People who eat healthy, exercise and get enough sleep can usually count on having good energy levels. However, if your sleep patterns are off, you exercise inconsistently and your diet is poor, you may find that you need a little extra help to get going. There are all-natural dietary supplements that can help give you that little extra push during the day.
Ginseng
Ginseng is known in Asia for its energy enhancing properties and for its ability to balance the body and help it deal with stress. It is still being debated here in the West as to whether those claims are true. According to The National Institutes of Health (NIH) MedlinePlus, there is not enough evidence to support its ability to improve athletic performance, however there is some evidence that it can be effective in people suffering from fatigue.
Spirulina
Spirulina is a superfood that promotes overall well being and can increase energy levels. It is a fresh-water algae and a complete protein, which includes all of the essential amino acids. A recent study by the Institute of Human Performance and Rehabilitation in Greece found that spirulina supplementation improved endurance in runners by 30 percent, significantly increasing the time to exhaustion.
Creatine
Creatine is a natural nutrient, most of which is found in the skeletal muscle of the human body. Athletes may find creatine particularly helpful in increasing performance, especially in sports requiring short bursts of energy, like sprinting or powerlifting. According to NIH MedlinePlus, there is some evidence supporting creatine's ability to increase work capacity in athletes, as well as increasing endurance and time to fatigue, but more large-scale studies are still needed.
L-Carnitine
L-Carnitine is a natural nutrient fund in the cells of the body, especially the brain, neural tissue, muscle, and heart that provides physical energy. Most people get enough from meat, fish and dairy products, however vegetarians or those with limited diets should take a supplement. Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center reports that preliminary studies show evidence that carnitine can be helpful in relieving illness-related fatigue, but that studies on its effectiveness in increasing sports performance are still inconclusive.
Tongkat Ali
Tongkat Ali is an energy supplement that comes from the root of a tree found in Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia. It has long been used by the natives in those areas as medicine and as a tonic, energy enhancer, and as an aphrodisiac. A 2003 study published in the "British Journal of Sports Medicine" reported that Tongkat Ali had been effective at increasing testosterone levels in the body and thus increasing both physical and sexual energy. It can have dangerous side effects if taken in large amounts.
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