4 ms·

I'd recommend simply avoiding a bad diet (mostly just eat a diversity of foods) then you will already be getting all the vitamins/nutrients/etc you need while a

by spikels 12y ago

I'd recommend simply avoiding a bad diet (mostly just eat a diversity of foods) then you will already be getting all the vitamins/nutrients/etc you need while avoiding getting too much of anything that is bad for you. No need for pills unless something is wrong. In the future this may change. For example genetic tests may be able to identify hidden long-terms problems with clear biochemical mechanisms that can be corrected with a pill. Much harder to find something that will make most people healthier but it could happen. Just not yet.

com2kid 12y ago
> I'd recommend simply avoiding a bad diet (mostly just eat a diversity of foods) then you will already be getting all the vitamins/nutrients/etc you need while avoiding getting too much of anything that is bad for you. A diversity of foods doesn't mean much. Fish oil is commonly recommended for good reasons. The amount of Omega 3 in the American diet is insanely low, mostly due to the lack of sea food in the average American diet (Seafood being one of the more plentiful sources of Omega 3). In addition to that, the amount of Omega 6 in the average American's diet is sky high. There are potential problems when the Omega3/Omega6 ratio in a diet is too far in favor of Omega 6, these problems are what Fish Oil is theorized to help with. On a more general note, many supplements can help with a variety of problems. While I'd say most supplements are worthless, there are quite a few that are not. If you properly take melatonin, it will help with your sleep. (Don't take the huge doses most people do, 300mcg will suffice, overdosing will hurt your sleep after awhile!) l-Theanine greatly reduces the side effects of caffeine and helps it work longer. Flat out, less anxiety, less jitters, and a large increase in focus. Creatine flat out helps all around with physical performance, and may help out with some mental performance as well. There are dozens upon dozens of studies showing creatine's effectiveness. Heck there are supplements out there that work as treatment for diabetes by controlling blood glucose levels, and by control, I mean "take this supplement, blood glucose levels drop". The multi-vitamin sold at your local pharmacy? Yeah likely useless (or even worse), assuming it has any active ingredients in it at all. But well researched supplements from reputable companies that have independent third party audits done on their production lines? Pretty damn useful.
- mindcrime 12y ago
  Heck there are supplements out there that work as treatment for diabetes by controlling blood glucose levels, and by control, I mean "take this supplement, blood glucose levels drop". Cinnamon and Alpha-Lipoic Acid among others, are reputed to have this effect. Being diabetic, I was curious, and one time when I ran out of Metformin while traveling and not having a chance to get back to my doctor to get a new prescription, I decided to do a little (totally unscientific, not to be relied on) testing on myself. I checked my blood sugar a couple of times, took 1 gram of ALA, and checked my blood sugar an hour later, and 90 minutes later. I always saw a decrease. Now, this doesn't prove anything, as it could be that, by happenstance, the timing worked out that way, in terms of when I last ate and the natural upswings and downswings in the levels. But I made it a point to try and do this several hours I'd last had anything to eat to minimize that aspect, and I saw marked (50-60 point) drops after taking the ALA. I never bothered testing Cinnamon or ALA+Cinnamon, but I tend to believe the suggestion that ALA supplementation may be of value for diabetics.
  - com2kid 12y ago
    > I always saw a decrease. Now, this doesn't prove anything, as it could be that, by happenstance, the timing worked out that way, in terms of when I last ate and the natural upswings and downswings in the levels. But I made it a point to try and do this several hours I'd last had anything to eat to minimize that aspect, and I saw marked (50-60 point) drops after taking the ALA. What you want is stabilized R-ALA, it is much more expensive but the unstabilized form of ALA tends to degrade quickly so you have less guarantees over what you are getting. If you are type 2 you can do a good job of maintaining it by supplements and dietary maintenance. A Ketogenic diet is great, since it just removes carbs all together. :)
- mrfusion 12y ago
  Do you have anything for high blood pressure? I've tried aged garlic and coenzymeq10 so far with no luck.
  - com2kid 12y ago
deleted 12y ago
[deleted]
smtddr 12y ago
>>I'd recommend simply avoiding a bad diet (mostly just eat a diversity of foods) Define "bad diet". Define measuring method & desired degree of food diversity. Isn't that what we're all here trying to figure out? ;-) I want to eat more fish but the whole mercury thing scares me away. Perhaps fish oil supplements grant me the benefits of eating fish without the mercury??? I have no idea, but that sounds like a reasonable conclusion I'd come to.... then a study like this comes out and then I'm like (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻
- dfc 12y ago
  What is this? (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻
  - smtddr 12y ago
    http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/flipping-tables-%E2%95%AF%E2%96%A1%EF%BC%89%E2%95%AF%EF%B8%B5-%E2%94%BB%E2%94%81%E2%94%BB http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/flipping-tables-%E2%95%AF%E2%9...

