Transcription
Nine out of 10 people don't get enough of the nutrients that their bodies need. This means you could be walking around with weaker bones, slower thinking, even at risk for a heart attack, and not even know it, especially if you're a senior.
But the good news is this. The right supplements can help correct these nutrient deficiencies. So, in this video, I'm sharing seven supplements that can help you keep strong bones, think clearly, strong muscles, and live a longer, more independent life.
Most people don't realize how much of their health depends on just a few key building blocks. But missing even one of these for too long can lead to problems that are just hard to undo once you've got that tissue damage. So, the right supplements can fill those gaps, but you got to know which ones to take and how to take them. And you got to know where the gaps are.
The last one we'll talk about is probably been in your kitchen for years, maybe decades, but you got to know how to take it. And if taken the right way, it can help you improve your blood sugar, lower your triglycerides, and improve inflammation.
Supplement number one. At some point, the slowdowns begin to add up. You don't recover as quickly as you used to from a long walk. Tasks that used to feel automatic now require a little bit of planning. Many people just chalk it up to age. "I'm getting older. That's what happens." But there's more to it than just getting older.
David is 72. He spent most of his life teaching high school biology, which he loved. But he looked forward to something else. It was that walk to and from school. That's what he did every day. And he loved it. Even after retirement, he continued that habit, that walk. A year ago, he had a mild heart attack. His doctors told him his heart was strong enough to recover. And it did, at least on paper. His labs were improving and his blood pressure was controlled. He did everything right. He would get tired just a few minutes into his walk and that didn't used to happen.
He reached out to us and we began working on some lifestyle issues. He needed training. He needed muscular work. He needed some HIIT training. We went deeply into that and he started working on it. But we also recommended something else. Something very, very simple. It was a natural compound that the body already makes but makes less of it with each passing decade. This thing is involved with how our cells generate energy. Especially in organs that need a lot of it, like the heart.
Inside of every cell in your whole body, there are structures called mitochondria. They're often described as the powerhouse of the cell. And that's mostly accurate. It's a good analogy. But even a powerhouse can't run without the right fuel and the right spark and the right way to carry that fuel and spark.
Several clinical studies have shown this supplement reduces fatigue compared to placebo and it could have significant effects in reducing cardiovascular risk even in people with heart failure. There's also evidence that shows it can reduce muscle aches when you're taking statins. But this isn't a one-size-fits-all solution. Some people experience mild side effects like nausea, even insomnia or upset stomach, especially at higher doses or when you first start taking it or if you take it later in the day.
Now, David took this advice seriously. He added the supplement to his morning routine and gave it a fair shot. Interesting, within a few weeks, he noticed he wasn't dragging in the afternoons as much. His walks got a little bit longer. The hill near his house didn't feel like a test anymore. He was getting better. Three months in, he had built back his full loop. That long one that he used to take before his heart attack.
The supplement that we think helped him do that was co-enzyme Q10, better known as CoQ10. His body used to make plenty of it, but now it needed a little bit of help. I usually recommend taking 1 to 200 milligrams per day. If you've heard about ubiquinol being more bioavailable, there's you can take more or you can take ubiquinol.
Energy loss is one kind of aging, but some changes are quieter, the kind you don't feel until the damage is done. Inflammation plays a major role in heart disease, cognitive decline, and even mood. So, in the next segment, we'll look at a nutrient that helps put out those fires before they spread. But before we do, be sure to get my free ebook, Dr. Brewer's Seven-Step Heart Attack Prevention Protocol. There's a link in this description uh down below and I'll leave a link on the screen at the end of the video.
Supplement number two. Inflammation builds slowly deep in the body without pain, without any warning. For a long time, inflammation was only discussed in the context of injuries, infections, autoimmunity, arthritis, that kind of thing. But now it's considered one of the driving forces behind nearly every chronic disease we associate with aging. So, if there was a way to reduce that inflammation before it causes damage, it would be worth paying attention to.
Meet Margaret. Margaret had always been active. At age 69, she still volunteered twice a week, kept up with her grandchildren, and made time for long walks with friends. But her most recent blood work showed something she wasn't expecting. Her triglycerides were up. Her doctor mentioned it casually, saying, "We'll just keep an eye on it." But it stuck with her. She'd also been feeling more forgetful lately. She was losing her keys more often. We all lose keys, but she was losing them more and more. She was struggling to find words in conversation.
