How to Shop for Supplements

Nutrition | Christine Dionese L.Ac | June 10, 2010 at 6:00 am

Photo by SOCIALisBETTER.

If you already visit a naturopathic physician or Chinese medical provider, you’ve heard of nutraceuticals or phytoceuticals, commonly prescribed to complement your course of treatment and sometimes referred to as dietary or food supplements. These substances are natural but they are still medicines! Here’s my professional guide to supplement shopping.

If you’re rogue shopping without a prescription, here’s a tip: the two for one fish oil or three pack of calcium on sale is probably not going to be as good as what the specialty health food stores offer. I know, the stuff at the health store is usually more expensive but it’s also higher quality! Here’s how to navigate the aisle:

Choose:

Manufacturers that are linked to leading medical universities

Products that have been independently tested to assure consumers what’s on the label is what’s in the bottle.

Non-biased, peer reviewed research from leading medical universities

Pharmaceutical grade manufacturing facilities that only manufacture small batches of product to ensure higher efficacy of testing standards

Bio-available nutraceuticals void of preservatives or synthetics

Next look for:

Minerals: aspartates and citrates are your best choice for absorption. Skip carbonates. For example; calcium carbonate might seem like a deal compared to the slightly more pricey calcium citrate, but there’s a huge difference in terms of absorption.

Calcium carbonate is found in the popular antacid Tums. Tums, due to their alkaline nature are used to “coat” the intestinal lining to protect it from acid. Carbonates are large molecules and not easily absorbed, making them ideal compounds for antacid use.

Remember in my earlier article, Vitamins 101 where I discussed nutrient absorption in the small intestine? For minerals to be absorbed they need to be the right size. Aspartates and citrates are tiny and easily absorbed.

Vitamins. Ideal for absorption and digestion:

A (palmitate or beta carotene for vegetarians)
B (methylcobalamin {B12} pyridoxine {B6})
C (ascorbic acid)
D (cholecalciferol D3 or ergocalciferol D2 vegetarian form)
E (D-alpha tocopherol; avoid DL-alpha tocopherol the synthetic form)

Herbs. Unless you’ve been prescribed a specific formula, stick to using standardized herbal extracts. Standardization is the process of extracting the most clinically therapeutic portion of the plant or herb.

Some herbs contain active constituents in their roots while others are concentrated throughout the leaves. When whole plants (stems, flowers, leaves) are ground together and encapsulated you won’t know how much of the active constituent you’re absorbing so you may not be getting any therapeutic benefit. Standardizations are designated by the percentage of active constituent labeled.

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Christine M. Dionese L.Ac. specializes in integrative medicine, medical journalism and is the VP of marketing at WellWire LLC. Visit her wellness and lifestyle blog, Reaching Beyond Now.