STOP ruining your supplements

Most people miss out on major benefits from quality products because they do not handle their supplements appropriately. Today I’ll show you how supplements should be handled - from the moment you buy them to how you store and consume them - so you actually get what you paid for.

We will go together through the following points:

What are “food supplements”?
What is oxidation?
Why the composition of ingredients matters.
Buying tips (before you pay).
Storage tips (at home + travel).
Quick checklist + wrap-up.

In Europe, food supplements are legally considered as foods, so they fall under the food category. The EU definition says food supplements are foods meant to supplement the normal diet, and they are concentrated sources of nutrients or other substances with nutritional or physiological effects, and they’re sold in dose form—like capsules, tablets, ampoules, powders, or drops.

Now we know that supplements are actually foods and food expires and oxidizes. Oxidation is a chemical process where sensitive ingredients react with oxygen - or other reactive molecules - and slowly break down. Oxidation is happening everywhere in nature, even in our own cells where oxidation leads to an increase of free radicals also called reactive oxygen species (ROS). It’s simple chemistry.

Four things speed up oxidation:

Oxygen exposure (opening the bottle again and again)
Light (especially UV)
Heat and moisture (humidity is a big one)
Product composition (interaction between the ingredients)

Some compounds are naturally more fragile - especially omega-3 fats and certain vitamins. Water soluble vitamins like Vitamin C and B Vitamins are more fragile than fat-resolvant vitamins like A, D, E or K. For example, vitamin C can oxidize into dehydroascorbic acid when exposed to factors like light and heat, and then it can degrade further.

Based on a large study on Vitamin C stability from 2022, a 7 day storage of a fruit juice at 35 °C reduced Vitamin C levels by 56%. The storage temperature below 25 °C is optimal for maintaining the ascorbic acid. Here we see the oxidation process of Vitamin C, the final product is a harmful pro-oxidant.

So you can imagine what that means for your favorite fruit juice that you buy in your local store in Summer when it is not cooled.

The same principles apply to light exposure, but it is less severe and with heat and moisture that are most harmful to supplements and food in general.

What oxidation looks like (real supplement examples)

How do you recognize oxidation? It can be obvious, or completely invisible. Here are common examples:

Example 1: Fish oil / omega-3

Omega-3 supplements, especially from fish, are very sensitive. Warning signs are stronger smell, unpleasant “rancid” taste, and bad digestion. In 2015, a total of 171 supplements from forty-nine brands were assessed, with 39 % exceeding the international voluntary safety recommendations for total oxidation (TOTOX) value.

Example 2: Vitamin powders

Most vitamins are sensitive. Moisture + heat + light speed degradation. If your powder starts to clump doesn’t automatically mean it’s ‘bad’, but it can be a warning sign that humidity got in and oxidation has started.

Example 5: Minerals

Minerals are inorganic and hold on to their chemical structure but they can interact with co-ingredients within a product. Often you see it in color changes.

Example 6: Polyphenols from plants

They fall under the same category as vitamins as they are highly sensitive to heat and moisture. Again, watch for color changes.

The formula itself is the issue

Oxidation can also be caused or promoted by bad product compositions. A big problem is the cheap multi-vitamins that are available everywhere. This is because certain minerals like Iron interact with vitamins and might cause oxidation. Personally I would never buy one of these multi-vitamins that just contain everything. The risk of interaction is just too high.

Select products from brands that know what they are doing. Watch for transparency and the qualifications of the product developers or the brand owner.

Now let's see what we can do?

Buying tips (before you pay)

Most people check the label… but ignore the biggest factor: how the product was stored before it reached you.

Tip 1: Check the expiration / best-before date
If it’s heavily discounted and close to the date, ask yourself: will you finish it in time?
Tip 2: Inspect packaging like a quality engineer
Tip 3: Check where the store keeps it
Do not buy supplements stored in direct sunlight, near a window, near radiators, or in hot warehouses.
Tip 4: Choose brands that show quality systems
Choose brands that are transparent and ideally are testing their products and produce according to best industry standards like HACCP or GMP.

Storage tips (at home)

Rule 1: Store in a cool, dark, dry place (obviously the worst places are in the bathroom or next to the window or a heater). I recommend an optimum temperature is between 12-18c°.
Rule 2: Keep the original container
Rule 3: Close the lid immediately
Rule 4: Avoid contamination: “Don’t reach in with wet hands. For powders: use a dry and clean scoop.”

Travel tip (quick):

“Don’t leave supplements in a hot car. Use a small bag and keep them out of direct heat.”

Consumptions tips (at home)

When you open a supplement, consume it. Personally, when I test supplements and they are open longer than 3-4 months, I throw them away. That is also why you should not buy big bottles with 6 or even 12 month supply. At the end of the bottle, there will not be much left of your precious vitamins.

For this reason, I do not offer large badges with a delivery quantity of more than three months per product in my company.