When I first met Margaret as a patient, she asked what we could do beyond medication. That is, in addition to starting exercise and diet tweaks, I mentioned a specific supplement that could possibly help her. One that supports heart health and brain function and has been studied extensively in older adults. The supplement helped Margaret get essential fatty acids, the kind the body can't make on its own. These fatty acids or fats are found in cell membranes, and they play a role in everything from cardiovascular function to immune response. But what they're best known for is their ability to reduce inflammation, especially the kind you don't feel until it becomes a problem.
In particular, those fatty acids help lower triglycerides. Several studies show a clear reduction in triglyceride levels among adults who supplement consistently. There's also evidence that they may help stabilize mood, support memory by promoting healthy brain cell structures, and by reducing neuroinflammation. And yep, pardon, I I didn't give you the geek warning. Neuro means brain, and inflammation, you know what that means. So, it's inflammation of the brain. For older adults, this kind of support matters. Age-related cognitive decline doesn't usually happen all at once. It's gradual. So, having a way to protect brain health while also supporting the heart makes this nutrient uniquely valuable.
Margaret stayed consistent. After a few months, her follow-up blood work showed improvement in her triglycerides. She also felt clearer and more focused. Uh, she felt good. She described it as having more room to think. "It doesn't feel like a miracle. It just feels better. It feels like I'm balanced." That's what she told me. But like any supplement, it comes with a few cautions. These fatty acids can thin blood slightly, which may increase bleeding risk, especially for people already taking anti-coagulants. High doses can also lead to digestive issues like nausea or loose stools. That's why dose and quantity matter and quality.
The supplement we recommended to Margaret was omega-3, especially EPA and DHA. The two active forms are the EPA and DHA. They're found in fatty fish like salmon and sardines. These are different from the short-chain versions found in plants which aren't as readily converted by the body. So again, sorry to say this, the plant-based versions of omega-3s just aren't as good. They're not as accessible to our body. I recommend 1 to 4 grams every day. Take the lower end of that dosage if you have atrial fib or if you have you have concerns with episodes of atrial fi atrial fibrillation. I have atrial fib and I take omega-3s.
All right. So far, we've talked about energy and inflammation, two forces that shape how we age, often without notice. But now, let's turn to the root cause of most chronic problems, metabolism. Because when that starts to slow down or change, the effects show up in your blood sugar, your weight, your long-term risk for chronic disease, your arteries, plaque. This just keeps going. And cardiovascular risk, and uh Alzheimer's risk.
So supplement number three. Metabolism is one of the first systems to slow down with your age. You might notice it in your weight, your digestion, or how your body responds to meals. You first start losing your ability to metabolize carbs when you eat them. That raises your insulin. Your higher insulin changes your ability to uh to burn fat. So what started out as a problem with one fuel quickly turns into a problem metabolizing both fuels. Often the earliest signs show up in your blood work. Blood sugar begins to creep up, A1C rises, doctors use words like borderline or pre-diabetic or "you got a touch of sugar." Then they usually follow it with advice to eat a little bit less and walk a little bit more. And that's just incomplete advice.
That's where Mark found himself at age 66. He was healthy by most measures, but his recent lab results were trending in the wrong direction. His fasting glucose was elevated. His A1C was just past the safe zone. And he hadn't changed his routine. If anything, he'd become more active since retiring. But still, this was happening. Somehow, how something was working wrong. It wasn't working the way it used to work.
When Mark reached out to us, he was clear. He wanted to fix his problem as soon as possible, but he didn't want to take medications. After cleaning up some issues with his lifestyle, we recommended a specific supplement. It comes from several different plants, and it's been used in traditional medicine for centuries. Particularly in parts of Asia. But what's unique about it is how it affects cellular metabolism. It helps activate an enzyme called, again, geek alert, AMPK, what the geeks call a phosphokinase. It's critical to energy metabolism. Sometimes it's described as the body's metabolic switch, which plays a key role in how cells use energy, store fat, and manage blood sugar.
Evidence backs this up. Several trials have shown that it can lower uh fasting glucose, improve insulin response, and reduce A1C over time. In some head-to-head comparisons, it's even shown similar effects to metformin, one of the most commonly prescribed drugs for type 2 diabetes. But its benefits don't stop at blood sugar. There's evidence that it may also support gut health by positively influencing the microbiome. Some studies have found improvements in cholesterol levels, particularly LDL, and triglycerides.
The results can vary based on the individual and your metabolism. Within 3 months, Mark's fasting glucose had dropped back into a safer range. His A1C improved. He also noticed that his appetite felt more stable with fewer spikes, fewer crashes. He described it as a steadying effect. Again, that word, "better balance," something that helped him feel in control again.
