**This post includes some affiliate links. That means I might make a small commission if you choose to purchase through some links, but please know that does not increase the price you pay in any way**
I get a ton of questions about supplements, and I understand why! It’s a huge industry within which it can be challenging to differentiate between what’s marketing hype and what one might truly benefit from. I actually worked in the supplement industry before leaving to start Primal Potential. I’ve seen the good, the bad and the ugly. It’s a common practice to cut formulations down from the doses needed for benefit, in order to have your product be price competitive and still profitable. I’ve seen very high quality ingredients and very low quality ingredients, and I acknowledge that it’s tough for the average consumer to know the difference!
Three Things To Keep In Mind Regarding Supplements
Before we even get into what I recommend and what I think is over-hyped, I want to share a few things that need to be considered before you spend your first dollar.
- Nutrition always matters more than supplementation. That’s not to say that with an impeccable diet, we don’t need supplements. In fact, I don’t think that’s the case. However, I know a lot of people who eat an average diet (or below average) and spend a decent chunk of change every month on supplements. Cleaning up your diet and having it be consistent will do more for your health than taking supplements with a sub-par way of eating.
- More isn’t more. I’d rather see you take 3-5 supplements that are tailored to your goals and needs than have a cabinet full of 30 things that you aren’t consistent with and/or don’t really understand.
- You don’t have to become a supplement expert. I suggest finding a company or a person who you trust and lean on their recommendations. One thing to note about authors of books that promote supplements: I’ve found that many of these doctors sell their “own” supplements that are ‘whitelabeled’. You can do a little digging, but basically they take an existing product and work with the company to create their own label. I’m not saying these authors aren’t trustworthy! I’m just saying they might not be. I am an affiliate for one supplement company I love, Amare, but I also take products from companies I have no relationship with, and share that freely! For example, the prenatal multivitamin I take is from Thorne. I also take Thorne’s Vitamin D supplement.
Let me take a second to elaborate on number 1 a bit more. You can get a ton of your nutrient needs met through food, and you should. However, some things you don’t want to leave to chance. Probiotics are one of those things. Sure, you can eat fermented foods and a variety of vegetables every day (things known to contain probiotics) but you don’t know what strains you are getting or how much. The microbiome is so important and impacts so many things, you want to make sure you’re getting the strains you need for your goals, in the amounts in which they are effective. That’s one category where I feel supplementation is very important. I’ve done a bunch of episodes on probiotics (linked below), but I’ll say one more thing about them. Saying you take a probiotic is like saying you take a vitamin. Which vitamin? Is it the one you need for your goals or concerns? Because just like vitamin A and vitamin D operate very differently, so do strains of probiotics. Personally, I take 3 because they all provide different strains that do different things. This one is a general probiotic for digestion and immunity. I definitely don’t want to leave the support of my immune system to chance. This one has totally different strains that support hormone balance and mood. And this one is formulated specifically for weight management. With different goals, you might take different ones.
Important Podcast Episodes About Supplements & Health Topics Which Benefit from Supplementation
This is only a small list of the many podcasts I’ve done on various supplements. I highly suggest diving into The Primal Potential Podcast if you want to learn more! You can find the podcast everywhere podcasts are found: Spotify, Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Stitcher, Podbean, etc.
Episode 951: Excess Body Fat as a SYMPTOM of Underlying Problems (Which Can Be Fixed)
Episode 596: The Microbiome Impacts Everything
Episode 376: Is Silent Inflammation Killing Your Weight Loss?
Supplements I Currently* Take
*As of April 2022, but I’m including on those things I’m still taking while pregnant with twins. I will make an effort to update this list every once in a while.
Just because I take a good number of supplements doesn’t mean you need to or you should. What you take depends on factors that are unique to you including your health goals, your health challenges, your diet, lifestyle and of course your budget! Because it’s so important to make decisions based on individual factors, it’s impossible to recommend a starting point that would apply to everyone, but I will say this: the ones I recommend the most to other people are Relief+ (inflammation is the starting point of just about every disease we know of and it’s an incredible anti-inflammatory) Mood+. Like inflammation, stress is a silent killer and Mood+ is an incredibly powerful blend of adaptogens.
GBXFit – Cravings & Weight Management
Mentabiotics – Hormones & Mental Health
Vitamin D – hormones, mood, heart health, immune health, weight management and more
Mood Plus – takes the edge off – also helps with anxiety and depression
Probiotics – Digestion and Immunity
SleepPlus – Sleep quality and quantity
GBX Protein – my daily protein shake (I also put the powder in pancakes, protein balls and lots of other things)
