I saw this subject being debated in another topic (not really connected to it) and I thought it would make an interesting discussion on it's own.
I take Glucosamine Chondroitan and believe it helps with knee aches and pains. Also take Omega supplements. I think with all supplements it is hard to measure whether they are helping or not. Mark
I take vitamins myself from a company who actually tests your DNA and then customizes these supplements for you based on your genetics. Tal
Absolutely. Today's commercial process foods lack sufficient vitamins and minerals to truly keep one at an optimal health. Before taking prescription drugs look for viable natural remedies that would be healthier for the body. It's amazing the side effects mentioned in the t.v. prescription drug advertisements.
One thing to consider is ASSIMILATION. There may be nutrients in food, but the relevant issue is whether or not your body can absorb and utilize the nutrients. What you eat in combination with select foods, time of day, your state of health. Genetics. Things like this affect your ability to get the nutrients from the foods you eat. Diabetics for example have a problem getting nutrients from what they eat because of the insulin problem. Milk products, though heavy laden with protein, can be impossible for some people to digest. We of the '4 basic food groups' generation, tend to think eating the 'right foods' is all there is to it. But it's not that simple.
I follow a vegan diet and don't take any supplements. But I did spend quite a lot on blood tests to make sure that my body has everything it needs!
I am a firm believer in supplements and vitamins. I have gotten a lot of flack from non-believers who say they are all placebos. I say "I don't care. If they make me feel better I'll take whatever I want, even if it may all be in my head!" There is so much lacking in foods because of poor farming practices, overproduction of low quality foods, genetic engineering of crops, hormones and preservatives, etc. It disgusts me to think about how much they mess with our food before it even gets to us! If I could afford it, I would buy only organic but unfortunately it's extremely expensive so I make the best alternate choices and make sure to take my vitamins and supplements. I also look for natural alternatives to body care and cleaning products as all those chemicals are not good for you either!
Senator McCain is introducing a bill that would limit people's access to supplements, (for the betterment of BigPharma no doubt). Article from NaturalNews.com: http://www.naturalnews.com/028257_Senator_McCain_dietary_supplements.html
I take supplements and think they help tremendously. We should all be taking at least a daily vitamin because our soil is so depleted of nutrients that we're not getting all of the vitamins and minerals we need from our food anymore. Whenever I go off of my supplements I can tell just how much they are really helping me.
You may not need them, but there are so many nutritional products that can help complete your diet that I say, why not consider adding them. Providing, of course, you can afford the regimen.
FreeCashMan: Absolutely. Today's commercial process foods lack sufficient vitamins and minerals to truly keep one at an optimal health. I agree, and I take supplements. In particular, I drink Nopalea which has totally taken away the pain of arthritis that I had started having in my left knee. Becky
Unfortunately you have to supplement your diet it is not in your food anymore. Also don't forget a probiotic because that is where your absorption is. Not in our stomach. Also don't forget Vitamin D3 it is a must in the winter time. There is no selenium anymore in the soil. So yes you need them. Having said that the wal mart brand is not something you want either. YOu have to be very picky about your viamins as well. Some of them are no more than a sugar pill. Look at the kids vitamins on the shelf. It is hard to find one that doesn't have a bunch of sugar in it.
Oops I forgot to add I agree with Cash man if you can find an alternative to perscriptions then go that way. I have my husband on red yeast rice for elevated cholestral and it is working. They wanted to put him on statins. I told his doctor no way!!! not in this life time
Most people need suplements because very few people live a balanced, healthy life. I buy supplements but I don't take them every day, I'll take them if I run low on fresh food or when I have streaneous activity planned for the day, and they do work. But from experience paying attention to emmtional health and what I'm thinking has a much higher magnitude of effects than the supplement's effects. You can feel like you took a multivitamin in the morning for free if you centered yourself via some sort of mental exercise eg. meditation, running, visualisation techniques and awareness/breathing exercises. Has anyone expierienced this as well? I do believe you really need supplements if sick, in pain or on medication, but herbal supplements trump nutritional supplements in this case.
bobbiehovey I read an article a few months ago from a government website, I think it was maybe the F.D.A. but I'm not sure. But it said that to get the same nutrition from 1 cup of spinach in 1950, you would have to eat 49 cups of spinach today. That is quite an eye opener. J.A.M.A. has being saying for many years that with today's lack of nutrition in foods that everyone should be taking vitamins. An article in the New York Times recently said that in the economic downturn of the last two years, the sale of vitamins and nutritional supplements have soared. Does anybody have any ideas as to why this is happening? Article from New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/04/05/business/05vitamins.html
melanow I figure many people have to choose between payments for continuous use prescription drugs and important things like morgages, university tuition etc. If many people lost there job and had to discontinue prescribed drugs to keep the roof over their heads they would look for cheaper alternatives. In terms of per monthly supply costs, supplements are likely to come up cheaper.
