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What Are Dietary Supplements? What Do Dietary Supplements Do To Your Body?

Updated: Apr 22, 2022




Dietary supplements include vitamins, minerals, herbs, amino acids, enzymes, and other substances that can be "supplemented" or added to the diet to supplement dietary needs or compensate for nutritional deficiencies: they are not intended to replace a healthy diet. While nutritional supplements cannot replace a balanced diet, they can provide adequate amounts of essential nutrients when used responsibly.

Whenever your diet cannot meet all the nutrients your body needs, additional nutrients can be helpful. The best way to get our nutrients is from the foods we eat, and supplements are only useful in most cases when nutrient needs cannot be met through diet or when needs increase due to age or health conditions.

While eating a balanced diet can help you get the nutrients your body needs, taking supplements can sometimes help. Some supplements can help ensure you're getting enough of the important nutrients your body needs to function; others may help reduce your risk(Preventive Supplements). Adding preventive supplements may significantly reduce your risk for many common health conditions. Some supplements also speed up your recovery from a health condition.

Supplements can help add nutrients to a restricted diet, Nutritional supplements may also be especially helpful for those who do not consume or absorb certain nutrients well, require large amounts of food due to a medical condition or health condition, or follow certain restrictive diets. Supplements can provide you with extra nutrients when your diet is deficient or required by certain health conditions.

Some of us may need to take nutritional supplements such as iron, prenatal vitamins or calcium, depending on our health, life stage or medical history. Ideally, we should get all the nutrients we need from our diets, but for a variety of reasons—from a lack of healthy foods to a stressful lifestyle—many people can benefit from nutritional supplements to meet their daily nutritional needs. What many people looking to improve their health through nutritional supplements may not know is that a balanced diet is enough to provide most of us with the nutritional support we need. While a healthy, balanced diet is often a source of vitamins and minerals, taking nutritional supplements to complement a healthy diet can help ensure your body is getting all the nutrients it needs to perform at its best every day.

From vitamins and minerals to nutritional and herbal blends, there are many supplements on the market that claim to provide specific health benefits. Dietary supplements come in many forms, including capsules, gummies, tinctures, powders, and liquids, and are often touted as a simple and effective way to improve physical and mental health.

Some observational studies have shown that the use of certain vitamin or mineral supplements may reduce the incidence of cardiovascular disease and/or reduce levels of risk factors. Some supplements, for example, increase the risk of bleeding; these include garlic, ginkgo biloba, ginseng, and vitamin E. Others, such as kava and valerian, may need to be avoided as they may increase the sedative effect of anesthetics. For people who need surgery, some supplements may react with medications used during and after surgery or may increase the risk of certain side effects such as bleeding and infection. Some supplements can affect how the body breaks down chemotherapy, which can make it less effective or increase side effects. It's very important to know what supplements your taking and what active ingredients do. One of the best ways to know more is to refer to the clinical studies published in the medical journals across the globe.

Some nutrients can be harmful to the baby (such as vitamin A, which can lead to birth defects in excess), and prenatal supplements ensure that both mother and baby receive healthy doses of all nutrients. Animal products are also a good source of vitamin B12, zinc, iron, and calcium, so if you consume little or no animal products, you may want to consider these supplements. If you regularly consume fortified foods, consider how these foods affect your overall nutritional needs, as you may be at risk of overconsumption if you also add supplements. While supplements should never replace healthy foods, they are sometimes required to help you achieve optimal health.

Dietary supplements can be in the form of pills, tablets, capsules, liquids, etc. of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, and other substances. Supplements come in a variety of doses and combinations. Supplements are foods that are taken orally and contain "food ingredients" such as vitamins, minerals, herbs and plants, amino acids, enzymes, probiotics, antioxidants, or other nutrients.

Contrary to the flurry of messages we receive about the need for supplementation, vitamins are naturally present in our diet, and most of us, unless we are deficient, have an ongoing health condition or need recovery support, we can get all the nutrients we need from the foods we eat. With the increasing availability and wide variety of foods available to consumers in India today, most people can get all the vitamins and minerals they need from food alone—this unique balance cannot be replicated with any combination of supplements.


FAQs About Dietary Supplements



  1. What are Dietary Supplements?

Food supplements are vitamins, minerals, herbs and many other products. They can be in the form of tablets, capsules, powders, drinks, and energy bars. Supplements are not drugs or prescription medication. Some supplements may play an important role to help you achieve optimal health.

  1. Which is the best definition of a dietary supplement?

A dietary supplement is an oral product that contains "food ingredients" intended to supplement the diet. "Dietary ingredients" in these products may include: vitamins, minerals, herbs or other plant substances, amino acids, and substances such as enzymes, pre or probiotics, essential oils, and metabolites.

3.What do dietary supplements do to your body?

Some nutritional supplements can improve overall health and help manage certain medical conditions. For example: Calcium and vitamin D help keep bones strong and reduce bone loss. Folic acid reduces the risk of certain birth defects. Curcumin has been proven to help in many inflammatory conditions.

4. What is the difference between nutrition supplements and dietary supplements?

Generally, nutritional supplements are products designed to supplement the diet. Therefore, they are also called food supplements. There is no significant difference between nutrition supplements and dietary supplements. Most types of supplements can be taken by mouth as tablets, capsules, powders, or liquids.

5. Is it safe to use dietary supplements?

When used properly, some nutritional supplements can help reduce the risk of certain diseases. Some of them can also reduce discomfort caused by certain conditions or medications, or help you feel better, which can improve your quality of life. Most people can safely use nutritional supplements as long as they follow recommended usage.


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