Can you take too much food supplements?

Most of our diets today lack vital vitamins and minerals. A cheaper way to get these nutrients is to take supplements. They are less expensive than buying food that would provide equivalent nutrient values and are readily available. However, most supplements are purchased over the counter without any regulation as to how much you can take over a given period. This has led many people to wonder whether one can take too much of the food supplements.

Most Common Food Supplements

The most popular supplements are vitamins A, E, C and D, folic acid and calcium. People also take a lot of Vitamin B12, Omega-3 fats, probiotics and a combination of trace supplements such as manganese and zinc. A good number of the supplements are prescribed by doctors, especially to the small children, but most adults purchase make purchases after self-evaluation.

You can Take Too Much Food Supplements

You can take too much of food supplements with adverse effects on your health. The body has mechanisms to regulate the nutrients that get into your bloodstream from your regular food. However, supplements serve these in huge doses and the body cannot control the effects beyond certain levels. The effect on health depends on the supplement that you have taken. For example, the symptoms for a Vitamin supplement overdose include vision changes, problems concentrating, bone pain and problems falling asleep. Vitamin A may also damage the liver and increase pressure in your head. On the other hand, overdosing folic acid causes such symptoms as poor appetite, nausea, and feeling overly excited or depressed. Probiotics may cause constipation, gas, bloating and severe thirst if taken in high doses. Some people also experience throbbing headaches. In addition, omega-3 fats overdoses may cause high blood sugar, insomnia, acid reflux, low blood pressure and in extreme cases, strokes.

How Do You Avoid Overdosing Food Supplements?

Seek Medical Advice

Most people take supplements that their bodies do not actually need. You gain no health benefits if you go past the recommended daily intake of vitamins or minerals. Unfortunately, most people don't talk to their doctors or nutritionists to determine if they are getting enough of certain nutrients. Not only do medical practitioners advise on the types of supplements to take, but they also help with the right dosages.

Read Food Labels against the Daily Values

Once you are sure the supplements you need for your body, you can determine the right dosage by knowing your percent daily values for each nutrient. Most packed foods will have proportionate values per unit of serving. You can use free tools online to determine how much of each nutrient you are taking. From this point, it is easy to know the deficit that you would fill with the food supplements. Use your doctor to help determine how much of the nutrients your body needs.

Determine Your Goals

Why do you want to take a food supplement? It is to improve digestion, heal inflammation, improve your agility, balance hormones or increase energy level? Your goals determine how much of the nutrients you need. Write your goals at the start of a regiment and track your performance throughout the whole process. Once you have achieved your goal, revert to the baseline nutritional intake.

Beware of Any Interactions with Drugs

Some supplements may do you more harm than good when used with certain drugs that you could be taking. For example, iron and calcium supplements may interfere with the working of thyroid drugs while CoQ10 may interfere with blood thinners. On the other hand, Melatonin may affect diabetes medication, blood thinners and some hormone-based birth controls. Talk to your doctor if you are taking medication for any long-term condition.

Why is CBD the most popular food supplement right now?

What is CBD?

CBD means cannabidiol. These oil products are derived from cannabis sativa. However, it does not have the effects associated with the use of cannabis sativa, that is the high effect as the ingredient THC is absent. It only has the medical benefits of cannabis. In the market, these food supplements are marketed as CBD oil, CBD hemp oil, hemp oil, hemp seed oil and cannabidiol oil.

How is CBD Extracted?

Two methods are commonly used for oil extraction, one being through cold pressing of the plant and the use of chemicals to extract the oil from the plant. The oil extracted by cold pressing of seeds of the hemp plant along with other parts of the plant contains lower quantities of CBD hence is less efficient. The use of chemical extraction of oil from the hemp plant yields higher CBD content.

Why are CBD Food Supplements so Popular?