The supplement was berberine, a yellow plant compound with a long history and a growing body of modern research behind it. While it's generally well tolerated, berberine isn't free of risks. It can cause digestive issues like cramping, constipation, diarrhea, uh, and especially when in high doses or on an empty stomach. It may also lower blood sugar more than expected, especially when combined with diabetes medications like metformin, which is why monitoring this supplement is important, especially at the start. I recommend taking 500 milligrams once or twice a day, although there are some people that can benefit from taking twice that amount. I usually split it into two or three servings with meals. Taking smaller amounts more often can help reduce the risk of side effects and support better absorption.
Supplement number four. Now that we've looked at metabolism, let's go deeper into a different kind of system slowdown. The kind that you feel in your muscles, your recovery, and your physical strength. As you age, your legs cramp at night. Small aches linger longer than they used to, and they can get you to feeling restless, anxious, tense. These issues often come and go, so they're easy to dismiss. It happens for a few minutes, and then it's gone, and you forget about it. But for many people, they're signs of a quiet deficiency.
That's what happened to Janet. She's 70, healthy by most measures, and she'd been working fine, but she started waking up tired. This happened for months. Her sleep wasn't restful even when she got a full night's sleep. She started getting muscle cramps in her calves while walking and sometimes woke up in the early in the morning because of a muscle cramp in her calf. Now, managing cramps can be very challenging. Some people say, "Take this, take that." Some people say, "Walk it out." Fortunately, when I first met Janet, we ran some labs and we identified something that over half of people deal with. It's a specific mineral deficiency that Janet thought should not be a problem. After all, she was eating significant amounts of meat and leafy greens. But still, it seemed that she was not getting enough. So, we decided to supplement.
The supplement we recommended is involved in more than 300 enzyme reactions in the body. It helps regulate nerve signals, muscle contractions, heartbeat, and glucose metabolism. But perhaps more important for Janet's case, it also helps regulate melatonin and GABA. G-A-B-A. These are two key drivers of healthy sleep and stress management.
Several studies show that restoring normal levels can improve sleep quality, can help support healthy blood pressure in people with mild high blood pressure problems. Janet began taking the supplement daily. Within the first 2 weeks, the muscle cramps began to fade. She was still waking up early, but she didn't feel as foggy or depleted anymore. After a month, she told her daughter she finally felt like she was getting real sleep again, more regulated physically and mentally.
The supplement that helped Janet was magnesium. While generally safe and well tolerated, magnesium can cause side effects if taken in large doses, especially in forms that are less easily absorbed. These may include diarrhea, nausea, or abdominal discomfort. Most people take between 200 and 400 milligrams per day, often in the evening, due to its calming effect. Certain forms like magnesium glycinate or citrate are better absorbed and gentler on the stomach compared to cheaper forms like magnesium oxide. So, as usual, and as is often the case with especially with supplements, you get what you pay for.
Now, for people looking to support cognitive function, magnesium L-threonate is worth considering. It's a form that's been shown to cross the blood-brain barrier and may support working memory, focus, and age-related brain health. It's usually more expensive, but some find the cognitive benefits are worth the investment. And it's not just cognitive benefits. It is mood as well. It's a big mental health improvement. Uh depression and its twin brother or kid brother, anxiety. Magnesium helps. Um, but again, you got to get that magnesium across the blood-brain barrier. And that's what magnesium L-threonate has demonstrated it can do. Timing and consistency matter. The benefits build gradually, not overnight.
Now, we're going to shift. We're going to talk about something that ties it all together. A nutrient that protects strength, focus, and resilience in both the body and the brain.
Supplement number five. Let me tell you about Bob. He's 68 and active. He gardens, cooks, walks his dog every morning. But last spring, he tripped on an uneven sidewalk and couldn't catch himself. Fortunately, no bones were broken. But he realized he wasn't doing as well as he thought. When he came to see us, he was focused on heart disease and metabolic health. So, we asked for a test that would help us assess muscle and fat. It's called a DEXA scan. D-E-X-A, a DEXA metabolic scan to tell us about muscle and fat. And there it was. The results suggested Bob was dealing with sarcopenia. Sarco is a Greek word that means flesh or muscle, and penia is also a Greek word that means lack of. So basically, sarcopenia is lack of muscle or weak muscles.
When we first talked to Bob about this plan to improve this, he wasn't really surprised. He had heard of resistance training and protein intake and high-intensity interval training. So he was ready. He was already beginning to think about it, but he didn't expect the next recommendation. A supplement, a specific supplement that is best known for supporting muscle growth in athletes, but research has shown it can keep older adults uh strong, help them retain their strength, maintain independence, and even support cognitive function.
