“But less than 50 years ago there was no concept of supplements and people were living healthier lives than us, why do we need them now?”, my father asked the dietician while he prescribed my father calcium and vitamin D supplements. The doctor said: “Well, it is not that simple… 50 years ago the food we had was much more nutritious, the environment had less pollution, people used to do so much physical work, and do I even need to add more?”
It got me thinking that if we live in such an unhealthy environment, we should all be taking supplements irrespective of our age. So I went back to my father’s doctor who happens to be the best Dietitian in Karachi. I learned that supplements can help with health conditions like high cholesterol, arthritis, birth defects, and cancer.
10 Reasons To Take Supplements Irrespective Of Your Age
Besides any serious health concerns, it is a good idea to take supplements at any age. They can improve your gut health, skin, hair, sleep, and immunity. Other convincing reasons are:
Soil Depletion Degrades Nutrition
Constant farming without letting the soil restore its nutrients causes a loss in the nutritional value of the food it produces.
Hybrid Crops Lack In Nutrition
In the midst of yielding most out of a piece of land, farmers use hybrid crops. But the thing is that it reduces the nutritional value of the crops drastically.
Fertilizers Lack of Trace Elements
Modern-day superphosphate fertilizers lack so many trace elements, unlike organic fertilizers that were used in the past.
Food Processing Can Affect Nutrition
Food processing does immeasurable harm to food. A prominent example can be that roughly 80 percent of its magnesium, 70-80 percent of its zinc, 87 percent of its chromium, 88 percent of its manganese, and 50 percent of its cobalt was extracted by grinding wheat to produce white flour. Likewise, about 75 percent of the zinc and chromium are extracted by polishing rice.
Decline In Nutritive Absorption With Age
Malabsorption is a serious issue among people of age. Our metabolism also generally slows down at old age. Hence, even if we feed ourselves a healthy diet, we cannot quite benefit from it. Supplements, on the other hand, are easy to break down and absorb in our body. In fact, there are some supplements that can help with malabsorption too.
We Take A Lot of Stress
Mental health impacts our ability to utilize our food. Being under stress or in anxiety can reduce our capability to absorb calcium, magnesium, and zinc. It can also affect our gut health ultimately. It might not be the prominent factor for the nutrition gap but it still makes a difference.
We Have Poor Eating Habits
Eating disorders, soda addiction, and junk food addiction, all these things are very common in young people today. There is no replacement for a balanced diet but while you are fixing your eating habits might as well add supplements to get that complete nutritional value.
Because Prevention Is Better Than Treatment
Healthcare today is expensive. Not mention the pain of going through a serious disease. Also, you never know that your negligence in diet might do you irreparable harm. In short, it is better to take care of your diet before it is too late.
Because Our Lifestyle Is Unhealthy
Habits like drinking alcohol, smoking cigarettes, and consuming pharmaceutical drugs can decrease your ability to benefit from food. You need to add supplements if you are pregnant, or menstruating too.
If You Are An Athlete
Athletes need a lot of energy and immunity to stay in shape and master their profession. Restoring the necessary nutrients, fueling the energy levels, and encouraging healing following an intense workout is vital. This is why diets for athletes contain Lots of carbohydrates and protein. Supplements are a good way to fulfill the requirement.
Conclusion
If we compare macro-nutrients such as proteins, carbohydrates, and fats, the number of minerals and vitamins we need, may seem minimal, but their effect on our well-being is huge.
With that being said, eliminate any drug-nutrient disputes and supplements with sweeteners, colours, chemical flavours, preservatives, or fillers. Also, you must contact a trained dietician before adding any supplements to your diet.
Meta Description: There are a number of reasons to take supplements for example low food quality, malabsorption of food, stress and anxiety, unhealthy eating habits, prevention from disease, unhealthy lifestyle, etc.