WHY NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENTS ARE NECESSARY (PART 2)

All Adults Should Take a Daily Multivitamin, Recommends AMA Journal 6/27/02

All adults should take a multivitamin every day, according to a report published by two Harvard doctors in the Journal of the American Medical Association (2002;287:3127-9). This recommendation is based on research demonstrating that taking a multivitamin may help prevent a number of chronic diseases, including heart disease, some cancers and osteoporosis.

According to the authors, the evidence is "conclusive" that supplementing with folic acid during the first trimester of pregnancy reduces the risk of a group of birth defects known as neural tube defects. It is also well documented that taking vitamin D along with calcium reduces the risk of fractures in elderly women with thin bones (osteoporosis). A strong, though not conclusive, case can be made that supplementing with folic acid, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12 may help prevent heart disease by lowering homocysteine levels. Additional research suggests that vitamin supplements may reduce the risk of colon and breast cancer.

The new recommendation is part of a gradual but ongoing attitude shift in conventional medicine concerning the value of nutritional supplements. For many years, the prevailing opinion among most doctors was that vitamin supplements are unnecessary because the typical American diet provides all of the nutrients necessary to maintain good health. However, as the Harvard researchers point out, that opinion is no longer defensible.

The observation that vitamin supplementation can prevent several common chronic diseases indicates that the average American diet does not provide optimal amounts of some nutrients. Subtle vitamin deficiencies can result from excessive consumption of nutrient-depleted foods such as refined sugar and white flour, from inadequate intake of vitamin-rich fruits and vegetables, and from nutrient losses due to processing, prolonged heating or storage of foods.

While vitamin supplementation can correct certain deficiencies, it is not an adequate substitute for a good diet. That Is because whole, unprocessed foods contain a wide array of beneficial substances besides vitamins, such as carotenoids, flavonolds, natural antioxidants, and other unidentified compounds. As one researcher recently suggested, the best approach to disease prevention is to eat properly and to take a multivitamin.

The authors of the new report point out that most multivitamins contain iron; supplementation with this mineral may be Inadvisable for many men, non-menstruating women, and a small proportion of the population with an inherited intolerance to Iron (hemochromatosis). Therefore, individuals who are taking a multivitamin should discuss with their doctor whether it is appropriate to Include iron in their supplement.

The publication of this new report is an encouraging sign that conventional medicine is finally taking a more serious look at the role played by nutrition in the prevention and treatment of illness.

Dietary Supplements Essential to Health of Seniors

Supplements Achieve Growing Recognition Among Scientific and Government Leaders

As the American population ages, a rapidly growing body of evidence shows that dietary supplements significantly improve the health of senior citizens. And diverse leaders - from the scientific community to the U.S. government - are recognizing the important contributions dietary supplements make to seniors' health.

The latest Census data reports that 35 million persons in the United States are over the age of 65 and that number is expected to grow to one in five persons over 65 by 2010. According to recent surveys, as many as 40 percent of the nation's elderly are afflicted with nutritional deficiencies. Conditions such as Alzheimer's disease, declines in memory, decreased immunity to illness and other maladies once viewed as normal signs of aging have now been linked to deficiencies in vitamins and minerals.

Three recent clinical studies find that dietary supplements can treat nutritional deficiencies in the elderly and boost their immune systems, combat short-term memory loss, reduce the risk of Alzheimer's disease and improve seniors' overall health.

Ranjit Kumar Chandra, M.D. of Memorial University of Newfoundland conducted a year-long study of 86 persons over the age of 65. His findings, as published in the September 2001 issue of Nutrition, show that a supplement with moderate amounts of 18 vitamins, minerals and trace elements improves the short-term memory and overall cognitive abilities of seniors, and greatly strengthens their immune systems. Dr. Chandra also suggests that supplements may prevent serious neurological damage and disorders such as Alzheimer's disease.

