The Whole Picture of Nutrition Vitamins: These are the foods for the over 7 trillion cells in the body. When evaluating the mount of Vitamins required for optimal health on a daily basis people often refer to the RDA, which was really established to give guidelines for the minimum required to stay alive. The RDA was set to help to serve as the basis for evaluating the adequacy of diets of groups of people not individuals. Research has shown that individual’s requirements may in fact be much higher according to their lifestyles. Factors that enter in are the environment and lifestyle stresses, which will destroy vitamins and bind minerals. Factors that enter into this are things such as smoking, people exposed to toxicity, alcohol consumption, processed foods in diets, stressful working or living environments, injury, illness or a genetic or family history that precludes you to potential illness. Minerals: Minerals are the source of energy at the cellular level. A little known fact is that if you don’t have the right mineral content in your diet and your body vitamins will not work. Plus--no minerals — no energy! The key function of Vitamins and Minerals is to serve as the essential components in the enzymes and co-enzymes required for every chemical reaction in the body. If an enzyme is missing the vitamin or mineral component it cannot function properly. The enzyme’s supporting role that makes trace minerals and macro-minerals so essential to health. Macro-minerals are the minerals the body requires in the amount of 100 mg or more per day. Micro-minerals are the minerals the body requires in trace amounts. It is important to recognize that minerals need to be chelated or ionized for absorption by the body. The body requires that these minerals be escorted to the blood stream, (minerals in their natural state are rocks, we cannot absorb these) therefore they need to be chelated or ionized which allows a higher absorption rate. Even with this the body will only absorb a percentage of the minerals consumed that is why we see such a high RDA. The key is that you find mineral supplements that have research and processing that allows for the highest absorption rate. Example: Calcium---most calcium on the market is inexpensive because it is made from chalk. It is the same chalk that is used on the blackboards. It is not very absorbable and therefore renders minimal benefits. The most absorbable Calcium is Calcium Citrate Malate. Consuming too high of dosages of any single mineral can impair the absorption of other minerals, and looking to colloidal minerals is really minerals that are crushed into a really fine state then suspended in a liquid solution. Colloidal minerals then require the Hydrochloric Acid in the stomach to mix with it and convert them to an ionized state before the body could absorb them through the intestinal wall. As we age the body produces less and less Hydrochloric Acid making it more difficult for us to absorb minerals at all. Therefore always seek chelated or ionized minerals for maximum benefits. Amino Acids: These are the complete proteins that are used to rebuild all of the cells in the body. Seventy five percent of the body (minus the water) is made up of protein. Muscle fiber, cell membranes, enzymes and brain tissue are all protein. There are 22 Amino Acids and 8 are referred to being essential. This means they must be supplied through our food source or supplements. The body does not have the ability to produce these. When the body is deficient in protein the body will use it’s own protein which is often the muscle tissue. Dr. Eric Braverman, author and researcher at Princeton Brain Bio Center says "Every second the bone marrow makes 2.5 million red cells. Every four days the lining of the gastrointestinal tract and the blood platelets are replaced. Most of the white cells are replaced in ten days. A person has the equivalent of new skin in twenty-four days and bone collagen in thirty years and all this continuous repair work requires amino acids" A deficiency in even one small amino acid will have ill effects and may manifest as reduced energy, sleeping disorders, chronic fatigue, digestive problems, hair loss, skin problems, nervousness, anxiety, poor mental health, emotional upset, obesity, malnutrition, and a toxic blood stream. Essential Fatty Acids: EFA’s and Fish Oils form the foundation of your body’s ability to produce hormones, blood, brain fluids, and connective tissue. They also contribute to overall health and maintaining a healthy blood pressure. They provide energy and aid in the absorption of fat-soluble vitamins. They