CBD is known for its health benefits, the ability to treat a wide variety of health issues such as depression, glaucoma, insomnia, chronic pain, anxiety, epilepsy, loss of appetite and loss of body weight. It does enhance better sleep and is associated with improved heart health.CBD also benefits those with addiction as postulated by the substance abuse journal in 2015. It helps with addiction by its therapeutic effects on people with cocaine, tobacco or any other psychostimulant addictions. The overwhelming popularity of CBD, however, has been as a result of its ability to reduce symptoms caused by cancer such as nausea, pain and vomiting. Any organic substance that has been associated with alleviating the suffering of the global scourge of cancer has been in high demand, and the popularity has soared over the years. According to Healthline, in a study of 177 patients, cancer patients treated with doses of CBD and THC extracts reported significant reduction in pain and chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.

CBD has also gained popularity from the hype that has been created by the media. The New York Times refers to it as the new bitcoin. Many adverts on the internet have featured CBD hence creating a craze in the market where everybody wants a piece of the new 'thing' in the market, yet nobody understands it.

CBD has also managed to gain traction from its versatile uses such as being integrated into dog treats, bath bombs, and ice cream hence has been easy to integrate into the culture of many societies. Users also express a feeling of relaxation after taking CBD, typically a smooth balancing sensation in the body, which is not a result of mind alteration as is the case with THC.

The popularity of CBD has been compounded by the many vendors who have been driven to the trade due to the profits involved in the business. With CBD having gained traction with many customers, it has only been ideal for them to engage in this trade and this has further compounded the popularity by arousing curiosity while making this product available to the masses.

The users of CBD have mainly been the biggest campaigners for the product with overwhelming purchases of CBD being from referrals by other clients who had used the products before. This cycle continuous achieving the popularity we see today.

The fact that some states in the United States of America, in Europe and South Africa, have legalized marijuana has made it the users more receptive to the product. People avoided the cannabis sativa and its by-products in the past, mostly because the government criminalized it. The legalization has given the notion that the plant and its by-products are beneficial to the public. Hence the uptake has been overwhelming.

What are the most popular food supplements of 2019/2020 ?

There is a dizzying assortment of food supplements to choose from in health food store shelf. No wonder a visit to such a store can be quite overwhelming. These supplements range from minerals, vitamins to pills that contribute to weight loss. With such a wide choice of dietary supplements, which ones can be considered as the best? Well, here are the top supplements that you should try.

Meal Replacements

Pregnant people, vegetarians, nursing mothers, people with severe illnesses such as kidney diseases or cancer don’t get adequate nutrient amounts from their diet. So, to ensure that they get enough minerals and vitamins, they require dietary supplements. For example, if you are a vegan or intolerant to lactose, you may consider trying out the vegan protein supplement that will provide you with a top-quality protein supplement. Furthermore, with such a product you don't have to worry about which products are used for the supplement because it is totally a plant-based protein. Other liquid or powdered products such as the SlimFast may not be regarded as among dietary supplements but they are because they are given out to supplement your diet. Are you looking for ways to manage your weight? Then a meal replacement can be the solution. They control calories and should not be a replacement for a healthy lifestyle. So, keep on exercising and eating a calorie-controlled meal despite the fact that you may be using the meal replacement to achieve that ideal body size.

Multivitamin Supplements

Most people cover their dietary shortfalls using a daily dose of multivitamins. In fact, it is completely safe to take one on a daily basis. So, ensure that you take the one recommended for a particular age and sex. During the days when the diet is inadequate, you may take the multivitamin.

The Sports Nutrition Supplement

Another popular category of products that will boost your sports performance or even help you lose some weight is sports supplements. So, for those looking forward to achieving their 2019 resolutions of gaining some substantial tones of muscles then these products will make that magic work. They come in the form of pills, drinks, powders, and formulas. These supplements consist of amino acids, fat burners, creatinine, and protein formulas. An example is the Complete Pump Pre-WorkoutTM that is popularly known to give comprehensive pre-workout support boosting your physical performance. Most of these products have no stimulants ensuring that you make the most in your daily workouts.

