Should You take Nutritional Supplements?
You have probably heard some conservative
and uniformed doctors say nutritional supplementation for healthy people
is worthless and a waste of money. They claim a balanced diet provides
all the nutrients we need. They actually could be correct on both points.
Balanced Diet?
First, if you are eating primarily raw,
organically grown foods and prepare the majority of your meals, you
might be getting the 100+ nutrients you need everyday for optimal health.
Organically grown means that the soils used to grow the crops have been
revitalized by fertilizing with organic materials and no pesticides
or chemicals are used in the process. However most people are eating
highly processed, over cooked fast foods that are commercially grown
or raised on nutrient depleted soils that contain dangerous pesticides
and other chemicals. It has been known since the 1940's, that our farm
lands have been depleted of many essential vitamins and minerals. If
it's not in the soil, it won't be in the crops and it won't be in the
animals that eat the crops. The average American diet contains approximately
45% fat and 35% sugars, which is rich in calories but very poor in nutrients.
Unfortunately most people are not even meeting the RDA (Recommended
Daily Allowance.) RDA standards reflect the minimum nutritional requirements
for healthy people. In addition, a growing number of healthcare practitioners
believe the RDA of essential nutrients is exceedingly low for today's
toxic environment and fast paced lifestyles. The results of eating
this type of sub standard diet can easily be seen. America is the fattest
and one of the least healthy countries in the world. America is now
ranked only 27th in overall health, with 60% of its population
over fat with 30% in the obese category.
As you can see, we are not a nation of healthy people.
We are a nation that is plagued by degenerative
diseases such as Heart Disease, Cancer, Diabetes, Osteoporosis, Arthritis,
Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, Alzheimers, ADD and on and on. Most
true healthcare practitioners know that nutritional deficiencies are
the root cause of most disease. So the answer to the question should
you be taking nutritional supplements is a very positive Yes.
Are supplements worthwhile?
When many doctors say nutritional supplements
are a waste of money, they are right because most people are taking
highly processed synthetic chemicals called vitamins and minerals. Ordinary
drugstore, health food store and the latest MLM company supplements
are made in the laboratory with a few natural substances thrown in so
they can call their product natural. Any supplement that list high potency
amounts of nutrients on their label is synthetic. Such high potencies
of nutrients do not occur in natural sources. These synthetic versions
of nutrients (called isolates) are not the complete nutrient as found
in whole foods and are poorly absorbed. In addition the residues of
poisonous solvents, binders and chemicals used in the manufacturing
process, as well as the pesticides from the raw materials used, can
build up toxicity in your system. These contaminants accumulate and
over a period of years can over tax the liver and kidneys and contribute
to serious, chronic health problems. Synthetic supplements are really
not much different than taking prescription drugs. If we look at the
big picture, most people have been taking truck loads of these supplements
with very little long term results. It seems obvious that if all these
highly touted products were really working, we would have a much healthier
population.
Whole Food Supplements to the Rescue
Our bodies were designed to best assimilate
and utilize nutrients as they are found in whole natural foods. Therefore
it just makes sense that we should also get our supplemental nutrients
from supplements made from whole food concentrates. Fortunately there
are several good choices available. When considering a product, check
to see if it is a whole food product or if it is made from whole, organic,
natural ingredients without chemical additives. Consult with your healthy
healthcare practitioner and/or take a look at the whole food multi-
vitamin mineral supplement that I recommend at: www.agelesslivingnutritionals