Well here's my take: Eat organic, wholegrain, wholesome foods, exercise, relax and forget supplements. Some are saying that present day's commercial foods lack essential nutrients. Absolutely! If you eat white bread, white flour, white rice, sugar, (all whites) colas and what not, you can definitely expect your body to be devoid of essential nutrients and vital energies. What the food industry does it process perfectly healthy and wholesome food (remove all the nutrients, fiber and make them tasty) and then create supplements in the lab to fill this deficiency Our body is not meant to work this way - You eat dead/junk food at one time and then supplement at other time with artificial/synthetic supplements and then take fiber at some other time. You'll only be making your body more and more inefficient even if you think that you take supplements and fiber along with your meal. Your body is far far more intelligent that what you think. Everything that nature creates is complete in itself and is intended to be consumed that way itself. A wholesome diet takes more than 3 hours for our body to digest. As a result energy is released slowly and you stay relaxed. Whereas junk food (white flour, sugar an all stripped out food) will be digested quickly and the result is surge in energy and hyperactivity. By eating junk food and taking supplements, you are only encouraging the trend. Eat organic and demand organic. Eat wholesome food. Say no to white. It might be expensive at first but when it becomes mainstream, it'll become cheaper. Think the other way, you don't think twice spending $300 on an expensive gadget but you abstain from paying $20 extra for that organic food. Organic food not only will make you healthy, but organic farming will also save this planet.
Very interesting article and I agree with most of it. Ways of cooking and don't eat anything white is exactly what I do and my health has been quite good. I stay away mostly from fat and that has nkept my blood pressure very low and lower is better. 100 over 65. But: Vishal P. Rao: Eat organic and demand organic. Organic doesn't do very much, if anything at all for nutrition: "Researchers from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine said consumers were paying higher prices for organic food because of its perceived health benefits, creating a global organic market worth an estimated $48 billion in 2007. A systematic review of 162 scientific papers published in the scientific literature over the last 50 years, however, found there was no significant difference. "A small number of differences in nutrient content were found to exist between organically and conventionally produced foodstuffs, but these are unlikely to be of any public health relevance," said Alan Dangour, one of the report's authors. "Our review indicates that there is currently no evidence to support the selection of organically over conventionally produced foods on the basis of nutritional superiority." The results of research, which was commissioned by the British government's Food Standards Agency, were published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition." All organic means is that the produce is grown with out poisinous pesticides "which can removed by washing", and fertilizers which are manmade. they usually use manure to fertilize the crops. Foods are still lacking in nutrients. The reason for this is because farms now are mostly specializing in one type of crop and growing it in the same field year after year thus robbing the ground of a certain nutrient for different crops. Back in the day crops were rotated, and when they are rotated a different nutrient is removed, but the nutrient that was removed the year before is put back in the soil from the rotating, it is constantly being rejuvinated. This is fro Wikipedia: "Crop rotation also seeks to balance the fertility demands of various crops to avoid excessive depletion of soil nutrients. A traditional component of crop rotation is the replenishment of nitrogen through the use of green manure in sequence with cereals and other crops. It is one component of polyculture. Crop rotation can also improve soil structure and fertility by alternating deep-rooted and shallow-rooted plants." You can still get a little better nutrition by buying from a market gardner, because in most cases market gardners still rotate their crops. Soooo I still agree with J.A.M.A. Everyone should be taking vitamins because you can not be sure how much nutrition you are really getting unless you grow it yourself besides: Who would ever believe that an organic onion for $3.75 is really any better for you than a regular onion that costs $.65. This brings me to my last point and that is: Do you use all toxin free consumables in your home? Thanks, George
melanow: Organic doesn't do very much, if anything at all for nutrition: Then you probably don't see the bigger picture. Try to use a little bit of wisdom in this. Using chemical fertilizers to fertilize the soil is just like feeding our body with supplements and not having wholesome food. When you use chemical fertilizers/pesticides, it makes the soil infertile, kills all the worms and living creatures (actual farmers) in it and makes it more and more dependent on fertilizers. It's like putting the soil on steroids, ultimately making the soil barren. In the end, if you don't put fertilizers, nothing will grow there. The soil is dead. If you get a chance, read the book One Straw Revolution: http://www.amazon.com/One-Straw-Revolution-Introduction-Natural-Farming/dp/0878572201 melanow: This is fro Wikipedia: "Crop rotation also seeks to balance the fertility demands of various crops to avoid excessive depletion of soil nutrients. A traditional component of crop rotation is the replenishment of nitrogen through the use of green manure in sequence with cereals and other crops. It is one component of polyculture. Crop rotation can also improve soil structure and fertility by alternating deep-rooted and shallow-rooted plants." BTW, crop rotation is a normal practice in organic farming.