This compound is stored in your muscles, and it's used during short bursts of activity. It's also used during long, slow activity, too. It helps recycle energy so your muscles can contract and recover more efficiently. Again, back to the geeks and nerds. That ATP, when it drops off a phosphorus group, guess where it's dropping it off? To this supplement. In younger people, the body produces enough on its own for routine living. But with age, these reserves begin to shrink.
Multiple clinical trials have shown that supplementing with this compound helps improve muscle mass and strength in older adults, even in those who don't engage in heavy exercise. But using this supplement and heavy exercise is a great combination. It has been associated with better balance, lower risk of falls, and improved performance in daily activities like climbing stairs or even getting up from a chair. There's also promising research connecting it to brain health. It plays a role in cellular energy in the brain and may help support memory, focus, and processing speed, especially under physical or cognitive stress.
Bob started taking the supplement and added two simple strength exercises to his morning routine. After a few months, he noticed he wasn't hesitating at curbs anymore. His balance was improved. He felt stable again. The supplement he used was creatine. While generally safe, some people report a little bit of water retention, bloating, mild digestive discomfort when they've first began taking it, so give it some time. These effects usually fade with consistent use. I have a full video discussing creatine in more detail. The link is in the description and we'll put it at the end as well. The typical doses for older adults is 3 to 5 grams per day. It doesn't need to be cycled on and off like some people do. It can be taken with or without food. Some people choose to load with higher doses initially, but for most, a steady daily intake is a simple and effective way to do this kind of supplementation. That's what I've done. A powdered form dissolved in water is the most common way of getting it.
But healthy muscles are more about strength than bulking up. Strong muscles, especially the ones in your legs, become your best safety valve against metabolic disease, insulin resistance. So, or pre-diabetes and diabetes. So taking care of those leg muscles is critical. There's one specific vitamin we haven't discussed yet and it becomes critical to the purposes of healthy aging, and that's coming right now.
Supplement number six. Let me tell you about Connor. Connor is 76. He's a retired engineer. He lives independently and keeps his own garden. He's always been mentally sharp. But over the past year, something's begun to feel different. He was forgetting words, sentences, leaving sentences incomplete, misplacing things more often than he had in the past. Again, all of us have some of these things. The question is how often and how serious. His daughter noticed he was moving a little bit slower. During a phone call, Connor mentioned that he had started feeling numbness in his fingers that made it harder to handle small things like his keys. He assumed it was arthritis or poor circulation, but still wasn't sure.
The first time I met him, I was worried about Alzheimer's. We talked about the role of metabolic disease in Alzheimer's and helped him clean up his lifestyle. Again, some of the key things: lowering his carb, his glycemic carbs, improving his uh muscle work like HIIT training, re-HIIT training, strength training, resistance training. But after running some tests, we decided to try supplementing with a specific vitamin. The body needs very little of it, but it does need it consistently. And with age, it becomes harder and harder to absorb. That's exactly what had happened to Connor. His diet had not changed, but his ability to absorb the nutrient from food had declined slowly and silently. He had no clue until he started having symptoms in his hand and fingers. That's when we began to notice it.
Low levels of this vitamin are surprisingly common in older adults, especially those over 60 and even more so in those over 70. After cleaning up his lifestyle and with the help of the supplement, within a month, the numbness in his fingers started to fade a little bit. He was clear that he was getting better. And the vitamin, the supplement, B12. It's water-soluble. It's generally safe even at higher doses. But there is still a few things to know. In some people, especially those with kidney disease or certain blood disorders, high-dose B12 should be used carefully. Mild side effects like nausea, acne, or a slightly racing heart can occasionally occur, but they're uncommon. The real concern is missing the deficiency entirely, or assuming the symptoms are just part of getting older.
Most people take between 500 to 1,000 micrograms every day. Some take it as part of a B complex, others as a standalone uh B12 supplement. I usually recommend a methylated B complex supplement, especially for those with methylation issues. And guess what? Over half of us have methylation issues. That's a long topic. Let me know if you'd like like for me to cover it in a separate video.
Cognition is complex and no supplement fixes everything. But for people like Connor, correcting a deficiency made a real difference in how his brain and body felt. Now, we'll turn to the next and final supplement in this series. It's one of the oldest healing agents in the world. Something found in nearly every kitchen. You've probably had it in yours, and it has surprising effects on blood sugar, on inflammation, and therefore on aging.
