The only 2 supplements I personally take
I am generally not a big fan of using supplementation for nutrients that are easily obtainable through diet. Most nutritional supplements are expensive an unnecessary for most people.
However there are some that I think are worthwhile, because it is not always possible to eat 100% healthy, and it is good to include certain supplements to avoid developing deficiencies.
Here are the ones I personally take and recommend to most people (different people have different needs so not everyone would require supplementing vitamin D for example, even though it is vital for me):
Multi-vitamin Gummies
Gummies make taking a multivitamin more fun and less arduous than swallowing pills, and is something I look forward to every morning. Generally I eat fairly healthy, but I take one gummy a day for those days where I find I am not eating the healthiest food.
I use the One a day fruiti-ssentials (Click here to buy on Amazon.ca), which tastes great and has a moderate amount of vitamins that tend to be lacking in a standard North American diet.
Vitamin D3 + K2
Winter time in Canada, means that I don’t get enough sun to meet my Vitamin D requirements via skin based absorption alone. Studies have shown half the population is deficient in Vitamin D. The deficiency is more pronounced among dark skinned people. So the other supplement I recommend is a good Vitamin D. Ideally you want to get a Vitamin D3 + K2 supplement for optimal absorption (generally dietary sources of Vitamin D are less well absorbed than Vitamin D produced by the body in response to sunlight. The Nutridom brand is the highest quality supplement I have found for Vitamin D, as it has both K2 + D3 in a single supplement, along with some coconut oil fats, which further aid in absorption since Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin (Click here to buy on Amazon.ca).
Which supplements should you take ?
Just because these are the supplements that I personally take doesn’t mean that they have to be same ones that you take. The supplements that would be most beneficial to you depend on your lifestyle, gender, age, and other risk factors for deficiency. The best way to check for deficiencies is via blood panel that you would request from a doctor.
Generally I do recommend people take a good multivitamin, but that is more and insurance policy against an inadequate diet, rather than a necessity. If you have a healthy and varied diet you may not need to supplement additional vitamins. If you are eating the same meals on a regular basis then you are at a greater risk of developing deficiencies, and you should either vary your diet, or consider taking a nutritional supplement.