Top 5 Supplements for Ultimate Health

Hello friend! I hope your 2022 is off to a calm and peaceful start and that you’ve been able to avoid the messaging telling you that you need to punish yourself for all the lovely meals and rest you had over the last few weeks. The body is incredibly resilient and you don’t need to restrict your food or punish yourself at the gym for enjoying some time off and extra cheese and cookies. If you want to gently support your body, you can try some of my tips to nourish your brain, gut, and nervous system. 

You’re going to get a lot further with your health goals if you treat yourself with kindness and compassion. Focus on what you can ADD to your life to support your goals as opposed to all the things you think you need to take away. This mindset doesn’t work in the long run and just pits you against yourself.

Anyhoo! Time to stop rambling and get to the point of today’s post, which is outlining the Top 5 Supplements I recommend for Optimal Health! Remember, if you’re on any medications or have specific health concerns you should check with a qualified healthcare practitioner before incorporating any supplements into your routine.

With so many supplements out there, it’s hard to know which ones will provide you with the most bang for your buck, so this article outlines the basics for someone who is looking for a little supplemental support, not someone who is looking to manage specific symptoms or support specific illnesses or imbalances. For that you’ll need more targeted support, such as what I offer in my private coaching.

What’s in my cupboards meowadays has been drastically downsized over the last few years, which has actually saved me a lot of money in the old budget. Frankly I love experimenting with supplements and such; something that can be quite fun but also incredibly financially draining.

I think it stems from my curiosity and my disbelief that some of these products can in fact do the things that are claimed on the label. Throughout my journey up and down the supplement aisles of various health food stores throughout the country I’ve settled on a pretty basic supplement regimen. If you are looking for specific guidance on what supplements may work best for you, then check out my awesome coaching packages to see if we’d be a good fit! 

I’m registered with the Canadian Association of Naturopaths & Naturotherapists, so I can offer insurance receipts to folks with Naturopath coverage who live in New Brunswick, PEI, Quebec, or Newfoundland. The only companies I can’t issue receipts for are Blue Cross and Industrial Alliance.

Personalized Wellness Planning: Best for folks who have specific health conditions they want to focus on such as PCOS, hormonal imbalances, inflammatory bowel diseases, IBS, etc.

Foundations of Nutrition Private Coaching: Best for folks who want to learn about the foundational concepts of nutrition such as blood sugar balance, probiotics, leaky gut syndrome, inflammatory vs. anti-inflammatory fats & oils, and anti-inflammatory eating. These private sessions will offer an opportunity for use to dig into your personal questions and find some targeted areas to focus on.

Foundations of Nutrition Small Group Coaching: Best for folks who want to learn the foundations of nutrition as mentioned above, but who don’t necessarily need personalized recommendations. It’s also an affordable 4-week option. The price is lower since you don’t get the same level of personalization, but you do get the support of a group.

One-And-Done Check In: I don’t have an official page for these sessions, but they are 1-hour check in sessions. I take a look at your food and mood journal and an intake form you fill out prior to our session. We figure out areas that you’re rocking and support areas that could use a little bit of lovin’. These sessions are $100/hour and include a follow up action step plan with everything we discussed during our session, plus any additional tweaks that I think would help.

1. Vitamin D

• Called the “Sunshine Vitamin,” vitamin D is manufactured in the body from cholesterol when you’re exposed to sunlight and actually functions in the body more like a hormone that a vitamin.
• Though it is most famous for its role in bone health and calcium usage, its functions in the body are numerous and incredibly important and include, for example, the following:
  • Immune system function- adequate levels of vitamin D have even been shown to lessen the severity of Covid-19 infections.
  • Muscle health and function
  • Cardiovascular health and function
  • Brain development—prevention of depression, anxiety, etc.
  • Helping cells in your body communicate with one another.
• Check out more information from the Vitamin D Council.
• I take about 2000-4000IU/day during the winter and slightly less in the summer depending on how much sunshine I’m getting.

2. Pure Fish Oil

• Fish oil is a great source of EPA and DHA, omega-3 fatty acids that play a crucial role in regulating the inflammatory response in the body.
• If you’ve been eating a Standard American/Canadian Diet then you have likely been consuming far more omega-6 fatty acids from vegetable oils, which can promote inflammation in the body.
• Adding a high quality fish oil to your diet will help rebalance the ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 in your tissues, thereby promoting a healthier inflammatory response.
• Regulating the inflammatory pathways in the body is key to managing conditions such as eczema, acne, arthritis, colitis, type II diabetes, and many more.
• Read more information about healthy fats and oils here, here, and here.
• If you’re a vegan, you can try hemp or flax oil as a plant-based alternative.
• Over the past few years, I’ve started eating more seafood (I live on the coast again- yay!), so I don’t take a fish oil supplement anymore. That said, I eat 1 tbsp. of hemp hearts every day, cold water fish at least 3-4. times a week, and I do take a Borage oil supplement to help with my skin- I’m prone to stress rashes and contact dermatitis.
• If you don’t eat omega-3 rich foods or are struggling with inflammation, it can be helpful to incorporate a fish oil or omega-3 supplement into your routine.

