4 Supplements to Stock Up On Now

It’s better to have it and not need it than need it and not have it.

At a time of broken supply chains, concerns about maintaining health, and constant government interference with access to natural products, it’s crucial to stock up on the following essential supplements, as well as others you might use every day.

Why You Need to Stock Up Now

Worker shortages, COVID-related closures, and ships that cannot reach their port have led to disastrous supply chain problems.

Though it will take a few more months to become severely problematic, the supplement industry will face significant supply problems soon.

Supplement manufacturers may feel the impact of broken supply chains more than most other industries. Here’s why:

Raw materials come from across the globe, which means production or shipping issues with a single ingredient in a formula will keep the product from getting produced.
As we move into cold and flu season, demand could rise to greater levels than ever, with much of the population still fearful of getting COVID-19.
More and more research continues to come out, showing consumers the impact of certain micronutrients, herbs, and botanicals on supporting your immune system, which increases demand even more.
Pressure by government agencies to ax natural therapies, so pharmaceuticals can be sold instead, means some supplements will no longer be available to consumers.
Political tensions may prevent some countries from shipping to others, which could impact raw material availability.

Though the above are all possibilities, one thing is sure: Prices continue to climb. The cost to produce raw materials, ship them to manufacturers, pay employees to make them, and the cost to package and ship them to a customer are all increasing.

If you can still get them, you’ll pay more for your supplements a year from now than you do today.

Maintaining Ample Supply

Since most supplements have a 2-year shelf life before their efficacy starts to decrease, you can save yourself money and ensure you’ll have ample supply by keeping at least a six-month supply on hand.

Once you get your six-month supply, continue ordering a one-month supply each month after that and using the oldest products first. That way, you won’t have products that expire, and you won’t have to worry as much about products running out of stock.

Preppers often think this way about food, and many people think this way when it comes to finances, keeping an emergency fund saved up. If you’re going to maintain the best possible health, even if you face difficult times, you’ll do the same with your supplements.

While I’d recommend you keep a six-month stash of all of your regular supplements, such as the Foundational Five, I’ve highlighted the supplements below based on their increased likelihood of product shortages and rising prices.

Order based on what your budget allows, but don’t get caught without your essential supplements when supplies run out.

If you’d like to save money, get access to more product alternatives when items go out of stock, and support the content on this site, order through my Wellevate dispensary. Even if you decide to order elsewhere, I hope you find the recommendations helpful.

Save Money When You Use My Wellevate Dispensary

In addition to the types of supplements I recommend stocking up on, I’ve also included the actual products I recommend most often. Except for Young Living’s Master Formula, you can order all the supplements through my Wellevate practitioner dispensary.

I’ve set up my dispensary so you save 15% on all of the 300+ brands available, including the items I recommend below.

SHOP WELLEVATE NOW

1. High-Quality Multivitamin

A high-quality multivitamin and protein powder would be the two most important supplements to have on hand if we were in a SHTF situation. It would help ensure you meet your micronutrient needs when the quality of the food supply is questionable.

That being the case, even when things are normal, a high-quality multivitamin is a must-have in a smart nutrition program. It’ll help you cover micronutrient gaps created by your diet, stress, activity, environmental toxins, and inconsistent sleep.

High-quality multivitamins make for pretty complicated formulas. If just one of the many micronutrients, herbs, or botanicals becomes unavailable, the manufacturer must wait to produce more. A supplement company cannot legally change a formula and sell it as the same product. And with many ingredients coming from overseas, there’s a good chance your favorite multivitamin won’t be available consistently for the foreseeable future.

The following are my top picks for multivitamins. Each is available through Wellevate except the Young Living product. You can read more about them in my blog post The Best Multivitamins for Men and Women.

