CAN LACK OF NUTRIENTS/VITAMIN DEFICIENCIES MAKE YOU SICK?

POOR NUTRITION, including VITAMIN, MINERAL, and ESSENTIAL FATTY ACID DEFICIENCIES can make you sick. Unfortunately, nearly everyone needs more nutrition than a ‘BALANCED’ or ‘GOOD’ diet provides in order to overcome this MAJOR CAUSE of symptoms, sickness and disease. Therefore, ADVANCED SUPPLEMENTATION is one MISSING LINK to optimizing health that most conventionally trained doctors often ignore. CAN LACK OF NUTRIENTS/VITAMIN DEFICIENCIES MAKE YOU SICK?

The huge demands of modern-day PHYSICAL, BIOCHEMICAL and EMOTIONAL STRESS, coupled with POOR QUALITY, TOXIC food (from pesticide-sprayed plants and hormone-injected, grain-fed animals) results in significant NUTRTIONALLY DEFICIENCIES and imbalances to your body and brain that can make you sick.

 Fortunately, in the new, emerging field of medicine known as Functional or Foundational Medicine, NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES can be DETECTED and CORRECTED, solving a major underlying ROOT CAUSE of symptoms, sickness and disease.

 

DO SUPPLEMENTS MAKE A DIFFERENCE?

WHAT ARE THE BEST SUPPLEMENTS/VITAMINS?

 Would you eat FAKE food? Then why take FAKE vitamins?

Question:

Are YOUR supplements NATURAL or SYNTHETIC?

Did you know that due to modern farming methods which ERODE SOIL QUALITY, the fruits and vegetables grown back in the 1950’s were significantly richer in essential vitamins and minerals than the ones we get today?

In order to meet the unprecedented demands of modern day physical, chemical and emotional STRESS, and because the QUALITY of our food (both the pesticide-sprayed plants and the commercially raised, hormone-injected, grain-fed animals) is not what it used to be, nearly everyone needs more nourishment than a ‘good diet’ provides.

That’s right – to go from Nutritional Deficiency to Nutritional Sufficiency it is essential that EVERYONE MUST SUPPLEMENT, even if your diet seems perfect, which most are not.

How do we do that?

There are basically two ways:

1. The SYNTHETIC vitamin approach
2. The WHOLE FOOD concentrate approach

These days, many people take supplements.

That’s not a bad idea, IF they are NATURAL.

 

You see, all supplements are NOT created equal!

Unfortunately, the vast majority of them, nearly 95% of all vitamins are SYNTHETIC.

What is a SYNTHETIC vitamin?

They are single, isolated chemicals extracted from PETROLEUM, COAL TAR OR GENETICALLY MODIFIED CORN and then put as large, unnatural (NOT found in NATURE) quantities into a pill.

SYNTHETIC vitamins are not REAL (natural -found in nature), they are FAKE.

They barely resemble the complete, vitamin complexes nature provides for us in REAL FOOD.

For example, vitamin complexes in FOOD contain essential trace minerals. SYNTHETIC vitamins do not.

It’s like eating a banana peel without the banana and thinking you have consumed nutrition.

So, synthetics are NOT, by strict definition, NUTRITIONAL – they are pharmacological.

In other words, these CHEMICAL ISOLATES act in your body in similar ways as drugs, both over the counter and prescription.

They are certainly SAFER than most DRUGS, but this brings us to a basic principle to remember:

Only REAL FOOD is NUTRITIONAL

This is the dictionary definition of FOOD:

Food n. That which is eaten to sustain life, provide energy and promote the growth and repair of tissues: nourishment

(From the Old English foda, ‘nourishment’)

So, SYNTHETIC vitamins SHOULD NOT be used as nutrition, to solve a nutritional DEFICIENCY.

Again, they would STILL be preferable in nearly every case to taking a prescription drug because of safety.  In other words, because of fewer side effects.

By the way, there are no such things as ‘side-effects’ of drugs.

There are only unwanted, DIRECT effects.

SYNTHETIC supplements can never replace food as ESSENTIAL NUTRITION.

They may force changes to happen by suppressing symptoms– it’s just that the effect is inferior to REAL FOOD.

This is what scientists refer to as chemical therapy.

