Before we dive in, if you want to understand where your body actually is in the drainage sequence before you spend another dollar on supplements, take my free Detox Phase Quiz in under 2 minutes.

78% of Americans are currently taking supplements.

Pew Research Center just dropped this data from a July 2026 survey of U.S. adults.

67% are taking vitamins or minerals, 31% protein supplements, 25% omega oils, and 62% of those taking vitamins say they are extremely or very important to their health.

I don’t doubt that they matter to people.

I do have a question that literally nobody in the supplement industry wants you to ask:

Are you actually absorbing any of it?

You are not what you eat.

You are what you absorb and digest.

And, absorption requires something the supplement industry never mentions: open drainage pathways, moving bowels, adequate bile flow, a liver that isn’t burdened, and a gut lining that can actually receive what you’re putting into it.

If your colon is congested, your bile flow is impaired, and your liver is overburdened, then supplements land in a system that can’t process them.

They pass through.

You feel nothing.

You buy more.

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This isn’t a fringe position. It’s basic physiology.

Bile is produced by the liver and stored in the gallbladder specifically to emulsify fats and carry fat-soluble nutrients, including the vitamins and omega oils most Americans are spending money on, across the intestinal wall and into circulation.

No bile flow, no absorption.

Full stop.

The supplement industry is a $209.5 billion global category built on the assumption that putting something in your mouth means it reaches your cells.

It doesn’t.

Not automatically, and certainly not in a congested system.

The most expensive supplement protocol in the world will land flat if the terrain isn’t ready to receive it.

Worth noting: herbal and botanical supplements account for approximately 50% of liver injury cases linked to supplement use.

The very things people are taking to “support” their liver are injuring it…because a congested, overburdened liver cannot safely process what’s being poured into it without the drainage foundations in place first.

This is not a corner case. This is happening at scale, inside a $209 billion industry that has no financial incentive to tell you that your system needs to be cleared before it can receive anything.

The sequence matters more than the supplement.

Clear first, then optimize.

Where are you in this picture? Take my free Detox Phase Quiz to find out, as it will show you exactly which part of your drainage sequence needs support before you add anything else.

If this resonated, I’d love to know: what supplements are you currently taking, and have you ever wondered whether they’re actually landing? Drop it in the comments. I read and reply to every single response.

And if you’re ready to address the actual terrain, not just layer more inputs onto a system that hasn’t been cleared, I have a few spots open for 1:1 work this fall. The first step is a free 45-minute call where we map your terrain and figure out what your body actually needs.

Book your free client intake call

And, if you have any other questions or comments, don’t hesitate to ask me any time in my weekly Q&A in my paid subscriber channel. If you’re not a paid subscriber, sign up below.

The Thursday Take — You Are Not What You Eat…