The typical man’s diet today is high in pizza, baked goods, chicken wings, salt and sugar, and low in essential nutrients and minerals. This is where a dietary supplement or two can ensure you get all of the important, healthy vitamins and nutrition your body needs to function properly. Concerning dietary supplements, in the United States alone, $37 billion is spent annually on vitamins and nutritional supplements (according to Nutrition Business Journal).
That figure rounds out to an impressive $116 for every man, woman and child in the United States as of 2015. The US is not alone in this devotion to dietary supplements. All over the globe, wherever you find a modern society, you find a more than healthy appetite for vitamins and other nutritional supplements.
It can be argued that the recent growth of this multi-billiondollar industry is a byproduct of a statement made by a popular Chicago Cubs baseball player in 1998.
In 1998, Sammy Sosa was chasing Mark McGwire for the Major League Baseball home run crown. McGwire openly admitted to taking androstenedione, a steroid hormone. The MLB added that chemical to its list of banned sub stances in 2004. However, in 1998 it was deemed a safe supplement. A sportswriter asked Sammy Sosa in a post-game interview how he could possibly surpass McGwire’s home run production, since Sosa vehemently denied doing any type of steroid.
The charismatic Sosa claimed that Flintstones vitamins were what kept him so healthy, strong and vital. In little more than a year after that statement, annual vitamin and dietary supplement sales in the US surged to $17 billion in 2000. Whether steroids or Flintstones vitamins were the key to Sosa’s home run hitting prowess, dietary supplements are here to stay in the United States and around the world.
Which Supplements Should a Man Take?
Head over to your favorite health food store. Check out the vitamins and supplements section. Row after row, bottle after bottle, container after container of miracle promising man-made and natural supplements beg for your retail dollar. In some stores there are literally thousands of choices for a man to make if he is trying to supplement his diet for a well-rounded nutritional profile.
So the question begs, what supplements should you be taking?
There are certain vitamins and minerals which men are typically missing out on. Since the advent of modern-day agriculture and food processing, much of the food men eat is nutritionally poor. Choose the correct supplements and you can fill any holes in your dietary approach. The following 10 supplements are frequently lacking in the modern day male’s diet. Choosing a brand name is up to you. (Listed in no particular order.)
1 – B Complex
There are 8 individual B vitamins that make up a B Complex supplement. You will sometimes see these referred to as a Super B Complex. These essential health-helpers are important for many reasons. Each one offers its own specific benefits, and they all help convert any food you eat into energy that fuels the multiple chemical processes which go on inside your body. The following 8 vitamins make up a B Complex supplement.
- B1 (also known as Thiamine) is found in beans, spinach, grains and peanuts. If you are not getting enough of these foods, a B Complex can help ensure your body gets all of the thiamine it needs. This is known as an anti-stress vitamin. It protects your immune system, and helps your body produce healthy new cells. It also is very efficient for breaking down simple carbohydrates found in less than healthy foods like pizza, french fries and sugar
- B2 (Riboflavin) is a powerful antioxidant. It fights free radicals which damage cells in your body. It is also believed that riboflavin can prevent early aging signs and the development of some heart diseases. Vitamin B2 is found in wild rice, milk and yogurt. It is essential for red cell production.
- B3 (Niacin) is found in foods like red meat, eggs and green vegetables. It is important in your nutrition plans since it boosts your presence of HDL cholesterol (the good cholesterol). Even a poor diet usually provides enough niacin. However, this vitamin which has also been approved for treating acne is often times deficient if you drink alcohol.
- B5 (Pantothenic Acid) is found in very small amounts in a lot of different foods. The word Pantothenic comes from the Greek “pantothen”, which means “from everywhere”. It helps you break down fats and carbohydrates to produce energy. It also helps produce healthy levels of sex and stress-related hormones. Pantothenic acid is found in avocados, eggs and legumes.
- B6 (Pyridoxine) works with B12 and B9 to make sure your levels of homocysteine do not get too high. That amino acid is associated with heart disease. Your sleep patterns, mood and stress levels are also affected by vitamin B6. Chicken, turkey, tuna and salmon are rich in pyridoxine.