Now there are two types of chemical therapy:

Pharmaceuticals and Nutraceuticals

To be clear, I am not down on drugs or synthetic vitamins – they have their place -necessary at times in the smallest possible dose, for the shortest amount of time, as an absolute last resort.

The problem is that these are used far too often, and used incorrectly as real NUTRITION.

For example, did you know that in the United States we have only 5% of the world’s population, yet we consume over 50% of the worlds pharmaceuticals drugs?

That percentage is even higher for nutraceuticals or synthetic vitamins.

Does this mean don’t take vitamins?

Not at all!

Vitamins are essential for human life. Your body is NOT capable of producing these extremely complex, organic substances and an absence of them WILL LEAD to disrepair and disease.

 

HOW DO YOU FIX NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES?

However, there IS a way to fix nutritional deficiencies, a better way to take supplements that is congruent and consistent with NATURE.

Using Advanced Nutritional Correction, otherwise known as:

Whole Food Vitamins, Whole Food Concentrates or Therapeutic Food

This Holistic approach to nutrition honors the wisdom of nature and simply concentrates, in perfect quality and quantity, what nature ALREADY provides.

How do you know if a vitamin is synthetic, or from WHOLE FOODS?

You read the label.

Seeing the words ‘Natural’ or ‘Organic’ can be deceptive, though. Believe it or not, the FDA considers the word natural as anything that comes from nature – including chemicals – since they ultimately come from nature. The word ‘organic’ is anything that contains a carbon molecule – NOT an organically grown or chemically-free product!

So, it can be tricky.

If you see single ingredients with milligram quantities next to it instead of actual foods that you recognize, then that is almost always a SYNTHETIC vitamin.

Example:

“1000 mg of ascorbic acid” (which is often referred to as Vitamin C).

This is SYNTHETIC – chemically extracted from Genetically Modified Corn or Petroleum.

It is totally inferior to the whole, natural Vitamin C complex, the way it is packaged in nature.

Remember, unlike DRUGS, vitamins are LIVING COMPLEXES and must be in a form that includes ALL the enzymes, co-enzymes and minerals that make up the naturally occurring complex.

For example, the brand of Whole Food Concentrates we use a lot in our wellness center, Standard Process, has a product called ‘Cruciferous Complete’. These are the ONLY ingredients:

‘Organic Kale and Brussels Sprouts’

Now, that’s what we mean by NATURAL food!

The following chart is a fantastic example of what to avoid, and what to look for.

The first two columns, ‘Vitamin’ and ‘Fractionated/Synthetic’ are what 95% of the vitamin labels look like in America. This is the inferior form, the truly synthetic form to avoid or minimize. The last column, ‘Wholefood’ is what your label should look like.

So, for example, if you need Vitamin A, look for whole food concentrates where the label includes carrots and barley leaf.

Got it?

Vitamin         Fractionated/Synthetic                                       Wholefood

Vitamin A      Acetate, Retinal Palmitate, Beta Carotene                 Carrots, Barley Leaf

Vitamin B3   Niacin                                                                                  Spirulina, Chlorella

Vitamin C      Ascorbic Acid, Pycnogenols (from corn syrup)          Amla, Broccoli, Cherry

Vitamin E      d-Alpha Tocopheral, (from processed soy oil)           Wheatgerm, Wheatgrass

Folate            Folic Acid                                                                           Blue Green Algae

 

To sum up, your body is designed to assimilate REAL foods for the growth and repair of organs, glands and tissues…NOT SYNTHETIC CHEMICALS.

Therefore, elevating you from Nutritional Deficiency to Nutritional Sufficiency is ONLY possible IF we include the best quality NATURAL, WHOLE FOOD SUPPLEMENTS in your care plan.

In our wellness center we use these products because they honor the principle of:

‘Nature first, drugs last’

Standard Process, for example, is the first, the oldest and the largest of the premiere whole food companies in the world.

Tens of thousands of healthcare professionals have relied on these extraordinary supplements since 1929.

So, we ask you:

Are YOUR supplements NATURAL or SYNTHETIC?

