Thursday, January 22, 2009

Multi-Vitamin and Mineral Supplement

by Brett Hall, R.D.

There are literally hundreds of thousands of biochemical reactions taking place in our bodies every second of every day. These reactions are the stuff of life…the processes that keep our heart pumping, our brains thinking and our muscles moving. Each and every one of these reactions has one thing in common – they ALL rely upon the assistance of vitamins and minerals. Without vitamins and minerals in our system to act as co-factors and catalysts for these life-giving reactions we would be no more than lifeless lumps of tissue. Suffice it to say that maintaining a proper balance of vitamins and minerals in the body is one of the very first and most important steps you can take in your quest for vibrant health and a fit physique.

Why Use a Multivitamin?

One of the most common questions I hear regarding multivitamin supplements is, “Isn’t a properly balanced diet of whole foods sufficient to provide the vitamins and minerals our bodies need?” Well, if we were asking that question 200 years ago the answer probably would have been ‘yes’. At that time our agricultural process was in a much more natural state. Crops were raised in low-lying valleys and flood plains that were naturally irrigated by nearby water sources and prone to seasonal and cyclical flooding. This flooding, while inconvenient to the farmers at times, served a vital purpose. It insured that the soil remained robust and fertile by depositing large amounts of mineral laden silt in the valleys during each flood. Mineral density in topsoil (along with nitrogen content) is of utmost importance when assessing the health of that topsoil and its ability to raise healthy, vitamin and mineral rich fruits and vegetables. (Fruits and vegetables can only produce vitamins with the assistance of plentiful levels of minerals. Therefore, if the mineral content of the soil is rich the plants will also be able to produce robust levels of vitamins).

So, as you can see, 200 years ago the combination of small scale farming with the natural flooding cycle, the use of natural crop rotation techniques and natural manure fertilizers ensured a steady supply of sustainable, mineral and nitrogen rich topsoil. This in turn produced hardy, healthy fruits and vegetables bursting with vitamins and minerals. In that era a balanced diet of plentiful fruits and vegetables would indeed have supplied sufficient levels of vitamins and minerals for optimal health.

However, times have changed – and the soil we grow our foods in has changed with the times. And not for the better I’m afraid.

With the advent of the industrial revolution came the need and desire for agricultural production on a massive scale. In order to accommodate this production rivers were damned to control flooding, “dry land” farming was begun (where farms were created in arid areas, relying on manmade irrigation), crops were no longer rotated, and chemical fertilizers began to replace natural fertilizers. The end result…our nations topsoil suffered tremendously.

Within 20 years this type of mass production farming had caused such damage to the vitality of our topsoil that in the year 1936 a statement was issued as “A Warning to the American People” by top nutrition experts within the United States Senate Committee. Here is an excerpt from that statement entitled Document #264:

“The alarming fact is that foods (fruits, vegetables and grains) now being raised on millions of acres of land that no longer contain enough of certain minerals are starving us - no matter how much of them we eat. No man of today can eat enough fruits and vegetables to supply his system with the minerals he requires for perfect health because his stomach isn't big enough to hold them.”

That was almost 70 years ago. More recently at the Earth Summit meeting in 1992 the following statistics were presented.

“The mineral content of the world's farm and rangeland soil has decreased dramatically. Percentage of Mineral Depletion from Soil During The Past 100 Years, By Continent:”

North America: 85%
South America: 76%
Asia: 76%
Africa: 74%
Europe: 72%
Australia: 55%

From these statistics it is abundantly clear that the fruits and vegetables we find in our supermarkets today simply aren’t the rich source of vitamins and minerals they once were. That being the case, it would be difficult for even the most diligent among us to meet our vitamin and mineral needs through a whole food diet…even if we religiously follow the USDA Guidelines and consume 9 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. And if you do this on a daily basis, you are far more conscientious about your diet than 99% of Americans.

For this reason, vitamin and mineral supplementation becomes important in order to assure proper daily intake and body balance of these vital nutrients.

Men's Performance Daily Multivitamin AM/PM

Women's Performance Daily Multivitamin AM/PM

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