Supplements and Vitamins

First, I’d like to discuss whether you really need a health supplement, let alone any of the range of super supplements.

Many people are too busy to eat well. A frozen packet from the supermarket, thrown into the microwave may be their staple diet. A regular visit or three, to a fast food outlet may complete the week. Even eating out may not go further than the local fish and chip shop.

Can anyone, in their wildest dreams, consider this a healthy diet? What are the problems?

1 there are no fresh ingredients, everything is cooked, sometimes more than once 2 microwaves are not a healthy way to cook food 3 fast food has too high fat content 4 an excess of cooking in fat causes major health problems 5 fast food has too high animal protein content 6 fast food normally contains health damaging preservatives 7 there is no balance

Even if you don’t fall into the above category, lets have a look at what is considered a healthy diet.

Typically, if you eat a lot of vegetables and fruit, you probably consider your diet is healthy. But did you know that cooking destroys many nutrients and alters others? For instance broccoli has an amazing array of health promoting nutrients, most of which are destroyed in cooking. Even in light steaming.

Most people think they need a lot of animal protein, so tend to consume it more than once a day. But did you know that animal protein makes your body acidic? You should be slightly alkaline for optimum health.

Many health problems, including cancer, cannot live in an alkaline environment, but thrive in an acid one.

Fruit is often cooked, again destroying vital nutrients. But sugar is frequently added too. Sugar is a processed food, so is hard to digest. It also contributes to your overall acidity.

So lets suppose you’re eating a diet which is high in raw fruit and vegetables. You’re feeling pretty righteous about it. But is it adequate?

It might be if it wasn’t for two important factors.

One is that most food grown today is grown for good looks rather than nutritional content. There is a saying that the west has never been so well fed but so under nourished.

On the other hand, certified organic food is grown for the high nutrient content, and looks come second. So eating organic isdefinately more healthy, but is it enough?

The second factor is your modern lifestyle. Most of us are under stress from family and/or work, live in a polluted environment and don’t relax anything like as often as you should.

So even if you are eating a lot of raw, organic produce, you’ll still need a health supplement.

Having established that practically everyone needs a health supplement, which one is the best value for money and the most effective?

Most of the health supplements on the market are made in a laboratory. In other words, they are synthesised. That’s why you can purchase isolated nutrients, such as selenium or iron or calcium. You body can’t utilise synthetic nutrients. At best, they are expensive poo. At worst, the nutrients can hang around in your body to cause problems later.

For example, synthetic calcium supplements are thought to be one cause of kidney stones.

Another common source of a health supplement is minerals. OK, so naturally occurring minerals are a bit better than synthesised nutrients, but again, your body doesn’t know what to do with them.

Your body is complex. Nutrients co-dependent on each other. For instance, calcium needs phosphorus, magnesium, vitamin A and D to be utilised efficiently by your body. Plus a myriad of trace elements and other nutrients.

Too much iron depletes your copper levels. So what’s too much?

You evolved to gain all your nutritional health requirements from food, so the best way is to duplicate this. This is naturally balanced and easily digested and utilised.