The 10 Supplements I take DAILY to help me live to 150
My goal is to help make my Operators happier, healthier, and wealthier. This post falls under the “healthier” bucket.
Anyone who knows me knows I take supplements. But what do I take, and why? Welp. Here you go.
Primary (mandatory) supplements I take
These are the supplements that I take based on my research. NOTE: I take all vitamins and supplements AFTER eating. Many of the supplements below specifically say to take after meals. And so, to keep it simple, I take ALL of them after my first meal (typically lunchtime, as I try to eat only two meals per day). A lot of this was taken from lists I found online of Joe Rogan supplements, Dr. Rhonda Patrick supplements, Dr. Sinclair’s supplements, and this. I’ve listened to their podcasts and trust them. I also went over my list with my nutritionist (and prior 20-year Pharmacist) Julie Nicoletti (shout out Julie) and she optimized my list to remove duplicative vitamins (which also saved me money). I’ll continue to search out more experts' recommendations. Note: the three links above are not directly from Rogan, Patrick, and Sinclair, but instead lists created by other people trying to piece together the brands they use.
Athletic greens: Think of this like your multivitamin, but more. Note: You must refrigerate this after opening. Don’t forget. Add 1-serving of this powder to 6-10 ounces of water in the morning. It is an all-in-one health drink with 75 vitamins, minerals, and whole food-sourced ingredients to help support your body’s nutritional needs across multiple critical areas of health, including energy, immunity, recovery, gut health, digestion, hormonal and neural support, and healthy aging. It’s gluten-free, dairy-free, paleo-friendly, keto-friendly, vegan-friendly, low allergen, and <1g of sugar per serving. Joe Rogan, Tim Ferris, and others swear by it. It says it helps with:
Digestion, gut health, and liver support
Nervous system and immune system support
Efficient energy production and storage
Antioxidants and superfoods to support healthy aging
Hormone, neural, and adaptogen support
If you don’t take Athletic Greens, then you should take both a multivitamin and Vitamin C. If you do take Athletic Greens, you can skip these two supplements and save money b/c the same ingredients are within Athletic Greens:
Helps with heart, brain, nerve, immune, bone, and skin health.
Provides vitamins A, B’s, C, D, E, K1, K2, and minerals.
Skin: B-vitamins, Niacin, Riboflavin, Biotin, etc.
Provides immune system support.
Helps with making healthy skin by promoting collagen production.
Helps with wound healing from collagen production and antioxidative properties.
Vitamin D (D3): Supports healthy teeth, bones, and muscles, as well as cardiovascular health and immune function. You get Vitamin D from the sun. If you work inside a lot, you should add this to your routine.
Probiotic: This is the best probiotic on the market. It is expensive (~$60 per month), shipped in a styrofoam cooler with ice packs and a temperature monitoring sensor, and must be refrigerated when you get it. It contains eight strains of live bacteria. But, with the importance of gut health, I don’t skimp on it. The vast majority of doctors, and patients, I know with gut issues, have said that this is the #1. This may also help with IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and/or Ulcerative Colitis.
Ingredients: Live Ingredients - lyophilized - Lactobacillus acidophilus DSM24735, Lactobacillus plantarum DSM24730, Lactobacillus paracasei DSM24733, Lactobacillus, delbrueckii subspecies. bulgaricus DSM24734, Streptococcus thermophilus DSM24731, Bifidobacterium longum DSM24736, Bifidobacterium breve DSM24732, Bifidobacterium infantis DSM24737. Inactive ingredients: Cornstarch
Fish oil (Omega 3’s): For heart, brain, vision joint, and immune health. Believe it or not, our bodies can’t make Omega-3s, so we must obtain them through our diet. The best source is from oil-rich fish like salmon, mackerel, tuna, and sardines. And this supplement ;). I got this size b/c it’s a 700mg pill so I can swallow it easier. I hate big pills.
Resveratrol (Dr. Sinclair's recommendation): This one is 600mg. Dr. Sinclair takes 500mg a day. This works with the NMN (see below). This is needed to activate the sirtuin genes, which protect our DNA and epigenome, while NMN is needed to fuel the sirtuins. Some people think pterostilbene is better than resveratrol b/c resveratrol breaks down in the gut quickly, but pterostilbene apparently doesn’t and is more stable and absorbable in the human body.
