Locked On Health

An Overview on Supplements

Let’s talk about a little bit about supplementation first. It’s a big concept, and somewhat confusing for most people. There is a difference between the products from one company to the next, and you need to know how to start determining which companies deliver the nutrition you want, and which are a waste of money. Furthermore, if you are like most people, you probably feel like you need help trying to figure out what products to take. We can help make that a little less confusing for you. In fact, it’s a big reason we exist at all – people depend on our insight.

That is what you want, isn’t it? And isn’t that what you think you are getting with your current products?

Unfortunately, that puts tablets out of consideration, because close to half of their ingredients tend to be additives of one sort or another (glues, gums, binders, fillers, flowing agents, lubricants, dilutants, emulsifiers, flavorings, colorings, coatings, waxes, shellacs, preservatives, etc.) It also puts most other capsules out of consideration because the ingredients in many capsules are routinely covered with lubricants and flowing agents before the encapsulation, and are then further insulted with the addition of fillers so that the capsules look full.

The companies you see on this site we know well and know their labels are true. If
you were to search them out on the web, you might recognize a lot of the copy for their products as being similar to what you’ll find here. That’s because we wrote most of it. We actually developed/founded some of these labels in the past, ran the companies of others of these labels, and taught all of them the virtues of additive-free nutrition. If and when we find other companies that fit our requirements, we’ll be happy to include them.

You can be assured that these are all as pure as can be. No shortcuts were used. There is no cutesy use of language, like ‘no unnecessary additives.’ There is no such thing as a ‘necessary additive,’ so anyone making that statement really means they feel it is ‘necessary’ to cut their labor cost by using additives to speed up the manufacturing process. Using such language is an example of the shortcuts manufacturers use to save money at the risk of compromising the product. We believe that it’s worth it to spend a little more time and money in the manufacturing process to make a product that is completely uncompromised, and we only sell products that fit that mold.

All of these companies stand fully behind their products. We won't carry a product that doesn't have that kind of manufacturer support. You can rest assured that the quality,
effectiveness, and value of these products are superb, and second to none.

Interestingly, among the “better” brands found in health food stores, these are often the best priced. The highest possible purity at a competitive price – what a concept! Why would anybody pay more for an inferior product?

Starting Point:

The foundation of any nutritional program is a multi-vitamin. The task is to find a well designed multi-vitamin / mineral complex that covers most of the bases. If you choose well, that may be adequate all by itself. If, on the other hand, you still want more, it’s easy to add whatever is necessary to get the nutritional profile you are looking for. Emerald Laboratories Multi Vit-A-Min is that foundational product for us. This product has all the ingredients most people want at the levels that most people commonly take them. It even has some great additional touches, with Lutein, Lycopene, CoQ10, Grapeseed Extract, and Alpha Lipoic Acid included. It suits most people’s needs. Because every capsule has all the ingredients (they were blended together before encapsulation), dosages are easily adjusted by changing the number of capsules you take.

If you’d like additional calcium, and you may, then read the Calcium cover page. For something that wasn’t designed to be a standalone calcium supplement, it has a pretty good amount but is not designed to replace a calcium supplement. We offer several great calcium products that can augment the dosage found in the Multi Vit-A-Min. Remember to adjust the recommended daily dosage for the calcium product to account for the amount found in Multi Vit-A-Min . Similarly, if you’d like more B-vitamins, CoQ10, Alpha Lipoic Acid, etc., just add them in.

Joint Formulas:

When it comes to the joint formulas, read the overview, and then decide if you want MSM
and how much you might want.

The foundation product for joints is Glucosamine Chondroitin (or Glucosamine Sulfate for those preferring to skip the chondroitin). The next consideration is MSM. People often report quicker benefits with MSM in the product, but many people who take MSM often take significantly larger amounts than found in the combo product. Those people might be better off buying the Glucosamine Chondroitin or Glucosamine Sulfate by itself and then adding MSM separately, either in capsule or powder form. That would give them more control over the amounts they take. On the other hand, the convenience of having them all in one product makes the triple combination of MSM Glucosamine Chondroitin our best seller (by far) and seems to be enough MSM for most people.

In the end, read each category overview, then the product descriptions. They should help you decide what will work the best for you. If this was enough education for you, then go straight to ordering the product(s)! Understand that the FDA imposes legal restrictions on what we can say about each of the products or why you might want them, being a commercial site, so if you don’t already know what it is you are looking for, you may have to do your research elsewhere (or call Bill!) Once you do, though, come back. These products from these manufacturers will be your best choices. Whichever of these products you decide to make part of your regimen, you really can’t go wrong with any of them!