Dec
27

Why Most Nutrition Supplements Are A Waste Of Money

Yes, most nutrition supplements, including vitamins and minerals, are a waste of money. This statement may surprise you. But let me tell you why most vitamin and mineral supplements are a waste of money – and even worse - may even be harmful.

Have you ever seen a vitamin A grow on a tree? Have you ever seen a vitamin E or vitamin C grow on a bush? Of course you haven’t. Because isolated food factors are not growing this way – and never will. God created foods that contain a perfect mix of carbohydrates, proteins, fiber, enzymes, vitamins and minerals, which are all necessary to increase food bioavailability and absorption and are beneficial for a number of different body systems and functions.

Let’s think of a carrot. A carrot provides fiber, which is important for our digestive tract. The vitamin A in that carrot, along with the carotenoids alpha, beta carotene, beta-cryptoxanthin, lutein, zeaxanthin, and lycopene, protects our eyes as well as our arteries from cholesterol-built-up besides helping neutralize free-radicals in our body. Vitamin K assists in proper blood-clotting. Vitamin C is yet another free-radical-fighter that hooks up with the Vitamin A and becomes even more effective in fighting free radicals, viruses and bacteria. Potassium is crucial for cell health and neurological health.

Therefore, eating a carrot surpasses by far the benefits of taking a beta carotene supplement alone, particularly a synthetic version, in an effort to deal with a vitamin deficiency. All the different members of the carotenoid family, each will contribute its own “personal” attributes. Thus, just taking a beta carotene supplement may give you some benefit, eating the whole food however, will give you much more.

Moreover, it is possible to overdose on synthetic nutrition supplements and vitamins. For example, the famous “Finland Study” was stopped because it went into the wrong direction. In that study, half the test group of finish smokers were given a beta carotene supplement and the other half was not given anything. The study’s objective was to find out whether or not beta carotene would cut a smokers risk to develop lung cancer. Surprisingly, many more of the smokers that supplemented with synthetic beta carotene developed lung cancer than of the group that didn’t.

After that study was stopped, a company that manufactured a whole food carotenoid supplement, which was entirely based on quality tomatoes, carrots, peaches, and spinach, picked up the same study by giving their product to Finish smokers. And surprise, surprise (or maybe not?) the study turned entirely the other way. After a number of years, many more smokers that did not supplement developed lung cancer than those who supplemented with the whole food carotenoids.

So what caused such a dramatic change? Most likely the fact that people are not supposed to play God. If we do, we get in trouble. There is obviously a good reason why God added several food factors into any food. Another reason is that we are really supposed to eat exactly that, foods that grow in nature. Many nutritional supplements are of synthetic or unedible nature, which means they are derived of something we are not supposed to eat, like pine bark or mineral oil.

Other studies have shown that you would have to consume 10 tablets (e.g.500mg) of ascorbic acid in order to get the same benefit as the same amount of vitamin C from whole food supplements. Consuming 50.000 mg of ascorbic acid, however, is not a very practical thing to do (unless you suffer from serious constipation) as you will most certainly be spending a lot of time in the bathroom. Moreover, you would put a lot of stress on your stomach and other parts of your digestive system. Never mind the fact that you are literally wasting your money.

So, what can we do about this?

  1. Get as many nutrients as possible from a large variety of (if possible) organic foods that offer all the five flavors (sweet, sour, bitter, spicy, salty) as well as all the colors of the rainbow (purple, blue, green, red, orange, yellow, white)
  2. Use enzyme-rich food-based whole food supplements as they are much more bioavailable than synthetic nutritional supplements, vitamins and minerals. And they won’t harm you.
  3. Know what you need! Studies have shown that because of the serious soil depletion and the fact that most people do not eat a large variety of colorful fruits and veggies every body benefits from a high quality food-based broad spectrum multi-vitamin.

However, you do not need every food supplement just because somebody told you so or because it seems fashionable. You know your diet and level of vitamin deficiency. You should have an idea of what you do not get. For example. if you are accustomed to eating a lot of vitamin C rich fruits and vegetables, you most likely do not need to supplement with that unless you are dealing with a condition that requires high amounts of Vitamin C.

If you eat several servings of cruciferous vegetables (like broccoli, cabbage, brussle sprouts) per week you most likely do not need to supplement with a cruciferous supplement in order to protect your prostate or breast tissue either. Nor do you need extra selenium if Brazil nuts are a regular part of your diet.

If you do not know exactly what you need I advise you to contact a skilled natural health professional who can by means of a questionnaire, hair or blood tests tell you where your dietary gaps are and how to bridge them most naturally.

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