Supplement Advice
 

Hi there,

I was just looking for some advice on what supplements I should take. I am eating healthier and losing some weight, but I am not taking any supplements other than a vitamin a day. What is everyone out there taking and does it seem to help?

Thanks for your help!

Angie

Originally Posted by :
What is everyone out there taking and does it seem to help?

Does it seem to help with what? What is it that you're looking to accomplish by taking supplements, then perhaps it would be easier to help with suggestions.

For myself, the only supplement that I take is calcium with vitamin D. I eat a HIGHLY nutritious diet, so there is no need for me to take any vitamins. The only vitamin I am lacking is D, which is the "sunshine" vitamin and thus it's fairly common to be low in it. I take the calcium because of my age (46). Other then that according to blood tests I am at or above every other nutritional requirement

Stuff I take: Fish oil, calcium-magnesium, vitamin D, melatonin. I do not take a general supplement, because I don't need it.

I believe most supplements are just an expensive way to turn your pee different colors.

The only two things I can say helped me were SAMe. But that isn't for weight loss, it is for moods. I think I had a little post pardum depression after my son, and I can honestly say this supplement helped me. I CAN NOT lose weight if I am depressed. Now that I am back to "normal", I have stopped taking it.

The other thing I have taken is Glucomann. It's a fiber supplement. It is supposed to expand in your tummy and help you feel fuller. And it is just fiber, so the side effects are minimal - just don't go loading up on it all at once - start slow and let your body adjust (fiber makes you poop!). I just take a pill in the late afternoon b/f I go home to help me curb my raging appetite in the evenings. And fiber in general is supposed to help with weight loss. Good for the colon.

In addition to a multivitamin...

I take a B vitamin complex for energy, but I'm not sure it does anything. :p

I also started taking a calcium supplement recently... my gynecologist talked me into it, and my mom has osteoporosis so it's probably a good move.

I've got plans to start taking a fish oil supplement soon, in an effort to get my omega3/6 ratio a little closer to ideal, especially since most of the meat I eat is the cheap grain-fed stuff from the supermarket, which is supposedly lower in omega3's than the good grass-fed stuff.

[QUOTE/What is everyone out there taking and does it seem to help?

Angie[/QUOTE]

I guess does it seem to help is the wrong way to put it. I am in no way looking for a miracle drug or anything like that, I do not believe any of these work. You can only get where I want to go through willpower and dedication (a healthy lifestyle!) I mostly wondered about things that help keep the energy level up. I think that as the weight comes off I will start to feel less fatigued, but right now I still have so much excess weight I feel sluggish.

Thank you for the comments so far. I think I might add some fish oil to my daily intake as I had been thinking about this anyway.

I never take anything. I have debated supplementing Vitamin D because I am hardly ever outside, but don't currently. Otherwise, I cover myself pretty well through diet, so I don't worry too much.

I'm a little less focused on the whole "clean" eating thing at this point in my journey compared with other folks. So I take a multi-vitamin and fish-oil, but honestly can't say how much if at all I need them.

I also personally use caffeine if you consider that a supplement, but that is a subject of much debate on these forums.

hmm, calcium-magnesium and vitamin d and salmon oil. These seem very common. Most women can use the calcium and the vitamin d helps to absorb the calcium and helps prevent depression. The fish oil give the healthy fats in balance for me, and also helps depression.
I have trouble sleeping, and 5htp and melatonin are both safe and non-addicting so thats what I take for that.
I don't take a multivitamin as I believe I get everything else from my food. If you have a low hemoglobin or eat very little meat, then iron, especially if taken with vitamin c, is a good idea.

Calcium with vitamin D for me, too! That's it!