Dietary Supplements
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Dietary Supplements
In order to maintain a healthy diet it is recommended to supplement the diet with extra essential nutrients. Dietary supplements are products sold to do just this; dietary supplements can include vitamins, minerals, herbs, botanicals, other plant-derived substances, amino acids, enzymes, concentrates and even extracts. There are all different types of supplements from just the normal vitamin supplement to sports nutrition supplements to fish oil and hormone supplements to even meal replacement supplements. Actually, according to our text, Nutrition: Everyday Choices, about half of the adults in the United States take some type of dietary supplement.
The benefit of taking a dietary supplements is to ensure that the body is receiving the recommended dosages of all essential vitamins and nutrients. Everyday activities stress the body which puts strain on the bodies tissues and daily functions with a supplement of calcium and vitamin D the body can maintain tissue health without falling behind on repairs. Also, supplementing the diet with the B-class vitamins can help with digestion and absorption of other nutrients. People who have vitamin deficiencies such as an iron deficiency can take a vitamin that will supplement her diets iron intake and make sure the body receives what it needs. Some women who are pregnant are advised to take folic acid by their physician to reduce the risk of some birth defects.
In 1994 the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act was passed which created a standard for the supplement manufacturers to follow in order to keep the public out of harm. This included an organized, unified, and universal label that would explain the supplement in terms of Daily Value. Once this happened the public was able to see what nutrients were an actually exceeding their recommended doses and could possibly have led them to toxic symptoms. Dietary supplements are not...