Supplements: The Right Way to Take Them

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balanced dietEat a balanced diet. There, that’s the best dietary advice you’re gonna get. Eat a balanced diet, including lots of fresh fruit and veg, sufficient carbs and protein and, of course, some fats. Oh, and drink plenty of water!

Unfortunately, we don’t all eat a balanced diet, and sometimes for pretty good reasons; we’re not at home all the time, where we can cook things just the way we want, or we’re not in the best of health, or we don’t have a good appetite anymore. And, of course, the most widely used reason (or excuse?) … we just don’t have the time.

Ideally, we should all be eating a balanced diet and have plenty of time to prepare meals properly, and from scratch. But that doesn’t happen for most of us. Or most of the time. So we have to make do. And one of the ways to make up for a diet that’s probably lacking in some essential nutrients is to take supplements. The problem then becomes, are we taking them the right way? Are we actually getting the nutrients listed on the labels? Or are we wasting our time, and our money?

In an effort to clear away some of the confusion surrounding supplements, here are some guidelines for taking them:

Iron: According to some research, calcium may affect the way the body absorbs iron, so you might come across advice to take it with juice, for example, rather than milk (the calcium in the milk being the problem). However, the evidence seems to show that this interference, if it happens at all, is only short-term, and that in the longer run there won’t be any adverse effect.

Ferrous sulphate is the most likely form of iron supplement to cause constipation, so avoid that if this is likely to be a problem for you. And of course, drink plenty of water.

In terms of natural food sources, animal protein is at the top of the list for providing iron, with liver being probably the favourite source. However, be aware that if you’re pregnant you would be well advised not to eat liver, except occasionally. Liver contains high levels of retinol (vitamin A), which can adversely affect the unborn child.

Calcium and magnesium: If your body is trying to absorb calcium and you take magnesium at the same time it can create a problem. These two will both compete for absorption if taken in higher doses (250 mg or more). If you’re taking these higher amounts it’s worth keeping them apart; take them at different times, or split the doses up into smaller amounts.

Calcium is best taken with food to help absorption and to cut down the risk of kidney stones. Again, smaller doses are preferable, since the body finds it more difficult to absorb large doses (if you want to take higher doses you can split the dosage in two and take them a few hours apart).

Probably the best way to take calcium is in two 500 mg doses, one at breakfast time, one later, at lunch or dinner.

Vitamin C: Vitamin C enhances calcium absorption, so it’s best taken at the same time as you take calcium (assuming you do take calcium). A good dosage of vitamin C is 250-500 mg twice a day.