Life Extension Mix™ Capsules by Life Extension: The most potent and phytonutrient-filled multivitamin available.
Multi-Vitamin Elite by Thorne: Best for Peak Work and Athletic Performance.†
NeuroVite Plus Multivitamin by brainMD: Potent Brain-Supporting Formula with added antioxidants, and eye and heart health ingredients.
Kids Formula and Fiber by Smarty Pants: Best formula for kids who aren’t ready for capsules.
Master Formula by Young Living: Unique combination of vitamins, minerals, phytonutrients, and essential oils. (Order directly from Young Living)

† Thorne recently announced that all employees must get vaccinated, which surprised many of us in the natural health world, as Thorne has a reputation for leading the industry in natural health. This decision turned off many of us who question the long-term safety of the vaccine. I’ve still included the Thorne Multi-Vitamin Elite as a recommendation as it’s an outstanding multivitamin, one I helped formulate many years ago, though I was also among those who felt disappointed by Thorne’s decision.

2. Protein Powder

We’re past the point of a meat shortage being a possibility. It’s a real thing. Even Walmart cannot keep its shelves stocked with beef, pork, or chicken. That could lead more people to purchase other animal protein sources, such as fish and bison, which inevitably leads to their shortages.

You’re reading this because you’re serious about your health, so cutting back on protein is one of the last things you’d want to do. Opting for vegan protein sources isn’t much better than going without.

That leads to the importance of protein powder. It mixes well, tastes great, and makes it easy to boost your protein intake until the meat supply returns to normal.

As you stock up, I’d recommend getting plenty of whey protein and adding in some collagen protein powder if you have the space and extra money to do so.

My protein powder picks, which are all available through Wellevate, include:

Right Whey by DaVinci Labs
Whey Isolate by Klean Athlete
Pro Whey by Vital Nutrients
Vital Performance by Vital Proteins

3. N-Acetylcysteine (NAC)

In an odd “coincidence,” the FDA recently pressed nutritional products manufacturers to stop selling n-aceytlcysteine (NAC) as a dietary supplement. Their supposed rationale is that NAC was used as an intravenous drug in 1963 for acetaminophen overdose and an inhaled drug for bronchopulmonary disease.

However, their evidence seems questionable, at best, so organizations are pushing back on the FDA’s claim. It’s also interesting that many integrative doctors have recommended NAC for patients with or exposed to COVID-19, as NAC supports respiratory function and acts as an expectorant.

Amazon removed all NAC-containing products from its site, and the huge demand after the FDA’s announcement led many practitioner brands to run out of stock.

NAC offers a plethora of health benefits, so this is one supplement you don’t want to run out of. Also, since it does support respiratory health, it’s a good supplement to keep on hand during infection season.

I recommend N-Acetyl-L-Cysteine by Klaire Labs or NAC by Thorne, Pure Encapsulations, or Vital Nutrients.

4. Quercetin

Like NAC, quercetin positively impacts health a myriad of ways. It enhances body composition, acts as an antioxidant, may relieve symptoms of arthritis, and may help reduce the risk of viral infection.

Because of its molecular structure and pharmacological properties, some researchers believe quercetin might inhibit the SARS-CoV-2 virus so they recommend studying its use to reduce the risk of COVID-19. Quercetin might also reduce inflammation and organ damage, such as acute kidney injury, that occurs in some critically ill patients with COVID-19.
National Institute of Health

Though you could certainly use quercetin on a daily basis, and many people do, I’d suggest keeping at least three to six bottles on hand for when you’re at a greater risk of getting sick. If a friend or family member needs it, you’ll have it as well.

Zinc and quercetin seem to work best together, so you could easily order some extra bottles of zinc picolinate. However, I don’t see zinc supplies running out like quercetin could.

My top picks for quercetin include:

Bio-Quercetin by Life Extension
Quercetin-Bromelain Forté by Klaire Labs
Quercetin Phytosome by Thorne

Honorable Mentions

If you have the means to order more, you can’t go wrong with ordering extra of the following, as well. If you’re not sure which specific product is best to order, email me. I’ll be happy to help.

Of course, to get the most from your supplements, you need to eat well, too. As I often say…

No supplement is so good it offsets the effects of a poor diet. No diet is so good that it can’t benefit from supplementation.