Clinical and biochemical research has proven that to survive in the modern world, we need to supplement our diet with vitamins and other nutrient concentrates. Dietary supplementation is proven beyond a doubt to be good for day to day health, long life, and freedom from disease. Decades ago, the first vitamin researchers thought that vitamins were only needed by the body in small quantities and that the absence of an obvious deficiency state meant everything was okay. So for example, if our teeth weren’t falling out we didn’t need to add vitamin C to our diet. Since then, researchers at all the academic centers—many starting out as skeptics—have reached a consensus that taking nutrient concentrates over and beyond what we get from our foods helps us to (1) maintain good health, especially because modern foods are not as nutritious; (2) lower our risk of developing disease; (3) slow the progression of an established disease; (4) improve quality of life for the elderly and likely help prolong lifespan. A whole new paradigm has emerged, by which we all understand that supplementing our daily diet with clinically proven nutrients (sometimes called nutraceuticals) is a kind of nutritional insurance policy. Each
of us would do well to become more educated about our body then develop
a personalized vitamin-mineral program to suit. At theminimum, we
must find (a) an excellent multivitamin/mineral supplement, (b) a
potent essential fatty acid supplement, and (c) extra antioxidant
vitamins. After that we can scout for supplements to give targeted
support for whichever of our organ systems are weak. This approach
is scientifically sensible, financially affordable, and distinct from
the “magic bullet” and other faddish approaches sometimes
popularized by people wanting to make a quick buck. Bad news: the popular “one-a-day” products don’t measure up to these minimum proven requirements. It’s simply impossible to pack enough into just one capsule. Generally, three to six “one-a-day” capsules are needed. Liquid products can useful but taste is a challenge. Least useful are tablets, which often don’t dissolve properly after they’re swallowed and so fail to make theit nutrients available. Concerning pricing, generally you get what you pay for. Most of the cheapest products omit some essentials (silicon, for example) or are grossly inadequate in others (vitamin B12, commonly). It’s important to carefully read the ingredients label. Many products carry additives that are not essential to their action and have unpleasant side effects. Some people complain they can’t take vitamins. But reputable vitamin raw materials are identical to the substances as they exist in the body. These people are often reacting to substances such as sucrose (sugar) added for taste, to synthetic dyes or other artificial colourants, to weird coating agents, or to miscellanous other agents of unproven safety such as magnesium aluminum silicate or titanium dioxide. Clean, pure, quality supplements don’t have these additives, which are not needed for the product to be taken, absorbed, and give benefit. As you shop, examine the label carefully. First, look for an expiration date together with a lot number. If either of these is not present, poor manufacturing practice is indicated-think about not buying the product. Especially for products on sale, check that your date of purchase is well within the expiration date. Next, read the “Supplement Facts” box to get the percentage daily values for each of the essential nutrients. Then go to the ingredients list. Look for the additives just listed, but also consider rejecting any product that offers minerals that are not essential, or that are included only as their oxide salts or as “chelates.” Oxides are poorly absorbed in comparison to other affordable forms such as citrates and malates. A few mineral chelates are safe to take and well absorbed, but many are inadequately documented. Be careful of zinc or iron as their sulphate salts, which can cause stomach upset. A few companies offer different multivitamin/mineral-type products for men and women. This can be a good thing if the consumer is willing to pay more. But here the main issue is that the essential nutrients shouldn’t be shortchanged in favor of gender-specific ingredients. Often it’s better to purchase a separate product with adequate potency of gender-specific ingredients. To learn about the multivitamin/mineral product that I developed and take myself, click here. [1.MULTIPLEX ADVANCED] Take Extra Vitamins C and E The therapeutic benefits of some vitamins require intakes that we cannot expect our multivitamin/mineral product to supply, and for these we need additional supplement products. Two such are vitamin C and vitamin E. Vitamin C goes into our water phase compartments, and daily intakes of 6 to 12 grams or more can help control troublesome viruses (influenza, herpes, HIV-1, hepatitis B or C, papillomaviruses), besides boosting our overall resistance, energy and wellbeing. Pleasant powders are available, buffered ones being the best. Smoking burns away vitamin C, as do other environmental pollutants and the thousands of other metabolic stressors we encounter in the modern world. To learn about the vitamin C product I developed and take myself, click here. [2.AB-C, LABEL NOT YET AVAILABLE] Vitamin E is the premier antioxidant for our oily phases, and especially for the cell membranes which make our metabolism efficient. Vitamin E, like vitamin C, is lifesaving: daily intakes in the range 100 to 400 IU and occasionally higher seems to cut the risks of heart disease and other ill health by up to half. Very few multis offer this much. Nor does the diet round up this much, even with multiple servings of vegetables. Research from Tufts University and elsewhere proves that older people benefit sometimes remarkably by taking at least 1,000 milligrams of C and 200 IU of vitamin E. Immune functions improve, free radicals in the blood go down, cortisol and other stress hormones fall. To learn about the vitamin E product I developed and take myself, click here. [3.TRUE E] Essential Fatty Acids Are Really Vitamins The essential fatty acids (EFA) are vitamins: deficiency states have been demonstrated for them. The two kinds of EFA, omega-6 and omega-3, have a “yin-yang” metabolic interplay, counterbalancing while complementing each other. Unfortunately, in today’s world, we get either too little of both kinds or too few of the omega-3s. Consequently most or all of us are in a state of inflammation. Inflammation is currently, the biggest story in medical research, and may have been ever since Virchow proposed its