Nutritional Adequacy and Nutritional Science
Nutritional balance and adequacy has become more and more of a challenge in the 21st century. Contributing widespread factors include topsoil erosion, GMO products, hybridized wheat, agricultural practices using pesticides, fungicides, herbicides, hormones and antibiotics. Livestock-fed unnatural foods create unhealthy animals that, when tested, have altered biochemistries. In other words, they are heading toward sick, and are definitely inflamed! So in essence they are no longer, from a biochemical level, part of our normal natural food chain. Plants raised in depleted soil cannot fill up with the nutrients that are essential for humans. Essential means we need it but cannot manufacture it, we eat it or we don’t have it! If that nutrient is not present in the soil the plant cannot absorb it (plants gain their nutritional value directly from the soil), and therefore we don’t ingest it – back to altering the natural food chain. Solutions to the unhealthy profitable cost cutting practices of these industries is to buy organic produce (see the EGW’s dirty dozen list to ID top offenders) and eat clean meat, fish, eggs, and organic dairy free of hormones and antibiotics. If you shop local at a coop, ask what kind of soil repletion practices the farm uses. Someone with a good understanding of natural agriculture will be happy to talk about it. Remember, you are what you eat, and absorb!
After testing a large number of people, I am convinced that targeted supplementation with the right products confers a definite health benefit – this does not replace healthy whole food!
Here is the list of what matters when you consider supplementation to compensate or counter the above listed agricultural practices:
- Do you need it? The USDA studies tell us the likely and unlikely nutritional deficiencies for the US populations and US subgroups (children, elderly, athlete, vailed women…). Click here to see an alarming graph * Actual nutrient testing removes all guess work – see micronutrient testing in the nutrition services area.
- Is it pharmaceutical grade – 3rd party tested for purity?
- Is it at a clinically relevant dose? 100mg of calcium – hello osteoporosis. 100mg of Vitamin K – hello overdose.
- Is it in a biologically active form, one that is functional in the body? Cyanocobalamin (B12) needs to be changed in the liver to its active form, methylcobalamin. Folic acid in many people has limited conversion to active folate (5MTHF) which is the only form that can cross the blood-brain barrier and contribute to the production of neurotransmitters! This is a common problem with many nutrients of non-medical or pharmaceutical grade – they are sold in inexpensive forms that too often do not give you the health benefits you may believe you are purchasing.
- Will your body be able to break it down and absorb it? Capsule vs tablet?
- Do you take that particular nutrient with or without food? Food and stomach acid will harm some nutraceuticals, while others will not absorb without food!!
- Do you take it in the AM, PM, before bed? Some vitamins and minerals have a stimulatory effect, and if taken late in the day they may disturb sleep. Others have a sedative effect, so they could leave you looking for more sugar of coffee.
- Will it interfere with any medicines you are taking? Generally no, but there are some real exceptions!
Did you know that taking too much of a single antioxidant can make it a pro-oxidant (harmful).
What is one health condition where antioxidant ingestion can be harmful vs beneficial?
Which form of calcium can precipitate kidney stone?
Which mineral needs to be balanced with calcium, with zinc?
What nutrients help lower coronary artery calcification? Which can promote it?
What amino acid builds serotonin, dopamine, thyroid hormone?
What is essential for the complete breakdown of proteins?
Get the picture? Nutrition is a science. For safety and efficiency, it should be practiced on an individual basis, from someone well-versed in nutritional biochemistry.
