Lose Weight Not Your Health

At the heart of almost all weight loss plans is the reduction of calories in one way or another. While this is essentially needed to lose any weight, often times this reduction of calories leads to unhealthy eating habits.

These habits can then leave our bodies lacking in many of the essential vitamins, minerals and other nutrients that maintain good health and for the proper function of the body. If you plan to lose weight using calorie reduction, it is vitally important that you supplement all of those lost nutrients daily.

Many of these nutrients work on a method of "build up" in the body. When taking any supplements on a weight loss program, it is really important that you not take too many.

Any decent multivitamin will most likely meet your RDA (recommended daily allowance) for all of the essential minerals and vitamins. Sometimes, the supplements can slightly exceed the RDA for some of these nutrients but this is nothing to worry about.

Taking some of the oral type supplements can be a tricky task during weight loss. This is because they are often processed very quickly by the body and where there is an excess of any one vitamin or other nutrient, the body will want to expel the extra quantity with your urine.

So in order to get the maximum effect from your supplementation, taking a twice-daily version of a multivitamin is a good idea so that your nutrient levels are kept higher throughout each day especially if you are expelling lots of liquids from weight loss.

When it comes to choosing an oral supplementation product, you will usually have to choose between liquid or pill form. There are many nutritionists who believe that the liquid versions of multivitamins are absorbed into the body more easily and therefore allow for better health overall.

This choice however, is up to your personal preference. Many people find it much easier to take a liquid form, as it can be mixed into juices or with water.

A general multivitamin is usually a great place to start for anyone trying to lose weight. These other supplements can then be added if you choose, and are believed to aid the body in some way with weight loss. Here's just a couple of them:

Psyllium (Fiber) - Used to increase the feeling of fullness.

Dandelion - Used for water elimination.

Green Tea Extract - Said to enhance the metabolism.

Chromium - Necessary for carbohydrate metabolism.

Caffeine - Used for increased energy and appetite suppression.

Ginseng - Another aid to carbohydrate metabolism.

One of the most under-used food supplements for weight loss is fiber. This substance will help to create a feeling of fullness during meals and help to keep the digestive system "regular". It is also very important to drink lots and lots of water when taking fiber or losing weight in general.

Because fiber is bulk-forming, it needs a lot of water to work properly.

Most of these special ingredients are combined into many weight loss pills that are on the market today. Although they are generally safe for consumption, there have been cases of side-effects when taken by people with serious health problems.

It is advisable to check with your local physician before adding any new supplementation to your diet to make sure they don't react or interfere with any medication you may currently be on.