Should You Consume Nutritional Supplements To Boost Your Health?

The body requires minerals, vitamins, electrolytes and essential amino acids to function well.

If the last two years have taught us anything, it is the importance of taking care of one’s health. Eating healthy and exercising are now par for the course if one wants to lead a healthy lifestyle but in order to ensure maximum health benefits, the consumption of nutritional supplements is becoming an increasingly common practice.

“The body requires minerals, vitamins, electrolytes and essential amino acids to function well. Sometimes, our diet is low on these items which can lead to deficiencies and health complications. Many people who are vegetarian or vegan may not be getting the right amount of protein required as per body weight. Hence, supplements help bridge that gap and boost the body for it to function to its optimal level in a healthy way. Supplements increase your nutrient intake and can help manage certain health conditions,” explains Varun Khanna, Co-Founder, Fast&Up, which is a prominent Indian manufacturer of effervescent nutritional supplements.

Unfortunately, Indians harbour a misconception that high-quality supplements made with the best ingredients only come through foreign brands. Homegrown company Fast&Up is attempting to break this false notion. They began as a supplement aimed at performance nutrition in sports for runners, athletes, and other sportsmen, and worked towards building their immunity.

“We were the first brand to bring effervescent nutrition to India. Our products are backed by innovative Swiss technology and we have our own state-of-the-art in-house manufacturing units which helps us control the quality of our products. We have a team of scientists, nutritionists and experts who help us in putting out the best supplements on the market. Our product portfolio has the Informed Choice Certified tag, which means our products are up to international standards and are free from any banned substances. Most brands have this tag only for a few products but at Fast&Up, 90 percent of our products have the ICC tick,” explains Khanna when asked what sets him apart from competitors.

Fast&Up’s wide range of items varies from daily nutrition to kids supplements, and sports performance boosters to protein supplements – all of which are available on online retailers like Amazon, Nykaa, Healthkart, and 1mg. They are also retailed in medical shops, kirana stores and leading supermarkets.

In case you are wondering about the best way to consume supplements for them to be most effective, especially for those sold in an effervescent format, this is what you should do - take one tablet, dissolve it in 250 ml of water, wait for it to fizz up and then drink. One scoop of protein powders can be consumed daily and capsules can be taken once a day. However, the duration of consuming these supplements depends entirely on the nature of the deficiency, making it advisable to have your body vitals checked before taking any supplements long-term.

The impressive Fast&Up product line-up includes the likes of immunity boosters, B12, Plant and Whey Protein. They offer supplements such as multivitamins, products to boost lung and liver functionality, products that act as fat burners as well as electrolytes. In response to the pandemic, they also launched the kidz line last year to provide clean nutrition for children.

Before turning to supplements, however, it is important to do one’s own due diligence, and keep a few important things in mind. Nutritional supplements are not aimed at curing illnesses. Instead, they focus on keeping those who are already healthy, in a continued state of good health. These products are therefore aimed at preventive care instead of curative care. As with everything else in life, it is not advisable to consume anything in excess and beyond the required amount, which is determined as per each person’s particular health requirements.