Top 3 Supplements Recommended for Under $100 a Month
If you have ever felt overwhelmed by the supplement aisle or unsure where to begin, this article is designed to simplify things. By focusing on just three well chosen supplements, fish oil (omega-3 fatty acids), magnesium, and vitamin D, many people notice meaningful improvements in how they feel, move, and function in daily life. Before diving into supplements, it is important to remember that the foundation of good health starts with a well balanced diet. Supplements are meant to support that foundation, not replace it.
As a chiropractor, my primary focus is on the skeletal system including bones, joints, the spine, and nervous system, which controls communication between the brain and the rest of the body. Because these two systems are so closely connected, their health plays a major role in posture, mobility, pain, and overall function. This article is intentionally tailored through that lens, while also addressing broader health challenges that commonly affect these systems, including issues such as inflammation and obesity.
Convenience vs. Health
A monthly look at everyday spending that drains resources without supporting long-term health, revealing a missed opportunity to invest those dollars in nutrients that help the body move, adapt, and recover.
Spending about one hundred dollars a month on supplements is often less than what many of us already spend on things like coffee, takeout, clothes, or streaming subscriptions. According to consumer spending data from Empower, the average person spends more than $40 per month on coffee purchases. When you factor in the cost of multiple streaming services, it’s easy for monthly subscriptions alone to exceed $100. Allocating around $100 per month toward supplements is not an added expense, but a conscious decision to redirect money already being spent toward long term health and function. The difference is that these supplements are an intentional investment in how your body feels and functions every single day, supporting joints, the nervous system, energy, and overall resilience.
With that perspective in place, the next step is understanding why these three specific supplements were chosen. Fish oil, magnesium, and vitamin D are not trendy additions, but foundational nutrients that support many of the same systems chiropractors focus on every day, particularly joint health, nervous system function, inflammation regulation, and overall recovery.
Fish oil (omega-3 fatty acids): Foundational support for inflammation & recovery
How Omega-3s Support Inflammatory Balance
Omega-3 fatty acids support health largely by helping the body control and resolve inflammation, a central factor in heart disease, metabolic dysfunction, pain, and aging. Of all omega-3s, EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) are the most clinically important because they are the active forms the body uses to regulate inflammation, strengthen cell membranes, and support cardiovascular, neurological, and skeletal health.
Research shows that EPA and DHA do more than simply circulate in the body. They become part of cell membranes themselves, helping keep cells flexible, resilient, and healthy. At the same time, your body uses these omega-3s to make special chemical messengers that tell inflammation when to calm down and resolve. In simple terms, omega-3s help build healthy cells and send the signals that keep inflammation from staying stuck in the “on” position.
Beyond their effects on inflammation and cell membranes, EPA and DHA have also been shown to support skeletal health. A 2024 review published in Marine Drugs describes how omega-3 fatty acids influence bone metabolism by reducing inflammatory signaling, decreasing osteoclast activity (cells responsible for bone breakdown), and enhancing osteoblast activity (cells responsible for bone formation). These mechanisms are associated with improvements in bone mineral density and a reduced risk of bone loss and fractures, highlighting the role of omega-3s in supporting both joint integrity and long-term skeletal resilience.
This schematic illustrates the powerful ways EPA and DHA support bone health, from slowing bone breakdown to stimulating bone-building cells and reducing inflammation that undermines skeletal strength.
Image Source: Adapted from Zhang et al., Marine Drugs (2024).
Why Omega-3 Intake Is Often Inadequate
National dietary surveys and public health data consistently show that most people, particularly in Western countries, consume far less EPA and DHA than levels associated with optimal health, largely due to low intake of fish. Much of the modern understanding of therapeutic omega-3 dosing comes from the work of Dr. Barry Sears, a biochemist and internationally recognized expert in fatty acid metabolism and inflammation. Dr. Sears has spent decades studying how omega-3 fatty acids influence the body’s inflammatory balance, particularly through the AA to EPA ratio, and he consistently emphasizes that meaningful physiological benefits require higher intakes of EPA and DHA than most people obtain from diet alone. Based on this research, Dr. Sears recommends approximately 2,500 mg of EPA and DHA per day to support optimal inflammatory control. To reach that amount from food alone, a person would need to eat a large serving of fatty fish such as salmon or mackerel every single day, or multiple cans of sardines daily. For most people, that level of consistent intake is not realistic long term, which is why Dr. Sears and many clinicians advocate the use of high-quality fish oil supplements to reliably achieve therapeutic omega-3 levels.
Omega-3 levels in the body also decline relatively quickly when intake is reduced or supplementation is discontinued, often accompanied by a loss of associated benefits. This highlights the importance of fish oil as a consistent, long-term component of nutritional support rather than a short-term intervention.
Fun Fact: About 30-40% of the fat in brain cell membranes is DHA. Because DHA is literally built into brain cells, it plays a major role in memory, learning, and nervous system function, helping the brain communicate efficiently and stay resilient over time.
Dosage: 2.5 grams per day will be sufficient for most individuals
Recommended Brand: Dr. Sears’ OmegaRx Fish Oil - 120 Capsules
“Omega-3 fatty acids are considered essential fatty acids meaning they must be supplied in our diets. They are the building blocks for hormones that resolve existing inflammation. Unresolved inflammation is the primary reason we gain weight, develop chronic disease, and age at a faster rate.”
- Dr. Barry Sears
Magnesium: Essential for bone formation
Magnesium’s Role in Bone Adaptation and Remodeling
Magnesium supports hundreds of essential processes in the body, and from a chiropractic perspective, its role in bone structure is especially important. Research shows that magnesium is not merely stored in bone but actively involved in how bone forms, adapts, and remodels. About 50–60% of the body’s magnesium is found in bone, where it influences the mineral matrix and bone crystal structure. Magnesium supports osteoblast activity, the cells responsible for building bone, while also helping regulate inflammatory signals that can drive excessive bone breakdown.
