diff --git a/lib/supabase/client.ts b/lib/supabase/client.ts
index 66c992c..0d28efb 100644
--- a/lib/supabase/client.ts
+++ b/lib/supabase/client.ts
@@ -1,11 +1,14 @@
 import { createBrowserClient } from "@supabase/ssr"
 
 export function createClient() {
-  const supabaseUrl = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL || ""
-  const supabaseAnonKey = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY || ""
+  const supabaseUrl = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL
+  const supabaseAnonKey = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY
   
   if (!supabaseUrl || !supabaseAnonKey) {
-    throw new Error("Supabase environment variables NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL and NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY must be set.");
+    throw new Error(
+      "Missing Supabase environment variables. " +
+      "Please set NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL and NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY in your environment."
+    )
   }
   
   return createBrowserClient(
diff --git a/lib/supabase/middleware.ts b/lib/supabase/middleware.ts
index 18869e7..348ef56 100644
--- a/lib/supabase/middleware.ts
+++ b/lib/supabase/middleware.ts
@@ -6,12 +6,14 @@ export async function updateSession(request: NextRequest) {
     request,
   })
 
-  const supabaseUrl = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL || ""
-  const supabaseAnonKey = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY || ""
+  const supabaseUrl = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL
+  const supabaseAnonKey = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY
   
   if (!supabaseUrl || !supabaseAnonKey) {
-    // If env vars are not set, just pass through without auth check
-    return supabaseResponse
+    throw new Error(
+      "Missing Supabase environment variables. " +
+      "Please set NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL and NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY in your environment."
+    )
   }
 
   const supabase = createServerClient(
diff --git a/lib/supabase/server.ts b/lib/supabase/server.ts
index 24cbd4c..c1bf617 100644
--- a/lib/supabase/server.ts
+++ b/lib/supabase/server.ts
@@ -4,16 +4,19 @@ import { cookies } from "next/headers"
 export async function createClient() {
   const cookieStore = await cookies()
   
-  const supabaseUrl = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL || ""
-  const supabaseAnonKey = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY || ""
+  const supabaseUrl = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL
+  const supabaseAnonKey = process.env.NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY
   
   if (!supabaseUrl || !supabaseAnonKey) {
-    console.warn("Supabase environment variables are not set. Using placeholder values.")
+    throw new Error(
+      "Missing Supabase environment variables. " +
+      "Please set NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_URL and NEXT_PUBLIC_SUPABASE_ANON_KEY in your environment."
+    )
   }
 
   return createServerClient(
-    supabaseUrl || "https://placeholder.supabase.co",
-    supabaseAnonKey || "placeholder-anon-key",
+    supabaseUrl,
+    supabaseAnonKey,
     {
       cookies: {
         getAll() {