The world of health supplements is wide and wonderful. The healthcare industry is booming, and as part of the consumer side of things, there has never been this large an amount of products available. People buy vitamins, weight gainers, fat burners, protein powder, home remedies, and all kinds of products to help them improve their body and change how they feel.
One aspect of the supplements industry you may not know about is practitioner only supplements. Practitioners, as you know, is a name for doctors or other qualified medical professionals. They usually work in clinics, and as such, they have better access to resources. Here is some information on practitioner only supplements and what it all means.
What is a Practitioner Only Supplement?
A practitioner-only supplement is, in short, something that you can only get from a qualified practitioner or medical professional. There are plenty of supplements you can buy from a drug store, but they are often much more diluted, less effective, or lower quality than the ones that doctors get. These supplements require a prescription because of that fact that they are of such high quality. If you take a look at the Researched Nutritionals for practitioners, you can see that they are more rigorously clinically tested. This means better results for patients, but also requires a prescription because they are more potent.
What Supplements Can Be Considered as Practitioner-Only?
As mentioned, ones that have a higher quality of testing are often considered practitioner only. This isn’t to say that OTC (over-the-counter) supplements aren’t good, but sometimes they are lacking in quality because the testing standards aren’t as rigorous. Smaller effective doses also make it easier for people to take too much of a given supplement, which may result in adverse side effects depending on conditions and the nature of the supplement. In essence, there is no limit to what kind of supplements you can find that are practitioner only. Topicals, gel capsules, plant roots, powders, etc. are all branches of supplements you could find at a store, as well as receive a prescription for higher quality versions from a medical professional.
What Are the Health Benefits of These Supplements?
PHOTO CREDIT | Pexels/Artem Podrez
Just like any supplement, you can get many benefits from the supplements you would receive that are practitioner-only. The main benefit is that the higher concentration for a dosage means fewer dosages for daily use. This is a benefit that people who hate swallowing pills or other forms of ingestion will appreciate. In essence, though, there isn’t much of a difference aside from the quality and the dosage amount between OTC supplements and practitioner-only, but there is a major bonus in the absorption rates often being higher because these supplements do not include additives that many OTC variants have. This is something that is monitored by the FDA, and many supplements go unchecked or are at the minimum threshold of viability for consumption.
Is it Possible to Get Them Over-the-Counter?
Plain and simple, no. There is a reason why these are harder to get, and as outlined, it’s important to note that the quality is vastly superior making them harder to get. The quality has to be assured, and because of this, they are stronger. Needing a prescription to get them is a way of protecting patients and consumers from getting supplements that can harm them if they take too much. Even OTC supplements like vitamin C can be harmful if you take too much, but the dosages are much stronger in concentration for practitioner-only, so you cannot get them in stores.
Who Are Some Supplement Companies?
These companies are not going to be the recognizable brands you see on shelves. Instead of Pfizer, Johnson & Johnson, Advil, Tylenol, Bayer, Equate, or Kirkland, you will not be found as popular brand names because these are not supplements that you will be buying from your local drug store or supermarket. This is not a bad thing, as these brands are still well known to doctors and practitioners who trust the integrity and quality of their products. Some of these practitioner-only supplement companies include; Metagenics, Bioceuticals, and Natural Remedies Group, among others.
Not every supplement is made equal, but it’s hard to tell when you are so used to going to the store and buying your usual vitamins or supplements. There exist different supplements that are higher quality, but they are also not readily available. These are called practitioner-only supplements and are important to know about.
