Vitamin Blood Levels Taught Me This...

Dear Reader,
Did you know that every vitamin you take can be measured in your blood?
When a patient comes to my Wellness Center for the first time, I always run some routine blood work. Your doctor probably does, too. One of the first things I test for are blood levels for all vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and key enzymes.
Here’s what surprised me early on in my career: many of my most health-conscious patients—even the ones who swore they took a multivitamin every day—were malnourished! I had to spend hours researching to understand why. Here’s what I learned:
The major vitamin makers often use synthetic versions of the vitamins they list on the label. Then they blast them into a tiny little pellet and coat it with chemicals. Your body can’t absorb most of what’s in them; it just eliminates them. So you’re not getting any real health benefit.
What’s more, it turns out that taking vitamins isn’t enough. Your body needs other critical nutrients to properly absorb the vitamins you’re taking. You actually have to take a broad range of supplements to see real results. Otherwise you’re just throwing money away without getting results.
A recent study proved it. Scientists took a look at the total health of over 1,000 people, dividing them into three groups: those who don’t use supplements at all, those who take only multivitamins, and those who take a broad spectrum of dietary supplements daily, including multivitamins and minerals, enzymes, antioxidants, and omega-3.1
People who took the full range of supplements every day were healthier by every measure. They enjoyed the full protective benefit that optimum nutrition provides, including:
• 73 percent lower risk of diabetes
• 52 percent lower risk of heart disease
• Lower blood levels of triglycerides, the “bad fats” clog your arteries
• Higher levels of HDL, the “good cholesterol”
Meanwhile, the people who limited themselves to a daily multivitamin actually suffered serious nutritional deficiencies.
With that in mind, let’s quickly run through some of the vital nutrients you need for maximum health (and the ones the healthy folks in the study took every day):
The vitami
B complex, folate, and CoQ10 are critical. These are powerful compounds essential to nearly every system of the body. CoQ10 is a “co-enzyme,” not a vitamin or mineral. You won’t find it in any “one-a-day.”
That’s a problem, because CoQ10 is directly responsible for providing energy to 95% of the cells in your body. It insures the optimum functioning for all your major organs, especially the “energy-intensive” ones like the heart, brain, and liver. And as you age, your body stops making as much of it. I ran some numbers on my test results over the years and discovered a remarkable fact: 82% of my new patients don’t have anywhere near enough CoQ10. The chances are pretty good that you don't either.
Omega-3 protects your heart by putting your cholesterol levels into healthy balance, lowering blood pressure, and reducing the level of triglycerides in your blood. These are the kind of fats that clog your arteries. It’s also been shown to reduce the risk of certain kinds of cancer.
Vitamin C is a potent immune booster. Vitamins A, D, and mixed carotenoids are Nature’s most powerful antioxidants. They neutralize the destructive action of “free radicals,” rogue oxygen molecules that attach themselves to healthy cells and lead to damage, mutation, and even death. Vitamin D is also a powerful cancer fighter. It enhances mood, prevents diabetes, and preserves heart health.
Zinc an essential ingredient for male virility – in fact, the prostate contains the highest concentration of zinc in the body. It also prevents hardening of the arteries and strengthens your immune system.
The bottom line is your body needs a lot more than a “one-a-day” to stay healthy.
To Your Good Health,
Al Sears, MD n________________________________________
1 Usage patterns, health, and nutritional status of long-term multiple dietary supplement users: a cross-sectional study. Nutritional Journal. 2007. 24;6(1):30. nn