60% of Americans consume a multivitamin & 50% have visited alternative care providers (herbalist, etc.) yet all disease indices continue to rise. Why?
Did you know that studies have shown an adult women in 1951 could receive her RDA/RDI of vitamin A & Beta Carotene from eating 2 peaches, but now she would have to consume OVER 50 peaches to get THE SAME AMOUNTS of these nutrients? (USDA Study results noted in Pediatrics Journal, 1998, 133(5):593-600.)
Because of these types of studies, in 2002, the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) declared "it appears prudent for all adults in America to add a multivitamin and mineral supplement to their diet". (Source: JAMA, Jun02)
Now when you go to the grocery store you see shelves that are "full",...right? Well,...according to the AMA declaration, that's where the subtle, but profound, issue of vibrant health begins. We see "full" but they declared many, many items on the shelves (even many fruits and vegetables) "empty" - due to green harvesting, mineral deficeint soil growing practices, pesticide usage, modern processing, etc. And because of all the studies on this, the USDA has increased their recommendation from 5-7 servings to 10-12 servings of Fresh, Fruits & Vegetables per day. (Source: USDA.gov)
When British Sailors suffered heavy losses due to the disease scurvy, but one sailor survived fine by digesting some lime, and then they all starting using limes - they became known as "limies". Now, you may "think" (as I did) that it was the vitamin C that did the job...but in 1937, a Nobel Prize in Medicine was awarded to a man named Albert von Szent-Gyorgyi (1903-1986). He discovered it was the "whole food" that prevented scurvy -- "We have found that in certain pathological conditions (scurvy), ascorbic acid is ineffective, while the condition can readily be cured by the administration of extracts of Hungarian red pepper or lemon juice."
The typical method for bringing vitamins to market is to "isolate" them. What that does, is remove {or isolate} the vitamin (vitamin C in this example of scurvy) FROM its whole food aspect. Check yours by not eating with them - if you feel sick, they are probably not "food based". Or,...you can check the label. If it states Made in China or USP that generally indicates that they are synthetic (not food). Or, if the vitamins are listed in the RDA/RDI table as well as in the ingredient list, they are synthetic and/or isolated vitamins and they won't do your body much good at all.
