Supplements

What We Recommend

In addition to a well-rounded, whole foods, primarily plant based diet, combined with 100+ minutes a week of exercise, we recommend the following National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) approved supplements for most all patients:

Level 1

• NSF Certified Probiotic
• NSF Certified Multivitamin
• NSF Certified Protein Supplement

Level 2

• NSF Certified Omega 3 oils
• NSF Certified Turmeric
• NSF Certified Broad Spectrum Anti-Inflammatory

Level 3

• NSF Certified Coq10

Other

• NSF Certified Adaptogens for better management of stress, anxiety, mood, and wellness
• NSF Certified Glucosamine/Chondroitin/MSM for better management of joint issues
• NSF Certified Calcium

NSF Certified Sunflower Lecithin for nerve and memory function

Not All Supplements Are Made the Same

In 1994 the US Congress passed the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DHSEA) act which changed supplement manufacturing oversight by the FDA. Instead of supplements being held to the same standards as food and drug manufacturing, a new and less strict set of rules were approved.

The result of this change, even 30 years later, is an industry with a lack of proper regulation and a history of bad manufacturing practices. It is because of the DHSEA act, consumers must be very careful and diligent about what brands of supplements they consume.

There have been countless cases where supplement manufacturers were found to be using tainted, non-certified, low-quality ingredients in their products. As well, many companies do not test their products to make sure the finished product contains what is on the label.It is because of the insufficient level of FDA regulation and required testing we highly recommend consumers only consume supplements which conduct third party certifications such as NSF.

A certification process where a third-party company comes into test products to make sure the contents match the label. In addition, they review the manufacturing processes for safety and quality assurance. When you take a supplement that does not have a NSF type certification on the bottle, you are potentially risking your health and possibly spending money for ingredients you may not be getting.

• Supplement manufacturing is less regulated than prescription drug manufacturing.
• Many supplement manufacturers do not internally test the authenticity of ingredients before they incorporate them into their products.
• Often supplement manufacturers do not measure the amount of each ingredient in their finished product.
• Without third party manufacturing certifications, the end user cannot 100% trust the supplements they are taking are safe.

You Are What You Eat

It is one of the most used expressions and cliche things to say. Yet at the same time few things are more true. The human body is primarily made up of hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, carbon, sulfur, and phosphate atoms. The atoms make up about 97% of your entire body and come almost exclusively from your diet intake.

When you eat something, your body breaks it down into these components and then uses those to build your cells and proteins. If you do not get the proper amounts and in the right quality, it is easy to imagine how the cells and proteins made up of those deficient inputs themselves will not work optimally.

This concept is built on the idea that individual cells form a group or cluster of cells called tissue which ultimately form organs. These groups of specialized cells act as the machinery of our bodies. Each designed to perform a certain function such as the skin acting as a barrier to the external world, nerve fibers transferring messages, lungs absorbing oxygen and the muscles allowing us to move our bodies.

In order for these functions to occur correctly, our bodies rely on the individual units and cells to be properly formed and when the cells are not properly formed, often disease or illness occurs.

• Making sure your body has high quality inputs of all the nutrients it needs can help ensure your cells and tissues work correctly.
• The Human body is made from the atoms, molecules and nutrients contained in the food we eat, the water we drink and the air we breathe.
• Our diet has the potential to make us healthier, but our diet has the ability to negatively impact our health, as well.
• Our body relies on the nutrients in our diets to get the essential and necessary building blocks to properly function. When we have deficiency in our diet, negative effects can occur to our health or wellness.

Foreign Bacteria Are Essential for Good Health

One of the biggest fields in modern science is understanding the roles bacteria play in human health. More specifically the benefits that bacterial cells which are from an external source, not our own, often referred to as Probiotics, affect our health.

Some of the ways good bacteria accomplish helping us include preventing harmful bacteria from colonizing (taking over) our bodies, converting our foods into even healthier byproducts, secreting chemicals which have beneficial benefits to our bodies, and helping us to better digest the food we eat.