Now, before we get to this final supplement, I want to share something important with you. If you're trying to improve your health and avoid heart attacks or strokes, but if you feel frustrated with your current care or overwhelmed by all the conflicting advice that you get online, "do this, don't do this, don't do that," you're not alone. I've been through the same journey. Years ago, I had to educate myself just to understand what was really going on in my own body, which is kind of embarrassing given the levels of medical training I've had. I used to run the program in preventive medicine at Johns Hopkins, and we still didn't know the things we need to know to protect our health and to deal with "quote normal aging" with the right changes. I was able to reverse arterial plaque. Now, you don't have to have that as a goal. That's not practical. But lowering and taking the vast majority, 90 to 95% of normal heart attack risk, cardiovascular risk, stroke risk, risk for blindness, um, erectile dysfunction, kidney disease. You can take 95% of those risks off the table. I did with myself. But this isn't something that I recommend doing on your own. It can be dangerous without the right support. That's exactly why I've personally trained a team of clinical advisors who work with me every day helping people improve their heart health and avoid heart attacks, avoid strokes, blindness, kidney disease, erectile dysfunction through lifestyle-first care. If you're ready to take that next step, just give us a call at 859-721-1414. That's 859-721-1414 or click the link below in the description to learn more. We'll walk you through the options and find something that matches your goals and your situation. If you're not ready, that's okay. I've also created a great seven-step free heart attack prevention protocol. You can download it using the link below. It's the perfect starting point.
Let's talk about the final supplement.
Supplement number seven. To me, metabolic disease, that is insulin resistance, pre-diabetes, diabetes are the real culprits of accelerated aging. Most people are not aware because 75% of doctors don't know how to diagnose it. Over time, the body becomes less responsive to insulin and even a balanced meal can send glucose higher than it used to. I have an example for you.
Tom is 67 years old, but he felt like 80. He acknowledged he didn't have the healthiest lifestyle until his 60s, but he tried to change that. He had lost over 60 lbs and still had some belly fat, but again, he was doing great work. He also noticed that he was struggling with his blood sugar levels. When he talked to us, we helped him clean his lifestyle and we also recommended some supplements and medications. However, since Tom had some side effects uh due to other supplements and medications, he wanted to try a more natural route. So, we knew exactly what to recommend.
There's a spice that has been shown to improve insulin sensitivity and reduce fasting blood sugar. It appears to work by slowing the rate at which food leaves the stomach and enters the bloodstream. This reduces postmeal spikes. Some studies have also found improvements in cholesterol and triglyceride levels. Though the results aren't always consistent and appear to be variable by person. What stands out here is that it appears to mimic part of insulin's action, helping the body process glucose more efficiently. For people with insulin resistance, pre-diabetes, that kind of support can help the body regain balance before things progress further, and it might just be what your body needs. A little bit of a slowdown in hitting the blood in that blood sugar hitting your bloodstream.
Tom started using a concentrated extract version of the supplement, not the powdered spice from the grocery store. Within a few weeks, he noticed his postmeal energy crashes had stopped. He described it as feeling less up and down and more stable throughout the day. His next round of blood work showed a small drop in fasting glucose. And while he knew that one supplement wasn't a solution to his to all of its problems on its own, it did feel like a meaningful positive step, a step in the right direction.
We're talking about cinnamon, specifically Ceylon cinnamon and not the more common cassia variety. Ceylon has much lower levels of a compound called coumarin, not coumadin, coumarin. Coumarin can be harmful in high doses o over time. So you don't want that. So that's why you want the Ceylon cinnamon. That's why source and quality matter here more than most people realize.
While cinnamon is generally safe, it can lower blood sugar more than expected if combined with diabetes medications. So anyone already on treatment should be careful. Anytime you add berberine or cinnamon or anything else that can impact blood sugar and you're already taking metformin, just be careful when you start taking it. It can also cause mild digestive upset in some people, especially if taken in high doses or on an empty stomach. Most people take between 500 and 1,000 milligrams per day, a half a gram to a gram in a standardized extract, not the spice that comes out of the spice cabinet. It's often divided with meals. The powdered form used in cooking isn't concentrated enough to have a therapeutic effect unless taken in very, very large amounts, which I don't recommend. Look for supplements that clearly state Ceylon cinnamon and list the extract strength.
Tom's made a huge progress, but that's because he combined the cinnamon with the most important lifestyle strategies. He cleaned up his carb intake, especially the glycemic carbs that changed his blood sugar levels. He got uh the right amount of calories. He started exercising. He improved his strength. He did the the resistance training, the high-intensity interval training. All of those things together made a big, big change.
So, now that you know the the seven supplements I recommend, especially for seniors, there's something else to think about. It's just as important, in fact, in some ways more important. That's knowing which supplements to avoid. Take a look at the worst supplements most seniors think are healthy. Click this link.