Top 5 Supplement Recommendations

As a nutritionist and an Anti-Aging Health Practitioner, one of the most frequent questions I get is "What supplements should I take?" I will share my recommended nutritional supplements in the following articles:

1. My Top 5 Supplement Recommendations for Men Under 40
2. My Top 5 Supplement Recommendations for Men over 40
3. My Top 5 Supplement Recommendations for Women under 40
4. My Top 5 Supplement Recommendations for Women over 40

These are the minimum recommendations to maintain optimum health in this day and age. There are others that are helpful in particular conditions, but those are best covered in one-to-one consultation to tailor supplements according to the person's conditions. If you are taking prescription or non-prescription medications, I recommend consulting a health care provider that is knowledgeable about your condition and nutritional supplements.

For questions regarding this article, go to Dr Husbands's contact page.

Copyright © 2009; Douglas Husbands, DC, CCN, ABAAHP. All rights reserved.

Top 5 Supplement Recommendations for Men Under 40

1. Multi-vitamin/multi-mineral combination
2. Fish oil with 2000 mg DHA and 3000 mg EPA
3. Vitamin D3 in the cholecalciferol form, 4000 IU
4. A “Green Drink”
5. Lipoic acid

Notes:

1. A multi-vitamin/multi-mineral combination is necessary in this day and age due to the depletion of nutrients from poor farming practices.
2. Fish oil contains the foundational essential omega 3 fatty acids DHA and EPA.
3. Vitamin D3 should be between 40 ng/ml and 80 ng/ml. To attain this level in the blood, most people must supplement with an additional 4000 to 5000 IU of vitamin D3.
4. A concentrated dehydrated green vegetable and fruit powder drink is highly recommended for most men under 40 because the average man under 40 does not eat enough dark green leafy and brightly colored vegetables. This prevents significant oxidative damage from stressful lifestyles.
5. Lipoic acid is a "super-antioxidant". It actually helps the other antioxidants, like Vitamin E, C, and the mineral selenium regenerate in the body. It also helps with blood sugar stabilization. On top of all that, it gets through the physiologic barrier of the brain called the blood-brain barrier to protect the brain from oxidative damage that predisposes to the development of dementia and Alzheimer's disease.

For questions regarding this article, go to Dr Husbands's contact page.

Copyright © 2009; Douglas Husbands, DC, CCN, ABAAHP. All rights reserved.

Top 5 Supplement Recommendations for Men Over 40

1. Multi-vitamin/multi-mineral combination
2. Fish oil with 2000 mg DHA and 3000 mg EPA
3. Vitamin D3 in the cholecalciferol form, 4000 IU
4. Hydrochloric acid - Important: take at the beginning of your meal
5. Arginine, ornithine, and glutamine just before bedtime

Notes:

1. A multi-vitamin/multi-mineral combination is necessary in this day and age due to the depletion of nutrients from poor farming practices.
2. Fish oil contains the foundational essential omega 3 fatty acids DHA and EPA.
3. Vitamin D3 should be between 40 ng/ml and 80 ng/ml. To attain this level in the blood, most people must supplement with an additional 4000 to 5000 IU of vitamin D3.
4. The cause of most cases of indigestion, heartburn and Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) is the decrease in hydrochloric acid (HCL) the stomach produces as we age. Not only are the symptoms uncomfortable, the result is harmful. With decreased HCL, B-vitamins and proteins are not digested and absorbed well, causing decreased energy, and muscle atrophy seen in aging. This also predisposes you to decreased immune system function, which in turn leads to all sorts of problems in the elderly, including increased susceptibility to upper respiratory infections, and predisposition to cancer.
5. The three amino acids, arginine, ornithine and glutamine, taken in therapeutic dosages just before bedtime, help increase the output of our own body's growth hormone at night during sleep. As we age, our pituitary gland releases less growth hormone. Growth hormone released at night during sleep is essential for repair, regeneration and recovery of tissues and our entire system. Growth hormone output is also associated with testosterone levels. Not only will this help you to sleep better, but will improve your recovery from stress and injury, keep a man virile and help all your systems work at a younger biological age. Your chronological age is your actual age in years. Your biological age is a comparative age your body systems are functioning at. For instance if you are 60 years old, but your skin, muscle tone, energy, heart health, and brain function are comparative to a 40 year old, your biological age is closer to 40.

For questions regarding this article, go to Dr Husbands's contact page.

Copyright © 2009; Douglas Husbands, DC, CCN, ABAAHP. All rights reserved.

Top 5 Supplement Recommendations for Women Under 40

1. Multi-vitamin/multi-mineral combination
2. Fish oil with 2000 mg DHA and 3000 mg EPA
3. Vitamin D3 in the cholecalciferol form, 4000 IU
4. A “Green Drink”
5. Indole 3-Carbinol

Notes:

1. A multi-vitamin/multi-mineral combination is necessary in this day and age due to the depletion of nutrients from poor farming practices.
2. Fish oil contains the foundational essential omega 3 fatty acids DHA and EPA.
3. Vitamin D3 should be between 40 ng/ml and 80 ng/ml. To attain this level in the blood, most people must supplement with an additional 4000 to 5000 IU of vitamin D3.
4. Many women under 40 are having babies, raising children and work outside of the home. Many are under a great deal of stress. Most of them do not eat enough dark green leafy and brightly colored vegetables to prevent significant oxidative damage from stressful lifestyles. Therefore, a "green drink", which consists of concentrated dehydrated green vegetable and fruits, is highly recommended.
   
