Taking supplements is a great way to fill in the gaps in your diet, ensuring you get the vitamins and minerals your body needs. It coincides with the growing focus on overall health and well-being, resulting in the rising demand for supplements in today’s market. But how do you choose the best supplements? Is natural better than synthetic?
It’s best to start by understanding the differences between natural and synthetic supplements. This information enables you to pick the best supplements that offer the benefits your body needs. Then, you can explore the benefits of natural supplements that would make it a better choice than synthetic products.
Overview of Natural vs. Synthetic Supplements
Judging by the name alone, it is easy to determine the difference between natural and synthetic supplements. The most notable ones are the origin and the processes that the materials or ingredients undergo to achieve the supplement form.
Organic or natural supplements contain naturally grown ingredients or those grown without pesticides and chemicals. Meanwhile, synthetic supplements use ingredients derived from synthetic materials or chemicals. Based on that definition, you understand what to expect regarding the differences between natural and synthetic supplements.
Benefits of Natural Supplements vs. Synthetic Ones
Let us examine the benefits of premium quality supplements that make them a superior choice over synthetic ones.
Better Bioavailability
Apart from the well-known benefits that natural supplements have over synthetic ones, they are easily absorbed by the body. Natural supplements offer nutrients in their most bioavailable forms, as they closely resemble nutrients that naturally exist in whole foods.
The similar nutritional composition to those found in the body, along with naturally occurring enzymes, such as fiber and minerals, ensures better absorption and higher effectiveness. These natural ingredients are easily absorbed by the body while aiding proper digestion and transportation of the nutrients to the cells in your body.
On the other hand, synthetic supplements use isolated nutrients that your body may not fully absorb. As a result, they are less utilized and could end up as waste. If you want to maximize the benefits of taking supplements, it is recommended that you take natural supplements, as they offer better support for health and wellness.
Fewer Side Effects
Natural supplements are made from whole food sources closer to the body's natural composition. As a result, they have fewer side effects or lack adverse reactions.
Synthetic supplements use artificial additives, chemicals, fillers, and preservatives that can be harsh and have various side effects. Natural supplements are different because they use naturally derived products that offer nutrients in their pure form.
Users of synthetic supplements experience various side effects, such as allergic reactions and other sensitivities. Since natural supplements have cofactors that make it easy for the body to digest and absorb, it minimizes any imbalances in the body to experience fewer side effects. Natural supplementation aligns with the natural processes of the body and promotes better tolerance.
No Artificial Ingredients
Natural supplements do not contain artificial additives, chemical preservatives, and fillers commonly found in synthetic products. Most synthetic supplements use these chemicals and additives to prolong their product’s shelf life or to streamline the manufacturing process. However, their short- and long-term side effects can seriously threaten human health.
Choosing natural supplements helps to avoid the harsh effects of chemicals and artificial ingredients. They offer a cleaner way to fill the nutritional gaps in your diet. Natural supplements focus on introducing beneficial nutrients to the body in its purest form for easier absorption without adverse reactions. Since the nutrients are derived from plant sources, there is no need to produce synthetic ingredients grown in labs to mimic the nutritional benefits offered by natural products.
Low Toxicity Risk
Another advantage of natural supplements is the lower toxicity risk, especially due to the absence of artificial ingredients. Natural supplements have a low toxicity rate as they are derived from naturally occurring substances and food sources. They contain no harmful residues, byproducts, or contaminants that can be absorbed by the body when you consume synthetic supplements.
Impurities from toxic ingredients may remain in the body for a long time and cause serious health risks. Therefore, choosing natural supplements is the healthier path to nutritional support.
Broader Nutrient Profile
Using naturally derived ingredients and food sources offers a broader spectrum of nutrients. You can get more nutrients, vitamins, and minerals with each natural supplement versus the exact dosage of synthetic supplements. Most synthetic supplements isolate one type of nutrient or offer a limited combination. In contrast, natural supplements offer a comprehensive nutrient profile using different natural sources like plants, herbs, and fruits.
Eco-Friendly
If you care about the environment like you do your health, it’s another reason to choose natural supplements. Natural supplements are manufactured using sustainable and eco-friendly farming practices. They prioritize environmental conservation to reduce environmental impact.
Cultivating plants and herbs as natural supplements requires organic farming methods to preserve the nutritional composition of these plant sources. It guarantees that you get the best organic profile from each supplement without worrying about wasting away natural resources. These farming and sourcing practices support a better and more sustainable ecosystem.
Holistic Health Benefits
As mentioned above, natural supplements offer a broader spectrum of nutrients. Natural and herbal supplements derived from whole food sources offer more than one benefit, allowing you to address multiple health and wellness issues at once. This eliminates the need to take multiple supplements, as they can provide more than a single benefit or nutritional support.
