When Should I Be Taking My Supplements?

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When should I be taking my supplements? This is JJ Virgin, four time New.

York Times bestselling author, celebrity nutrition expert.

And fitness hall of famer. I've been on a lifelong quest for answers to the toughest health questions, and now I'm sharing what I found with you. Welcome to Alex Ask the Health Expert. Colita from Facebook asks which supplements and vitamins need to be taken with meals and which can be taken first thing in the morning with water. And specifically, I'm asking about vitamins D and K, calcium curcumin, B12 and krill oil omega. All right, lots to unpack here. I'll be right back to do it.

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So when should you take your supplements? And actually, I've seen a couple other people asking a very similar question here. So I'm going to broaden it out a bit really. When should I be taking my supplements? Which one should be taken with food, which one should be taken without food? Do they need to be taken apart from each other, et cetera? Now I will tell you as I first started studying all of this, and you know, I was fortunate early in my career that a lot of what I was doing was going into doctor's offices and teaching them how to use supplements for different therapeutic results with their patients. And as I was outlining the way to use all these things, I remember I had a sheet and I had my first thing in the morning supplements. And then with breakfast, and then before lunch, then with lunch, then before dinner, then with dinner, and then before bed. Well, here's the big challenge with all that. You know, when's the best time to take supplements? I mean, the first, the first answer is when you will, because the greatest supplement left in the bottle is not going to do you any good. So we still, we have to create a system where you will actually take the supplements that you're, that you're supposed to be taking. And so I kind of nixed that whole like, you know, let's take supplements five to six times a day because it just wasn't realistic. So there's really a couple key times though that you need to think about things. If in the morning you wake up and you take a thyroid supplement, you want to wait and take anything else for at least 30 minutes. So that's the first thing is take anything away from your thyroid supplement first thing in the morning. And for most of these things it's easier just to take them with food. It's an easier way to remember. And with your fat soluble vitamins like D and K, you want to make sure that you're taking those with food. Ditto curcumin. Um, because these things and, and COQ10 these things are, are hard for your body to absorb. They need fat to transport it. So and then there's also some things like B vitamins and zinc that can make you feel a little nauseous if you don't take them with food. So the way I have this is I have you taking your supplements with food. Now what you want to make sure of is that you're not taking things that could be stimulating for you later in the day. And these may be things that you're using for stress. If you're using any kind of an adaptogen for stre Stress that is more stimulating, say like N acetyl tyrosine or acetyl L carnitine. Those things may impact your sleep. And you just this is where it's really nice to keep your journal so that you know what's going on. Sometimes B vitamins can do this as well. So what I like you to do is have them at breakfast and lunch. If you're doing them twice a day, or breakfast and dinner and just be aware if any of the ones you're taking are stimulating to you, take them earlier in the day. And here are my exceptions. I do magnesium and my sleep candy product before bed, so that's when I'm taking those. And then also enzymes, I take enzymes before my meals, so those would be the things that you'd want to do that way. But again, the most important thing here is to make sure that you are taking them. That is the super most important thing. So I've divided mine into like I have all the ones I take throughout the day and then I have them in in one pouch. And sometimes I'll take them all at breakfast. Sometimes I'll take them between breakfast and lunch. Sometimes I take them between lunch and dinner. I just make sure that I take them. And then right on my bedside table I've got my sleep candy, magnesium and and I have some CBD as well. And that is what I use as my sleep cocktail. Used to just be sleep candy and magnesium, but now I've added a little CBD too and I'm liking it. So there you go. Hope that serves. And thank you for the question. This is JJ with Ask the Health Expert. I do this five times a week, so make sure you never miss a show by going to subscribetoj.com.

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