B12

B-12 Vitamins

Nutritional Support for Optimal Wellness
By Brazos Minshew, TriVita Chief Science Officer

Common Nutritional Deficiencies
Severe deficiencies of vitamins or minerals are rare in the developed world. However, evidence suggests that slight deficiencies in certain nutrients may be relatively common. These include calcium, chromium, folate, magnesium, vitamin B6, vitamin C, vitamin B12 (primarily in the elderly), vitamin D, vitamin E, and zinc.

While few people are so deficient in these nutrients to show symptoms of outright malnutrition, subtle deficiencies may increase the risk of a number of diseases. For example, insufficient intake of calcium and vitamin D may increase your chances of developing osteoporosis, and inadequate folate and vitamin B 6 may speed the development of heart disease. Thus, taking supplements to supply these important vitamins and minerals as a form of insurance may be a good idea.

Besides vitamins and minerals, intake of essential fatty acids may be commonly inadequate.

Multivitamin and Mineral Supplements
The simplest way to support your nutrition is to take a general multivitamin and mineral supplement providing a broad range of nutrients at standard nutritional levels. However, there are a few caveats to keep in mind.

Some supplements include very high doses of certain nutrients, such as antioxidants. When you take nutrients in this fashion, you are using them as drugs rather than nutrients; you are no longer in the world of nutritional supplementation and have passed into the riskier world of megadose treatment.
We recommend that you use an iron-free multivitamin and mineral supplement unless you have been tested and found to be deficient in iron.
The minerals calcium and magnesium are very bulky, and few multivitamin and mineral supplements provide the daily requirement. These minerals generally must be taken in the form of additional pills.

Note: It is not possible for your body to absorb a days worth of calcium in a single dose. At least two doses are necessary.

Finally, note that food may contain many nonessential substances, such as carotenoids and bioflavonoids, that nonetheless enhance health. For this reason, no nutrient supplement should be regarded as a substitute for a healthy and varied diet.

Therapeutic Uses
Under certain conditions, the need for many nutrients may increase. These include illnesses such as diabetes, Crohns disease, HIV and ulcerative colitis. Furthermore, individuals who smoke cigarettes or overuse alcohol may need additional nutrients. Medications may also increase the need for certain nutrients.

REFERENCES:
1. London RS, Bradley L, Chiamori NY. Effect of a nutritional supplement on premenstrual symptomatology in women with premenstrual syndrome: a double-blind longitudinal study. J Am Coll Nutr. 1991;10:494-499.
2. Reynolds MA, London RS. Efficacy of a multivitamin/mineral supplement in the treatment of the premenstrual syndrome [abstract]. J Am Coll Nutr. 1988;7:416.
3. Stewart A. Clinical and biochemical effects of nutritional supplementation on the premenstrual syndrome. J Reprod Med. 1987;32:435-441.
4. Chakmakjian ZH, Higgins CE, Abraham GE. The effect of a nutritional supplement, OptiviteW for women, on premenstrual tension syndromes: II. Effect on symptomatology, using a double-blind, cross-over design. J Appl Nutr. 1985;37:12-17.
5. Schlebusch L, Bosch BA, Polglase G, et al. A double-blind, placebo-controlled, double-centre study of the effects of an oral multivitamin-mineral combination on stress. S Afr Med J. 2000;90:1216-1223.

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B12

B-12 Vitamins

Also posted at Tomorrows Home Business Community

What To Do When You Have A Cold
By Brazos Minshew, TriVita Chief Science Officer

There is just one way to treat a cold, and that is with contempt. Sir William Osler

Ok, so you have read all those articles about prevention, but now you actually have a cold. What do you do now? A quick review of the transmission of trigger viruses and the interaction between viruses and your immune system can open the doors on a strategy to ease the symptoms and shorten the duration of a cold.

Is it a cold or the flu?
A cold is associated with the rhino virus and the flu with influenza virus. The symptoms are not exactly caused by the virus since many of us have the viruses without symptoms.

Instead, the symptoms of a cold or the flu are caused by an imbalance in our immune system in the presence of a trigger virus.