A holistic approach to wellness and health supplementation ensures you can save time and money without compromising on the health benefits.
Backed By Research
If you choose natural supplements over synthetic ones, you enjoy the benefits of a well-researched product. It’s one of the many reasons why natural supplements are more effective because they are produced from years of research and study.
Before the herbal supplements are bottled, the manufacturers do extensive research to identify the best herbs and plant sources that offer maximum health benefits. After that, they identify which parts or components of the plants positively affect human health and wellness. The research continues to find ways to extract those beneficial properties in their purest form to guarantee that you can maximize the benefit with each dose. At the same time, they hope to avoid diluting the beneficial and nutritional profile.
This is especially true when plants and herbs are combined with other ingredients. Research is essential to achieving the synergistic benefits of those ingredients and promoting better health and safety for consumers.
Extensive Product Testing
The best natural supplements undergo extensive product testing as part of manufacturing. Testing is crucial for two reasons. First, it ensures that the product meets the highest standards of quality and provides unbiased results. Second, it protects consumer safety and guarantees that they are safe for human consumption (and at what doses).
Reliable natural supplement manufacturers use third-party labs to perform the testing to achieve unbiased results. It also helps them tweak their products to promote quality, safety, and potency.
Support Whole Food Practices
Choosing natural supplements enables manufacturers of whole food products or those that use whole food practices to thrive. It allows them to continue supporting their sustainable farming and agricultural methods, which means no use of pesticides and GMO products that can harm humans. Knowing that your supplements do not contain harmful chemicals gives you peace of mind.
Aside from ensuring that these producers continue their businesses, it promotes ecological balance and a healthier ecosystem. Your decision supports a community that prioritizes holistic wellness and does not come at the expense of the planet.
Promote Better Digestion
Due to the absence of toxic chemicals and additives in the formulation of natural supplements, they are better for your digestive health. Natural supplements are good sources of fiber and natural enzymes in whole food sources. Therefore, it aids in the digestive process and boosts gut health. You won’t experience hormonal imbalances because of taking toxic ingredients or chemicals commonly found in synthetic supplements.
Safe from Overdose
Natural supplements are carefully studied, researched, and analyzed to achieve the right potency level to deliver effective health results. They also contain nutrients in the proper concentrations to reduce the likelihood of suffering from an overdose and its associated effects.
Closest Thing to Whole Food Nutrition
Taking natural supplements is the next best thing to consuming vegetables, plants, and herbs that promote better wellness and overall health. If you don’t have access to certain plants or herbs, you can take these supplements to fill in the gap in your nutritional needs and ensure you can enjoy the same benefits as eating whole foods.
Consuming natural supplements as part of your regular diet also ensures a balanced intake of essential vitamins and nutrients. Minimal processing delivers nutrients to your body in their most natural state.
Final Tips: How to Check if a Supplement is Natural or Synthetic
Given the benefits of natural supplements, you should switch to them over synthetic ones. But how do you identify natural supplements? With so many supplements, it can be overwhelming to choose the right ones that achieve the desired results.
The first thing you should check is the label. Look for any “Certified Organic” label on the supplement. This certification ensures the product contains organic ingredients and complies with certified organic manufacturing standards. Some organizations provide certification for supplements and similar products, so you can refer to them when deciding if a product is truly organic. The Canada Organic Trade Association will issue the Canadian Organic Standards certification for all organic products for human consumption in Canada.
Another thing you should check is the ingredient list. Look for naturally derived food sources, such as herbs, plants, or fruits. Avoid any supplements with artificial or chemical ingredients. If you are unsure about the ingredient or it is not properly labeled, it is best to skip them.
The best ingredients you should keep an eye out for when buying natural supplements include vitamin C, vitamin D, probiotics, calcium, magnesium, chromium, and curcumin. The other available nutrients vary depending on the type of supplement you are looking for, but these are natural vitamins derived from natural sources. On the other hand, the ingredients to avoid and are common in synthetic supplements are silicon dioxide, hydrogenated oil, lead, mercury, titanium dioxide, vitamin A palmitate, and more. Be wary of synthetic vitamins many consumers fall for when they are not natural ingredients.
You must be cautious when choosing natural ingredients over synthetic ones because many ingredients can have harsh effects on your body. Since supplements are designed to be consumed over an extended period, introducing these toxins and chemicals can be harmful instead of beneficial.
You can also consult a professional on the best natural supplements worth investing in for your health. Every body type and health condition requires different supplements to support the needs of your body. Your doctor can recommend the best supplements to meet your bodily needs and promote well-being based on your medical history and wellness goals. They can inform you about what ingredients to look for (and to avoid) when buying natural supplements.
Hopefully, this guide has provided you with the information you need to understand why choosing natural supplements is better than synthetic products. The next time you need a supplement, you will know what to look for and avoid.