A separate study led by Hui-Zin Wang, M.D at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm and published in the May 2001 issue of Neurology also links poor nutrition to Alzheimer's disease. This study followed 370 elderly adults aged 75 and over for three years, and found that seniors with low blood levels of folate and vitamin B12 have an increased risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

A study published in the August 2001 Issue of Nutrition by Teresa A. Marshall, M.D. and colleagues at the University of Iowa found that nutritional deficiencies greatly increase with age, and that supplement use would eliminate these deficiencies in the elderly. Dr. Marshall studied 420 persons over the age of 78 and found 80 percent of those seniors consumed inadequate amounts of four or more nutrients. Eighty-three percent consumed too little vitamin D and 63 percent did not consume enough calcium, both necessary for preventing osteoporosis and fractures and preserving bone mass. Seventy-five percent reported not getting enough folate, important for heart disease and stroke prevention.

Despite this mounting evidence, many seniors are not seeking medical advice about supplementation. In fact, a recent survey conducted by Harris Interactive found that those over 65 are the age group that is least likely to discuss dietary supplements with their doctors.

"Older adults need to learn about the contribution that dietary supplements can make to promoting health and reducing the risk for chronic diseases," said Jeffrey Blumberg, Ph.D. Blumberg is a Professor of Nutrition and Chief of the Antioxidants Research Laboratory at the Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University as well as a scientific advisory board member of the Dietary Supplement Information Bureau'". "These recent studies add to the growing body of evidence that demonstrates a beneficial role for dietary supplementation in the elderly."

At the same time, the federal government is also recognizing the Importance of dietary supplements in senior's health. On August 2, 2001, U.S. Senators Tom Harkin (D-IA) and Orrin Hatch (R­UT) Introduced the "Dietary Supplement Tax Fairness Act of 2001" (Bill S.1330) which calls for dietary supplements to be tax deductible for employers and excluded from taxable income for employees covered by health insurance plans. Senator Harkin asserts that dietary supplements help to Improve Americans' health and should be given parity with prescription drugs.

In addition to this pending legislation, the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS), is also conducting research on dietary supplements' effects upon the elderly. Some of these studies are examining the role of antioxidants in preventing cataracts in people with diabetes, and the effects of melatonin and coenzyme Q10 In retarding the aging process.

"It is exciting to see the NIH and university scientists working together to define the role of dietary supplements in public health and substantiate the value of this approach to obtaining good nutrition," said Blumberg. "Research studies show that dietary supplements can help fight heart disease, enhance immune function, delay impaired vision and maintain bone density with age. The more older Americans know about these scientific discoveries, the better choices they can make to achieve optimum health."

The Findings of Dr. Weston Price

Dr. Price was a Canadian-born dentist who traveled the world In the 1930s, investigating native diets. Dr. Price's reason for this was to determine what, if anything, was keeping so-called ^.primitive" people healthy. In his dental practice, Price had noticed a disturbing trend over the years: his patients, especially children, were getting sicker with increasing dental problems, including crooked teeth. Price had heard of native peoples, untouched by civilization, who led healthy lives and had perfect teeth with no cavities. He decided to find out for himself if these claims were true. They were.

Contrary to all of the current nutritional gobbeldygook that tells you that saturated fats, cholesterol, animal foods, butter, whole milk, and meat are bad for you, the research of Dr. Weston A. Price shows THE EXACT OPPOSITEI If you have heard that vegetarianism is a healthier way of eating, then you've heard It wrong Dr. Price's research showed that there were NO exclusively vegetarian (vegan) societies anywhere in the world. People who were primarily agriculturalists and ate smaller amounts of animal foods were the LEAST healthy of all the groups Price encountered.

Dr. Price's research showed above all that a healthy diet included generous amounts of animal foods and animal fats, no processed foods, low amounts of sugar (even natural ones, like maple syrup), and some lacto-fermented foods and beverages. This diet produced healthy, robust, happy, and disease-resistant men, women, and children. This diet led to easy childbirth. This diet led to a long life with no senility. In short, this diet was the way people should eat--that includes YOU.

