Supplements Question ~ Quality, Cost? ~ How to Choose

[Negin]

We take lots of supplements (we, meaning mostly dh and I; the children take much fewer. So far, I've been happy with various brands such as Twinlab, Nature's Way, Solaray, Source Naturals, NOW ... Now, I'm having a hard time researching and coming up with some way of knowing if a brand is good and high-quality. :confused:

 

Nature's Sunshine

I have heard mostly fantastic things about their products. I want everything they offer. Yet, their products are very pricey, even if you do become a member. I'm wondering how I can afford to get everything from them? Is it worth spending that much $$ on their stuff? If you take these, do you feel THAT much better taking them? I would love to hear if you get everything from them.

Is there anyone here who ordered from them and was not that impressed or did not feel that much different? In other words, I'd like to know if it's worth spending the $ on their products? Sorry to sound so cheap.

 

I'm used to ordering supplements from vitacost or amazon - and getting them at far cheaper rates than at health food stores and direct from sellers - brands like NOW, Solgar, Solaray, Nature's Way, Twinlab, etc. When I test them all by putting them in water and/or vinegar, as is often recommended, they have all come out fine. So their quality must be good, right? Does that make sense? I love Nature's Way, since their quality seems to be good and their prices are amazing. But yet I'm wondering whether I need to get a full-time job in order to afford Nature's Sunshine?

 

Standard Process is very good, I know, but you can only order them from a naturopath, etc.

 

Shakee, I have heard is very good also. Never tried it, but based on what many say, it looks like it's good.

 

Other brands I've heard good things about:

Rainbow Light

Garden of Life

New Chapter Organics

 

So, I guess my question is ... and sorry this post is a bit unclear ... is Nature's Way (and even other brands I mentioned above) okay??? If they pass the vinegar/water test, shouldn't that make them okay?

Or should I fork out lots more $$ on Nature's Sunshine?

I feel that we already spend sooo much on supplements.

[Negin]

Bump. Anyone???

[MorganClassicalPrep]

I have no advice... but I do have a question.. what is the water/vinegar test??

 

I've been wondering lately if I should start taking supplements, or if DD should take any. I have to admit, I don't eat as well as I should, and while DD eats much better than I do, we still have a pretty limited diet. I'm curious what type of supplements you take (for what?) and what you give to your children.

[Peela]

Anything that is multimarketed is going to be much more money than an equivalent product that is not multimarketed.

Sorry, I am in Australia- vaguely familiar with your brands, but not enough to recommend or not.

I go for naturopathic only brands because I believe the quality is generally higher.

The other thing which I always tell people is....when it comes to herbs, and often vitamins or minerals too...a lot of the time, the quantity is sooooo low it really isnt going to do anything. If I ever recommend or buy a health food store brand I often triple the dose. Or, I go through all the brands and check out which has the highest doseage. I will generally buy that one no matter what the brand. I recently wanted to buy some gingko and didnt want to do an order from my naturopathic wholesaler just for that, so I went to the health food store -I bought one that has 7.5 gms of gingko per tablet, wheras most had 1 or 2 grams. Big difference!

I dont know about the water/vinegar test. I presume it is to check it is going to dissolve in your stomach acid rather than be passed right through? I think that might be relevant to people with low stomach acid or digestive issues but I am not sure if it would be my main criteria. YOu can look up the companies on the net and see what sort of feeling you get from their website.

Overall, I do think you get better quality for the higher price, when it comes to supplements, but of course, not always, and definitely not if it is a network company. And sometimes the higher quality isnt so important anyway.

[Mom2J112903]

We use the NOW brand for 95% of our supplements here. LOVE them and have NEVER been dissapointed in ANY of them.

 

The other 5% is a mix between Solaray and Source Naturals.

 

And we order thru luckyvitamin.com

[Negin]

I have no advice... but I do have a question.. what is the water/vinegar test??

I've been wondering lately if I should start taking supplements, or if DD should take any. I have to admit, I don't eat as well as I should, and while DD eats much better than I do, we still have a pretty limited diet. I'm curious what type of supplements you take (for what?) and what you give to your children.

The water/vinegar tests ...

You can test vitamins to see if they dissolve in a glass with water. If they've started to break down in 30 minutes, then the acids in your stomach will certainly dissolve them.

http://www.supplementquality.com/news/multi_vitamins_minerals.html

 

http://www.ehow.com/how_5641704_test-vitamins-home-dissolving-water.html

 

Gosh, we take so many supplements ... I take the most. The dc take mainly probiotics, D3 (has really, really helped my dc to not get nearly as sick as they used to), and good-quality Fish Oil (Carlson's).

My list of supplements is quite long. I don't take the same ones every single day, but I do take quite a lot. I have not had any adverse reactions. I figure that the way the food industry is these days, most of us need some form of supplements.

