THE 411 ON SUPPLEMENTATION

HI YA WELLNESS WARRIORS,

I get this question all the time… DO I NEED TO TAKE SUPPLEMENTS?

Here is my opinion on the topic.

Supplements are just that, they are meant to help supplement the diet, not replace meals. They bridge the gap between adequate and optimal health.

We live in a modern world with amazing advancements in technology yet our soil suffers and lacks minerals. This means that whatever grows out of it (i.e. fruits, vegetables and whole food) is now devoid of nutrients or at least significantly lower in minerals than it once was. It also takes our food a really long time to get to us. I know some people grow food at home in their gardens (high five to you all and please share your secrets to warding off those pesky animals and insects). But unfortunately most of us are not able to grow our own food, which means our vegetables have been picked weeks before it reaches our grocery store. This entire process can take weeks causing nutrients to be depleted from the whole food.

That’s one part of why we need to supplement, and that’s for a person who is conscious about their eating choices. They know to eat their macro nutrients such as healthy fats ‘avocados’, proteins ‘lentils’ and complex carbs ‘whole wheat whole grains’.

Then we have camp “processed foods”. Oh and trust me, I been to this camp quite often. In fact, I lived at this camp almost full time when I was a teenager. I have since changed my ways This camp means that the food not only lacks nutrients it also has added preservatives, food dyes, and chemicals to sustain it’s shelf life. This type of food plays a role in diabetes, weight gain, heart disease, inflammation, the list goes on. These foods are also low in fiber, high in sugar and highly addictive and contain food colouring. Some dyes are created by burning coal tar and others are derived from petroleum by-products like tartrazine and erythrosine. One of the saddest parts about this is that a high percentage of food dye is found in children’s food This is why eating a whole foods diet is so important.

In short: Stress + Pollution + Toxins + Pesticides + Poor Diet + GMO Foods = the need for supplementation!