 

Synthetic Vitamins

• Artificial chemicals made in a laboratory
• Most made by pharmaceutical companies from coal tar or petroleum byproducts
• Referred to as ‘nutraceuticals’ (nutritional pharmaceuticals) or ‘chemical nutrients’
• Similar effects as drug therapy, (not a nutritional or rebalancing effect on the body)
• Are essentially over-the-counter drugs
• Lack essential co-factors which complete and balance the nutrient complex
• Create nutritional deficiencies of missing co-factors that occur naturally in real food
• Result in a toxic ‘mega-dose’ approach to therapeutics
• Accurately described as counterfeit or fake vitamins
• Far less effective than whole food concentrates
• Common adverse reactions when combined with other drugs
• 99% of the ‘vitamins’ people take (from the pharmacies, health food store, vitamins store or mail order) are these isolated, synthetic chemicals
• High dose, but low-potency

 

 

Whole Food Concentrates

 Concentrated foods and plants that retain the full nutrient complex

• Made by simply removing the water and fiber from the food or plant
• Far fewer adverse reactions and interactions with drugs
• Non-toxic, unlike isolated chemical vitamins
• Have nutritional/rebalancing effect on the body – referred to as ‘therapeutic foods.
• Provide nutrients the way the body and nature intended: from foods, not chemicals
• Greater availability of nutrients as they are absorbed in their original/natural form
• Low dose, but HIGH potency

 

HOW DO YOU TEST FOR NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES?

Sometimes, people ask:

‘Can’t I just eat really well and get my nutrients from a super healthy diet, like from organic fruits and vegetables?’

Unfortunately, that is NOT enough.

Here’s why…

Again, plants are ONLY as good as the SOIL they’re grown in.

Commercial, SOY, CORN AND GRAIN-FED beef does not have the same nutrition as GRASS-FED beef.

We have been led to believe a LIE that LOW-FAT is healthy, so now many people are terribly deficient in important FAT-SOLUBLE VITAMINS.

We eat products from REFINED FOUR AND SUGAR, both of these substances DEPLETE vital nutrients.

 

Why else are we so deficient?

Our environment is so TOXIC that our exposure to chemicals demands that we need MORE NUTRIENTS that our food gives us in order to DETOXIFY. Our LIVER needs help!

PHARMACEUTICALS DRUGS, many cause depletion of nutrients, too.

Modern day food storage, easting out of season, eating non-local foods.

All these things cause deficiencies that just ‘eating well’ can NOT fix!

Today, there is technology to TEST for MANY DIFFERENT KEY NUTRIENTS

All the FAT-SOLUBLE VITAMINS like A, K, D and E

The very important B VITAMINS.

B VITAMIN DEFICIENCY IS VERY COMMON.

Do you know why?

Stress destroys your B vitamins, but so does GLUTEN, we’ll talk about that in a minute.

So, STRESS destroys B’s.

Did you know that nearly 40% of Americans are gluten intolerant?

They have a SENSITIVITY to it but might not even know it.

Gluten is like glue, that’s where the name comes from, it’s a very sticky protein.

And it damages the MICROVILLI in your small intestine, where you absorb all your nutrients.

 

So, then what happens is you become NUTRIENT DEFICIENT.

This leads to over 200 different conditions.

Acne and skin problems to headaches, including migraines

All the way up to AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE, blood sugar imbalances, thyroid, digestion, even DEPRESSION.

I mean, EVERYTHING depends on adequate nutrition to the cells, right?

So, it may be necessary to TEST, not GUESS!

This helps us help you go from DEFICIENCY to SUFFICIENCY, and from symptoms, sickness and disease to HEALTH.

 

WHAT ARE THE MOST COMMON NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCIES?

Let’s review 5 of the most common nutrient deficiencies, and how to address them.

Eating real whole food must be your foundation, but often whole food SUPPLEMENTATION is necessary, especially if you TEST and are DEFICIENT.

WHOLE FOOD SUPPLEMENTATION guys, NOT SYNTHETIC vitamins which is over 95% of most commercial products

 

#1: Vitamin D

Researchers estimate that 50 percent of the general population is vitamin D deficiency, and this percentage rises in higher-risk populations such as the elderly and those with darker skin.

Signs include obesity, achy bones, feeling depressed or anxious, headaches, and poor immune function.

Now, the optimal range for VITAMIN D appears to be somewhere between 50 and 70.

