I ran a series several years ago called “Supplements After 50”. Each post had a breakdown of a supplement I felt it was important to take after 50 and why. I started that series right after I turned 50, and here I am, 7 years later at 58 and I’ve updated my thinking a bit. It might surprise you.
Let me start by saying that I still believe in much of what I said 7 years ago; things like Creatine, Vitamin D, Leucine, Magnesium and Omega 3 Fish Oil are all still important, and I still try to get a dose of each. But I’ve added at least one more supplement to my regimen, and largely changed how I get them.
What’s New
The only supplement (not substance or element) I’ve added to my routine is Fatty 15 (C15:0). It’s fairly new on the market and has some good science behind it for improving a host of markers like red blood cell health, “cellular fragility”, metabolism, liver health and even sleep. I first heard about Fatty 15 on the “Metabolic Link” podcast. It’s an essential fatty acid, which means it’s something essential to the functioning of your body, but it doesn’t get produced endogenously so you have to supplement, either with diet or something like a pill. It comes naturally with milk fat, but apparently in order to get a helpful dose you also need to consume massive amounts of dairy, which can bring lots of stuff I don’t want (I’m not anti-fat, but with fat comes unnecessary calories, and also lactose and lots of saturated fat that I try to avoid because my LDL/ApoB is so incredibly high). So I’ve opted to take a Fatty 15 capsule once/day. My wife, one of our housemates, and I all take Fatty 15, and though I don’t have any concrete markers to point to, I believe my energy level is better and my sleep has improved (I take it an hour or so before bed, and have actually removed my years-long supplementation of melatonin). I think you can only buy Fatty 15 as a subscription, which we all three do, and it feels a little painful. As of now, April of 2025, a 90-day subscription is $119.95 (shameless plug: I get a discount if you subscribe using my referral link!) I’ve been taking Fatty 15 for about six months now. I have an annual physical coming up, so it will be interesting to compare my blood markers to last year and see if anything has improved at all.
What’s Changed
I’ve had a bit of a paradigm shift since I wrote the original Supplements series. I had gotten to the point where I was taking a handful of supplements every day. My pill box looked like an old woman’s and the cost was becoming crazy expensive. And at the same time, I had this mind frame that said, “No medications for me!” Here I was, fighting tooth and nail to stay healthy and stick it to Big Pharma, and yet I was doling out hundreds of dollars on supplements. So in January 2025 I made a conscious effort to ditch the pills and powders and try to get everything I need from whole foods. As of today I’m down to just three exogenous supplements: a multivitamin, Fatty 15, and creatine. Below I’ll list some of the elements I still think are important, and the foods I’m using to fill those needs.
- Protein. Instead of protein powders/shakes I get supplemental protein from a sardines (3 days/week) and nonfat yogurt.
- Magnesium. Nuts. Lots of nuts of many varieties including walnuts, almonds, and Brazil nuts. Also leafy greens whenever possible.
- Urolithin A (UA). This is new on my radar, but has a lot of good data for improving mitochondrial health, and therefore energy production, and also hints toward muscle endurance and hypertrophy, things I’m concerned about as I age. There is also some data that points to UA to help clear amyloid beta and increase mitochondrial function in mice brains. Urolithin A is produced endogenously but needs certain precursors to build on. Pomegranates, walnuts, pecans, berries, and green tea are some of those precursors, so…I include them in my daily diet.
- Vitamin D. Nothing beats a healthy dose of sunshine for vitamin D, so I purposely try to get sun on my body and in my eyes every day through multiple walks daily. However, sardines are also a great source of vitamin D, which I’ve already added to my diet.
- Omega 3. Instead of knocking back a bunch of fish oil horse pills it’s – again – sardines for the win.
- Zinc. I’m not as purposeful about seeking out a source of zinc. It’s important for a lot of reasons (see my original post), but it’s included in my multivitamin and comes along for the ride in – you guessed it – sardines, and nuts.
- Creatine. Creatine mainly comes from meat sources, which I have always gotten plenty of. However, since the science on creatine’s benefits is so strong, not only for performance and muscle hypertrophy, but also cognitive health, I don’t want to leave anything on the table. That’s why I take a creatine supplement. However, I have also increased my supplementation to 10 grams/day. I’ve found it almost eliminates my need for coffee (except that I just love the taste of coffee!). I take 5g in the morning in one shot, then 5g goes in my walkaround water bottle for the day.
The jury is still out on whether I’ll experience any deficiencies or if I’ll actually get a boost from this change. I’m writing this in April, and made the change in January. I know my brain is sharper, whether that’s from added creatine, Fatty 15, or some other dietary change. I’m still making progress in my workouts and recovery, so I’m assuming my protein needs are being met. I get my bloodwork in July, so that should tell me if anything else has gone south or improved under the hood; I’ll keep you posted!