Everyday Health

I was enjoying a nice dinner of pork so tender that it practically fell apart, drinking a couple glasses of red wine and making good conversation with two friends last Sunday evening. This was a great end to the day, but not necessarily the recipe I’m speaking of for everyday health. During the conversation, I was going into greater detail of what it is that I do and explaining my healthcare approach. After mentioning how heavy my practice is in supplement and homeopathic medicine, I was asked a really good question that made me stop in my tracks.

“What are your top three supplements you recommend everyone should take?” I thought to myself that this is such a simple but great question. Right away I came up with my answer being a probiotic, fish oil, and multi-vitamin. I consider them standard household supplements.

Here’s the thing. I don’t recommend anything less than pharmaceutical-grade supplements. I’ve come to realize that people just don’t know. They don’t know what brand is good, what is not, and why they even need to be using them. I used to be this person, so I know how easy it is to fall into the trap of purchasing at your local store. I witnessed this as I was shopping with a friend a couple weeks ago and he picked up some off-brand gummy vitamins for himself. Not only that, but my father likes to buy his fish oil in mega-bulk at the store because it’s cheaper that way. With these two most recent events, I basically and politely mentioned that you get what you pay for. In these cases, you’re not getting much at all. What you need to think about when you purchase supplements and vitamins is the absorption factor. Many of your cheaper supplements don’t contain the high-grade components needed for your body to pull them out and properly be absorbed. This is why I want you to pay for better products for quality and efficacy. For everyday health, this is my advice:

• Probiotic: I have found that Ortho Molecular’s Orthobiotic is top in producing a probiotic. This promotes overall gut health, prevents GI infections, strengthens the immune system, supports detoxification, and improves digestion and nutrient absorption. Ortho Molecular has a product for children as well called Flora Boost.
• Fish oil: Just like your probiotic, Ortho Molecular makes a great fish oil called Ortho Omega. This is excellent for cutting down inflammation in your body and supporting the cardiovascular system. It’s important to have EPA DHA in your fish oil as it is the essential fatty acid, which allows the oil to function throughout the body, attacking inflammation.
• Multi-vitamin: A great multi-vitamin that I use for my patients is Integrative Therapeutics. Our diet today has been depleted of most vitamins and minerals that our body needs, unless you eat all organic. Because of this, we need to replenish our health with what has been taken out of our food.