We see at least half our patients in their twenties or even teens!

As for how to optimize your vitamin D levels, sensible sun exposure is the best way, although vitamin D-rich foods and D3 supplements may also be necessary if you cannot get adequate sun exposure year-round.

Like here in NJ.

But how do you know how much to take?

Again, we don’t guess – we test!

 

#2: Omega-3 Fats

Low concentrations of the omega-3 fats EPA and DHA are associated with an increased risk of death from ALL CAUSES

Omega-3 deficiency has been revealed as the sixth biggest killer of Americans.

Some very obvious signs that your omega-3 to omega-6 ratio may be out of balance include dry, flakey skin, soft brittle nails; fatigue; menstrual cramps, and poor attention span.

The ideal ratio of omega-3 to omega-6 fats is about 1:1, but the typical Western diet is between…

1:20 and 1:50!

So, in addition to upping your omega-3 intake, you also need to reduce the amount of omega-6 in your diet, which BASICALLY means cutting down on processed, packaged, refined and fried foods.

Sardines are one of the most concentrated sources of omega-3 fats, with one serving containing more than 50 percent of your recommended daily value.

If you decide to take omega-3s in supplement form, make sure it is from fish oil that has been tested for mercury and other heavy metals.

 

#3: Vitamin K2

Vitamin K2 may be just as important as vitamin D for optimal health.

That’s because without Vitamin K2, vitamin D cannot work properly, so you really need to consider these two nutrients together.

And it does come like that from SOME supplement companies –but not all so check the label.

Now vitamin K1 — which is the primary form of vitamin K responsible for blood clotting — can be found in green leafy vegetables, but vitamin K2 is only present in fermented foods.

Examples of foods that are naturally high in vitamin K2 include fermented vegetables like sauerkraut.

However, only grass-fed animals (not grain fed) will develop naturally high K2 levels.

Can you see why so many people are deficient? They are not eating this healthy!

 

#4: Magnesium 

Is the fourth most abundant mineral in your body, yet an estimated 80 percent of Americans are deficient in it.

Magnesium plays a role in your body’s DETOXIFICATION of environmental chemicals, heavy metals, and other toxins.

Magnesium also plays roles in preventing migraine headaches, high blood pressure, heart attacks and strokes

How to Optimize Your Magnesium Levels

Most people can keep healthy magnesium levels without supplements by eating plenty of dark-green leafy vegetables.

Seaweed, spinach and Swiss chard can be excellent sources of magnesium, as are some nuts and seeds like pumpkin, sunflower, and sesame seeds.

Avocados also contain magnesium.

Unfortunately, MOST foods grown today are deficient in magnesium.

One easy way you can also improve your magnesium status by taking regular Epsom salt baths or foot baths.

Epsom salt is magnesium sulfate that can be absorbed into your body through your skin.

 

#5: Vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 known as the energy vitamin.

The two ways you become deficient are through a lack of vitamin B12 in your diet, or through your inability to absorb it from the food you eat. GUT

Nearly half the population has poor blood B12 levels.

Warning signs of B12 deficiency include “mental fog,” memory problems, mood swings, fatigue, muscle weakness, and tingling in the extremities.

Unfortunately, B12 deficiency may not present itself for a number of years, so by the time you notice symptoms, you may be quite deficient. TEST

Vitamin B12 is present in natural form only in animal sources of food, which is one of the reasons I advise against a no-animal-food vegan diet.

B12-rich foods include beef and beef liver (grass-fed beef is highly preferable to the grain-fed), lamb, red snapper, venison, salmon, shrimp, scallops, organic-pastured poultry, and eggs.

 

CONCLUSION

POOR CELLULAR NUTRITION, including VITAMIN, MINERAL, and ESSENTIAL FATTY ACID DEFICIENCIES can make you sick.

In Functional Medicine, we look for NUTRITIONAL DEFICIENCY as it is one of the MAIN underlying ROOT CAUSES for symptoms, sickness and disease.

To take you from DEFICIENCY to SUFFICIENCY, utilizing ADVANCED SUPPLEMENTATION is one MISSING LINK to optimizing your health that most conventionally trained doctors often ignore.

This MUST include the best WHOLE FOOD supplements on the planet, which are NEVER SYNTHETIC.