The supplement industry is booming with over 70% of UK adults regularly taking supplements in an effort to supercharge their emotional, mental and physical energy.

So does pill popping really make a difference or is it all a big con? In truth, yes it does make a difference but there’s a big con going on too.

Here’s the thing or actually here’s the two things that you need to be aware of:

  • Supplements, or boosters as I like to call them, are another piece of the health jigsaw, in fact they’re the final piece of the jigsaw. If you haven’t got your mindset, nutrition and exercise pieces in place then there’s nothing for the boosters to boost!
  • Not all supplements are equal. The industry isn’t regulated and consequently many brands have synthetic and chemical ingredients which create hormone imbalance, impede healthy weight loss and worsen any signs of menopause. A good quality booster will be made from food and plants – not a bunch of chemicals you’ve never heard of.

Why supplement anyway?

In the post war years new agricultural techniques were introduced to ensure that Britain never again found itself on the brink of starvation. These new techniques included the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides plus the reduction of fields lying fallow between growing seasons.

Originally designed to ensure good nutrition for everybody these intensive farming methods have backfired. The results are high levels of crop production BUT a steady decline in the nutritional density of the soils the crops are grown in:

  • Growing seasons are often ignored, with crops matured using artificial means.
  • Fruits and vegetables are harvested earlier and from that moment they start to lose goodness.
  • Food is flown in from around the globe and kept in cold storage for weeks or even months further compromising it’s nutritional quality.

Consequently the majority of fruit and vegetables you buy today are significantly depleted in nutrients compared to the same crops in the 1940s.

Did you know you’d have to eat at least 10 tomatoes today to get the same nutritional value from one tomato in the 1940s?

Our plants are only ever going to be as healthy as the soil they’re grown in and compared to even one generation ago there are now significant nutritional gaps in our diets.

Good quality vitamins and trace minerals are essential to nourish your endocrine system and prevent hormone imbalance and we need a whole range including:

  • Vitamin D, calcium & magnesium for bone health
  • Vitamin B to minimise stress and the release of cortisol
  • Chromium to balance insulin
  • Magnesium which is a cofactor in the production of serotonin your happy hormone

Sadly, it’s impossible to get these from foods and that’s why topping up with the appropriate nutritional boosters can make a real difference to your wellbeing especially when it comes to managing menopause symptoms. Good quality boosters used correctly can make the difference between fatigue, overwhelm and stress and a healthy, vital life full of accomplishment and zest.

If you regularly supplement what vitamin or mineral do you top up with and why?