Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Exercising caution with supplements

I personally find it upsetting to hear doctors, advertising claims and information online or printed making blanket recommendations to all. There are many intelligent individuals taking action on this type of advice who are hurting not helping their health.

One widely touted piece of advice is to take a baby aspirin daily for heart health. My elderly dad did this several years ago and showed me how his skin was turning purple - in fact bruising because the aspirin was thinning his blood and causing this to happen. When I told him to stop taking the baby aspirin, the bruising stopped.

Another advertised claim for a bone drug, mentions that all women need calcium supplementation. Thankfully, I didn't listen to this advice. About 80 percent of U.S. adults are currently Vitamin D deficient which may result in elevated calcium levels in the blood not absorbed into cells properly. Supplementation can easily cause havok and calcium deposits on the skin as the body tries to lower blood calcium levels.

It is a well know fact that there are toxicity symptoms associated with some Vitamins and Minerals however to sell more, the manufacturers focus on those that are deficient and rarely discuss issues of excessive doses. Excess doses of nutritients have sent several of my well intended friends to the hospital.

It is important for all of us to determine if we are deficient and to supplement accordingly first with food (if possible since many foods are nutrient deficient due to depleted soil, etc.) and then with supplements. Most nutrient levels can be tested for.

It's wise to exercise reasonable caution in this arena to stay safe and healthy.


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First trained as a food chemist and nutritionist, my career began enriching a Twinkie, comparing the nutrition of a Twinkie to an apple and studying the role of sugar in the diet. With an M.B.A. and years in food and pharma understanding consumers and manufacturers, I'm back to where I started - food should taste great and serve to keep us healthy. To do so, there needs to be consumer awareness. Consumers need to vote for what they want by buying what they really want. If they buy impulsively, that's what they will see more of. They need to practice balance and responsible choices. That's when change will come. Please engage me with your conversation so that I can help you make and stick to better food choices that you enjoy. You'll gain a deeper appreciation of food not only from farm to table but farm to health. My vision is to promote solutions for healthful food and food practices you can happily embody and embrace!