Note: When buying this supplement, we should be looking for trans-resveratrol, not cis-resveratrol. From David’s studies, cis-Resveratrol did not activate the sirtuin enzyme, but trans-Resveratrol did. Next, the purity of the trans-resveratrol is important, we’re looking for 98%+. He mentions that 50% purity can give diarrhea.
Note: MUST BE REFRIGERATED AND KEPT IN THE DARK (like in the fridge haha). He takes his with yogurt. Apparently, you want to take it with fat, but it doesn’t seem 100% mandatory.
Nicotinamide Mononucleotide (NMN) (Dr. Sinclair's recommendation): These are 250mg pills. But Dr. Sinclair takes 1g max per day (which would be four of these pills). This fuels the sirtuins. Shown to slow down aspects of aging in animal studies. It’s a precursor to NAD+, an important metabolic molecule that many proteins need to carry out their function like protecting and repairing our DNA and epigenome. 1g is a high dose. 250-500 mg is ok.
Secondary supplements:
I take all of these as well. I just don’t consider them to be in my core group of things I absolutely take above. If I’m lighter on cash, I’ll skip the below.
Alpha Brain: Joe Rogan’s OnNit brand. This is a nootropic, a dietary supplement that helps support certain brain functions including memory, mental speed, and focus. My long-term goal with this is to be able to keep my memory intact as long as possible, remember names and people better, and keep focused. It works by getting your brain to make more alpha waves and supports the production of neurotransmitters, chemicals that relay information in and from the brain.
Ingredients: Vitamin B6 (as Pyridoxine HCl), L-Tyrosine, Oat (straw) Extract, Phosphatidylserine, Cat's Claw (Uncaria tomentosa) (bark) Extract, L-Alpha Glycerylphosphorylcholine (GPC), Bacopa (aerial parts) Extract, Huperzia serrata (aerial parts) Extract, L-Leucine, Pterostilbene, Vegetarian Capsule (Cellulose, Water), Silica.
Glucosamine: Supports healthy joints. My knees and hips are bad from my years of running, and so I take this.
Glutathione: This is a detox antioxidant. Your cells contain glutathione, which is a substance made from three amino acids: cysteine, glutamate, and glycine. Glutathione acts as an important antioxidant in your body. That means it helps combat free radicals. These are molecules that can damage your body's cells. Benefits of taking Glutathione include brain, liver, and nerve support. It is also good for heart, lung, and eye health.
Quercetin Phytosome: Provides respiratory and sinus support. Supports allergy sufferers by helping stabilize the mast cell membranes that store and release histamine. It provides nutritional support for individuals who occasionally suffer from allergies.
Protein powder: This will be replaced soon with a non-whey-based protein. Still trying to figure out which one is best. I use this after I work out.
Things I’m NOT TAKING yet that I am exploring
Metformin (Dr. Sinclair’s recommendation): I believe this has to be prescribed. I DON’T TAKE THIS ONE b/c of the nausea warnings. Recommended: 1g per day. 500mg in the AM and 500mg in the PM. Metformin has been shown to extend the lifespan of animals, including mammals. Con: can cause diarrhea and gastrointestinal discomfort which should subside after a few weeks. DO NOT TAKE THIS ON DAYS YOU EXERCISE. Basically, what metformin does is the same thing that exercise does: it breaks down cells so that they will then repair themselves.
Iron: Not sure if I should be taking this or not. Taking too much can be dangerous. Your body uses iron to make hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen from the lungs to all parts of the body, and myoglobin, a protein that provides oxygen to muscles. As a result, iron deficiency anemia may leave you tired and short of breath.
Magnesium CitraMate: It helps support energy production, heart and lung function, and bone health, as well as the metabolism of sugars and other carbohydrates. It’s also shown to help muscle tenderness, and kidney support by helping to decrease the level of calcium oxalate and phosphate in the urine.
That’s all I got!
