Vitamins & Minerals
I believe that we should strive to eat things that were
created by Nature, and in as natural a form as possible. Our
bodies were designed to absorb nutrients in chelated form.
If we examine the many nutritional supplements available for
sale, it become apparent that the high degree of processing
utilized in the manufacturing changes them from chelated (if
they ever were) form to a manufactured form that cannot be
fully and efficiently metabolized by our bodies. I knew that
many higher quality of these products were made from natural
ingredients and herbs, but wondered what the actual vitamins
and minerals were made from. I had assumed the were made
from food.
As it turns out, nothing could be further from the truth.
All vitamin and mineral supplements currently made are NOT
blended foods. In fact most are made from very undesirable,
even horrifying substances. If you look on your current
bottle of nutrients, it will state the vitamins, minerals,
and a long list of non nutrient items that do not offer any
wanted benefits, such as starch, wheat, cellulose, soy,
lactose coloring, flavoring, fillers, etc.
Commercial grade vitamin and mineral concentrates are
synthesized by chemical industries from the same starting
material that drugs are made from (coal tar, petroleum
products, animal by-products / waste and fecal matter,
ground rocks, stones, shells and metal). These materials are
processed and sold to many nutrient manufacturers as a
"natural" nutrient rich base. The manufacturers are just
mixing middlemen who don't know how these various vitamins
and minerals are made, or from what, nobody asks. Everybody
just assumes a vitamin is a vitamin.
The United States Pharmacopeia ( U.S.P. ) states that if a
product looks similar under a microscope, or in analysis,
that it is the same regardless of what it is made out of.
For instance salicylic acid u.s.p. is considered identical
whether it comes from wintergreen leaves or by boiling
coal in carbolic and sulfuric acids. It also considers
glycerin u.s.p. identical whether it is made from fresh
vegetables, toxic minerals or boiled down animal
carcasses, cartilage and feet.
Vitamins
Many products marketed as natural vitamins, may actually be
derived from sources that are not very desireable. Vitamin
B-12 and cyanocobalamin, is made from either ground up cow
livers or activated sewage sludge. If our cows are fed
steroids, antibiotics, growth hormones and grass full of
pesticides, their livers could be expected to be toxic. The
sewage sludge is just that, fecal matter.
Given that in today's environment, our immune systems are
already depressed, these materials would be a health risk,
not a health benefit. Just because a so-called natural
substance (fecal matter is a natural substance) is high in a
particular vitamin, does not make it suitable for food.
Vitamin A is made from fish liver juices that we know are
loaded with PCB's and mercury, B vitamins from coal tar and
petro-chemicals, known central nervous system depressants,
respiratory irritants and carcinogens, Vitamin C from acid
blends irritating to the lining of the digestive tract,
Vitamin D from radiated oil, Vitamin E is manufactured by
Eastman Kodak, and on and on.
Minerals
The minerals commonly used in mineral supplements are mined
ore, pulverized and powdered to a fine dust. Some calcium is
made from ground up oyster shells. This is not a form that
is useable by our bodies. Modern research confirms that
minerals of this type are 99% inassimilable. The
manufacturers response to this is to add pig digestive
enzymes, which supposedly pre-digests it or chelates it, in
their attempts to force our body to accept these toxic
materials. We cannot find any proof that this provides any
duplication of chelation.
These manufactured supplements not only provide little
benefit, they could contribute to the further
accumulation of toxins in our bodies. What we need is a
natural whole food.
There are high quality supplements, but they must be
carefully sought out. Like all things, the price can be an
indicator of true value.