5. Indole 3-carbinol is found in significant amounts in dark green leafy vegetables. It increases the levels of protective estrogens and lowers the levels of harmful estrogens when taken supplementally in therapeutic dosages.

For questions regarding this article, go to Dr Husbands's contact page.

Copyright © 2009; Douglas Husbands, DC, CCN, ABAAHP. All rights reserved.

Top 5 Supplement Recommendations for Women Over 40

1. Multi-vitamin/multi-mineral combination
2. Fish oil with 2000 mg DHA and 3000 mg EPA
3. Vitamin D3 in the cholecalciferol form, 4000 IU
4. Hydrochloric acid - Important: take at the beginning of your meal
5. Combination capsule(s) of Indole 3-Carbinol, Chrysin, Isoflavones and Resveratrol

Notes:

1. A multi-vitamin/multi-mineral combination is necessary in this day and age due to the depletion of nutrients from poor farming practices.
2. Fish oil contains the foundational essential omega 3 fatty acids DHA and EPA.
3. Vitamin D3 should be between 40 ng/ml and 80 ng/ml. To attain this level in the blood, most people must supplement with an additional 4000 to 5000 IU of vitamin D3.
4. The cause of most cases of indigestion, heartburn and Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease (GERD) is the decrease in hydrochloric acid (HCL) the stomach produces as we age. Not only are the symptoms uncomfortable, the result is harmful. With decreased HCL, B-vitamins and proteins are not digested and absorbed well, causing decreased energy, and muscle atrophy seen in aging. This also predisposes you to decreased immune system function, which in turn leads to all sorts of problems in the elderly, including increased susceptibility to upper respiratory infections, and predisposition to cancer.
5. Besides the benefits on estrogen metabolism of Indole 3-carbinol, chrysin, isoflavones and resveratrol, these indirectly provide hormonal balancing benefits for elderly women. Resveratrol, found in high amounts in red and purple grapes as well as other dark deeply colored fruits, has very powerful antioxidant properties. These properties protect against the cumulative DNA damage over years of time, as is often seen in cell damage from aging. Chrysin, an extract from the blue passion flower (Passiflora caerulea), decreases the conversion of testosterone to estradiol (one of the 3 major estrogens). This is important in elderly women, not only for healthy balanced estrogen metabolism, but also because certain types of breast cancers are sensative to higher levels of estradiol. Isoflavones, derived from soy and other legumes, have shown promising benefits for decreasing the risk of certain cancers due to their effects on estrogen metabolism.

For questions regarding this article, go to Dr Husbands's contact page.

Copyright © 2009; Douglas Husbands, DC, CCN, ABAAHP. All rights reserved.

Faster Healing of Sprains, Strains and Muscle Tears

Recently, while doing a chiropractic adjustment on a patient, I felt an immediate pain in my elbow. From my body building background and many years in health care, I knew exactly what had happened. I had a significant strain of the long head of the triceps tendon where it inserts at the elbow. This brought to mind a solution that I have used for myself and my patients for many years: proteolytic enzymes. Using proteolytic enzymes within an hour of a muscle, tendon, ligament or cartilage injury speeds up healing.

Proteolytic enzymes are a category of enzymes which helps to break down the formation of inflammatory cells that aggregate to an area after an injury. They enhance normal tissue repair, while anti-inflammatory medications inhibit normal tissue repair. Proteolytic enzymes also inhibit scar tissue formation which is the cause of much of the residual pain and muscle or joint stiffness.

Some specific names of proteolytic enzymes are:

1. protease (derived from the fungi group Aspergillus)
2. papain (from papaya)
3. bromelain (from pineapple)

Numerous research studies performed over the last 70 years repeatedly show a significant improvement in pain relief, controlled inflammatory response, minimal or no bruising in the affected area, and rapidly accelerated connective tissue repair.

I can attest to this from my own personal experiences:

1. Last year, I had a slight partial tear of the lateral meniscus of my right knee at the gym while doing squats with 225 pounds. I took 2 proteolytic enzymes each hour without food for 10 days. With some physical therapy and 2 treatments of cold laser therapy, the injury healed up to the point that I could go back to squats with 225 pounds by the 11th day without pain!
2. In November 2007, fell and my quadriceps muscle tore off where it attached to my left knee. While lying on the floor in excruciating pain, right after it happened, I asked my wife to get me the proteolytic enzymes and I took 3 right away. I took 3 every 1-2 hours until I had surgery a few days later. The surgeon was surprised that I didn't have any bruise. In addition, I didn't need any pharmaceutical painkillers before or after the surgery.

This is a great solution for anyone from the average person to the professional athlete. I highly recommend this solution for most musculoskeletal injuries, unless you are taking blood thinner medications, in which case consult your doctor.

Copyright © 2009; Douglas Husbands, DC, CCN, ABAAHP. All rights reserved.