Does anyone do/know about supplements and/or natural remedies?

I used to use echinacea each year as it got close to cold and flu season. It helps the immune system ward off illness and many find that if they've already gotten sick and start taking it, they heal much more quickly than their 'norm'. I'm soon to start taking it again.

I grew up on the apple cider vinegar, with many of its uses, including a mixture of it and honey as a cough syrup, and another mixture of it with baking soda (I think) to ease bee stings and draw out the stinger. There is a book written just on the uses of it.

Yea, I have read/heard there are whole books dedicated to the apple cider vinegar, may get me one.

only way to prevent taking the meds is to be a healthy weight, eat healthy, and no drugs or alcohol. the fda doesnt regulate herbal suppliments and thats why they keep getting recalled from people getting killed or problems from the suppliments

Thanks patty, I am actually in the process of losing weight still; and would like to lose another30 LBS. I have been reading about the supplements also, with their potential side effects.

I did a serious study of brain-boosting supplements a couple of decades ago when I was studying for my GRE --Aced it.  For the same decades (maybe more) I have sworn by garlic and red wine to keep my blood flowing.  Also dancing -- fun, exercise, rhythmic entrainment to reset homeostasis.  Yeah, look into these supplements.  There's plenty of info. out there.  A real problem in our grand land of opportunity is that the foods we generally eat, processed and genetically engineered and grown with all kinds of chemical poisons, don't really give us the nutrition we would expect, and need to be healthy.  Probably the best course would be to eat actual safely grown foods, say from local farms.

Yea, I would like more food that is organic; I buy organic milk- and sometimes eggs now- it seems like the organic milk and eggs last longer.

Its better to change diet and do some exercise,

I know for one thing, most of the over the counter supplements and vitamins don't get well absorbed by our bodies. Look for something that is pharmaceutical grade. I have a coworker with a master's degree in nutrition, and she helps me find supplements and things like that. She has her own consulting business for it.

how can you tell if a supplement is pharmaceutical grade?

Three grades. Pharmaceutical grade, Food grade and Feed grade.

The difference between each grade type is one of quality and purity. In technical terms, no substance is 100% pure, for there are always other substances added to various products. The difference between the grades is one of how much of these other substances are present in the product.

There are several criteria by which pharmaceutical grade are judged. The product must be in excess of 99% purity with no binders, fillers, excipients, dyes, or unknown substances.

Read the labels.

Three forms. Tablets, Liquids, Capsules.

Tablets are the least preferred. They have binders and coatings which often times are invasive to the body and also may not be fully digested. Tablet manufacturers also have a tendency to pack as many elements into one pill as they can, trying to produce the super pill. It doesn't work.

Liquids are easy to absorb but often require heavy doses and rarely taste pleasant so frequently are sweetened with artificial sweeteners which are generally harmful.

Capsules are not hard like Tablets, break down easily and although they have an outer shell there are Capsules designed for vegetarians in which the shell is made from vegetable sources. Capsules like Tablets will often have fillers.

Nutrient or supplement absorption can only be attained by having proper catalysts. For example, taking an iron supplement is great but if you don't also take folic acid and b12 with it the iron can't be absorbed by the cells.

Personally my favorite is small servings of a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. You would be surprised by the value of 4 green beans, 6 almonds, a dozen peas, two bites of a carrot, once slice of an orange, half a tomato, half a slice of whole wheat additive free bread, two slices of apple and ten kernels of uncooked non-GM corn all eaten several times a day as a snack.

It doesn't sound like much and it isn't but eating very small servings of a wide variety of foods frequently throughout the day is the most effective way to introduce the greatest impact of wholesome nutrients into your diet.

Thanks John, now I know much more what to look for; and I do eat a lot of fruit already- will have to add more veggies though.

I have inhereted High Cholesterol~two years ago at the annual prod and poke physical they did a blood test and it came back at freking 285~they attempted to put me on pharmecueticals(lipitor was one of them) that have all these side effects I'd rather do without~I said no~they tried to scare me into medicating and I laughed, told them to shove it and switched doctors as well~I choose a doctor very open to alternative solutions to medical conditions~

She suggested I start taking Fish Oil

Then we added Flaf Seed Oil in it's natural form added to all foods~

Then we added red yeast rice~

Then Garlic pills~

Six months later when I was retested~the cholesterol had dropped to 180

This past year I tested at 118 for ir~

=)  I love my doctor =D

That's quite a big difference in your cholestrol! I'm thinking of maybe going to an herbalist, if I can find one around me; and my insurance covers it.

My nerologist told me to take over the counter B12 pills since my B12 blood count was down. Taking them brought by B12 blood count back to normal.

Thanks shaunee, glad your blood count came back to normal; through the use of supplements.

I'm super unhealthy so I have no suggestions for you, Ellen. I do wish you all the best, though! 8)

You can always be healthier though shannon :-)

Boy, I can see I'm a little late posting on this subject, but here goes.

The best supplements should be all natural, not man made. Man made additives are the biggest cause of our problems. GOD made our bodies to heal and mantain themselves if we give them the proper nutrition. Man's quest for more and more food to feed the multitudes has given us chemicals our body can't use and are toxic. There are a few places you can get all natural suppliments but all over the counter vitamins are some if not all man made, so read the labels. Another thing we need to do is drink more water, but not just any water. There is a better water out there and our body needs a lot of it. Not pop, coffee, tea or anything else. On that subject we need to get back to taking BATHS not showers, our body ingests lots of the water it needs through the skin if we are in water long enough. I can go on and on but for now I will just say go to www.gracfulee.com for nutritionals and for more info about water go to www.watercure.com. and for the best water on the planet www.santeh2o.com  [ this is a wholesale site but they can help you ] I have no affiliation with these people other than using the products and advice with great success. I haven't touched on any specific ailments as I am a Certified Lymphologist , not an MD, and could get into trouble giving advice. If you need more info you may contact me,  Dutch. 

You're never too late, thanks for the info! I'll check out the links later