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• August 16, 2012 9:18 a.m.

  Post to Ann and others with diabetes: nutritional counselling is a covered service if you have a referral from your physician to a registered dietitian. You can get the help you need but you have to be willing to make the changes you need. I've been an RD and LD for 30 yrs & I see many people struggling with the same issues; but have also seen the ones who want to get better take take control of their health. There are many good resources on line from the ADA, WebMD,Livestrong, myplate, etc. Look for a diabetes and/or weight loss support group in your area & get a referral to an RD.

  - Stephanie

• April 25, 2012 10:38 a.m.

  I am concerned sometimes if I am overdoing my supplement intake, I take 2 capsules evening primrose oil (1000 mg altogether) as I tend to suffer PMS and I am 46 years old Asian woman. I take calcium +vit D 2 tbs 1200 mg combined, one centrum 1 a day, fish oil 1200mg+D3 1000 IU, sometimes I take an extra one at night if I have had too much red meat as I tend to suffer stiffness in my knuckles if my uric acid increases and last but not least I take 2 tbs glucosamine 1500mg_chondroitin 1200mg as I have a 20 year old torn cartilage. I have been taking these for teh last two years or so. Often I wonder if its way too much, but they all have a purpose. recently I had been ill and had to take three courses of antibiotics one after another and have noticed a discoloration /pigmentation on my face and I am wondering if I need to detox with some liver pills. I ofetn treat myself with homeopathy and I am taing Echinecia for cleansing and detox too. Please advice if anyone can if this cocktail is too much. I would so like to add ginko or ginseng root for memory and brain function and anything for falling hair as I have read further in the blog. I do half hour on my elliptical each morning and weights training twice a week, am 4'11" and weight 123 lbs (56 kg) I needto lose 5-8 lbs and I will be a good weight for my age and height but I am in no rush, I plan to take it off slowly but permanently. Please do guide about supplements intake.

  - Hadia

• April 1, 2012 10:52 a.m.

  I've been researching all over the place and of course everyone claims their the best but need expert advice on brand to buy. Trying obtain supplements for imbalance hormones that has caused acne, water retention and mood swings.

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• March 13, 2012 3:05 p.m.

  You should check out USANA . and the story behind DR.Myron Wentz.

  - Mary

• December 22, 2011 4:13 p.m.

  I'm a very health concious vegan. The only supplement I take is one for B-12 and calcium just to be safe. I have only been vegan for a few months, and before that I was pescatarian, but i feel great ever since I cut out dairy and eggs from my diet! I lost 10 pounds without trying, I hadn't even been dieting. I have unlimited energy, my skin and hair both look healthier and have a glow, no more skin problems either I've noticed. I just eat a balenced diet of nuts, legumes, healthy fats, vegetables, only whole grains (nothing refined), and delicious fruits! I enjoy almond milk as a replacement for milk products, but I don't replace anything in my diet with processed soy (no tofu or fake sausages for me!) because it's simply not needed. I get more than enough protein each day just with nuts and beans as a main source. My boyfriend even cut back on meat and dairy when he saw my improvements. Best part is, no calorie counting or expensive stressful weightloss diets for me! And it sure is cheeper for the grocery shopping buget! Healthy, happy, gorgeous and vegan :)

  - Carissa

• December 15, 2011 2:04 p.m.

  I weighed 210 in August 2010. I weigh 123 now. I don't like the word diet. I just eat healthy and I eat the same thing for every meal, every day, with small changes every three weeks. About 1200 calories per day total. I exercise 20 minutes 5 days a week. One day I do cardio, the next I do free weights. I lost my health insurance and turned to supplements several months ago. I take a B50 everyday. I started doing this for skin and hair problems. I've noticed some minor improvements, but I will keep taking them because I am invisible to bugs now. Never a bite. I have always been borderline anemic. When I started weight lifting, I was so tired I could barely sit up. I donated blood for a free iron check :). I was very anemic. I started taking iron supplements, 65mg a day for 6 months. No improvement. After much trial and error, I discovered that I must take iron on an empty stomach with pineapple juice first thing in the morning. Pineapple juice has 200% vitamin C, whereas orange juice only has 160%. Vitamin C helps the absorption. I feel so much better. My energy levels have increased ten fold. I take black currant seed oil once a day because Dr. Oz said it would help with my PMS. I still get PMS, but it's not nearly as bad. It took 3 months to notice a difference. My PMS makes me very hateful and irritable. I'm much less likely to snap now. I take Biotin for hair loss. I lose very little now and it worked quickly. 5000mg per day. I only lose 5-10 hairs per brushing.

  - Michele

• November 23, 2011 3:36 p.m.

  I've been taking Anatabloc for inflammation but a side effect has been cleared sinus and a lowered urge to eat. I was losing inches without trying so I decided to try to watch portion size more carefully and I am losing pounds, my lower back pain is tolerable (goodbye Oxycodone) and my arthritic hands are great. What a find.

  - Mike

• November 23, 2011 1:52 p.m.

  I've been taking Anatabloc for inflammation but a side effect has been cleared sinus and a lowered urge to eat. I was losing inches without trying so I decided to try to watch portion size more carefully and I am losing pounds, my lower back pain is tolerable (goodbye Oxycodone) and my arthritic hands are great. What a find.

  - Mike

• November 1, 2011 9:58 a.m.

  Changing my diet has changed my life. I have become healthier and lost weigh without trying. When you eat right and workout your body will be able to become healthy. I can't tell you how eating right has changed my life. Their are options out there to help checkout my webpage at http://www.gerbiesnacks.com/page/page/7995130.htm for more information and products that are healthier food choices.

