WHY SUPPLEMENTS?

Why take supplements?

I take supplements to keep me alive. My experience is that they bolster my immune system, give me great energy and keep me feeling young. They also protect me from the onslaught of nutritionally deficient foods and high levels of toxicity on our planet today.

“Current nutrition research shows that higher and higher levels of vitamins and minerals are associated with better health and more efficient cellular functioning, while lower levels are linked with suboptimal cellular functioning. Even conventional medicine is slowly but surely coming around to the opinion that vitamins can do more than prevent deficiency diseases. This represents an enormous shift in conventional thought, since until recently mainstream physicians believed supplements accomplished little more than helping create expensive urine.”

Fantastic Voyage by Ray Kurzwell

Why not just eat the right foods instead of taking supplements?

Local, organic whole foods free of pesticides, antibiotics and hormones should be the staple of our diet, whether we take supplements or not. Sadly the soil in which we grow our food is depleted due to pesticides, mass farming and general heightened levels of toxicity. Consequently the nutritional value of our food is much less than it was 100 years ago. In addition we’ve polluted our rivers and oceans so badly that it is almost impossible to find fish that isn’t contaminated with mercury and other toxins.

However, even if we were able to find absolutely pure food sources, we would be physically unable to ingest the amount of food needed to access and maintain optimal levels. Imagine eating 6 salmon fillets a day and a few buckets of blueberries and broccoli!

How should you start?

Starting can be overwhelming.

There is so much conflicting and confusing information. One has to know where to look, what is reputable, what is quackery, what is industrial money machine marketing etc. So, for those of you who like to read and do your own research I’ve provided a list of books to get you started and for those of you who prefer to start immediately I’ve provided a small but solid list of ‘supplement essentials‘.

It’s best to start with the basics –to keep it as clear and simple as possible. Like regular exercise, adhering to a supplement program can take some will-power to engrain the discipline into your day. Don’t worry if you miss a few days, or forget your ‘evening’ batch. What feels like a lot in the beginning will become second nature a few months down the road.

Warnings:

Definitely a few things to know before jumping into a new health regime:

For starters, if you have a serious medical issue and/or are currently on any serious medication, you should of course be sure to find appropriate medical support before making any adjustments.

Secondly, make sure that you buy quality supplements from good sources. Like food, the supplement industry is a big business which attracts unscrupulous behavior, and it is sadly up to us to research and question both provenance and authenticity.

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