Nutritionist in Belfast | Nutrition Belfast, Northern Ireland

Dietary supplements are very much in fashion right now, with hundreds of millions of pounds being spent on them every year in the UK alone. However, the fact is that the majority of supplements being taken by people in this country are either ineffective, or simply unnecessary.

In this blog post, I am going to give you a how-to guide on who should take supplements, which supplements you should take, and the red flags you should look out for when buying dietary supplements.

So, who should be taking dietary supplements?

To be perfectly honest, most of us! The accepted view is that supplements should be unnecessary, as you can get all of your nutrient needs from your diet. This is true, however for most of us this simply isn’t the case! No-one’s diet is perfect, and many of us have dietary limitations for religious, ethical, or health reasons that mean we may not consume everything we need from our food. For groups of people such as vegetarians and vegans, pregnant women, and the over 65s, certain dietary supplements are entirely necessary.

And what should I look out for?

My advice is always to buy from UK manufacturers, rather than those made abroad. This is for the simple reason that the UK has some of the strictest laws in the world on supplement marketing, so you can be fairly sure that those produced by UK manufacturers are, at the very least, safe to take. Unfortunately, the USA in particular has very few regulations governing supplement safety and marketing, so most of what you can buy online from the US is likely to either be ineffective or possibly dangerous.

There are a number of supplements that can be beneficial for your health

I would recommend discussing your specific needs with a nutritionist to work out the best supplement regime for you. However, one supplement that I would recommend for everyone in this country is vitamin D. This vitamin is actually a pro-hormone, and can be obtained either from the diet, or from direct sunlight on the skin. Unfortunately, we only obtain vitamin D from sunlight between April and September every year, and dietary sources are very often inadequate. With the majority of adults in the UK becoming deficient every winter, vitamin D is an absolute must. This vitamin is perfectly safe to take at moderate levels, so it can be taken by almost everyone (again, speak to a nutritionist regarding the best level for you to take).

To find out which dietary supplements are best for you, we offer a supplementation consultation service for our clients.

Our Nutrition and Diet Consultant will work with you to develop a bespoke supplement regime to fit your health, lifestyle and, importantly, your budget.

Find out more and book a consultation today at https://fitforlifeni.co.uk/nutrition.

Author: Matthew Ferguson  | Fit For Life Nutrition.