Many often pose the question “Can’t I get all the nutrients I need from my diet?” Unfortunately, the answer is usually a resounding “No.” But it is not always your fault.
Sadly, our world has become nutritionally challenged. Commercially grown produce and mass-produced meats from closed animal feeding operations (CAFO’s), EVEN ORGANIC, are not only tragically deficient in the nutrients our bodies require to function optimally, but most also contain synthetic chemicals that can be toxic to the body and disrupt normal cell, tissue, or organ function. For these reasons, it not only becomes important to make better food choices, but also to nourish our bodies with whole food supplements concentrated to contain the missing elements in our food supply.
All commercial produce is grown on chemical soil and is incapable of fully nourishing the body. The health of the soil determines the health of our food, thus the health of our bodies. Plants are the conduits of our nutrition. If the foundational building blocks for human nutrition are not balanced and consistent within the soil, the plants cannot do their job by taking them up and transforming them into the nutrients we require. To go a step further, highly processed “foodstuffs” are completely devitalized and demineralized versions of natural food sources lacking the critical phytonutrients needed for human health. These processed foods are being consumed readily as part of the standard American diet and contributing heavily to nutrient deficiencies. Many processed foods often displace the real whole foods we need to supply our bodies with essential vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, enzymes, nucleic acids, and other cell determinants of tissue growth and repair.
The adoption of unnatural farming methods, soil sterilization, food refining, irradiation, genetic alteration, and junk food manufacturing alongside the use of preservatives, artificial colors and flavors, and agricultural and industrial toxins has resulted in the ill health of millions suffering from starvation in the presence of caloric excess. In our quest for quantity and convenience rather than superior nutrition, we have inadvertently sacrificed our population’s health and wellbeing. There will never come a day when chemically treated, chemically fed, and chemically contaminated foods will have the ability to sustain human health.
What is required to produce the most robust healthy people is no longer sufficiently available in our modern-day food supply, even when we think we are choosing wisely. Today’s nutritional landscape favors counterfeit food and has ensured the need for us to replace critical nutrient elements missing from our everyday diet to prevent nutrient deficiencies and subsequent tissue starvation within the body.
Nutrient deficiencies can present as subtle changes in normal physiologic function or as overt nagging symptoms. Oftentimes, they are not felt at all because the body does a great job of compensating for the loss. It can do so by “stealing” stored nutrients from other parts of the body, or by compromising the health of one system to maintain homeostasis in another. Long-standing deficiencies can manifest as a multitude of chronic illnesses related to the compromised tissue or organ system. Deficiency syndromes are usually insidious and only made obvious once you become measurably sick or your symptoms begin to interfere with daily function. Once visible, an illness resulting from nutrient deficiency has been culminating for some time.
We often do not make the connection between our symptoms and the suboptimal state of vitamin, mineral or other nutrient reserves, but be assured this phenomenon is ubiquitous among us and often the root cause of serious health problems. For instance, blood sugar metabolism is dependent upon several trace minerals of which many of us are deficient such as chromium, vanadium, copper, iron, zinc, and manganese. Long term deficiency may contribute to the inability to efficiently generate energy from food or “glucose” resulting in insulin resistance and diabetic states. In this sense humans are analogous to the unhealthy plant that becomes infested with pests. When we are unable to take up or access sufficient nutrition to build a strong constitution, we become weak and susceptible to infection and disease.
If you look back through history, you can see how a deficiency in just one vitamin has contributed to serious diseases such as Beriberi (thiamine, B1 deficiency), Pellagra (niacin, B3 deficiency), Rickets (vitamin D deficiency) or Scurvy (vitamin C deficiency). We have all heard of Scurvy, right? Most believe that scurvy no longer exists. To the contrary, we see many manifestations of vitamin C deficiency today such as bleeding gums and tooth loss, easy bruising or hemorrhaging under the skin, hair and nail deformities, painful swollen joints, osteopenia and osteoporosis, iron deficiency anemia, slow wound healing and many diseases involving a disturbance in connective tissue development. While we may not often witness the severity of overt disease, we can for certain observe the insidious nature of gradual onset vitamin C deficiency syndromes which are quite common and can lead to a multitude of chronic conditions. Unfortunately, vitamin C is easily destroyed by cooking and cold storage meaning there is not much, if any left in food that has traveled over 2000 miles to your dinner table.
With all of that said, if you have been skeptical or ever questioned the value of nutritional supplements, you were not wrong to do so, but not for the reasons you might think. Most supplements sold in the US are made up of synthetic substances labeled as vitamins when they do not resemble anything of vitamins that exist in nature, that is their whole food form. A little-known fact is that ascorbic acid, considered by government standards to be the only form of vitamin C, never was able to cure scurvy. Only whole food forms such as citrus and paprika proved to remedy the condition.
Vitamins are not single “active” food extracts or substances created in a lab from coal tar. Rather, real vitamins which are capable of nourishing the body are complex compounds within whole foods that contain hundreds of synergistic factors, many known and many unknown, working together to create a beneficial effect in the body.
Synthetic vitamins are single isolates of the entire vitamin complex, usually laboratory-created, that are not only ineffective, but can disrupt the biochemical balance of the body and cause further nutrient depletion. Numerous studies have demonstrated the harmful effects of synthetic vitamins as reported in a book called “Death in Small Doses by Prof. Hon. Randolph M. Howes, MD, Ph.D.”
So, the question should not be whether or not you should take vitamin supplements, but rather which ones are safe, which will actually nourish your body, and which are the ones your body actually needs. These things should never be taken “willy-nilly” and it is highly recommended to consult with a professional before embarking upon a nutritional supplement regimen. As already pointed out, many products should on the market may not only be ineffective but can be harmful. Your needs should be clarified and treatment with nutrition should be targeted, as it is the most powerful medicine you can take.
Incorporating dietary supplements into a well-balanced diet can help ensure that the body receives the necessary nutrients for optimal functioning. However, it is important to note that supplements should not replace a healthy diet but rather complement it. Nutritional supplements are not a substitute for a varied diet, but they can provide additional support when needed. It is also essential to choose high-quality supplements from reputable manufacturers to ensure their safety and effectiveness.
To further explore the benefits of nutritional supplementation, individuals can seek guidance from healthcare professionals who can assess their specific needs and recommend appropriate supplements. It is important to consider factors such as age, gender, overall health, and any underlying medical conditions when determining the need for dietary supplements. Taking a personalized approach to supplementation can help individuals optimize their nutritional status and support their overall health and well-being.
On The Path to health and wellness we only use targeted nutritional therapies based on your personal needs and sourced from whole foods. Dr. Krail Javier, DNP has extensively researched the supplements she recommends and the companies that manufacture them. She only prescribes the highest quality practitioner-grade products that are made from the cleanest food sources and manufactured in facilities with unsurpassed processing standards.
References
Anderson, S. S., Anderson, M. R. (2010). Why Your Doctor Offers Nutritional Supplements. Revised Third Addition. Selene River Press. ISBN 978-0-9645709-9-3
DeCava, J. A. (2009). The Lee Philosophy – Part 2. A closer look at vitamin C. International Foundation for Nutrition and Health [online]. https://ifnh.org/newsletter/the-lee-philosophy-part-2/
Sun, Z., Shao, Y., Yan, K, Yao, T., Liu, L., Sun, F., Wu, J., Huang, Y. (2023) The Link between Trace Metal Elements and Glucose Metabolism: Evidence from zinc, copper, iron, and manganese-mediated metabolic regulation. Metabolites 13(10):1048. https://doi.org/10.3390/metabo13101048
