The unsupported claims, inflated price points and aggressive sales tactics of products ranging from recovery beverages to “fat burning” pills to meal replacement drinks can make the vast nutrition marketplace more than a little confusing. And it becomes even more challenging when those hawking the products are well-known fitness brands imploring you to put your health in their hands.
Understand, the Whole9 doesn’t sell any supplements. We actually don’t push supplements in any way – everything we’ve ever written about, from fish oil to Vitamin D3 to magnesium, has been presented as an optional addition to your daily, healthy, eat-real-food diets. And while there are a few supplements we take on a daily basis, these aren’t things we think YOU should take… they’re just what we use for ourselves, in our own context. So we thought it would be helpful if we shared a bit of our own evaluation process with you, so you can make your own educated decisions about which supplements to take, and which to ditch.
Our Checklist, Revisited
Today’s post details our Supplement Evaluation Checklist – the criteria we use when purchasing vitamins, minerals or other supplements. We run each product through this checklist, making sure it meets every single one of these criteria before continuing with our evaluation. If a supplement fails at any point, with very few exceptions, we skip it. If a product passes each test, we’re then left with one final question – one that we are able to answer only for ourselves.
Start at the top, and ask yourself the following questions about each and every supplement you’re being pitched, sold or pressured to take. Does it pass the test?
1. Does it contain garbage ingredients? Does your supplement contain, in no particular order: added sugar (in any form), grains (wheat, corn, or other grain by-products), dairy (whey, casein, or other dairy by-products), soy (in any form), artificial colors or chemical-sounding ingredients you don’t recognize or can’t pronounce? Even worse, does the manufacturer refuse to clarify their “proprietary blend”, leaving you in the dark as to what their supplement actually contains? If quality or full disclosure is compromised, your evaluation ends here, folks.
2. Is the product designed to replace real, high quality, fresh food in your diet? Meal replacement shakes, vegetables-in-a-pill or breakfast bars all promise to do just as much good as real food in your everyday diet. Foolishness. There isn’t a powder, pill or shake in the world that can replace the vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals and fiber (the stuff that actually makes you healthy) found in natural, healthy, fresh foods.
3. Are the product’s claims too good to be true? The supplement industry is wholly unregulated – which means manufacturers can make all sorts of claims about their product’s ingredients and benefits. Beware of inflated, unsupported claims that sound too good to be true, and have little to no peer-reviewed long-term research to back them up. The idea that a pill can “put a protective coating around your muscle so only the fat is trimmed off” should be enough to make you both laugh out loud and run for the hills.
4. Does the label focus on aesthetic changes? Products that are designed with the primary purpose of slimming/leaning/trimming you out miss the forest for the trees, often in a dangerous way. Most of these “slim” pills, powders and shakes contain ingredients that could be harmful to your health, like stimulants and diuretics. And all of these supplements are asking you to focus on what’s in the mirror instead of long-term, sustainable health and body composition. Let’s face it – if you lose a few pounds by taking a pill without effectively changing your eating habits, how likely are you to actually stay at that weight?
5. Is there a hard and heavy sales pitch behind your consideration? If your motivation to buy is based on an aggressive, big-business marketing campaign, fear-mongering (“If you don’t take this pill, you won’t succeed!”) or generalized group-think (“All the event competitors use our shakes”), then think twice. Beware of products who yell, scream and intimidate to get your attention. When was the last time you saw a You-Tube commercial for kale?
6. Finally, is it cost-prohibitive to eating better quality food? Even if the supplement meets all of the above criteria, if the daily cost means you’ll have to cut your real-food budget just to afford it, it’s simply not worth it. You’ll always get more benefit from improving your meat, fish and egg quality and choosing fresh, local vegetables and fruits, so skip the supplement and save your pennies for a quarter cow and a CSA share instead.
The Final Cut
If you’ve run the supplement-in-question through our entire checklist and it still makes the cut, then it’s time for you to exercise your own judgment. At worst, your vitamin, mineral or supplement is going to put you out a few dollars and still not provide the purported benefits – a waste of money, but no negative effects on your overall health and fitness. At best, the supplement will provide a boost to the already high quality food you are eating, and help you fill in those small missing pieces in your daily diet and lifestyle. Make up your own mind. Do your own research, talk to someone you trust, or try it for yourself for 30 days and evaluate your own experience.
In the meantime, take a peek inside your own cabinets, and see which bottles would pass our Evaluation Checklist. Post your results (and your thoughts) to comments.
