Even traditionally trained physicians have come to recognize that everyone needs to take a vitamin supplement. Eating a perfect diet consisting of healthy, organic foods is not the way the average American eats.

And even if your diet consists primarily of fruits and vegetables, our soil has become so depleted of minerals and nutrients that much of its nutritional value is lost. While it is true that we need to supplement, walking into a health food store can be overwhelming and expensive.

We often add a new supplement because of something we read in a magazine or hear on the news, and with the best of intentions, we rush to buy a bottle of this vitamin or herb. Since (as of now) the FDA does not regulate vitamins or herbs, we are free to buy and use supplements as much as we like.

While I am not suggesting that the FDA step in and regulate the use of supplements, I think we would do well to learn more about proper supplementation before spending unnecessary money on supplements or worse, instead of improving our health, we harm without know it. that.

Supplementation doesn’t have to be complicated. If you are not already taking a vitamin / mineral supplement, you can start by looking for one that is derived from food and not chemicals. Synthetic vitamins (made in a lab) are not absorbed properly, as your cells are smart enough to know the difference between what is allowed in (food) and what is not allowed (chemicals).

Buying guidelines

• You are wasting your money buying cheap synthetic vitamins at your local Walgreen’s or Costco; the liver can even become toxic from the accumulation of residual vitamin waste.
• Always drink a liquid over a pill to ensure absorption.
• Consider Sea Aloe: it contains vitamins, minerals, amino acids and trace elements and is derived from sea vegetables.
• Aloe vera and pau d’arco (purple lapacho, usually in the form of tea bags or loose leaves) have healing properties.
• Always take a quality fish oil: buy cheap fish oil and you risk mercury contamination.
• Vitamin D3 is essential and can be easily obtained from your diet by including foods such as oily fish, ie salmon, trout or mackerel. Note: controlling your vitamin D level is essential.
• The benefits of vitamin C are well known.

It is also crucial to remember that while supplements, be they vitamins or herbs, are easily considered “natural,” that does not mean that they are benign. Supplementing safely requires due diligence: Supplements can cause dangerous interactions with certain medications, or even with each other.

A friend of mine was taking Ultram (a commonly prescribed pain reliever), then he added melatonin along with 5HTP (both available in health food stores) to help with sleep. Taken singularly, each of these would have been safe to take, but when taken in combination with Ultram, they caused a life-threatening condition known as serotonin syndrome.

Therefore, complement, but complement safely. Google Sloan Kettering (MSKCC), the renowned cancer research and treatment center. Through their website, you can search for information on vitamins and herbs and their possible drug interactions.