It is very important for us to have a balanced diet which includes optimal and appropriate amounts of all types of nutrients. But more often than not, we are not able to do so for a variety of reasons. We are also biased towards junk food which ultimately leads to problems like obesity, malnutrition etc.
Definition
Since we are not able to get the required nutrition from our diet, we have to rely on health or nutritional supplements. These refer to any product which is used to give the required boost to the nutritional content of our diet. Hence they may refer to anything from vitamins and minerals to herbs and other natural foods etc., which are used
- Either in their natural form or
- As special formulations made after a lot of research and extraction of the required ingredient.
Purpose
Taking these natural and researched nutritionals are extremely beneficial for us as they help to
- Improve the overall health of a person
- Provide additional energy making him feel alive
- Offer better immunity against diseases and illnesses by improving the immunity system of our body
- Reduce age-related illnesses
- Improves mental alertness and
- Hastens the healing process in case of trauma or injury.
These supplements are however treated as food and do not have any regulations governing them. They are safe to use and regular use of these researched nutritionals can bring about an enormous positive change in a person’s body and mind.
Some Meal Supplements
Some very common nutritional supplements include
- Vitamins: Synthetic vitamins or vitamins that are researched and formulated in laboratories are used to supplement and provide for the requirements of our body. They act similar to natural vitamins and also get absorbed into the body in a similar fashion.
- Minerals: Generally it has been seen that due to the mineral depletion of the soil, these trace minerals are no longer available in the quantities required and need to be supplemented using researched health supplements.
- Herbs: These herbal supplements are used for both medicinal and nutritional purposes as they are good sources of phytochemicals. These have notable effects in
- Aiding overall health and
- Stimulating the healing process of our body.
- Miscellaneous other nutritional supplements: These include foods which have a dense concentration of nutrients. They are used to ensure specific heath benefits or target specific health conditions which need improvement.
Nutritional supplements have been in use since time immemorial but it is only now that we are waking up to its benefits and utilising them properly.