Vitamin Supplements

ZINC

Zinc is found in high concentrations in bone tissue and has an important role in bone formation. Research proves that zinc is important for those with osteoporosis or low bone density. In one study it was shown that there is a connection between low bone density and zinc deficiency in women with osteoporosis.

Good sources of zinc are Brazil nuts, bean sprouts, oysters, peanuts, pecan nuts and pumpkin seeds. If supplementing zinc take the more absorbable forms which are zinc picolinate, glycinate and citrate. Take it separately from food and other supplements, especially calcium. Read the rest of this entry »

Minerals in multivitamin and mineral tablets often omit the `elemental’ value of the compound, stating only the amount of the mineral compound. For instance, 100mg of zinc amino acid chelate will provide only 10mg of zinc and 90mg of the amino acid to which it is chelated (attached).

You want to know the amount of the actual mineral — in this example, 10mg. This is called the ‘elemental value’. Most reputable manufacturers make your life easy by stating something like ‘zinc amino acid chelate (providing 5mg zinc) 50mg’ or ‘zinc (as amino acid chelate) 5mg’, both of which mean you are getting 5mg of elemental, or actual zinc. Read the rest of this entry »

Now that you’ve worked out what to take, you’ll want to know when to take them. This depends not only on what is technically best, but also on your lifestyle. If taking supplements twice a day would mean that you’d forget the second lot, you’re probably better off taking them all at once. After all, nature supplies them all in one go, with a meal. Here are the `ten commandments’ of supplement-taking: Read the rest of this entry »

Phytochemical

Plants are a rich source of nutrition, but everything that is found in plants is not necessarily a nutrient.

Nutrients are things that our bodies need to grow and function correctly. If you think of a person’s body as a chessboard, nutrients are the chess pieces that are needed to play the game. Sometimes, however, the plants also contain some substance_s that are not chess pieces, although they can influence the game.

Many plants contain chemicals that, just like prescription medicines, have a modifying effect on the body’s processes. About 25% of prescription medicines come from plants. Aspirin, for example, comes from the bark of a type of willow tree, but is a chemically purified and modified form of the original salicylate. Read the rest of this entry »

A common protest of patients whom I advise to embark on a fat- free diet is, ‘But don’t our bodies need some fat?’ Yes, in order to achieve optimum health they do. Now I’m going to introduce you to what I call the golden drops: essential fatty acids. So powerful are these fatty acids in maintaining health that they have been nicknamed ‘Vitamin F’. I like to think of them also as the master vitamins, because they play such a crucial role in nutrition. Read the rest of this entry »

Over the years, no other vitamin has received as much media attention, hype, and hoopla as vitamin C. Thanks in great part to its most prominent and outspoken advocate, Linus Pauling, millions of people religiously consume large amounts of vitamin C in hopes that it might cure them of everything from the common cold to cancer.

Despite all this attention, the average person isn’t sure what to believe about this highly touted nutrient. Furthermore, until recently, most physicians weren’t sure what to tell their patients. Research has now provided us with many of the answers. Read the rest of this entry »

At one time vitamin B was thought to be one single substance. Now we know there is a whole family of these vitamins, more than a dozen of them. We refer to them as the B complex vitamins. They are often found together in various foods. But they are all different in their effects upon the human body. Some are needed in the transfer of energy within the cells. Others are required for the formation of red blood cells. But they have other activities as well. Read the rest of this entry »

There are many different vitamins, all having their own particular function to carry out. Research workers in many lands are searching for the answers. Just when they think the final answer is at hand, a whole new vista opens before them. Vitamins are close to the secret of life itself.

Contrary to what many may think, a vitamin is not a food. If you ate vitamins and nothing else, you would starve to death. Nor do they provide energy to build up worn-out tissues. Then why are they so important? Because without them no life could exist in either plants or animals. They are the catalysts, or “go-betweens,” that bring about all the innumerable chemical reactions within the body. Read the rest of this entry »

Vitamin E has grabbed its share of headlines in recent years. In fact, few nutrients have been the subject of as much discussion as this one. According to the most zealous vitamin proponents, vitamin E is nothing short of a magic pill capable of everything from enhancing one’s sex life to stopping the aging process in its tracks.

You shouldn’t be surprised to learn that many of these claims have little if any scientific support behind them. Still, a growing body of evidence shows that vitamin E does have significant health benefits. This will help you sort scientific fact from fiction regarding this much-discussed vitamin. Read the rest of this entry »

Phosphorus

Another very important mineral upon which the body depends is phosphorus. This mineral plays a leading part in many of our vital processes.

It is present in every tissue and has much to do with the growth and functions of all the cells of the body. Phosphorus enters into a great many different chemical reactions, especially those involving enzymes, proteins, and carbohydrates.

Phosphorus is essential for all the muscles. Believe it or not, you could not lift an eyebrow without phosphorus! It is part of the nuclear structure of every cell. Phosphorus also helps to maintain the normal acid-base balance of the body.

In combination with calcium it forms a large part of the bony framework on which the rest of the body depends. It is essential in building sound, healthy teeth. Most of the phosphorus in the body is stored in the bones. Like calcium, it can be drawn upon for needs elsewhere. Read the rest of this entry »