Wisdom of Healing

Most of the vitamin and mineral products found on the shelves of vitamin shops, pharmacies, grocers or health food stores are made of isolated purified chemicals. We’ve been told (lied to) for about four decades that these chemicals are ‘natural’, but it’s simply not so. Minerals are essentially powdered rocks, while the vitamins can be chemically purified substances from many sources, including genetically-engineered corn, fish heads, skin or brains and even photo finishing chemicals! Seems odd, doesn’t it?

Many have come to believe that most of the vitamins and minerals in the health food stores, whether they’re multi’s or single nutrients, are more natural than the grocery store, pharmacy and big box store brands. It’s a myth, however, in most cases. What’s true about many of these more expensive vitamin and mineral supplements is that these companies often choose to use the ‘better’ chemical forms.

If you would prefer to use real whole food supplements, you’ll need to do more than read and believe the words on the label. Many products state that they’re made with whole food, but what they’re actually saying is that there might be 2% or more of a dehydrated whole food added to several chemical ingredients.

Vitamin A
Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin used by the body for vision, growth, development, skin, hair, mucous membranes, immune function and reproduction.

Vitamin A in its purified form is called Vitamin A retinol, palmitate or acetate, and in excess, is considered toxic. Newer research shows that these forms may increase risk of birth defects and osteoporosis. Yet most vitamin companies continue to use these forms, even in their prenatal and seniors’ products.

The mixed carotenoids, pigments that make our vegetables and fruits colorful, are found in complex whole foods and shown in research to be safe and easily utilized within the body. Several carotenoids are converted by the body into the necessary Vitamin A for optimum health. Sea vegetables and algae are rich in carotenoids, as are the orange, red, pink, green and other brightly colored vegetables and fruits. Cultured whole foods are another excellent source of easily utilized mixed carotenoids.

Since most Americans and people in developed countries are believed to get an ample amount of Vitamin A in their diets, there are few real whole food sources in supplement form. These products offer numerous nutrients and are rich sources of mixed carotenoids. If you’re interested in a supplement form of Vitamin A, you may want to check out most of the certified organic algae products from Pure Planet or Nutrex, any of the multi’s from New Chapter or Megafood and a delicious liquid multi from Flora, called Floradix Epresat Multivitamin.

Vitamin B Complex
The B Complex of vitamins are water soluble and are also mostly isolated, purified chemicals in the majority of products on the market. If we have sufficient numbers of beneficial bacteria in our intestines, we should have ample B Vitamins for our bodies’ needs, as these beneficial bacteria manufacture B Vitamins as they support our digestive and immune health.

B Vitamins are essential for the nervous system, energy production, muscle tone of the digestive tract, and skin, hair, eyes, mouth and liver health.

Ideally, we want to consume plenty of complex cultured whole foods and be sure to keep healthy colonies of beneficial bacteria in the gut so as to provide the body with plenty of B Vitamins. If you are looking for truly natural sources of supplementation, however, I believe that the New Chapter Coenzyme B Food Complex is the best of the best! In fact, all of their vitamin and mineral products provide easily utilized B vitamins, since they’re all made from complex, cultured whole food!

Vitamin C
Most Vitamin C is isolated from corn, and much of that corn the past few years is believed to be genetically modified. If you’re interested in only consuming the very best, most easily assimilated, honestly natural Vitamin C, there are only a few on the market. They tend to be lower milligrams than you’re used to. That’s because, when the vitamin or mineral is easily utilized on a cellular level (more potent), you no longer need to consume exaggerated amounts of milligrams, as with the purified chemicals.

Vitamin C is well-known for its support in protecting cells from free radical damage to help lower cancer risk, improving iron absorption, help with wound healing, prevention of frequent colds or infections and lung-related conditions.

There are a few products that are made predominantly from whole food ingredients and, therefore, easily assimilated (utilized on a cellular level). Pure Planet offers a great Amla berry Vitamin C. Megafood and New Chapter both offer complex whole food supplements. (With the Megafood brand, be sure to choose the yellow label products, as the Megafood Essentials contain significantly less complex whole food than the yellow label products.)

There are also many herbs and whole foods that contain reasonable amounts of Vitamin C in its usable form. In nature, as in the true whole food supplement products, a variety of bioflavonoids are always present as co-factors for the utilization of the Vitamin C.

These herbal and whole food choices include: rose hips, acerola fruit, bitter melon, all the other peppers, including hot pepper species, mango, horseradish, cashews, walnuts, parsley, strawberries, citrus fruits, watercress, kale and Brussels sprouts.

For years, my younger daughter, Mollie’s, favorite after-school snack was a red pepper, a vegetable very high in Vitamin C. She would core it and eat it like an apple, especially when she was feeling on the verge of getting sick! Red pepper is significantly higher in Vitamin C than oranges, grapefruits, tangerines or lemons. Her intuition must have caused her to choose the red pepper the first time, and the improvement she experienced in her health drew her back time and again.

We will continue this topic soon, discussing Vitamin D, E, etc. I hope this has helped you to be able to distinguish between the truths and myths that we’re told about health and nutrition, and the products that truly are most ‘natural’.

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