Be honest — when was the last time you actually had the recommended daily intake of fruit and veg in a single day? With the stresses and fast paced nature of life these days, it can be hard to get in those five to nine servings, and despite our best efforts we know that eating clean simply isn’t as clean as we might think.
If you’ve taken a gander at our earlier blogs this month, you might now know why supplementation is necessary and how it completes the big picture when it comes to our overall health. Sometimes even with the healthiest and most balanced diet we’re still coming short of hitting the optimal nutrient levels for our body to thrive.
Since arming you with the knowledge of what to look for in a supplement, especially when it comes to keep a glowing complexion, we want to give away our top tips for getting the most out of your supplements.
Stealing your supplements
You might be surprised to find out that some of your routine habits are actually reversing all the hard work and effort you’re making by taking supplements daily. Here are the TOP 5 Supplement Stealers:
- Caffeine. Good ol’ tea and coffee. If you’re like many of us, you probably wake up with a cup of coffee to start your day. Do you also take your supplements with your morning cuppa? Well, bad news is that since caffeine is a natural diuretic, you’re really just turning them into an expensive pee. Boujee.
- Tobacco. We won’t get into the effects of tobacco on the body and overall health today, that’s another blog for another time, but what we will say is this: With every cigarette you smoke throughout the day, you are diminishing around 25mg of Vitamin C per cigarette.
- Stress. Take a few moments throughout your day to find your zen, because stress is the number one killer of everything. In the body, high stress (i.e. high cortisol levels) result in the body kicking into Fight or Flight mode, which naturally causes the body to divert attention away from the digestive system.
- Antibiotics. Again, not a beast we will tackle today, but we all know that antibiotics wreak absolute havoc on our overall gut health. They effectively wipe out the entire ecosystem of good bacteria and flora that our body needs in order to properly and effectively absorb and put the work the nutrients we intake.
- Alcohol. Ending your stressful day or week with a glass of wine? Put your supplements down. Alcohol makes the stomach extremely acidic, which means your supplements are void and useless! Save them for later, or some time before the wine comes out.
Trouble remembering?
You know what to avoid now, but what about if you just keep forgetting? Believe us, we get it. Here are our tried and true tips for remembering your supplements:
- No one is far without their smartphones these days, so take advantage and set up reminders in your phone to prompt you to take your vitamins. While you’re at it, plug in some hydration reminders too!
- Keep a stash in your most frequented areas. Have breakfast in the kitchen every morning? Waiting until you get to the office for your breakfast smoothie? Have your supplements in reach and make it easy to work into your existing routines.
- Two words: Travel. Tin. Keep a couple days supply on hand in your purse, backpack or gym bag so you’re never without.
If all of that wasn’t enough, here are even more tips:
- Take your supplements with or immediately after a meal. This helps your body convert the supplements into the most bioavailable form.
- Have a big glass of hot water with lemon first thing in the morning, before any tea or coffee. This helps level the acidity in your stomach making it much more alkaline.
- HAVE BREAKFAST! But, if you’re into intermittent fasting, take your supplements accordingly with your first meal.