- B7 (Biotin) is responsible for men having healthy hair, nails and skin. This is why it is referred to as “the beauty vitamin” in some health circles. Biotin is found in barley, yeast, liver and potatoes
- B9 (Folate), also known as folic acid, is thought to help prevent memory loss and lessen anxiety, stress and depression. If you eat a lot of dark leafy greens, beets, asparagus and root vegetables, you probably get enough vitamin B9. If not, a B Complex supplement has got you covered.
- B12 (Cobalamin) assists vitamin B9 in producing red blood cells and maximizing how your body uses iron. It helps create hemoglobin, which carries oxygen throughout your body. B12 is only found in animal food products, so vegetarians and vegans definitely need to take some type of B12 dietary supplement. Dairy, eggs, pork and beef contain high levels of vitamin B12.
2 – Multivitamin
Looking at the vitamin B Complex, you can see the benefits of a multivitamin supplement. A single pill or capsule can deliver tons of healthy nutrients, vitamins, antioxidants and minerals. One of the most well-rounded multivitamins for men is Centrum Silver. The label boasts that this is the ideal dietary supplement for men over 50. That is definitely true.
However, it is also great for men of all ages, since it delivers 100% or more of your daily recommended allowance of at least 16 important nutrients. Disease fighters such as selenium, lutein and lycopene are also included. We recommend the specific Centrum Silver brand as a great multivitamin for men because unlike many other multivitamins, it contains no iron. Iron has been linked to an elevated risk in some men of Parkinson’s disease and heart disease.
3 – Vitamin D
This important vitamin is fat-soluble. Unfortunately, it is present in nature in a very few foods. If you expose your skin to sunlight on a daily basis (no more than 30 minutes) you probably trigger the production of enough vitamin D by your body. Depression, dark skin, being over 50 years of age and aching bones are all signs you may not be getting enough vitamin D. Cod liver oil, milk and yogurt, beef and calf liver all contain vitamin D.
4 – Calcium
Calcium is important for regulating a healthy body weight in men. It can help you lose weight if you are overweight or obese, and it strengthens your bones as well. The average male doesn’t get the recommended 1,000 mg of calcium on a daily basis. (3.3 cups of milk delivers 1,000 mg of calcium.)
As with vitamin B12, vegans and vegetarians are often short on calcium. If you are lactose intolerant or have some type of milk allergy, you might not be getting enough calcium. A deficiency in this important vitamin can cause health problems like rickets and osteoporosis. Rickets causes soft, weak, breakable bones and deformities in your skeletal structure. Osteoporosis affects more than 40 million US adults, and leads to deteriorating bone tissue, fragile bones and a heightened risk of bone fractures.
5 – Vitamin C
Found in citrus fruits, broccoli and baked potatoes, vitamin C is also known as ascorbic acid. This water-soluble nutrient helps protect your cells from damage. When your body turns food into energy, free radicals are a byproduct. These free radicals, as mentioned earlier, damage your cells. The antioxidants found in vitamin C are excellent at combating unhealthy free radicals produced when you eat, as well as those found in air pollution, ultraviolet overexposure and cigarette smoke.
Your body’s ability to produce collagen is also boosted when you get plenty of vitamin C. Collagen is one of the nutrients in your body which helps wounds to heal. It is found in your skin, bone and cartilage, and a vitamin C deficiency can lead to skin that looks and feels older than it actually is.
6 – Chromium
You get plenty of chromium if you eat lots of broccoli, green beans, mashed potatoes and drink grape juice. Since many of those foods do not show up in a typical male’s diet, men can be severely deficient in this essential mineral. It is drastically missing in much of today’s food supply.
Chromium helps control your blood sugar. For this and other reasons, chromium is often found in supplements which help you lose weight, and regulate a healthy body weight. You only require trace amounts, but since it is lacking in so many modern-day foods, supplementing makes sense for most men.
7 – Omega 3/Fish Oil
Omega-3 fatty acids can help lower your blood fat (triglycerides) if they are elevated. These essential fatty acids are used to prevent and treat rheumatoid arthritis, depression, asthma, ADHD, dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. Omega-3’s are found in extremely high quantities in sardines, salmon, nuts and seeds. Omega-3 fatty acids cannot be produced by the human body. So if you do not get enough of the above-mentioned foods, supplement with omega-3 fish oil capsules.