3. Magnesium

• This mineral is one of my favourites and no wonder! It plays a crucial role as a mineral cofactor in over 300 enzymatic functions in the body that regulate diverse biochemical reactions such as protein synthesis, muscle and nerve function, blood glucose control, energy production, and blood pressure regulation.
• Magnesium deficiency has been linked to:
  • Muscle twitches and cramping
  • Muscle tension and soreness in areas such as the neck, back, and jaw pain.
  • Insomnia, anxiety and depression
  • PMS symptoms
  • Fatigue and weakness
  • Constipation
  • Constant thirst despite drinking ample fluids
• Taking a magnesium supplement orally and/or via an Epsom salt bath can help alleviate many annoying symptoms and issues.
• The magnesium I take, MagSmart, also contains:
  • L-glutamine: which provides fuel for the cells lining my digestive tract ensuring they have adequate nutrition to regenerate and rebuild.
  • Active B Vitamins: to help with metabolism and energy production.
  • Selenium: a cofactor in important antioxidants in the body
  • Malic acid: when I discovered malic acid my life was forever changed. I tend to clench my muscles when I’m working or stressed out, which leads to a lot of aches and pains, but ever since discovering this supplement they’ve improved so much.
  • MA has been shown to help reduce chronic fatigue and fibromyalgia pain in sufferers and I notice when I’ve missed taking it. Malic acid also helps with energy production in the body
• This supplement is basically my mini multivitamin.
• If you’re going to take a magnesium supplement you’ll likely want to avoid brands that contain magnesium oxide since this is most likely just going to give you a lot of diarrhea. Magnesium citrate can also cause loose BMs since it is an osmotic that draws fluid into the colon.
• I like magnesium malate, magnesium glycinate (or bisglycinate), magnesium taurate, and Natural Calm, which is a citrate, but ionized so it’s less likely to cause digestive issues.

4. Vitamin C

• This vitamin plays a crucial role in immune system regulation and helps support our bodies during times of stress via its relationship with the adrenal glands.
• It’s also required for the growth and repair of tissues in the body:
  • Healing wounds and forming scar tissue
  • Forms a protein required to make skin, tendons, ligaments, & blood vessels.
  • Repairs and maintains cartilage, bones, and teeth.
• Vitamin C plays an important role as an antioxidant in our bodies to help prevent or mitigate free radical damage.
• Deficiency symptoms include, but are not limited to:
  • Anemia
  • Bleeding/inflamed gums (gingivitis)
  • Decreased ability to fight infection and heal wounds
  • Dry and splitting hair
  • Easily bruised
  • Nosebleeds
  • Possible weight gain due to slow metabolism
  • Rough, dry, scaly skin
  • Swollen and painful joints
• It can often be hard to get adequate amounts of vitamin C from food sources due to its sensitivity to heat. I recommend supplementing with a high quality source of vitamin C. I like to combine mine with collagen for optimal skin and gut health!

5. Probiotics

• I have so much that I could say about probiotics. Oh wait, I already have in this article! 
• Suffice it to say that I take probiotic foods and supplements regular to help maintain the integrity of my digestive tract, improve my digestion, boost immune function, and generally maintain a happy belly.
• My favourite probiotics are made locally in the Maritimes by a woman-owned company. It’s actually a cultured coconut kefir (Cultured Coconut- you can see where to buy it here) and every tablespoon has 4 trillion CFUs of beneficial bacteria. It’s super affordable and I have had great success using them with my clients!

 

Because I smoked for so long and partied like a wild animal for much of my late teens and early twenties, my liver needs a little extra love so I like to cycle on and off various liver supporting herbs, especially if I start feeling rundown.

I love teas as a gentle way to support my body’s natural detoxification pathways and will typically cycle through burdock, milk thistle, and dandelion root.

I would suggest contacting me or another healthcare practitioner before diving into the world of herbal supplementation because they can have quite a powerful effect on the body.

If you’ve been a reader of mine for any length of time you’ll likely notice that I also put maca and ashwagandha in tons of my recipes because I’m kind of a stress junkie with a history of hormonal imbalance.

These two are a little more specialized for me in particular; however, I do take the powdered food-grade forms so again, likely something you could incorporate into your diet if you’re feeling run down or your hormones are out of whack. Contact me if you’re unsure whether either of these supplements would be beneficial for you.

Finally I round out my supplements with an organic, grass-fed collagen from Organika. Adding collagen to your elixirs is a great way to support the health of your skin, hair, nails, joints, and digestive tract.

Phew! Another behemoth of a post. I’ve really got to learn how to be less verbose. But I guess that’s just not me 😉

I’m registered with the Canadian Association of Naturopaths & Naturotherapists, so I can offer insurance receipts to folks with Naturopath coverage who live in New Brunswick, PEI, Quebec, or Newfoundland. The only companies I can’t issue receipts for are Blue Cross and Industrial Alliance.

If you are curious as to whether we’d be a good fit to work together, you can contact me right here! 

Thanks for reading friend! Have a wonderfully whimsical day!

Cait 🙂