Supplements - do you need them?
It seems as though more and more people are taking more and more supplements these days, without really knowing why they take them other than the fact that SOMEONE ELSE online has said that “it changed their life”. Is it true? Are supplements the secret sauce to a healthy life? Let’s talk about it…
First of all, let’s take a look at what supplements actually are…
Supplements were originally created to help those who were deficient or lacking in a certain nutrient or key mineral. Whether that was due to illness or lifestyle, these capsules were medically prescribed to treat and restore ones nutrient deficiency.
Nowadays though, we pop them like they’re going out of fashion. Hoping that they will make our hair shinier, our stomach flatter and our skin clearer. The purpose of supplements has been watered down to become more of a status thing, the more you take then the more healthy a person you are - right?
Why do we love supplements?
Convenience. Plain and simple. Instead of eating more leafy greens, it’s easier to put chlorophyll drops in your water. Instead of eating healthy fats and oily fish, it’s easier to take omega-3’s. Instead of taking time to reduce stress factors in your life, it’s easier to pop a magnesium tablet before bed. The point is, we have developed as humans to become lazy, everything is within grasp so why should we make drastic changes to our lifestyle when we could just take a tiny capsule that does what is says on the tin?
Another reason we love supplements, is because it gives us a small dopamine rush (that “good feeling”) because we feel like we are taking proactive steps to bettering our life. And although we are making a conscious decision to better our health, some evidence suggests that supplementation works through the placebo effect. Because we think it’s doing good, we start to see the good in taking said supplement…
Are they all bad?
Let me just disclaim, taking supplements is not a completely futile habit. In fact, a lot of people genuinely do suffer from health issues or deficiencies that REQUIRE supplementation. Additionally, having a varied diet and healthy, active lifestyle with little to no stress is near on impossible in today’s modern world (or at least - it comes at a hefty price…) So taking supplements is a better option for a lot of people, it is always better to do something about your health than to completely disregard it.
The issue with taking supplements comes from the lack of scientific reasoning behind WHY people take them. The age of the influencer has made everything we see an advert. See a beautiful woman claiming that taking a probiotic changed her life? It’s an advert, whether she has been paid to say it or not. This is the world we live in, social media is cleverly working against us to prey on our insecurities and keep us consuming more of their content. Seeing all of these “healthy” people claiming to take supplements makes us feel less than for not. So we spend our hard earned money, clinging onto the dream that if I take this - I will look more like her. Which is wrong on so many levels, but the main one being - most people don’t have a medical reason to be taking supplements, the only reason they take them is because someone else has influenced them to do so…
So what’s the verdict?
I am no means a medical professional, and NONE of this is medical advice.
When it comes to taking supplements, make them more of a mindful purchase, don’t just mindlessly buy them after seeing the on TikTok. DO YOUR RESEARCH. Will they genuinely benefit you? Do you need this supplement? Is there an alternative way to achieve this desired outcome other than taking it in supplement form? Is there enough evidence to support this supplement’s claims?
These are just some of the questions you should be asking if you are thinking of taking supplements. And if the answers are positive to taking them - then absolutely do so. Just learn to bring supplements down of their pedestal, understand their benefits and think about how they would benefit your individual life.
Hope this post helped you🥰
