Vitamin Supplements

The emergence of niacin as a specific vitamin dates back to the 1930s, but it has been known to the chemists as a substance called nicotinic acid for well over a hundred years. The vitamin occurs both as nicotinic acid (the acid) or nicotinamide (the amide), and these are the two specific names which come under the generic, or family title, of niacin. Occasionally it is written, incorrectly, as B3 and in the U.S.A. the generic term niacin is sometimes used to describe the acid form of the vitamin.

Another name for niacin found in older books on nutrition is ‘vitamin PP‘. This refers to the deficiency disease, pellagra. Niacin was found to protect against pellagra and was accordingly described as the pellagra- prevention factor, hence PP. This term is no longer in use but it does help in remembering a little of the history of this B vitamin. Pellagra is a skin disease which affects communities which live on maize as their main source of food with little or no protein foods to supplement the diet. Typical symptoms are severe dermatitis and reddening of the skin. It is summed up in textbooks as the disease of the three D’s — dementia, diarrhoea and dermatitis, but this is rather a sweeping description and can cover effects in many other deficiency diseases and illnesses. Read the rest of this entry »

During the formation of niacin from tryptophan yet another vitamin is needed and again it acts as a coenzyme. This is vitamin B6 and it is given the name pyridoxine. Of all the vitamins this is probably the greatest worker and it takes part in over sixty different metabolic reactions.

As we saw in the descriptions of NAD and FAD many coenzymes are involved in the transference of single atoms from one substance to another. Many reactions in the body require a greater change to take place and whole groups of atoms may be transferred between molecules. Read the rest of this entry »

Sunshine is a mixed blessing to vitamins. It providesenergy for growth and vitamin production in green plants and is essential for the ripening of fruits and cereals, but after the harvest it can be destructive, causing wilting and vitamin loss. It can promote the production of vitamin D in our skin, but it can also destroy the vitamin content of a bottle of cod liver oil left in the light. In addition it destroys the riboflavin content in a bottle of milk left in the sun for only a few hours. Unfortunately, the trouble does not end there because the riboflavin turns into a substance called lumoflavin and this destroys any vitamin C in milk. This simple fact has been slow to filter through to the dairy industry and the traditional, clear, glass milk bottle is still with us in many parts of the country. Its replacement by cartons has been for economic reasons as much as for nutritional ones. Read the rest of this entry »

The well-planned vegetarian diet provides a perfect example of how to get all the vitamins you need without really trying. All the fruit and vegetables supply vitamin C, and the and pulses (beans and lentils), together with the whole grains and cereals, make up most of the B complex vitamins. Many vegetarians are health orientated and keen on sport and outdoor exercise. This ensures they will get all the vitamin D they need from the sunshine.

The only deficiency which might occur concerns B12 and this possibility is usually confined to vegetarians who do not eat dairy produce. Read the rest of this entry »

Excipient: any inert substance used as a dilutant or vehicle for adrug.

Exogenous: being derived or developed from external causes. FDA: Food and Drug Administration.

Fibrin: an insoluble protein that forms the necessary fibrous network in the coagulation of blood.

Free-radicals: highly reactive chemical fragments that can produce an irritation of artery walls, start the arterio-sclerotic process if vitamin E is not present; generally harmful.

Fructose: a natural sugar occurring in fruits and honey; called fruit sugar; often used as a preservative for foodstuffs and an intravenous nutrient. Read the rest of this entry »

Absorption: the process by which nutrients are passed into the bloodstream.

Acetate: a derivative of acetic acid.

Acetic acid: used as a synthetic flavouring agent, one of the first food additives (vinegar is approximately 4 to 6 percent acetic acid); it is found naturally in cheese, coffee, grapes, peaches, raspberries, and strawberries; Generally Recognized As Safe (GRAS) when used only in packaging.

Acetone: a colourless solvent for fat, oils, and waxes, which is obtained by fermentation (inhalation can irritate lungs, and large amounts have a narcotic effect). Read the rest of this entry »

Arginine

This amino acid is necessary for the normal function of the pituitary gland. Along with ornithine, phenylalanine, and other neuro chemicals, arginine is required for the synthesis and release of the pituitary gland’s growth hormone. The need for arginine is especially great in males, since seminal fluids contain as much as 80% of this protein building-block, and a deficiency could lead to infertility.

WHAT IT CAN Do FOR You:

• Increase sperm count in males.
• Aid in immune response and healing of wounds.
• Help metabolize stored body fat and tone up muscle tissue. Read the rest of this entry »

Amino Acid Supplements

Free-form amino acids are now available in balanced formulas or as individual supplements, because so many have been found to offer specific health-enhancing properties — from improving the immune system to reducing dependence on drugs.

It’s wise, when taking amino acid supplements, to take also the major vitamins that are involved in their metabolism, for instance: Vitamins B6, B12, and niacin. And if you’re going to take an amino acid formula, make sure it’s well-balanced. Read the label! For protein synthesis to occur, there must be the balance between “essential” and “nonessential” amino acids, and the essentials in proper proportion to one another. (Lysine should be in a 2:1 ratio to methionine, 3:1 to tryptophan, and so on. Read the rest of this entry »

The Protein Amino Acid Connection

Protein is a life necessity in the diet of man and all animals. Actually, though, it is not protein itself that is required, but the amino acids which are the building blocks of protein. If any essential amino acid is low or missing, the effectiveness of all the others will be proportionately reduced.

Amino acids, which bonded with nitrogen form thousands of different proteins, are not only the units from which proteins are formed, but are also the end products of protein digestion. Read the rest of this entry »

Breaking the RDA Code

Many people are bewildered by the variances between vitamin standards listed as RDA, U.S. RDA, and MDR. It becomes much less confusing when you understand that they are not the same thing.

RDA [Recommended Daily Dietary Allowances] came into being in 1941, when the Food and Nutrition Board of the National Research Council of the Academy of Sciences of the United States was established by the government to safeguard public health. The RDA are not formulated to cover the needs of those who are ill — they are not therapeutic and are meant strictly for healthy individuals — nor do they take into account nutrient losses that occur during processing and preparation. Read the rest of this entry »