importance for illhealth more than a hundred years ago. Stated most simply, inflammation is a “fire in the body” that can initiate and promote diseases as different and lethal as heart attack, stroke, diabetes, even cancer. There exists a mountain of research studies to show that the long-chain omega-3 fatty acids are nutraceutical anti-inflammatories, both potent and safe to use. Here specifically, EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) are needed: they are the functional forms in our cell membranes. The shorter-chain alpha-linolenic acid as from flaxseed oil is very poorly converted to EPA and DHA. Omega-3s from fish oils can present problems with consumer acceptability, and some can be contaminated with mercury or other highly toxic pollutants. But there’s a lot at stake here: DHA and EPA benefit all the organ systems and even have the endorsement of mainstream health associations to lower the risk of first and second heart attack. A unique new product, oil of Antarctic krill, has proven benefits, is uncontaminated and supplies DHA and EPA omega-3s in their most activated forms: as phospholipids. To learn about the exciting new omega-3 product I take for myself, click here. [4.KRILL OIL] Orthomolecular Nutrients Are Practically Vitamins A number of nutrients are not formally classed as vitamins because the healthy body supposedly can make them. These are orthomolecules, first defined by Professor Linus Pauling as molecules orthodox to our metabolism, natural and routine participants in our enzyme pathways. Clinically proven orthomolecular nutrients include the phospholipids phosphatidylserine (PS) and phosphatidylcholine (PC), carnitine and acetylcarnitine, taurine, alpha-lipoic acid, and coenzyme Q10. Probably the best-researched orthomolecule is coenzyme Q10 (“CoQ”). All our cells must have CoQ10 to make the energy essential to stay alive. It is also a potent antioxidant. Our cells have the enzyme machinery to make CoQ10, yet many people with heart problems show a functional deficiency of CoQ10, Many of the stain drugs commonly prescribed for cholesterol control are known to block CoQ10 synthesis. Supplementing with generous quantities of CoQ (100 mg or higher) can markedly improve heart failure patients. People who are elderly, diabetic, have chronic viral infections, take lots of pharmaceuticals or lifestyle drugs, or have other serious metabolic impairments, may not be able make enough of CoQ and other orthomolecules to keep up with their needs. Selected orthomolecules can be added in with combinations of vitamins and essential minerals, to benefit individual organ systems such as the heart and circulation, nervous system, immune system, liver and kidney, eyes, prostate, female reproductive system, or the body as a whole. To learn about the CoQ product I recommend, click here [5.CoQ LABEL, NOT YET AVAILABLE] Stress Increases the Body’s Nutrient Needs Never underestimate the power of stress to make you sick. Stress causes overproduction of cortisol and other hormones, and these can wreak havoc on our tissues. In the broadest biological sense, stress means any challenge to the body’s life processes. There’s physical stress: exposure to too much cold or heat or noise. Nutritional stress comes from malnourishment, eating junk food, drinking alcohol or too much noise. Mental stress comes from prolonged anxiety, fits of anger, depression. Chemicals foreign to the body cause toxic stress; one model is cigarette smoke. Toxic stress can also come in the form of over-the-counter (OTC) drugs such as acetaminophen (Tylenol), aspirin, and other NSAIDs, and many prescription drugs. People taking pharmaceuticals—whether OTC or by prescription—are well advised to increase their daily intakes of multivitamin/minerals and antioxidants. Other agents of stress (life stressors) include infectious agents, such as viruses, bacteria, fungi, parasites. These gremlins hijack our biochemical machinery and siphon off nutrients that we need for our own survival. As our immune system combats these unwanted guests, inflammation can develop that further challenges our metabolism. But don’t underrate the benefits that dietary supplements can have against infectious agents. Vitamin C and minerals such as zinc and magnesium do help combat influenza, and increased nutrient intakes can help slow AIDS progression. Some whole herbal preparations such as ginseng, Eleuthero and Astragalus have “adaptogenic” antistress benefits. One breakthrough of modern science is the understanding that ALL forms of stress can deplete our antioxidants and other important biomolecules, thereby increasing our risk for dysfunction, disease, and poor wellbeing. Don’t underrate the importance of nutrients against ANY STRESS you may face. Managing Specific Health Problems with Nutrients Hundreds of books and tens of thousands of scientific papers have documented the successes achieved with nutrients to treat clinical disease conditions and achieve healing. Numerous controlled clinical trials show that vitamins and minerals used in combination with other orthomolecules and with standardized herbal preparations from reputable sources can ameliorate, heal or cure just about any health problem. And without harmful effects. Unlike most drugs, nutrients are generally safe to take for long periods of time. Frequently, potent combinations of nutrients outperform the drugs they’re being compared against. Nutrient combinations can be made to fit each individual’s needs. Sometimes it’s useful to use both the nutrients and a drug, but to lower the drug dose and so achieve better overall benefit with lessened side effects. For the potent liver detoxication support product I developed, click here [6.HEPA TROPE] For the safe and effective joint health product I developed, click here [7.CONNEXIN] For my bone density support product, click here [8.OSTEO SYNERGY] For the safe and effective nerve recovery product I developed, click here [9.NEURORECOVERY] For my memory enhancement product, click here [10.BRAIN POWER, LABEL NOT YET AVAILABLE] For the immune system enhancement product I developed, click here [11.IMMUNOGLYCANS] Genes are Rarely the Problem Each
of us inherits some bad genes, but those that are really bad often
bring life to an end in the first three decades. For most of us, whatever
bad genes there are can be overridden by taking potent and reputable
dietary supplements and following a disciplined healthy diet and lifestyle.
By committing to a personalized dietary-vitamin program then integrating
it with physical fitness and spiritual centering, we optimize our
chances for long life free of pain and disease. |
