Scientific Supplementation

With all of the marketing and hype that is commonplace in the supplement industry, it's a healthy idea to be a supplement skeptic. Hopefully this article will help you clear up some of the skepticism but still keep you questioning the value of most products out there.

For a supplement to be recommended by me, it must meet two criteria:
1) It must have full scientific evidence proving its benefits on humans.
2) It cannot be a substance which can be found in adequate quantities to acheive its benefits in a balanced diet.

Dietary supplements for health:
Garlic: Due to the sulfide compounds in garlic, it without a doubt lowers your cancer risk, lowers your cholesterol levels, lessens free radical cell damage and may even strengthen your immune system. To experience the health perks, though, you'll need to ingest about one clove a day, which is a lot. You could get this from your diet, but you would be spending a fortune on breath mints to compensate. Concentrated garlic pills at a dosage of about 600 mg daily will give you garlic's benefits without the halitosis. 

Vitamin E: This antioxidant has been shown to reduce risk of cancer and heart disease. The trouble with getting Vitamin E from food is that it's a fat-soluble vitamin, and can only be found in fatty foods like peanut butter, nuts, and oils. In order to consume enough of this vitamin, your diet would become too high in fat and calories. This would outweigh any positive benefits. For this reason, taking Vitamin E in supplement form is your best bet. Studies show that in doses of 100 IU, it lowers the risk of heart disease, and that in quantities of 50 IU, it could lower the risk of prostate cancer. The recommended dose is 10 IU.

Selenium: Taking high doses of this mineral has also been shown to lower your risk of cancer. The main source of selenium is seafood, but you'll have to eat a lot of it to get any health benefit. If you eat 6 ounces of seafood 4 times a week, great, then you don?t need to supplement with this. If you are like most people and you do not, then supplementation is recommended. The quantity needed to cut your cancer risk is 200 mcg daily, while the RDA is 70 mcg.

Supplements for athletic performance:
Creatine phosphate:
Creatine has been shown scientifically to increase strength and speed for short bursts of activity. It works by helping the body regenerate adenosine triphosphate, which it uses for short-term muscle contractions. I do not recommend this to everyone, just to the elite athlete who wants to get an edge on his or her training. For the ordinary or beginner exerciser, increasing their workout intensity is the best way to make progress.  Creatine phosphate can be found in meats but in nowhere near the quantities needed to increase muscle creatine stores substantially. Bear in mind, though, creatine is not the miracle that everyone makes it out to be. It can help you gain some strength but won't replace hard work. Contrary to what some labels will have you believe, scientific studies do not support the practice of Creatine loading. We do know that taking 5 grams of creatine mixed with a fruit sugar after each work out will help you make strength gains. More than this won't get you more results.

Vitamin E: This vitamin makes it into both categories as it can help you repair cell damage from exercise, especially if you are an older person. The quantity needed and the facts are the same as above.

The bottom line: hard work and a balanced diet will get you farther than a lot of pills. Only in the cases I've described above have you got a proven benefit from supplements. Act accordingly.