One of my favorite magazines, if not, my very favorite is Natural Solutions. BTW, I really, really dislike Prevention. :glare:

In Natural Solutions, they asked an M.D. what top 3 supplements are key. Her answer:

Fish oil. I take up to 1,000 mg daily for healthy skin and to keep inflammation in my body in check, which helps prevent degenerative diseases and cancers. I recommend these brands: Enzymatic Therapy, Nordic Naturals, Carlson Labs, and Metagenics.

Vitamin D3. I take 2,000 mg daily. Vitamin D is like the vitamin C of the ’90s. It helps everything—your bones, your emotional well-being, your mind; it even helps prevent cancer. Try Solgar or New Chapter.

Mushroom extract. Look for a formula that combines the immune-boosting and anticancer properties of reishi mushrooms, the blood-sugar balancing and cancer-fighting properties of the maitake mushrooms, and the cholesterol-lowering abilities of the shiitakes—talk about a trifecta. I like Fungi Perfecti.

The only one I haven't yet tried is the Mushroom Extract.

 

Again, I take lots. I'll soon come up with a more organized list of what I take and why I take them if you're interested.

 

Anything that is multimarketed is going to be much more money than an equivalent product that is not multimarketed.

I go for naturopathic only brands because I believe the quality is generally higher.

The other thing which I always tell people is....when it comes to herbs, and often vitamins or minerals too...a lot of the time, the quantity is sooooo low it really isnt going to do anything. If I ever recommend or buy a health food store brand I often triple the dose. Or, I go through all the brands and check out which has the highest doseage. I will generally buy that one no matter what the brand.

Overall, I do think you get better quality for the higher price, when it comes to supplements, but of course, not always, and definitely not if it is a network company. And sometimes the higher quality isnt so important anyway.

Peela, I was so hoping that you would post and I'm glad that you did. :)

When you say "multi-marketed"/network companies, sorry to sound dumb, but what exactly do you mean? Do you mean those that give commission to sellers and so on? I think that Nature's Sunshine is such a company. :001_huh: That raises a red flag for me.

ETA: Nature's Sunshine is a multi-level company. I googled and do not like what I see. Thanks for letting me know.

I wish I knew which brands are naturopathic in this part of the world. What's annoying is that they don't seem to be easily available. I think that Standard Process is a very good brand, but it's rather difficult to just order their products. You have to go through a naturopath. That's hard for us in this part of the world.

 

We use the NOW brand for 95% of our supplements here. LOVE them and have NEVER been dissapointed in ANY of them.

The other 5% is a mix between Solaray and Source Naturals.

These are all brands that we have used and liked very much. I have noticed a difference and an improvement from all of 3 brands that you mentioned. :)

Edited June 15, 2010 by Negin in Grenada

[Peela]

ETA: Nature's Sunshine is a multi-level company. I googled and do not like what I see. Thanks for letting me know.

I wish I knew which brands are naturopathic in this part of the world. What's annoying is that they don't seem to be easily available. I think that Standard Process is a very good brand, but it's rather difficult to just order their products. You have to go through a naturopath. That's hard for us in this part of the world.

:)

 

There is probably nothing wrong with Nature's Sunshine then- it may even be an excellent product. It's just that you are paying for a wealth system that plays on people's greed. At present I buy one product from a multilevel marketing company because I really want the product...I havent joined though, so I just suck it up and pay the excessive price until I find something equivalent elsewhere.

 

Here, you can buy naturopathic products from many pharmacies. As long as a naturopath is employed and on duty, you can buy the product without having an appointment. You can also buy online frequently.

[goldberry]

There is an internet site called consumerlab.com that tests natural supplements. They cost money to join! I just checked and right now it is $30 for a year. But what I did several years ago was join them, check all the supplements I was interested in, and then make sure to cancel. I felt the investment was worth it considering the amount of money I was spending on supplements.

 

Personally, we take a good quality multivitamin, fish oil, D3, and have our preferred "immune stuff" on hand for winter/sickness times. I also have my DD on some tummy stuff since she has digestion issues. (I was able to find one supplement that had probiotics plus herbal colon support, so only one pill there.)

 

I think you can totally go crazy with supplements. My personal opinion is to research quality as best you can, and pick the few things you think help you or are needed the most. I don't have the money to take five gazillion things, plus, I don't know that it's that much more effective than targeting what your specific needs are.

 

JMHO!

[Negin]

There is probably nothing wrong with Nature's Sunshine then- it may even be an excellent product. It's just that you are paying for a wealth system that plays on people's greed.

Peela, once again, thank you. That was my initial gut feeling about this and a few other multi-levels that I have come across.

 

There is an internet site called consumerlab.com that tests natural supplements. They cost money to join! I just checked and right now it is $30 for a year. But what I did several years ago was join them, check all the supplements I was interested in, and then make sure to cancel. I felt the investment was worth it considering the amount of money I was spending on supplements.

Yes, I came across this site while searching also. So, if I understand correctly, the $30 was a worthwhile investment, correct?