by spikels 12y ago

com2kid 12y ago

> I'd recommend simply avoiding a bad diet (mostly just eat a diversity of foods) then you will already be getting all the vitamins/nutrients/etc you need while avoiding getting too much of anything that is bad for you. A diversity of foods doesn't mean much. Fish oil is commonly recommended for good reasons. The amount of Omega 3 in the American diet is insanely low, mostly due to the lack of sea food in the average American diet (Seafood being one of the more plentiful sources of Omega 3). In addition to that, the amount of Omega 6 in the average American's diet is sky high. There are potential problems when the Omega3/Omega6 ratio in a diet is too far in favor of Omega 6, these problems are what Fish Oil is theorized to help with. On a more general note, many supplements can help with a variety of problems. While I'd say most supplements are worthless, there are quite a few that are not. If you properly take melatonin, it will help with your sleep. (Don't take the huge doses most people do, 300mcg will suffice, overdosing will hurt your sleep after awhile!) l-Theanine greatly reduces the side effects of caffeine and helps it work longer. Flat out, less anxiety, less jitters, and a large increase in focus. Creatine flat out helps all around with physical performance, and may help out with some mental performance as well. There are dozens upon dozens of studies showing creatine's effectiveness. Heck there are supplements out there that work as treatment for diabetes by controlling blood glucose levels, and by control, I mean "take this supplement, blood glucose levels drop". The multi-vitamin sold at your local pharmacy? Yeah likely useless (or even worse), assuming it has any active ingredients in it at all. But well researched supplements from reputable companies that have independent third party audits done on their production lines? Pretty damn useful.

mindcrime 12y ago
Heck there are supplements out there that work as treatment for diabetes by controlling blood glucose levels, and by control, I mean "take this supplement, blood glucose levels drop". Cinnamon and Alpha-Lipoic Acid among others, are reputed to have this effect. Being diabetic, I was curious, and one time when I ran out of Metformin while traveling and not having a chance to get back to my doctor to get a new prescription, I decided to do a little (totally unscientific, not to be relied on) testing on myself. I checked my blood sugar a couple of times, took 1 gram of ALA, and checked my blood sugar an hour later, and 90 minutes later. I always saw a decrease. Now, this doesn't prove anything, as it could be that, by happenstance, the timing worked out that way, in terms of when I last ate and the natural upswings and downswings in the levels. But I made it a point to try and do this several hours I'd last had anything to eat to minimize that aspect, and I saw marked (50-60 point) drops after taking the ALA. I never bothered testing Cinnamon or ALA+Cinnamon, but I tend to believe the suggestion that ALA supplementation may be of value for diabetics.
- com2kid 12y ago
  > I always saw a decrease. Now, this doesn't prove anything, as it could be that, by happenstance, the timing worked out that way, in terms of when I last ate and the natural upswings and downswings in the levels. But I made it a point to try and do this several hours I'd last had anything to eat to minimize that aspect, and I saw marked (50-60 point) drops after taking the ALA. What you want is stabilized R-ALA, it is much more expensive but the unstabilized form of ALA tends to degrade quickly so you have less guarantees over what you are getting. If you are type 2 you can do a good job of maintaining it by supplements and dietary maintenance. A Ketogenic diet is great, since it just removes carbs all together. :)
mrfusion 12y ago
Do you have anything for high blood pressure? I've tried aged garlic and coenzymeq10 so far with no luck.
- com2kid 12y ago

deleted 12y ago

[deleted]

smtddr 12y ago

>>I'd recommend simply avoiding a bad diet (mostly just eat a diversity of foods) Define "bad diet". Define measuring method & desired degree of food diversity. Isn't that what we're all here trying to figure out? ;-) I want to eat more fish but the whole mercury thing scares me away. Perhaps fish oil supplements grant me the benefits of eating fish without the mercury??? I have no idea, but that sounds like a reasonable conclusion I'd come to.... then a study like this comes out and then I'm like (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻

dfc 12y ago
What is this? (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻
- smtddr 12y ago
  http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/flipping-tables-%E2%95%AF%E2%96%A1%EF%BC%89%E2%95%AF%EF%B8%B5-%E2%94%BB%E2%94%81%E2%94%BB http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/flipping-tables-%E2%95%AF%E2%9...