Ordering supplements online.

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Lydia1960

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Relationship to Diabetes
Type 2
Had a blood test done because I was feeling quite tired, exhausted and getting chills, having difficulty regulating my body temperature. The results showed that I was not at optimal level for quite a few of the tests, ferritin, folate, B12, magnesium etc and I was advised to buy supplements to build them up to the right levels.

Is it safe buying supplements online. Somewhere like Amazon or Boots? I have a problem with swallowing tablets especially large ones so have been looking at the ones that are chewable, but am not sure if they are going to have all the right ingredients in them as normal ones? And also there's the problem these days of tablets that aren't legit and would have no effect. A complete waste of money, so it is suggested you try your local pharmacist, but not sure they do chewable tablets? Need to get my levels up to optimal because I know diabetes type 2 can make you feel lethargic and under the weather, so need to know whether it is due to this, the exhaustion or other matters..
 
Id say no dont order anything pill wise online it could contain anything.I hate swallowing pills my metformin is massive so i eat it amongst food in my mouth so it goes down easier
 
The thing is about that is that some tablets aren't meant to be taken that way and it could affect their effectiveness.

What I could do is go online, like to Boots or my pharmacy and check for myself what supplements they have and, if appropriate go to my local pharmacy to buy them there?
 
Lydia1960 said:
The thing is about that is that some tablets aren't meant to be taken that way and it could affect their effectiveness.

What I could do is go online, like to Boots or my pharmacy and check for myself what supplements they have and, if appropriate go to my local pharmacy to buy them there?
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Yeah sounds like a good idea Lydia let us know whats there.
 
Try Holland and Barretts, they have loads of different supplements.
 
Lydia1960 said:
Had a blood test done because I was feeling quite tired, exhausted and getting chills, having difficulty regulating my body temperature. The results showed that I was not at optimal level for quite a few of the tests, ferritin, folate, B12, magnesium etc and I was advised to buy supplements to build them up to the right levels.

Is it safe buying supplements online. Somewhere like Amazon or Boots? I have a problem with swallowing tablets especially large ones so have been looking at the ones that are chewable, but am not sure if they are going to have all the right ingredients in them as normal ones? And also there's the problem these days of tablets that aren't legit and would have no effect. A complete waste of money, so it is suggested you try your local pharmacist, but not sure they do chewable tablets? Need to get my levels up to optimal because I know diabetes type 2 can make you feel lethargic and under the weather, so need to know whether it is due to this, the exhaustion or other matters..
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Have a look in your local supermarket as their prices are quite often a lot cheaper than chemists or on line places.
Just crush the tablet between two spoons if you can not swallow them very well, this way you don't have any extra expense from chewables even if available.
 
Certainly don't buy anything on line from any company you do not recognise. You probably won't come to any harm, but they may do you no benefit. Stick to the high street, or the online versions of high street shops.
 
All sensible advice and I especially like Lucy's reference to Holland & Barrett. Definitely worth investigating. Is it safe to crush tablets to enable swallowing of them? Wouldn't that either dilute their effectiveness or could be dangerous if entering your esophagus, unprotected?
 
Lydia1960 said:
All sensible advice and I especially like Lucy's reference to Holland & Barrett. Definitely worth investigating. Is it safe to crush tablets to enable swallowing of them? Wouldn't that either dilute their effectiveness or could be dangerous if entering your esophagus, unprotected?
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The key thing is to read the label and patient information leaflet carefully. If it says "do not crush"... Or, go to a pharmacy inside a supermarket, where you have the advantage of combination of advice from pharmacist (some pharmacy assistants are also well informed, but not professionally qualified) and supermarket own brand prices.
 
Steff said:
Id say no dont order anything pill wise online it could contain anything.I hate swallowing pills my metformin is massive so i eat it amongst food in my mouth so it goes down easier
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Great advice.

Try to avoid online if at all possible.
 
Sometimes you only get details on the bottle which usually doesn't mention anything about not crushing the tablets, but I think you are right. Going to the local supermarket and requesting some advice from their pharmacist is a very good idea...
 
Lydia1960 said:
Sometimes you only get details on the bottle which usually doesn't mention anything about not crushing the tablets, but I think you are right. Going to the local supermarket and requesting some advice from their pharmacist is a very good idea...
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Hi Lydia, if it doesn't say swallow whole or do not split the tablet on the container then you can assume it's ok to crush the tablet. folic acid tablets are so small I doubt you would have a problem with those anyway. Another suggestion is can you get a liquid multi vitamin?
 
I'll check the bottles on the supplements that I do have at this moment for that and as for liquid multi vitamin, not sure how strong they would be if a multi vitamin. My optimal levels are quite low so I need some supplements with maximum strength which can boost these levels..
 
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