I have been on the hunt for a good multi vitamin and calcium supp for my kids. My son has to take 1000mg calcium ad day along with 10,000 IU of vitamin D. I give him liquid vit d. but can not find any multi vit or calcium that doesn’t contain. sugar or other bad ingredients. Would you be able to talk with me over email to find a good vitamin for them? I am having a hard time finding one for myself too. everything I look at seems to have soy. by the way just got done with 45 days Whole30, taking a family vacation then the whole fam is jumping on board for another one. I am so excited to see the amazing results the kids will find within themsleves just like I did. Thank you for changing my life
I only use BCAAs and Glutamine (short term for gut repair). Their ingredients are pretty simple: L-Leucine, L-Isoleucine, L-Valine, L-Glutamine. Nothing else. Unfortunately they taste like rotten skunk urine.
Ashley,
We can certainly do a one hour consultation to help you find a vitamin for your kids, but I’d recommend speaking with your doctor (if that is who is recommending those daily doses) to see what brand he/she recommends. That dose of Vitamin D is pretty darn high – so I’d stick with his/her medical opinion.
The multi Chris Kresser recommends for grown-ups is Pure Encapsulations, and is called Nutrient 950 with Vitamin K (available online). It seems like a good one.
Best,
Melissa
All,
Thanks for the info. What about protein shakes for post workout supplementation? I was taking an All Natural Whey Protein from Optimum nutrition. The price recently went up and I’d rather by food for the amount of 5lb bucket. Is that what you’d recommend.
Thanks,
Tim
Tim,
We always recommend real food post-workout (or any other time). Real protein sources digest and absorb more slowly, aiding your recovery for a longer period of time than whey protein shakes. Eggs, chicken, salmon or deli meats are all relatively “light” and easy protein sources right after a training session. However, if you’re going to do a meal replacement, you can use a 100% egg white protein powder (NOW Foods makes one – tastes like junk but that’s the price you pay).
Best,
Melissa
Melissa,
Thank you for the response. I was afraid you’d say that
just kidding…I’ll make the switch to whole foods for post workout. Cant wait to the body composition change. Also, your piece on picking out veggies was great. Can you and dallas do a piece on locating the cheapest, grass fed meat products? Trying to do this on a budget is very challenging.
Thanks again,
Tim
Have you read our Paleo Poor post, Tim? Sometimes, it’s about buying the highest quality meat, seafood and eggs you can find – not specifically shopping for beef or chicken. If there’s a run on wild caught salmon, buy a bunch and freeze it! If you’ve got access to grass-fed beef at a farmer’s market, eat beef all week. When you’re on a budget and quality is important, sometimes you have to adjust your preferences to accommodate what’s available or affordable. Check that post out for details.
http://whole9life.com/2011/01/paleo-poor-your-guide-to-the-grocery-store/
Best,
Melissa
Has there been any experience in the Whole30 community with regard to allergy or food sensitivity to eggs? I have heard that eggs are often times taken out of an elimination diet to help discover food sensitivity. It is often lumped into the “eggs & dairy” category.
I am on my first Whole30 and am using more eggs than ever to help with many health issues. One such issue is discovering the source of a persistent skin rash.
Any thoughts Melissa?
Thank you!
Imogene
Imogene,
Eggs are a pretty common allergen, especially if you’ve got an autoimmune disease or intestinal permeability. However, they’re not as high on the list as grains, dairy or legumes, and there are other foods (like nuts and seeds) that are also common culprits.
If you’re doing your first Whole30 now, you can approach this one of two ways. Either cut out eggs now as a preemptive strike, or do your Whole30 as written, and see if eliminating the most common offenders helps. If, at the end of your 30 days (or 45, or however long you choose) your condition hasn’t improved, then you could extend your program, further eliminating eggs, nuts and seeds.
It’s entirely up to you – but your experiment must always include the complete (100%) elimination of all grains, dairy and legumes to be a successful trial. Just eliminating eggs while you go back to eating oatmeal and yogurt isn’t likely going to help. Make sense?
Best,
Melissa
Thank you!….It totally makes sense. I am not sure if I have intestinal permeability, but I seem to have all the symptoms of having low stomach acid.
My goal for Whole30 was to learn the cause of a very itchy skin rash and uncontrollable sugar cravings. So far, Whole30 has reduced the sugar dragon like no other method I have ever tried Yahoo!…on that one. I like the plan to complete my Whole30 as written (I am on day 20 today!…Yay!), and then refine from there. Taking eggs out would be a little difficult since it makes life so simple for breakfast options. There are ways around that and I will figure it out.
Awesome!….I love having a great plan…. :=)