Symptom Cold Flu
Fever Rarely above 100.5 degrees F to 101 degrees F, and then only for a day or so Characteristic, high (102 degrees F to 104 degrees F); lasts three to four days
Headache Generally mild Prominent
General aches, pains Slight Usual; often severe
Fatigue, weakness Quite mild Can last up to two to three weeks
Extreme exhaustion Never Early and prominent
Stuffy nose Common Sometimes
Sneezing Usual Sometimes
Sore throat Common Sometimes
Chest discomfort, cough Mild to moderate, hacking cough Common; can become severe

Source: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

Reduce your exposure
The largest contributor to infection by a trigger virus is unwashed hands. Washing your hands with soap every few hours will reduce the chance for pathogens to gain access to your system. Equally as important as washing your hands is making sure they are completely dry. Then, use the disposable towel to open the door out of the washroom. Many ugly microbes lurk on door handles, usually from people who have not properly washed and dried their hands.

Next, disinfect surfaces that are shared by many people. For instance, the telephone brings you within kissing distance of hundreds or even thousands of people. Who knows what their hygiene habits were? In a typical day we may be exposed to germs from as many as 150 countries or more!

To the extent possible, avoid crowds, and try not to shake hands with people who obviously have a cold or flu. In addition, refrain from rubbing your eyes and nose. Other precautions include getting sufficient sleep, eating enough fruits and vegetables and being especially careful when around children. Why? Because they get between five and eight cold infections a year!

Chronic stress is like slow poison
Current research shows that stress can suppress your immune system, perhaps opening the door to a number of infectious diseases. Stress does not make you sick, says virologist Ronald Glaser. But it does increase your risk of being sick because of what it does to your immune system. There is particularly compelling evidence linking stress to colds and the flu. Although we are continually exposed to such trigger viruses, our immune system normally neutralizes their impact. But when a person is under emotional distress, these defenses can fail.

Your immune system may begin to overreact or not react in time to stop an infection when you are under stress. The source of the stress really does not matter. For instance, time pressure and an injury may seem like entirely different stresses to your mind but they are treated exactly the same way by your body.

Adaptogens build a strong defense against stress. Certain adaptogens such as Eleutherococcus have been proven to shorten the frequency, intensity and duration of trigger viruses that cause colds.

Can vitamins shorten infections?
Vitamin C and Echinacea are favorites for protecting against and even treating rhino virus infections. Russell Jaffe, MD, former director of the National Institutes of Health, recommends a loading dose of Vitamin C: one teaspoon of Vitamin C crystals every 15 minutes until you flush. By this, he means a complete bowel evacuation. After the flush, he recommends a daily serving of Vitamin C (for one month) that is equivalent to 75 percent of the amount it took you to flush.

Echinacea is used in a similar way. Significant medical research from Germany suggests that an hourly dose of Echinacea will reduce symptoms and shorten the duration of a virus infection. Taking a gram of Echinacea every hour for three days may even abort an infection that has already begun. Continue taking Echinacea three times daily for up to two weeks afterward to prevent a relapse.

Insulation and isolation
The best ways to protect against virus infections from colds and flu include:

Building up your system with the 10 Essentials for Health and Wellness
Reducing your exposure to trigger viruses through hand washing and other sanitary procedures

If you become infected, aggressive nutrition can restore balance to your immune system. Adaptogens and traditional remedies such as Vitamin C and Echinacea may shorten the course of an infection and provide quick relief.

Take Control of Your Health

Wash your hands every few hours and dry them thoroughly.
Aggressively apply the 10 Essentials; most especially, get your sleep.
Take a healthy foundation of nutrients:
A multiple vitamin and mineral supplement
An Omega-3 fatty acid supplement
Sublingual Vitamin B-12
Stress-busting adaptogens
Use traditional remedies:
Echinacea hourly for three days, then three times daily for two more weeks
Vitamin C flush, 75 percent of flush amount daily for one month

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Posted by
Terry L. Allison, Sr., #13134349 1 Star
Independent TriVita Affiliate Member
Skype: allisonmarketinggroup
Phone: 859-858-9246
Creator of Tomorrows Home Business Social Community
Automated Marketing
Staying Informed
Links