Choosing the best supplement

[John]

Hi All

If you want to find out what supplements to take for the condition(s) you have, take a look at Snake Oil? Scientific evidence for popular health supplements (http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/play/snake-oil-supplements/).

Based on hard scientific evidence, this amazing interactive chart shows exactly which supplements are effective for which conditions: the bigger the bubble, the greater the supplement's popularity, according to number of Google hits it scores; and the higher the bubble, the greater the evidence for its effectiveness.

Just look at those huge bubbles for green tea, vitamin D, Omega-3 and folic acid - emphasis that is completely in line with what I am finding as I trawl the actual research online. For anyone who wants a quick guide to which supplements might help improve their health, this is an awesome aid. It's also a lot of fun!

The intro page shows what works best for general health, and positioning your cursor over each bubble will reveal the conditions that each supplement is good for. To reset the chart for specific conditions, click on the "Show Me" tab on the right.

[harriet]

Hi John -
What a brilliant site! I am not sure whether one should really rely on its popularity for one's choice of supplement - but as you say, the site is great fun to play with anyhow....

[Micki]

I've just written about choosing supplements on my blog if anyone's interested. And I've included two really interesting articles in the free downloadable stuff so have a peek. There is also a list of the manufacturers I rate, both online and on the High Street. Hope it helps.

There is such a lot of hype and nonsense in supplement manufacture and I am getting fed up with people coming in with bags and bags of stuff that they would do better to put down the loo than their gullets!

The best value supplement is the one that helps you. Most are made with the wrong mineral or vitamin forms which are not absorbable or usable by the body, have the wrong dosages, wrong ratios and contain fillers that block absorption or cause allergies. Drives me nuts. All that wasted time and money and, more importantly, it breaks my heart that people's health could have been improved if they had only known how to choose better ones. Rant over!

[tcmbsmum]

How does stress deplete your body? And what might be good minerals, vitamins etc to take if one has been under emotional stress? I know it is a vague question.....

[tcmbsmum]

Foods Matter have just added a nutritional supplement section to their website, so this might help anyone looking for answers about what supplements to use, and how different supplements might affect different conditions: http://www.foodsmatter.com/nutrition_micronutrition/index_nutrition_micronutrition.html

[Micki]

Dear tcmbsmum - just saw your post about nutrients and stress. It is a huge subject, but all I would point you towards is depleted adrenal function. If I see someone who says they feel they 'just can't seem to cope with daily life like they used to', it is usually adrenal hypofunction and, thankfully, you can test for it, confirm it and correct it in about 3-4 months.