Calcium

One of the most deficient mineral in most people in Europe and North America is calcium whose absorption is influenced by vitamin D. One of the best sources a person can get calcium is dairy products. Those individuals who shun such products due to being intolerant to lactose need the calcium supplement to bridge that gap. The best calcium supplements include the calcium citrate and the lactate that are best absorbed in the body.

Vitamin D Supplements

Reports by NHS indicate that the most popular food supplement in the UK is Vitamin D which have overtaken vitamin C due to the little sunshine received by people in this country. Medical experts suggest taking a daily dose of Vitamin D food supplement in case there is little sunshine exposure to ensure that the levels of these vitamins are up to the recommended standard. In fact, an adult can take as much as 1,000 IUs of the supplement without being in the risk of toxicity.

Bottom Line

Whether you are trying to boost your physical performance, reduce some extra pounds of weight or simply boost the levels of an essential nutrient in the body, these outstanding popular food supplements of 2019/2020 will surely give you just that. You can pick one from the outstanding sports supplements to a range of meal replacement.

What are nootropics and why are they so popular?

What are Nootropics and Why are They so Popular Efforts by human beings to boost mental performance and to enhance their cognitive functions have been on the rise in the recent past. As a result, world scientists have since developed nootropics to meet the need. Today, people are turning to these nootropics; drugs and supplements for self-improvement. Get into any health store or a health facility and you will find shelves packed with nootropics. You are also likely to come across nootropics call-to-action ads if you haven’t encountered any yet. But what exactly are nootropics and why are they so popular today?

What They Are

Nootropics are also commonly referred to as memory enhancers, memory boosters, or ‘smart drugs’. The word ‘nootropic’ is Greek for ‘changing the mind’. Basically, nootropics are drugs or substances that are designed to enhance the mind by protecting brain neurons from ageing or from getting destroyed by toxins. The proposition behind the functionality of nootropics is that they increase the flow of oxygen and blood in the brain as well as neurons stimulation. Nootropics include caffeine, turmeric, Piracetam, Adrafinil, Adderall, and Ritalin.

Why they are So Popular Today

Nootropics are popular because of the benefits they are perceived to offer individual users. Such benefits include; • Enhanced Cognitive Abilities Nootropics are able to improve cellular processes within the brain. This, in effect, enhances cognitive abilities such as memory, creativity, and mental focus. These aspects are essential when it comes to a person’s holistic wellbeing and mental capacity. Since most people want to become great performers and thinkers, they will put efforts to get mental boosters to get such abilities. The brain is what puts people on the top, and makes them look smart. This is why many people will prioritise brain enhancement primarily followed by physical health. • Stress Relief It is difficult to concentrate and work efficiently when overwhelmed with stress. Nootropics are a composition of a number of ingredients that work well as natural stress relievers and anxiety minimisers. These natural ingredients include L-theanine and valerian root. Many people find nootropics as great supplements for stress-free working abilities. • Natural Ingredients Nootropics were developed hundreds of years ago but demand for these brain enhancers have only increased in the recent past. This is because manufacturers have made efforts to develop nootropics from natural and pure ingredients. Such natural ingredients include bacopa and Ginseng root. These ingredients are good for human health. Not only can people enjoy a brain boost but they can also rest assured that their bodies are benefiting from these ‘smart drugs’. • Source of Reliable Energy People are busier today than ever before. Having two or more jobs to handle, a family to take care of, and academics to manage, it is obvious that there is a new level of exhaustion that many people experience today. As a result, many people will go for pills and substances that will reliably boost their energy as well as have a relaxation effect on their mind. This is where nootropics come in. Most nootropics have ingredients such as B vitamins and L-theanine that work alongside each other to give you energy and a calm mind. Therefore, you will be able to focus better and become more productive. Although there are numerous theories developed in criticism of nootropics, it is equally evident that the demand for these ‘smart drugs’ is on the rise. That is what makes it quite popular. More people want to have an intelligent brain, enhance their memory, boost their creativity and maintain a stress-free life, and this is exactly what nootropics is giving them; a chance to be intelligent and smart.