Over the last 20 years the field of the Human Microbiota has become one of the most significant fields of human science. The term microbiota refers to the global collection of bacteria in the human body and understanding the effects it has. Every year the more and more we learn, the more positive relationships are found.

As of 2023 we now know that healthy bacteria in the human body are 100% essential for wellness and good health. These “Probiotic” bacteria work in 100’s of ways to improve our immune system, convert our food into healthier versions, to help keep harmful bacteria away and to help our organs work properly.

The bacteria in our gut has been shown to have significant links to both our mood and our mental health. Part of the mechanism is the bacterium in your gut makes neurotransmitters such as serotonin which play a major role in your nervous system function.

• The human body contains trillions of microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, and fungus) — outnumbering human cells by 10 to 1. Microorganisms make up only about 1 to 3 percent of the body’s mass (in a 200-pound adult, that is 2 to 6 pounds of bacteria).
• The good bacteria can strengthen our immune system and block harmful bacteria from living in our bodies.
• The good bacteria can also convert the food we eat into an even healthier or more beneficial version, further boosting our health.
• There is significant evidence that there is a The Gut-Brain Axis, where the good bacteria has a major influence on Mood and Mental Health.

Inflammation is a Leading Cause and Mechanism of Disease

Too much of a good thing can be bad, an expression almost every child or person has heard throughout their life and regarding the human body, is very often true. Although inflammation can have beneficial roles, chronic inflammation has been found to be present in virtually every disease or illness.

Inflammation can occur or result from many different origins, but its effect tends to be similar. It can alter the way our cells function and reproduce in ways that lead to harm. Over time this harm can transform into significant changes in how our normal physiological processes work and result in disease.

Much of inflammation occurs as a byproduct of healthy processes. When we work out or lift weights we create short term inflammation. Or when we stay up too late and do not get enough sleep or time to repair our bodies, inflammation occurs. It is because of the natural production of inflammation in our bodies as the result of daily life science has shown there are significant potential benefits to intaking certain types of foods such an antioxidants or anti-inflammatory materials which when ingested help to regulate or reduce our bodies inflammation pathways.

There is a significant body of scientific research using cell lines in test animals and human studies showing the intake of certain antioxidant foods with key structures can in turn alter and reduce our own bodies tendency to turn on inflammation for prolonged periods of time.

• Inflammation is a byproduct of life. Even healthy people have inflammation as it is a byproduct of normal cell function.
• When the inflammation present becomes more than the body can handle bad things such as illness or even disease are more likely to occur.
• Many of the foods in our diet contain antioxidant or anti-inflammatory properties which have been shown to reduce or turn down the amount of inflammation in our bodies.
• Inflammation levels are a common marker used in clinical medicine to assess someone’s overall health and generally reducing inflammation is a common strategy in all approaches to health or wellness.

Often What is Bad for Plants is Bad for Humans

One of our most favorite components of Wellness is that what is bad for plants is often bad for humans. Some easy examples would be plants also have to deal with excessive sunshine, lack of water and pesky insects or pathogens trying to infect or eat them. However, unlike a human which can get up and move away or use their hand to remove the insect, plants often cannot do this. Furthermore, much of the basic biological processes for energy creation, DNA replication and cellular function are remarkably similar between plants and humans.

Over the history of life on earth, plants have evolved to better adapt to their environments. Through genetic mutations which occur randomly, new processes or products are created and when those infer a benefit those genes are passed on. Where it gets interesting is because many of the problems those plant adaptations fixed, humans also struggle with. Which is the foundation for plant-based medicine.

By taking purified plant-based products, we can alter or adapt the way certain human physiological processes work which result in increased health and wellness.

• Humans and plants share a significant amount of biology and biochemistry.
• Many of the challenges humans have to deal with are also challenges for plants.
• By taking in certain parts of certain plants, health benefits have been proven to exist.