Many people seem to swear by supplements. From you daily multivitamins to complex supplement stacks designed by major fitness-supplement companies, it has become part of a daily routine for so many that you would swear that you need supplements to survive! But, do you really? How important are supplements to good health or, for many fitness enthusiasts, to “gains?” Let’s examine these questions, shall we?

What are supplements? Supplements are any of a number of drugs (remember, “drugs” are not necessarily “narcotics”) that we may take to improve our health and/or fitness. Most are taken orally (you eat, drink or just swallow them), but a few are taken intravenously (by injection). They are, exactly as the name suggests, meant to supplement for nutrients that you may be, for one reason or another, missing. That means that everything from your daily multivitamin to vitamin C tablets to pre-workout and protein powders/shakes are considered to be supplements.

Aren’t supplements bad? No, supplements, in and of themselves, are not bad. In fact, many people need supplements to deal with a health issue or to improve physical performance. The problem, though, is people using the wrong supplements, too much of a supplement, or supplement “spiking”. One example of this is a fitness company putting steroids in their protein supplement (and not listing it on the ingredients list). This can bring about unwanted, and sometimes even harmful, results. Another minor risk is that supplements contain a concentrated dose of the specific nutrient(s). This can put more work on your kidneys and liver, so if either of those is compromised, you may want to rethink supplementation.

Do we need them? Ideally, we don’t actually need supplements if we are in good health and have a good diet (inclusive of “enough” sleep). A balanced diet should give us all the nutrients we need. We can also tweak our diet if we have special dietary needs. An example of this is someone who is training a lot — he/she may need more protein, so simply eat more protein. Some people have certain health issues that result in a deficiency of a particular nutrient. In some cases, a person will just have to eat more foods rich in that nutrient.

So why do we take them? The reality is that it is not always as simple as changing your diet to get what you want/need. It is not always convenient or cost-effective to eat more foods rich in the particular nutrient you want/need. Also, a person’s problem may not be quantity, but rather the ability to absorb the nutrient, in which case, specific supplements become a requirement for good health. There are many cases in which supplementation is the better (or even only) solution.

Before you start supplementation however, it is important to figure out your reason for wanting to supplement. If you are sick all the time, go to a doctor and he/she will advise you on whether you need to use some kind of supplement or if your simply lacking rest or can fix your issue through dietary changes. For those of us who don’t need supplements, but want to use them to attain particular goals, see if you can explore dietary methods to increase the particular nutrient, first. Then, also, evaluate your specific needs to make sure that, if you need to supplement, you choose the right one for you. You don’t want a dairy-based protein supplement if you are lactose intolerant or a high-calorie protein supplement (mass builder) if you are trying to stay lean. Good luck and enjoy :).