When magnesium levels are low, studies show reduced bone formation, lower bone mass, and increased activity of bone-resorbing cells, which over time can weaken bone structure and limit the body’s ability to adapt to mechanical load and movement. Because bones respond to movement, load, and neuromuscular balance, adequate magnesium supports the biological side of bone remodeling, while chiropractic care supports the mechanical side.
Magnesia, Greece
The mineral magnesium gets its name from this region of mountains and coastline where magnesium-rich rocks were first recognized long before their role in human health was understood.
Photo credit: GreekDestinations.gr
Why Magnesium Deficiency Often Accompanies Blood Sugar Imbalance
While magnesium’s role in bone health is especially relevant from a chiropractic perspective, its influence extends far beyond the skeleton. The same enzymatic processes that support bone remodeling also play a critical role in metabolic health, particularly in how the body regulates blood sugar.
Nearly 30 million people in the United States are living with type 2 diabetes, and even more have prediabetes. Magnesium is involved in the enzyme systems that allow insulin to move glucose from the bloodstream into cells. When magnesium levels are low, insulin becomes less effective, causing blood sugar to remain elevated more often. Over time, the body compensates by producing more insulin, which can contribute to insulin resistance. This cycle helps explain why low magnesium levels are commonly observed in people with prediabetes and type 2 diabetes.
Magnesium is not a cure for type 2 diabetes, but research suggests it can play a supportive role in blood sugar management. Improving magnesium status may help insulin work more efficiently, particularly in individuals who are deficient, and should be viewed as part of a broader approach that includes dietary changes and movement.
How it fits into daily wellness: Magnesium is often taken in the evening to help quiet a tense nervous system, reduce muscle tightness, and make it easier to fall and stay asleep.
Dosage: 500 mg per day
Recommended Brand: NutriDyn Magnesium Glycinate - 160 Capsules
Vitamin D: Supporting Bone Health and Calcium Balance
Why Vitamin D Matters for Strong, Healthy Bones
Vitamin D is often called the “sunshine vitamin” because your skin can make it when you’re exposed to sunlight, yet many people still fall short depending on season, latitude, indoor time, sunscreen use, and skin tone. It’s best known for helping the body absorb calcium, which is why it plays such an important role in strong bones and teeth. A systematic review found that vitamin D supplementation was associated with increased bone mineral density at key sites including the lumbar spine, femoral neck, and total hip.
These areas are especially important for everyday movement. The lower back (lumbar spine) supports much of the body’s weight and plays a major role in posture, balance, and daily activity. The femoral neck, located near the hip joint, helps transfer force from the upper body to the legs when standing and walking. Because these regions are under constant stress, maintaining bone strength is critical. Stronger bones are less likely to become fragile or prone to fractures, a risk that increases with age and inactivity.
This figure brings together findings from many studies showing that higher vitamin D blood levels are consistently linked with better health outcomes across a wide range of conditions, not just bone health. It illustrates how the body’s responses tend to improve as vitamin D levels rise.
Image credit: Nutrients (CC BY 4.0), via PubMed Central.
Why Vitamin D Supports More Than Just Bone Health
Vitamin D also supports muscle function, which helps explain why low levels are sometimes linked with weakness, aches, or slower recovery. It interacts with the immune system as well, helping the body’s defenses stay balanced. Because relatively few foods naturally contain vitamin D, many people rely on a combination of sunlight, fortified foods, and sometimes supplements to maintain healthy levels.
Beyond these well-known roles, vitamin D functions more like a hormone than a traditional vitamin. Once activated, it interacts with receptors found throughout many tissues in the body, helping systems communicate and adapt efficiently. This wide reach helps explain why low vitamin D levels have become increasingly common with modern lifestyles and why maintaining adequate levels may support overall function across multiple systems, not just the skeleton. Vitamin D isn’t a cure-all, but it appears to play an important supporting role in how the body moves, recovers, and responds to everyday stress.
Fun Fact: Vitamin D was discovered at the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the 1920s by biochemist Harry Steenbock, whose research showed that ultraviolet light increased vitamin D content in foods, helping eliminate rickets and leading to food fortification practices still used today.
How it can support daily health: Vitamin D is commonly taken by people who spend a lot of time indoors or live in northern climates to help maintain muscle strength, immune function, and overall resilience.
Dosage: 5,000 IU (mcg) per day
Recommended Brand: NutriDyn D3 5,000 with K2 - 6o Capsules
Wait, why does the vitamin D supplement include K2? Vitamin D helps your body absorb calcium, while vitamin K2, also known as menaquinone, helps guide that calcium into bones where it belongs. Together, they support healthy calcium use and help reduce unwanted calcium buildup in places like blood vessels and joints.
Harry Steenbock at work in his UW-Madison laboratory in the years following his landmark discovery that ultraviolet light could increase vitamin D in food. His research laid the foundation for vitamin D fortification and one of the most successful public health interventions of the 20th century.
Photo courtesy of University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries, Digital Collections.
A Simple, Research-Informed Foundation for Long-Term Health
Omega-3 fatty acids, magnesium, and vitamin D are among the most extensively studied nutrients in relation to inflammation, bone health, nerve function, and the body’s ability to adapt to physical stress. Rather than waiting for discomfort to become chronic or chasing the next wellness trend, choosing these foundational supplements now is a simple way to care for your body over time.
As you rest, these nutrients work quietly at the cellular level, helping regulate inflammation and support repair. They provide steady background support as your body restores balance and resilience, leaving the final decision to whether the research and long-term support are worth the investment for you.
In good health,
Dr. Joshua Belville, D.C.