What is especially significant is this next fact - Primitive diets contain at least four times the calcium and other minerals and TEN times the fat soluble vitamins from animal fats (vitamin A, vitamin D and the Price Factor) as the average American diet of that time. If that was the ratio then, one wonders how great the disparity might be today where our top soils have been depleted even further of vital minerals.

More Findings

In one double-blind trial, schoolchildren received, for three months, a daily low-dose vitamin-mineral tablet containing 50% of the US RDA for most essential vitamins and the minerals, iron, zinc, chromium, manganese, molybdenum, selenium, and copper. The subjects were "working class," primarily Hispanic, children, aged 6 to 12 years. Dramatic gains in certain measures of IQ were observed in about 20% of the supplemented children. These gains may have been due to the correction of specific nutrient deficiencies (for example, iron) found in these children.

A double-blind trial that included over 1,300 people found those given 200 mcg of yeast-based selenium per day for 4.5 years had a 50% drop in the cancer death rate compared with the placebo group. Another study found that men consuming the most dietary selenium (assessed indirectly by measuring toenail selenium levels) developed 65% fewer cases of advanced prostate cancer than did men with the lowest levels of selenium Intake. Selenium is also essential for healthy immune functioning. Selenium supplementation has reduced the incidence of viral hepatitis in selenium-deficient populations, presumably by enhancing immune function. Even in a non-deficient population of elderly people, selenium supplementation has been found to stimulate the activity of white blood cells – primary components of the immune system. Selenium is also needed to activate thyroid hormones. In a double-blind trial, selenium supplementation of infertile men improved the motility of sperm cells and increased the chance of conception. Companies that manufacture selenium supplements will now be permitted by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to claim that selenium supplements may reduce the risk of some cancers, according to a statement by the FDA. Although the FDA does not permit manufacturers to list specific types of cancer in the health claim, studies suggest selenium supplementation may reduce the risk of colon, prostate, lung, liver and esophageal cancers.

Women who take cod-liver oil during pregnancy and the first three months of breast-feeding are likely to have more intelligent children, according to a study published in Pediatrics (2003; 111:e39-44). This report adds to a growing body of evidence that dietary intake of a specific fatty acid present in fish oils (docosahexaenoic acid [DHA]) is needed to promote optimal brain development.

Summary And Conclusions

Try to keep our fat intake down to around 30% of your daily calories, eat plenty of high fiber foods like whole grain cereals, fruits and vegetables. Eat a variety of foods, rich in Vitamin A, get your cruciferous vegetables several times a week (such as cabbage, broccoli, brussels sprouts, and cauliflower). Avoid pickled, smoked and salt cured foods. Take nutrients that stimulate your immune system such as Vitamin A, C, E, beta-carotene, selenium, zinc garlic, and EPA/DHA fish oils. Magnesium should also be an integral part of your supplement regimen.

There is sufficient evidence that by eating a low fat diet, increasing our intake of dietary fiber and supplementing daily with a combination of vitamins, herbs, minerals and super foods we can significantly reduce the ravages of the aging process, help combat disease and significantly improve our quality of life There are many new discoveries and ancient herbal knowledge that can be helpful. So look forward to being energetic and staying healthy! The choice is yours! Yes it is true; you are what you eat. So supplement! And remember synergy, the synergy a nutrients.

We hope that by now, you are convinced of the importance of supplementation. There is such a massive amount of scientific evidence for the benefits of various nutrients that it would be impossible to list them all.

VitaKids is here to guide you in your supplementation program and~ advise you on how to get started. For a basic program, we recommend that you consume the following on a daily basis:

•      A well-formulated, high-potency multivitamin/mineral supplement fortified with whole food concentrates;
•     An essential fatty acid supplement containing EPA, DHA and GLA;
•     Extra antioxidants such as Vitamin C and Vitamin E.
•     A calcium/magnesium supplement (especially if you are above 45 or do not consume sufficient high-calcium foods such as milk and cheese), and
•    A probiotic supplement containing acidophilus and bifidus culture (unless you consume yogurt with live cultures on a daily basis).
•     If you have difficulty digesting food (you experience feelings of bloatedness or burping after meals), you may also need a digestive enzyme supplement.