Supplements
Superfoods
Bundles
These are the headlines being regurgitated at the moment in the media around the world as part of the latest campaign to attempt to discredit 'vitamins'.
I have lost count of how many times I have read these types of news releases over the last 14 years. And...news releases is what they are! Many of these are carefully orchestrated behind the scenes by vested interests...yes, I am referring to Big Pharma. It is not widely known but there are many millions of dollars spent each year by pharma consortiums with public relations companies to actively try and find negative studies about vitamins and supplements.
A few years ago I was privy to some information in the UK which revealed 15 million UK pounds were being spent each year in a campaign to discredit supplements. Not only that, but in some cases if you dig deep enough you may find that the funders of some of the negative studies are the same organizations that oppose supplements.
Change in Public Attitude
Why? Well over the last 15 years there has been a change in the public's attitude towards their personal health. Most people are now aware that the conventional medical methods of intervention at the time a health problem manifests itself is often an ineffective solution. Agreed it can certainly help delay the symptoms of some conditions and ease pain but rarely does the intervention bring about a full cure of the condition.
Not only is the outcome often less than satisfactory but the costs are now getting to a stage, particularly in the US that medical costs may ultimately be a major contributing factor for a major economic crisis.
At the end of the day it is your own body that does the healing...we just need to support it!
As a result of this increasing awareness there has been a trend for people to be more responsible for their own health by taking preventative measures. This includes awareness of lifestyle, diet and exercise...PLUS, sensible supplementation. No matter what you may read from some 'experts' in the media, much of the food eaten today are little more than empty calories (with some nasty additives thrown in) and this is the underlying reason why the overall health of the population has deteriorated.
Not Enough Body Fuel for good Health...
When I refer to empty calories I am referring to the general depletion of the nutrients in food even from what are considered to be 'quality' foods such as fresh fruit and vegetables. This is even ignoring the processed foods that form a large part of many peoples diets...and those foods are even worse when it comes to limited nutritional content.
The stark reality is that your body is an intricate finely tuned machine. If it does not have the nutrients that your organs need to carry out all the myriad of complex chemical reactions which go on in your body every second whilst you are alive...it will simply start to malfunction. The deficiency of these nutrients is what triggers off sickness.
If you give your body the nutrients that it needs you will simply NOT get many of the common malfunctions in your body unless you have some genetic disease which is relatively rare. I am living proof of that. I am 66 years old and have no health issues. I can do everything that I could do when I was 40 years old...more...in some activities.
Negative Studies based on flawed Protocols...
OK...you may be thinking...what about those studies that show negative results such as the widely published one over recent years that Beta Carotene and Vitamin E can shorten your life and which is being cited in the current round of media publicity?
Well...if it wasn't so serious and misleading that particular study would have been funny!
I'll explain:
There is a world of difference between the synthetic versions of Beta Carotene and Vitamin E and the natural forms of these two nutrients. Additionally the Vitamin E used in the studies were in the form of Tocopherols which should never be used unless they are in partnership with the other component of Vitamin E...Tocotrienols! Unfortunately Tocotrienols are not often used as they are very expensive. (We always use them with Vitamin E Tocopherols and have done so for over a decade.)
Additionally,individual vitamins should never be taken in isolation or with just one or two others. They should always be just a component part of a broad spectrum of vitamins and other nutrients. This study was doomed to failure before it even started...and one could wonder if that was the intention...depending upon who was funding it.
More is not always better...
In the current series of regurgitated articles giving a negative spin on vitamins there are instances where references are made to high doses of vitamins not being effective! Of course they are not! With vitamins 'more is not better'. Vitamins are basically co-factors to help the overall function of the body in conjunction with other nutrients.
High doses are not beneficial unless you have been diagnosed with a specific deficiency. In fact, high doses can be detrimental, particularly if in the synthetic form and taken in isolation.
I found it amusing to read in the media reports today that a study with vitamin users did not show any improvement in cognitive function! Of course not...to get improvements in this area, the health of your neuro-transmitters need to be improved and for this they need more assistance than they can get with straight vitamins.
I could go on and on about this subject but I think that you get the gist of what I am getting at.
Finally, don't confuse a multi-vitamin supplement with a complex nutrition supplement such as our Total Balance. That is like comparing Chalk to Cheese. It is also why Total Balance is so much more valuable than a multi because it does contain a broad range of additional nutrients needed by the body but rarely available in supplements.
In summary, please don't be phased by this latest round of negative 'press'. Things are not as they are being portrayed. If you would like to refresh yourself on what you should do for your overall health please have a look at the new copy we have just uploaded on our website and refer to the Core Wellness sets which you will find a link to on the home page.
Hope this helps put the media reports into a better perspective...
