First of all, why use supplements? The answer is becoming more and more apparent for people, unfortunately. In our modern society, commercial farm practices have changed over the last 30 years in order to feed the billions of people around the world. But because of these changes in practices, such as green harvesting and the development of new crop varieties that produce higher yields, the nutrient content of fresh fruits and vegetables that you find in your average grocery store has decreased significantly. A recent study of 43 garden crops by the University of Texas at Austin showed a decrease in protein, calcium, phosphorus, iron, riboflavin and ascorbic acid between 6 and 38 percent. "Perhaps more worrisome would be declines in nutrients we could not study because they were not reported in 1950 -- magnesium, zinc, vitamin B-6, vitamin E and dietary fiber, not to mention phytochemicals," lead author Dr. Donald Davis said. Here is more information on the study.

Another factor to keep in mind in addition to the reduction of nutritional value in our food is that fact that we live in a toxic environment. The wide spread use of pesticides and herbicides on our crops are used to protect us from insects and increase crop yield end but can end up in our food and for many people, their bodies simply can not process these toxins out. The increase in diseases such as cancer in the U.S. are increasing at an alarming rate and many experts believe that there is a connection between the factors mentioned aboove and the increase in these diseases. There is no getting around it... if you want to have the best quality of life, intelligent supplementation has to be a component in your quest for wellness.

Which ones to buy?

There are a ton of supplements out there on the market, some of which do help with muscle recovery but unfortunately those are few and far between. There are some basic things that you want to look for in terms of quality, safety and efficacy when it comes to any nutrition product:


Does it meet Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs)?

GMPs are a standard was set by the FDA originally for pharmaceutical companies. Basically what these standards say is that your product must be safe, pure, and effective. GMP regulations require a quality approach to manufacturing, requiring companies to minimize or eliminate instances of contamination, mixups, and errors.  This in turn, protects the consumer from purchasing a product which is not effective or even dangerous. Failure of firms to comply with GMP regulations can result in very serious consequences including recall, seizure, fines, and jail time. In essence, GMPs insure that the customer gets the same quality and active ingredients not only in each bottle but also each capsule or tablet that you put in to your body. Unfortunately, in the nutrition industry, not all companies meet these standards. The bigger companies usually do... but be careful. Make sure your that the supplements that you are taking meet these standards. NSF is an independent, not-for-profit organization that specializes in safety, efficacy and standardization. You can check to see if the nutrition comcompany that you are currently using has been certified by NSF here.

Efficacy

In other words, how effective is it? Does it really work? Have there been any clinical trials doneor are there enough people using the product to provide good reviews? These are all things to be looking for when you are selecting your supplements. If you are going to invest money in to your health, it makes sense that you would want to be sure that the product will do what it claims to do. A money back guarantee is a good sign that the company has faith that you will be satisfied.

Also, you want to look for plant based or whole food supplements, not synthetic. Our bodies were made to digest food, not something artificially made in a labratory. Many inexpensive supplements that you can find at the local supermarkets or discount stores are very poor quality and offer little nutritional support, if any. Here are the nutritional supplements that one should be supplementing their diet with in order to reduce muscle soreness and inflammation:

Vitamins and Minerals

Vitamins and minerals are the most widely used supplement but unfortunately, most folks supplement with a vitamin that is synthetic and provides little nutritional value. A good multivitamin and mineral supplement should be plant based or a "whole food matrix" and should provide at least the minimum daily requirements of all of the essential nutrients. In general, vitamins and minerals provide nourishment for cells, muscle tissues and organs. Vitamin C and E are especially important for protecting against oxidative damage and also to reduce swelling, inflammation and to remove damaged cellular material out of the body.

Antioxidants

Antioxidants are "free radical scavengers" that actually neutralize free radicals by giving up an electron to the free radical and neutralizing it.  Learn more about antioxidants here. Supplements that provide antioxidant value should have an ORAC rating, that is an "Oxygen Radical Absorption Capacity". Be sure to find out what the ORAC value is of the antioxidant that you are interested in blood serum. Just because a supplement is tested really high in a labratory or test tube doesn't necessarily mean that it will have the same protection in the body. Testing of an antioxidant in blood serum is the only real way to know for sure what the ORAC value is. Find out these details before starting a supplement.

Glyconutrients

Glyconutrients are one of the most recent supplements to come on the market. They are a set of recently discovered monosacharrides that are vital to the proper structure and function of human cells. They are required by cells to perform many functions including cell protection, replication, recognition and tissue regeneration. Glyconutrients also play a role in how effecient and effective our immune system responds to infection and inflammation. This is something that my whole family takes on a daily basis and recommend to anyone who wants to not only inhance muscle recovery, but also optimize their health.

L-Glutamine

L-Glutamine is an amino acid that is found in the body. It is required by the immune system and the digestive system in order to function normally. It is also important for muscle recovery and muscle building for those that want to put on muscle. 2-5 grams per day is the typical recommended serving.  

Turmeric (extract)

This plant is in the ginger family and contains curcumin, a powerful anti- inflammatory. It also contains cancer fighting compounds and acts as an antioxidant. People have reported many other health benefits such as lowering of cholesterol, treating high blood pressure as well as optimizing the immune system.

Ginger (extract)

Ginger extract has long been used for it's anti-inflammatory properties and also provides antioxidant protection against free radicals. Ginger contains a very potent anti-inflammatory compound called gingerols, which are thought to be the reason why so many people see pain relief from osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. In this twelve month study, 29 patients with painful arthritis in the knee participated in a placebo-controlled, double-blind, crossover study. At the end of the first six month period, those given ginger were experiencing significantly less pain on movement and handicap than those given placebo. You can read more about this study here.

Alpa-Lipoic Acid

This antioxidant not only fights free radicals (see the section on antioxidants and free radicals for more info.), but also optimizes the effectiveness of vitamins C and E and increases glutathione as well, which is responsible for detoxification in the liver. This muscle building supplement asssists in the delivery of essential nutrients to your muscles, which are important for increasing strength, stamina and recovering from workouts.