For a while I've been trying to compile a list of my top supplements. After much deliberation, this is what I've narrowed it down to. This is, of course, only what I've found works for our family, and may not be the best choices for your specific health issues. I'll try to list links so that you can get more information, should you desire.
1) Things that aid digestion. If you aren't digesting your food well, then you aren't absorbing your food well either, which means you aren't getting your nutrients to nourish and heal your body, and then a myriad of problems can arise. Poor immunity, poor coping skills, allergies, leaky gut, cancer...you name it. There are several ways to approach this.
a) digestive bitters- these help stimulate digestive juices to help your body digest better on its own. Some brand names are Urban Moonshine and Mountain Meadow Herbs Liver Glow (II for kids/nursing/pregnancy). Our James has used the LiverGlowII for a couple years now (off and on, as we take breaks), and his liver is doing better than it ever has and his eczema is gone. Ingredients like milk thistle and dandelion are in them, and they strengthen and cleanse the liver at the same time, while providing minerals.
b) digestive enzymes- there are complete books written on enzymes, but basically they help your body break down food when it is unable to on its own (most commonly due to stress which lowers our body's natural ways of working). There are many good brands, here's the one our Naturopath recommends( Pure) Look for both plant, animal and Betaine HCl for optimal digestion.
c) diluted HCl- this is just diluted stomach acid itself, and by using it, your body will produce more of its own as well as help your food digest better also. Low stomach acid is usually caused by stress also. Have you ever not felt like eating when you're under heavy stress? That's why. Constant low grade stress does the same thing on a long-term basis. If you suffer from heartburn, this would be what you want. Typically heartburn is your body pumping out continually (instead of just at mealtime) HCl because the levels are too low, not too high (as most would believe). The only reasons not to take HCl is if you are on corticosteroids (eg. Prednisone) and/or anti-inflammatory NSAIDS (eg. Motrin) as both of these type of drugs irritate the stomach lining already, and the added acid can cause ulcers. We give this to a couple kids and they are less ditzy and can think/learn more clearly when they take it. Our Naturopath says that kids can heal themselves by just adding this to their diet. I haven't seen healing yet, but I have seen happier kids who are able to focus (and less digestive issues) and that is nice for everyone around!
2) Things that replace the bad bacteria with good. Most of us have either been on antibiotics at least once in our life (or like me- many, many times ever since my bouts with tonsillitis as a small child, or my husband who was born via C-section and then had strep many times as a child). Anyhow, our gut flora is pretty much nil. Other ways we destroy our gut flora.
a) Probiotics- things like kefir, kombucha, kimchi, raw sauerkraut and probiotic pills will all help. This is a lifestyle change, not just a one-time-eat-some-yogurt-because-you-were-on-antibiotics type deal. Add these things in when you can, and slowly incorporate them more and more. Kefir can now be bought at Walmart and WinCo. Kimchi is at WinCo, raw sauerkraut or pickles (Bubbie's) are at most grocery stores too (in the refrigerated section). If your store doesn't carry these items, email/call them and ask them too. Or learn to make your own. Wellness Mama (my favorite health blog) has instructions for most.
b) Prebiotics- these I have not taken myself, but have family members benefit from them. These help the probiotics work better, and help replace bad bacteria with good. These are not as common as probiotics, but just as important. Mountain Meadow Herbs also carries them.
3) Greens, greens, greens. I don't know anyone who lives in this day and age who eats enough greens. So, supplementing is crucial. These help nourish our bodies, provide fiber to move things through our system, detoxify chemicals/medications, provide oxygen to our cells all of which help prevent disease. They are the most nutrient dense vegetables, in yet they taste the worst so we rarely eat them, right? Here's a few more reasons to eat greens. My favorite is of course Green Vibrance.
a) green vegetables-Whether you buy them and make juice or smoothies, steam or roast, or simply buy a green powder or capsule to take, try to do what it takes to get more green vegetables into your diet.
b) green seaweeds- this consists of spirulina, kelp, dulse, chlorella, etc. These are full of minerals and also full of green which can really benefit the body. Most of them also benefit the thyroid, which is low in many people these days. Even if the Dr. says yours is fine, that often means that it is in "normal range", not in optimal range. Check the numbers and see if yours is in the top 25% of the range, rather than just within normal. According to my Naturopathic Dr., people don't feel good unless their numbers are in that top range. Chlorophyll is not a seaweed, but another great green for deodorizing the body and flushing out toxins and oxygenating your cells.
4) Essential fatty acids (EFAs)- this is all those good oils we hear about which do all kinds of things.
These EFAs are necessary for the following processes:
- Formation of healthy cell membranes
- Proper development and functioning of the brain and nervous system
- Proper thyroid and adrenal activity
- Hormone production
- Regulation of blood pressure, liver function, immune and inflammatory responses
- Regulation of blood clotting: Omega-6 FAs encourage blood clot formation, whereas Omega-3 oil reduces clotting. The ideal is to achieve a balance between omega-6 and omega-3 FAs
- Crucial for the transport and breakdown of cholesterol
- Support healthy skin and hair
Fish oils, flax oils, nut oils, coconut oil, olive oil, avocado oil, real butter, chia/hemp seeds, cod liver oil, fat from grassfed beef/pasture raised chicken, etc. Avoid anything hydrogenated, or chemically altered or heat treated (for shelf life), and you should be fine. After decades of low-fat mantra, it's time to replenish all those good oils and fats again.
Interestingly, it seems that many gluten sensitivities can be traced to a lack of good essential fatty acids. Sometimes the person isn't getting enough EFAs, but often it is because their body isn't breaking down the ones they are getting (refer to my #1 above). Adding digestive enzymes can help the body heal the fatty acid deficiency and the gluten sensitivity in the process. Yay!
5) Calcium/magnesium/phosphorus/boron/vitamin D- although magnesium is the one often lacking the most, all of these minerals and vitamins work together for healthy teeth and bones. You need all of them together for your body to be able to utilize them effectively. Soda sucks the first three out of bones and teeth as it is so acidic that your body needs 32x more of them to replace what you drank. Yikes! Growing babies is hard on teeth and bones too. Celeste has been teething lately, and it's made my own teeth ache (she's nursing way more), and they ache even if I only eat a bit of sugar. I've been upping my intake of these vitamins, because I really don't need (or want) teeth problems if I can avoid it. The brand that works best for me is Nature's Sunshine Skeletal Strength and it has calming and digestive helps in it too. Here's a good article on how these all work together and the importance of them. The book The Magnesium Miracle is good too.
6) Bone broth and gelatin- bone broth has gelatin in it, both which help heal and nourish the body. Because our society eats mostly muscle meats, we are severely lacking in collagen and minerals and amino acids for healing most ailments. Bone broth can heal a leaky gut, overcome food intolerances and allergies, improve joint health, reduce cellulite and boost the immune system. Slow simmering bone-in meat is one way to do this easily, and then making gravy from the drippings or using broth for soup. Here's a good article about the benefits of bone broth. You can learn to make your own, or now you can even buy it premade.
Although often health solutions can start at home; nutritionists and Naturopathic Dr.'s are needed also to pinpoint problems if they are more deep rooted and not easily solvable. This website below is my favorite for at-home things you can do to improve your health. She has easy tests to do to help determine different things, how to make healing foods and such. Below is a screen shot of her healing food list which we strive to do when we can. Sometimes food isn't enough to heal, and supplements are needed to boost health (in specific areas) before the food can heal (we've found this true in our house).
Here's Wellness Mama's list of supplements she recommends also. I wrote my own list without looking at hers, but they ended up pretty similar.
Any that I forgot??
