Articles
Are Supplements Actually Bad For You?
If you google that question, you will get a lot of articles that say ALL nutritional supplements are indeed bad for you.
They will cite studies that show poor results from multi-vitamins or single-nutrient supplementation, and they will conclude from this data that taking vitamin or mineral supplements is bad for your health.
Want to know the kicker? They’re right…Well, sort of.
The very unpleasant reality of the situation is that a LOT of nutritional supplements ARE indeed bad for your health and your testosterone levels in the long-term, but often not for the simplistic reasons that articles on the topic suggest.
The three fundamental reasons that many, perhaps even MOST supplement are bad for your health are:
1) They are synthetic versions of nutrients that are only bioavailable in natural, food-based forms.
2) They are nutrients that should NOT be taken in supplement form at all.
3) They are nutrients that you do need to supplement, BUT they’re bonded with a compound that is harmful.
In category 1 we have supplements like beta-carotine, which is NOT bio-available like animal-based retinol, as well as ascorbic acid, which is NOT the same as vitamin C that comes from food. You should get those nutrients from FOOD, not from pills.
In category 2, we have things like Iron and Calcium. A whole food diet will provide ALL of the iron and calcium that your body needs, and any excess of those minerals can cause systemic inflammation, which over time leads to a wide variety of health problems, including low testosterone.
In category 3 we have anything that is bonded to “Citrate” like magnesium citrate, potassium citrate, etc. Citric acid and ascorbic acid also fall into this category. Citrate, citric acid and ascorbic acid all disrupt the body’s ability to create cerulopasmin, which is one of the most important “glycoproteins” in the body. It is responsible for managing copper, iron and ATP production, and 20 other vitally important cellular processes.
When you take supplements bound to these citrates, they can imbalance copper & iron balance, as well as inhibit ATP production. In the long-term, this can lead to health problems and lower testosterone levels.
Sadly, the supplement landscape is a veritable mine-field of nutritional harm just waiting to happen, and these examples are just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. Think about this: Pretty much EVERY multi-vitamin on the market has ALL of the substances that I just listed.
Yes, your multi-vitamin is (probably) one of the factors that are undermining your T levels.
So what can you do? The first thing to do is STOP taking all supplements for at least one week, maybe longer.
When you do start taking them again, reintroduce them ONE at a time, 7 days apart, and make sure you’re not taking anything that I wrote about above. If you notice anything unusual or undesired when you reintroduce a supplement, STOP taking it.
Next, make sure you’re eating a whole-food, non-processed food diet with healthy animal fats and proteins from animals that lived like animals did 100 years ago: Outside, on a pasture, eating what nature intended.
Avoid feed-lot grown animals that are eating nothing but grains and being kept alive with antibiotics, as their proteins lead to inflammation.
There is obviously a lot more to this topic, but if you just follow these basic guidelines, you'll be in MUCH better shape than if you were taking the wrong kinds of supplements.
To your health and high testosterone,
Cameron Day
If you google that question, you will get a lot of articles that say ALL nutritional supplements are indeed bad for you.
They will cite studies that show poor results from multi-vitamins or single-nutrient supplementation, and they will conclude from this data that taking vitamin or mineral supplements is bad for your health.
Want to know the kicker? They’re right…Well, sort of.
The very unpleasant reality of the situation is that a LOT of nutritional supplements ARE indeed bad for your health and your testosterone levels in the long-term, but often not for the simplistic reasons that articles on the topic suggest.
The three fundamental reasons that many, perhaps even MOST supplement are bad for your health are:
1) They are synthetic versions of nutrients that are only bioavailable in natural, food-based forms.
2) They are nutrients that should NOT be taken in supplement form at all.
3) They are nutrients that you do need to supplement, BUT they’re bonded with a compound that is harmful.
In category 1 we have supplements like beta-carotine, which is NOT bio-available like animal-based retinol, as well as ascorbic acid, which is NOT the same as vitamin C that comes from food. You should get those nutrients from FOOD, not from pills.
In category 2, we have things like Iron and Calcium. A whole food diet will provide ALL of the iron and calcium that your body needs, and any excess of those minerals can cause systemic inflammation, which over time leads to a wide variety of health problems, including low testosterone.
In category 3 we have anything that is bonded to “Citrate” like magnesium citrate, potassium citrate, etc. Citric acid and ascorbic acid also fall into this category. Citrate, citric acid and ascorbic acid all disrupt the body’s ability to create cerulopasmin, which is one of the most important “glycoproteins” in the body. It is responsible for managing copper, iron and ATP production, and 20 other vitally important cellular processes.
When you take supplements bound to these citrates, they can imbalance copper & iron balance, as well as inhibit ATP production. In the long-term, this can lead to health problems and lower testosterone levels.
Sadly, the supplement landscape is a veritable mine-field of nutritional harm just waiting to happen, and these examples are just the tip of the proverbial iceberg. Think about this: Pretty much EVERY multi-vitamin on the market has ALL of the substances that I just listed.
Yes, your multi-vitamin is (probably) one of the factors that are undermining your T levels.
So what can you do? The first thing to do is STOP taking all supplements for at least one week, maybe longer.
When you do start taking them again, reintroduce them ONE at a time, 7 days apart, and make sure you’re not taking anything that I wrote about above. If you notice anything unusual or undesired when you reintroduce a supplement, STOP taking it.
Next, make sure you’re eating a whole-food, non-processed food diet with healthy animal fats and proteins from animals that lived like animals did 100 years ago: Outside, on a pasture, eating what nature intended.
Avoid feed-lot grown animals that are eating nothing but grains and being kept alive with antibiotics, as their proteins lead to inflammation.
There is obviously a lot more to this topic, but if you just follow these basic guidelines, you'll be in MUCH better shape than if you were taking the wrong kinds of supplements.
To your health and high testosterone,
Cameron Day