  - Gerbie

• October 24, 2011 10:16 p.m.

  I love the PAGG Stack Supplements. They are all natural and they have a day formula and a night formula. I have already lost 20lbs! I also use the 4 Hour body diet plan. Like this article states you can't just use a pill so I find that these together create the best results. If you haven't tried them already it's worth the money. Watch your diet and watch your body change. The best brand I have found is New Health Pagg Supplement. They are cheaper and just as effective. Their site is paggsupplement.com

  - Adria

• July 17, 2011 9:10 p.m.

  There is so much info out there and it's all conflicting. I take many supplements every day (Fish Oil,CoEzyme Q10, Multi-vitamin, Calcium, extra D, Beta sitosterol...). So this said Vitamin E may actually be bad for you? My fear is that no one really knows. What I want to know is this: we all know what we should be eating, but if our diet is lacking in fruits/vegetables for whatever reason, do the supplements help? Do diet pills help you lose wieight, or even not gain as much weight?

  - Dave

• July 14, 2011 3:52 a.m.

  Taking supplements should be accompanied with balanced diet and exercise. In this way, it will be easier to lose weight. herbal supplements online

  - vivaherbal

• June 13, 2011 11:22 p.m.

  Even agreeing that the best way to lose weight is through diet control and that weight loss supplements are being uset more and more, should not people know what The Best weight Loss Supplements Are?

  - Nathaniel

• May 24, 2011 8:38 p.m.

  With obesity being the number one cause of morbidity/mortality in this country why is nutritional counseling not a covered benefit with the insurance companies including Medicare and Medicaid. Why is losing weight up to the individual to find some truth in the myriad of diet scams? Now, you are the MAYO CLINIC yet your weight loss discussion assumes patients over eat or don't know what to eat. It also assumes that they don't exercise. I cannot exercise due to physical illness and I have weight gain from my medications. I have Insulin resistant metabolic syndrome and cannot, at this point, find the help I need. This topic is so much more than eat less and exercise more. We, the people who are desperate, need real help. Where is it??

  - Ann

• May 8, 2011 9:51 p.m.

  Louisa, here is the link to the study that I was referring to conducted by the Center for Disease Control (CDC): http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/databriefs/db61.pdf.

  - Don Hensrud, M.D.

• May 5, 2011 4:42 p.m.

  I think all of you should read The China Study by T. Colin Campbell, PhD. This book has good information about nutrition and disease. You might rethink your diet and your use of vitamins after reading this book.

  - sandy

• May 4, 2011 7:22 p.m.

  And i do realize the blog was about supplements or multi-vitamins but hey, its worth a shot right? : )

  - Tammy

• May 4, 2011 7:18 p.m.

  My husband was diagnosed with pancreatitis in 2008 and changed his habits dramatically. He eats better, exercises, takes supplements and has added tricor to keep his triglyceride levels down. But the flare ups keep occuring (he does not drink alcohol) and the most recent bout led him to a colonoscopy. It found Pneumatosis Cystoides Intestinalis. His doc just explained today that the "bubbles" were in fact due to the pancreatitis. His doc suggested he go on the Atkins diet, keeping the carbs and sugars away should keep the pancreatic enzymes away as well. I would like to know if the enzyme supplements would be beneficial or just create more problems. Our docs dont seem to know much but are willing to research and i must do the same. If anyone out there can help, i would appreciate it. So,nutshell, should he take the enzymes, should he do the low carb diet, or is there some other unknown wonder out there?

  - Tammy

• May 4, 2011 4:42 p.m.

  Tom - what is your area of expertise?

  - Ferne

• May 4, 2011 4:13 p.m.

  "A recent study reported that dietary supplement use has increased in the United States" When you refer to a any study can you reference the source as well? Readers may want to further their education by reading the actual study- or at least knowing who conducted the study & when. Thank you.

  - Louisa

• May 4, 2011 7:53 a.m.

  A good diet and exercise is critical to good health. It is not an option. This means eating mostly raw fruits and vegetables, preferably organic and eleminating processed foods which are high in sugar salt and fats. Processed foods are high in calories and low or have no nutritional. All systems in the body work together. For most of us true health is a complete lifestyle change. The studies that show vitimains to be ineffective use dossages that are too low to make a difference. Diet, exercise and high dossages of the proper vitamins can cure many of the degerative deseases we suffer from today better than many of the dangerous drugs currently on the market. The scientific litterature that was done to support this was done modtly in the 1930's through the 1960's. These studies are still as valid today as they were 50 or more years ago. Vitamins are safe, inexpensive and effective, and no you are not getting it from your food. The use of drugs by the medical profession has reached the point that it is out of control and beyond reason. By the best estimates there are over 106,000 deaths anually in this country caused by drugs correctly perscribed by physicians. In the last two years there were "0" deaths caused by the use of vitamins. For the average individual it is time to get back to the basics of creating health as opposed to "miracle cures" which are nice when needed, but do not build health.

  - Tom

• April 29, 2011 2:28 a.m.

  Well, that certainly shoots down what most people perceive regarding multi-vitamins. I, for one am taking multi-vitamins daily to ensure that I take in the prescribed amounts of needed vitamins for my body. I thought that this would ensure that my body would function properly when provided with these supplements. I am quite bothered by the idea that multi-vitamins gives the body no benefit. But, yes, I agree that a healthy diet is the best way to go... ~bluepill

  - Michael