When it comes to maintaining about boosting your metabolism so you can lose weight at a steady rate, providing your body with the right nutrients is key. If you’re not taking in adequate amounts of essential vitamins and minerals, your body won’t be able to burn fat as quickly as you may like. However, it’s not always easy to get everything you need directly from food—especially if you’re following a special diet. Luckily, that’s where supplements come in!
To learn about the best metabolism-boosting supplements you can take every day to promote healthy weight loss over 40, we spoke to board-certified physician Dr. Pouya Shafipour, Monika Wassermann, MD, Dietitian Kiran Campbell, RDN, and Dietitian Juliana Tamayo RD, MS of Fitness Clone. They pointed out four helpful vitamins that can help kickstart your metabolism. Find them all below!
B Vitamins
Tamayo says taking B vitamins such as B1, B6, B9, and B12 can do wonders for your metabolism. B12, in particular, is especially important to make sure you're getting enough of. "In most cases, vitamin B12 is the most important vitamin to supplement," she says, noting that this nutrient is "directly essential for the conversion of carbohydrates into energy." You should especially consider supplementing B12 if you don't eat meat. As Tamayo says, "it is particularly difficult for vegans and vegetarians to obtain this vitamin through diet." Noted!
While B12 is the most important when it comes to boosting your metabolism, other B vitamins like B6 can also play a major role in this function, as well as your overall health. "When you have low levels of any of these vitamins, you might feel tired, sluggish, and in a bad mood. Low vitamin B12 and low folate also lead to anemia, which is a common deficiency among older Americans," Tamayo warns. For this reason, she recommends taking a B-complex vitamin to get all those essential nutrients in one supplement. "When you supplement with a B complex, you give your body the necessary levels of B vitamins to support bodily processes, including cell metabolism, energy production, DNA regulation, and red blood cell production," Tamayo says.
Zinc
Next up on our list of metabolism-boosting vitamins is zinc, which Shafipour says is "an essential micronutrient that helps your metabolism function efficiently." But it isn't just your waistline that will benefit from taking this supplement on a daily basis; zinc plays a role in nearly every aspect of our health. "It stimulates hundreds of enzymes involved in cellular processes," Shafipour explains. "Without it, we are at risk of decreased immunity, gut issues, problems with our hair, skin, and nails, or underactive sex glands in men."
If you want to start taking zinc every morning, Shafipour offers a word of advice: take this vitamin with protein. "Eating animal proteins like beef, eggs, and cheese can improve the bioavailability of zinc from plant foods."
Vitamin C
Another crucial vitamin that you may want to supplement with if you're looking to boost your metabolism is none other than Vitamin C. Wassermann explains that this supplement "regulates the metabolism of amino acids, boosts brain energy, and aids in lowering inflammation in the brain neurons and other body parts."
How, exactly, can all of this help you slim down, though? It's simple: When your brain and body are functioning at their full potential, you'll be better equipped to take on whatever the day throws at you and smash all of your fat-burning workouts. "Vitamin C intake can keep the body and brain in a better position for engaging in physical activities which overall has a positive impact on metabolism," Wassermann explains. Perfect!
Multivitamin
If you're looking for a way to pack in as many essential, metabolism-boosting nutrients as possible, Campbell recommends going with a tried and true multivitamin. This is one of the best ways to fill any gaps in nutrients that may be missing from your diet, including B vitamins, Vitamin C, iron, and magnesium. A lack of any of these can hold your body back from functioning to its full potential and lead to in fatigue, loss of appetite, and more, which can all contribute to a slower metabolism. "When it comes to maintaining or possibly even boosting metabolism, it's especially important to prevent vitamin and mineral deficiencies by way of a multivitamin," Campbell explains.
Ultimately, Campbell notes, "No two human beings are alike. We do not eat the same things. We do not get the same amount of exercise or sunlight. And we do not practice the same healthy (or unhealthy) lifestyle habits. A multivitamin, however, is able to provide a more universal solution to whatever we may be lacking in," she concludes.