prevent dry skin, provide lubrication for joints, improve immune function, prevent cardio-vascular problems, discourage blood clotting and prevent food cravings for fatty foods. There are two main types of fatty acid groups, Omega 3s found in fish oils (referred as EPA and DHA) and Omega 6s found in plants (GLA). Several plant oils contain both. These are flax seed oil, black current oil, borage oil, and evening primrose oil. Omega 3 fatty acids work to reduce blood clotting and Omega 6 fatty acids work to encourage blood clot formation. The North American diet is notoriously high in Omega 6 fatty acids and this contributes to the high rate of cardiovascular disease, and is terribly low in Omega 3 fatty acids because of low consumption of cold-water fish. Our diets are high in the consumption of Arachidonic acid, which contributes to pain and inflammation, and blood clotting. Arachidonic acid is an Omega 6 fatty acid. The ideal is to achieve a balance between Omega 3 and Omega 6 fatty acids. Diets low in Omega 3 fatty acids contribute to such conditions such as blood clots, high LDL cholesterol (bad cholesterol), high triglicerides, brain or nervous dysfunction, MS, arthritis, lupus, migraines, immune dysfunction, and diabetes. General fatty acid deficiency demonstrates itself as dry, scaly skin, dry falling hair, infertility, varicose veins, irritability, ‘flightiness’, and nervousness. Eating a diet high in animal meats, polyunsaturated margarines and using vegetable oils can contribute to depletion of Omega 3 fatty acids. Enzymes: Enzymes are the workers of the entire body. Derived from raw foods, enzymes are necessary to break down foods (Digestive Enzymes) and deliver nutrients to and rebuild the body at the cellular level (Metabolic Enzymes). There are two kinds of enzymes needed by the body---Enzymes and Co-enzymes. Enzymes are ideally provided by our raw food source and contribute to our digestion. Cooking or processing our foods destroys these enzymes because they are temperature sensitive. When we have a diet deplete in fresh raw fruits and vegetables we then call upon the body to provide the enzymes required for digestion. This means the enzymes that would usually be used for maintaining youthful tissue gets used up in digestion. As we deplete these enzymes we begin to experience common digestive disorders such as bloating, gas, belching, indigestion, heartburn, fatigue and premature aging. As we age we secrete lower levels of Hydrochloric Acid for digestion (40% of adults may have insufficient secretion levels and by the age of 60 over half have been found to have insufficient secretion levels) showing up as bloating, belching, burning, flatulence, food allergies, indigestion, diarrhea or constipation, and nausea after taking supplements. It could also manifest showing up as, itching around rectum, weak, peeling or cracked fingernails, dilated blood vessels in the cheeks and nose, iron deficiency, undigested food in the stool, chronic candida yeast infections and upper digestive tract gassiness. Supplementing with Digestive Enzymes and ProBionic – friendly bacteria—acidophilus, Bifidobacterium will aid in the food digestion and will help regenerate the body’s pool of enzymes. Co-enzymes are enzymes that the body requires for all the activity at the cellular level. These enzymes (minerals) sustain the regeneration of the body and life itself. Hormones: Your hormones serve as your body’s foremen. Without hormones or even the proper balance of hormones, the body will not function correctly. There are literally millions of hormones, however the primary family of adrenal and reproductive hormones, are most likely to get you out of balance causing many types of dysfunction. Hormones are especially sensitive to diets, drugs, chemicals and toxins as well as stress. Chemicals and some drugs can actually mimic hormones in our bodies and cause hormonal imbalances resulting in the body acting like it is overburdened with estrogens. There are a number of natural solutions to restoring hormone balances as well dietary solutions. Exercise and high fiber diets are imperative to protecting our hormone balance. It is recommended that you explore this question by reading a book by Dr. John Lee ‘What Your Doctor May Not Tell You about Menopause’. Dr. John Lee pioneered the natural progesterone solution and will explain to men and women exactly what is going on and how to combat this problem. Hormonal balance is essential for overall health and hormones are involved with every system in our bodies. Understanding how you can manage your hormonal balance therefore is imperative.