always and continue to pride ourselves on our commitment to the highest standards of ethics and integrity. Each and every one of our products guarantees:
- Purity and Potency
- Integrity of Formulation
- Adherence to Label Claims
One of our main priorities at NutraOrigin is to never take professional or ethical shortcuts. This is why all of our formulations are developed with no cost or time restrictions in order to ensure the highest level of effectiveness and to provide:
- Highly concentrated dosages of each ingredient.
- Multiple effective components that deliver the full spectrum of nutritional benefits.
- Synergistic compositions that maximize the integrity and absorption of all individual components
in our products.
When comparing our product line to that of other nutraceutical brands, it is plain to see that our formulations greatly supersede most of our competitors because we offer a greater amount of ingredients in higher concentrations. All of our products are manufactured in facilities which are independently inspected and certified as Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP). Many NutraOrigin products include herbal ingredients or components derived from plants and we also use vegetarian capsules. This is why most of our products are vegetarian.
As a company it is important to NutraOrigin that we understand our customer’s nutritional needs, challenges and accomplishments. This is the reason why we have created these communities such as the ones you will see here as well as on our Facebook and Twitter. Our goal is to hold a forum where all of us can learn from each other through shared experiences. As we go into 2010, it is our hope to evolve with the community in order to provide better health and wellness for you all. We welcome you into our network and I hope to hear what makes you motivated, feel good and challenged to take yourself to the next level.
—Alex
Alex Khesin
Chief Operating Officer
NutraOrigin