15 Comments

Also, a tsp of cod liver oil a day gives 1,100 mg of omega-3s, vit A and vit D3

Expand full comment

Yes--I recommend (and take myself) Rosita Extra Virgin Cod Liver Oil Softgels, rich in all three. They are part of my Brain Health plan available at my Fullscript dispensary: https://us.fullscript.com/welcome/markmcdonaldmd?preview=true.

Expand full comment

I like a tablespoon!

Expand full comment

Bee pollen, raw butter

Expand full comment

Yes--these are great dietary "supplements." Natural butter, honey, and maple syrup provide micronutrients proven to protect against many chronic disease processes. They must be fresh and not processed, though, or all the unique benefits are destroyed.

Expand full comment

I do fermented cod liver oil unflavored just like the Vikings and Roman legions ! Then I go and kiss my wife and get slapped in the face 😳

Expand full comment

And rightly so! If you switch to Rosita cod liver oil capsules, though, the violence will immediately end.

Expand full comment

Thank you, Mark.

I suspect you already addressed many issues I describe below. Could you provide links to your past analyses, please?

1. Some claim that liver, while providing benefits, supplies toxins. What ways exist which cleans liver from toxins while retaining nutrients?

2. Isn’t it better to refrain from products with toxins if corresponding supplements are available?

3. Not all supplements, I suspect, are borne equal. How can an individual differentiate between supplements?

Etc.

Expand full comment

I have addressed these issues in prior Substacks, all (or nearly) in the free subscriber section. Just peruse the history and re-read them. You'll find answers to your questions.

When it comes to liver, I believe that organ meat to be the most nutrient dense animal product available. I have never seen any evidence that liver contains unique toxins.

As a summary, I endorse Fullscript as a supplement fulfillment company, due to its curating of suppliers. I specifically endorse the products and companies that I reference in my Substack health articles, as I've looked into each closely and feel confident, based on their history, reputation, and objective evidence that these specific supplements are clean, safe, fresh, bioavailable, and competitively priced.

Expand full comment

Actually it’s way better to get all your vitamins and minerals from Real foods such as liver versus powder or pills most pills have filters in them which are not good for you and Minnie or rancid because I’ve been sitting on the shelf forever and when you take these things as separated entities they don’t work nearly as well or at all things for me to be taken in synergy with them that’s why cod liver oil has vitamin D and vitamin A at the same time

Expand full comment

Very true--that's why I've been lukewarm on supplements for many years. Nearly all my concerns were alleviated, though when I found Fullscript. Although I can't vouch for 100% of their products, all the companies and products within Fullscript that I reference are clean, fresh, properly chelated, and at a lower price point than what you can find in retail stores and even on Amazon.

Ideally, we would need no supplements. Realistically, though, most people cannot / will not eat a perfect diet. Also, no matter how clean and high quality your food is, simply living in the modern world exposes you to unavoidable contaminants, and supplements can assist with mitigating their negative health effects. For those two reasons, I do believe supplements have their place. If only we didn't need them, what a better world it would be!

Expand full comment

“… no matter how clean and high quality your food is, simply living in the modern world exposes you to unavoidable contaminants, and supplements can assist with mitigating their negative health effects.“

Dr. McDonald, could you elaborate on your thought above, please?

Thanks

Expand full comment

Thank you, Chris and Dr. McDonald for pitching in. You are both right.

Yet, it probably depends on contaminants in food vs contaminants in supplements. In addition to that, many fruits and veggies we buy even as “organic” come without seeds, which signals to me their GMO nature. I wonder what research has been done to determine the change in nutrition in GMO products vs natural.

Moreover, food comes with calories which, with aging, become less desirable, increasing attractiveness of supplements.

I feel increasingly ignorant in making proper decisions 😁🤷🏻‍♂️

Thank you!

Expand full comment

Merry Christmas!

Expand full comment

Thank you--Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Expand full comment