Dietary Supplements: A complete guide with everything you need to know

When it comes to nutrition, there are no universal truths. Each person is unique, and not everyone benefits from the same foods. The same applies to supplementation: not everyone benefits from the same dietary or multivitamin supplements. This may be because the supplement wasn’t specifically recommended, is being taken randomly, is of suboptimal quality, or contains ingredients that are harmful to the gut, where 70% of your immune system is located.

In this article, you’ll find more details.

What are dietary supplements?

Dietary or nutritional supplements are substances consumed to provide a greater amount of a specific nutrient or substance to have a positive effect on your health (Ashley K. Castellanos Jankiewicz et al., 2020).

They are often recommended to help you meet your nutritional needs more efficiently or to provide specific nutrients that support healing of the gastrointestinal tract, allowing you to absorb the nutrients you need to recover your health.

However, you should always check the ingredients and choose supplements the same way the 3R Immunonutrition Protocol selects ingredients your gut can properly digest.

Benefits of dietary supplements

As long as they contain a good quantity, quality, and bioavailability of ingredients that are friendly to your body—meaning they don’t cause sensitivities and can be absorbed—you may be able to:

• Help heal your gut: Certain amino acids and nutrients assist in repairing the intestinal mucosa.
• Replenish nutrient levels more efficiently: You’ll be consuming slightly higher doses to help meet your needs.
• Restore your energy levels: As your gut heals, you absorb and digest better, leading to increased energy.
• Rebalance your gut microbiota, if that is the goal.
• Regain your health.

Types of dietary supplements

There are various supplement formats depending on their purpose or the age group:

• Soft capsules or tablets: Ideal for adults or children who can swallow capsules.
• Chewable capsules: Ideal for children who can’t swallow pills.
• Powders that dissolve in water: Often used for supplements that support intestinal mucosa.
• Drops: Typically used for nutrients required in smaller amounts.

Most common supplements and their uses

Digestive support supplements:

• Betaine HCl or stomach acid support: Helps regulate stomach acidity.
• Zinc carnosine: In certain cases of stomach acidity, zinc carnosine may be needed to reduce irritation.
• Digestive enzymes: Help further break down food at the intestinal level after stomach digestion for absorption.
• Magnesium citrate: Supports bowel movements.

Antimicrobial supplements:

• Herbal antifungals, antimicrobials, and antiparasitics: Specialized gut microbiota tests may include an antibiogram to identify which herbal supplement is effective against each harmful microorganism. These tests are recommended during your NutriWhite Consultation.

Probiotics:

• Their recommendation will depend on your symptoms, condition, and gut microbiota profile. Important features include:
  • Live cultures or spores.
  • Billions of colony-forming units.
  • Free from harmful ingredients: grains, dairy, soy, sugar.

Macronutrients:

• In some cases, supplements may be recommended to help you meet your protein requirements or for specific situations like snacks.

Micronutrients:

• You may also be recommended vitamins or minerals (magnesium, selenium, zinc, etc.) with specific functions depending on your condition. Examples include immune-supporting nutrients like vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin B12 (especially for vegans), and active folic acid, which is not only for pregnant women.

Frequently asked questions about supplements

Do supplements need to be prescribed by a doctor?

No, they are not prescription medications requiring prior medical attention. However, they should be suggested within a context that takes into account your lifestyle, condition, and preferences. That’s why during your NutriWhite Consultation, time is dedicated to this with your NutriWhite doctors or dietitian-nutritionists.

What is the best time to take nutritional supplements?

It depends on the type of supplement. Some are digestive aids and should be taken with meals, or nutrients that require food to be absorbed, like vitamin D and omega-3. Others need to be taken on an empty stomach, such as certain minerals or micronutrients, or before bed depending on their intended effect.

What is the difference between dietary supplements and medications?

Medications are chemical substances that the body does not produce and cannot obtain from food. In contrast, dietary or nutritional supplements can be obtained—albeit in much smaller quantities and only with a healthy gut—through a healthy diet with digestible, friendly foods.

Do dietary supplements have side effects?

Yes, if you take over-the-counter supplements without specific guidance, you might not achieve the desired effects. If the supplement contains ingredients that are harmful to your gut, it may cause inflammation.

How to choose and consume supplements safely?

The most important step is to have guidance from your NutriWhite Ambassadors. They can help you integrate supplements into your food and medication schedule, especially if you are taking any prescribed medications. This schedule should not be changed without authorization from your healthcare provider, but all professionals involved should be informed to prevent nutrient-drug or other types of interactions.

Quality and bioavailability standards for supplements

It’s recommended that the supplements you take meet the following criteria:

• Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP): ensures production and packaging according to FDA guidelines.
• ePedigree program: ensures product authenticity.
• Quality Control Department approval: guarantees the supplement’s identity, purity, potency, and composition from raw materials to final packaging.
• Certificates of Analysis (COA) for each batch and specific product.
• Scientific evidence: the labs are constantly updated, ensuring that ingredients and dosages are backed by current scientific research. Functional medicine doctors are available to clarify any questions regarding supplement use.
• Component bioavailability to ensure absorption, with:
  • Release strategies to maintain potency and stability.
  • Fast-dissolving vegetable capsules, accepted by the vegetarian society and resistant to stomach acid, allowing absorption in the intestine without destruction in the stomach.

You can review all of this with your NutriWhite Ambassador team during your personalized NutriWhite Consultation, where you’ll be guided on how and for how long to use supplements.

If you already have specific recommendations, you can purchase your supplements here and replenish adequate levels of essential micronutrients for your immune system or support digestion and absorption, helping you regain and enjoy good health.