Vit. D3 and Vitamins in general. Safe brands?

2miraclesmom

Im sure this has already been asked or discussed. If it has please let me know where. lol 

My vitamin D is a 25. So of course my onc wants me on D3. My question is, what is a safe brand? I don't want to just run to Target of CVS and buy what is on sale. I want something that does not have alot of extras added into it. I also need to start taking tumeric and a few others. Any advice would be great. Oh and if there is something for the memory, I would love to know! This memorey loss thing is driving me and my family nuts! Some days I am clear and some days I am a blank slate. The same goes for certain topics. ugh. lol

juneping

personally i use Isotonix. it helped me from 13.7 to 58 in about 3-4 months.

and i would try iherb.com to read the reviews. i would stick to gel or liquid form. i was told not taking vitamins in pills form.

leggo

Hi 2miracles. I find that ginseng improved my cognitive ability. It also helped with fatigue. It wasn't instant, but after 6 months or so, I noticed improvement.

I basically use this study to determine reputable supplement manufacturers. It's a Canadian study and only covers the basics, but some I noticed are manufactured in the US, so I'll post it just in case you find it helpful.

http://www.ualberta.ca/~csps/JPPS9(1)/Loebenberg.R/tablets.htm

ICanDoThis

You might want to go to the public library and ask the reference librarian to help you identify the most recent issue of Consumer Reports that contains a review of vitamins.
They check the actual content of the state vitamin. Among the brands that always get the highest rates -- Costco's Kirkland brand.

MelissaDallas

Consumer Reports tests confirmed the following are good & actually contain the amount  they say they do:

Trader Joe's, Now, Nature Made, Vitamin Shoppe, Whole Foods, GNC, Rite Aid, Walgreens, CVS, Country Life, Blue Bonnet, Nature's Bounty, Solgar, Shaklee & Sundown. These are listed in order of cost, low to high.

There is nothing special about expensive "specialty" brands of supplements.

proudtospin

I can only say I use the Natures Bounty and my most recent blood workup was delightful!  Do understand, they are not a solution for folks who eat lousy!  I eat as healthy as I can, no processed junks and cook natural as much as I can

Tammy_M43

Proudtospin, well done with your results.....good to get some real feedback!  What strength were you taking and how long until you got a result?  I eat well but my Vit D was on the low side of OK so I take a supplement.  It will be good to see if I get a better result next time.

2miraclesmom, thanks for the topic!

dlb823

I have been a serious supplement user for 30 years, and I can say unequivocally that there is a significant difference in brands and overall quality that goes beyond potency (which, of course, is important) to things like bioavailability and absorption.  With what I call the drugstore or Wal-Mart type brands, you are mostly getting isolated, singular synthetic ingredients, such as ascorbic acid for your Vitamin C.  In contrast, natural brands like some of those Melissa listed tend to use whole food sources for their C, whether that's citrus or acerola berries or rose hips, so along with the Vitamin C you get a lot of micronutrients that exist in nature with Vitamin C.  And there are additional differences -- like whether the ingredients are processed with low or high heat, and whether they're GMO or organic, and what kind of fillers are used.  Some cheap fillers actually make our bodies work harder to eliminate them.  Some high quality brands do their own nutrition research and hold patents on processing techniques.   

For both D3 and Curcumin (Tumeric), I use and can highly recommend Life Extension.  For other things, after much trial and error and returned bottles of stuff that didn't work or even made me sick, I tend to stick to Solaray, NOW, Shaklee, and Dr. Whitaker.  I think Jarrow, Bluebonnet and Paradise also make some good products.  

Hope this helps...    Deanna

dlb823

Just saw this on FB, and thought it might be helpful:  http://www.blockmd.com/blog/not-all-supplements-a...