Why You Need To Supplement. Video

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Introduction

Most people believe that by following the FDA’s Food Guide Pyramid, that they will be getting the necessary vitamins and minerals in their diet. In theory this assumption would be correct; however there are other factors that the pyramid does not take into consideration. Vitamin supplements provide a good way of getting the vitamins that we may be missing.

Age

Rapid growth spurts can quickly deplete nutritional resources. Children are subject to growth spurts, and therefore may require nutritional supplements. The alternative to supplements is to ensure that the child is receiving sufficient nutrition through food intake. The downside of this approach is that when the child is not experiencing growth spurts, their food intake will be excessive, and can result in obesity.

Although the cause is not known, elderly people may have a lower intake of vitamins and minerals, in particular Fiber, Calcium, Iron, and Zinc. The reduced intake appears to be associated with deficiencies in Folic Acid (Folate), Vitamin C, Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin) and Vitamin B6 (Pyridoxine).

Allergies

Most individuals suffer from some food allergies. When the allergy is substantial enough, it can result in the complete omission of some foods from the diet. When an allergy is to wheat (Gluten) or dairy (Lactose), it can result in omission of complete food groups, and dietary sources of Thiamin, Riboflavin and Calcium.

Chronic Stress

Stress is when your body experiences a fight or flight reaction to a given situation. When stress becomes unrelenting, it is called chronic stress. Chronic stress drains the body of energy, and accelerates the aging process. Chronic stress has been linked to depression, anxiety disorders, suicide, heart attack, stroke, and perhaps, even cancer.

Convenience Foods

All food is not created equally. Convenience foods are foods that have been designed to be readily available. These foods tend to be high in calories, but relatively low in nutritional value. Although some convenience foods are more nutritional than others, they all tend to lack the nutritional value as a freshly prepared meal.

Diets

If you go back and look at the FDA’s Food Pyramid, you will notice that just about all foods are included. The exceptions of course are the so called junk foods, which have relatively no nutritional value, hence the term junk food. The pyramid suggests that your diet should include all of the food groups, and in specific portions. Most diets suggest that the portions should be different, or that some foods should be avoided completely. Although modifying your diet from the pyramid may result in weight loss, the odds that it can do so, while still providing the same nutritional value is slim.

Environmental Elements

We pollute our environment, and it in turn pollutes us. Our bodies have the ability to deal with the toxins that we eat, drink, and even breathe, but the detoxification of our bodies requires additional nutrients.

Food Preparation

Food contains the most nutrients; the less it is removed from nature. The way we prepare food has a direct impact on its nutritional value. As an example, beef is at its highest nutritional value raw. As you cook the beef, it starts to lose some of its nutritional value, and continues to do so the more it is cooked. The same is true for other meats, dairy, vegetables, and fruits.

Food Processing

Commercial food processing does any of a number of things to the food in an attempt to make the food look more appealing, have a longer shelf life, or to protect it from insects during growing. Some of the processing results in the food losing some of its nutritional value. Others such as pesticides, are toxic and remain in the food, and are digested by the body. These toxins build up in the body, and the body must consume nutrients in order to detoxify itself.

Illness

When the body is suffering from any type of illness or injury, it needs to work extra hard to try to repair itself, or fight off infection. Your body requires additional nutrients in order to perform this work. For instance, to recover from surgery, the body must utilize the cellular repair mechanisms, which increases the need for Zinc, Vitamin E, as well as other nutrients. To repair broken bones, the body needs additional Calcium and Vitamin C. To fight infections, the body requires additional Zinc, Magnesium, Vitamin B5, and Vitamin B6.

Lifestyle

Consumption of alcohol can affect the absorption of vital nutrients, and increase the bodies need for Thiamine, Niacin, Pyridoxine, Folic Acid, Vitamin B12, Vitamin A, Vitamin C, Zinc, Magnesium, and Calcium. Smoking tobacco can affect the digestive tract and increase the bodies need for Vitamin C. The human body absorbs Vitamin D from sunlight. People with minimal exposure to sunlight do not get the Vitamin D necessary for proper Calcium metabolism.

Medications

Prescription medications, over the counter medications, and herbal remedies all have one thing in common. They all interact with the body in some way, and have an impact on the bodies functions. Many drugs affect the way your body absorbs or uses nutrients; one example of this is the use of antacids. Antacids greatly reduce the stomach production of acid. Without the proper amount of acid in the stomach, food does not break down completely, and absorption of the foods nutrients is inefficient, causing a nutrient deficiency. Nutrients that are most affected are Folic Acid, Zinc, Iron and Vitamin B12.

Poor Digestion

Besides the extensive use of antacids, there are other factors that can result in poor digestion. Inadequate chewing or eating to fast can result in the food size being to large and insufficient creation of saliva, which is responsible for the first stage of digestion. Drinking hot liquids and consuming irritants such as coffee, pickles, spices, etc… can also result in a decrease in secretion fluids, meaning a decrease in the absorption of nutrients.

Pregnancy

You have certainly heard that a pregnant women is eating for two, well it is true. Pregnancy creates a much higher demand for nutrition to ensure healthy growth of the baby. Nutrients that require supplementation include Vitamin B1, B2, B3, B6, B12, A, D, E, Folic Acid, Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Zinc, and Phosphorous.

Shelf Life

To increase shelf life, a number of things are done to our food including, chemical preservatives are added, or irradiation, the exposing of foods to x-rays or other types of radiation. With preservatives, the food looks good longer, but the older the food becomes, the fewer nutrients it has. Also, preservatives are chemicals that are bodies must expel by using nutrients. Irradiation destroys many of the nutrients in food immediately.

Soil Depletion

Soil depletion occurs when the same crop is grown on the same land for multiple seasons. As the crop grows, it extracts nutrients from the soil, and actually replaces those nutrients with other nutrients. Ideally, the farmer would rotate his crop each season, planting a crop that uses the nutrients left by a previous crop, and replacing nutrients used by a previous crop. If the crops that you are consuming are grown where crop rotating is not performed, the nutritional value of the crop is substantially less.

Conclusion

Most people should be taking a multi-vitamin on a daily basis. If you have a medical condition, or a lifestyle involving excesses, other supplements would probably also be recommended. Always talk to your doctor before taking anything, because some supplements may interact with any medication that you are currently taking.

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