by Beth Ellen DiLuglio MS RD CNSD CCN

Created on: April 14, 2009

Absolutely, the majority of Americans would benefit from some form of nutrition support. Vitamins, along with minerals and phytochemicals (or "phytonutrients) are the spark plugs that ignite hundreds of metabolic processes in our bodies. They are crucial to energy generation, neurotransmitter production and regulation (which governs our mood), detoxification of chemicals, pesticides, solvents and even our own hormones! Vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals are essential to the maintenance of healthy tissue, blood pressure, glucose regulation and dozens of other bodily functions.

Some who haven't studied the field of clinical nutrition professionally will state that we get all the nutrients we need from the food that we eat (based on RDA guidelines from the 1940's). The RDA's don't come close to telling us what our nutrient requirements are today in the face of an industrialized society. RDA's were designed to keep 50% of a healthy population "healthy", that is, free from overt nutrient deficiency diseases including scurvy, rickets and beriberi. They were created to keep soldiers in WWII healthy enough to fight and citizens at home healthy enough to work. They do not address nutrient needs in sick or "less than healthy" individuals. RDA's in no way address "biochemical individuality" or our genetic differences that dictate what our micronutrient requirements are.

The majority of Americans would benefit from supplementation for several reasons... primarily because the nutritional value of much of the food we eat has been reduced. Loss or absence of essential nutrients is due to depleted soil, the use of synthetic pesticides, picking of produce before ripening, overcooking and overprocessing.

Current guidelines recommend a MINIMUM of 5 servings of fruits and vegetables per day. Ideally intake should be 9-13 servings per day of whole, unprocessed, vine ripened, local organic produce... a lofty aspiration! It is entirely possible to consume the total number of servings, however, some produce itself is lacking.

Lack of minerals in the soil leads to a lack of minerals in crops as plants cannot produce minerals, they must depend on the soil they are grown in. Use of synthetic pesticides will reduce the plant's own production of chemicals, some of which are beneficial to us such as phenolic compounds. Synthetic pesticides, as well as other toxic compounds, must be detoxified or broken down in our bodies before they cause harm. Detoxification of these compounds relies heavily

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>