Vitamins are essential to life

They contribute to good health by regulating the metabolism and assisting the bio­chemical processes that release energy from digested food. They are considered micro nutrients because the body needs them in relatively small amounts compared with nutrients such as carbohydrates, proteins, fats, and water.

Enzymes are essential chemicals that are the foundation of human bodily functions. They are catalysts (activators) in the chemical reactions that are continually taking place within the body. As coenzymes, vitamins work with enzymes, thereby allowing all the activities that occur within the body to be carried out as they should. Whole, fresh raw foods are a good source of enzymes

Do I really need vitamin supplements?

The answer is YES. Most of us, no matter how hard we try, just can't eat a good, nutritious diet at every meal every day. Australian Government recommend all adults need to eat at least 2 serves of fruit and 5 serves of vegies each day. The amount children need depends on their age. But most Australians eat only half the amount of fruit and vegies recommended for good health. So we need the help vitamin and mineral supplements can give. And sometimes we need a vitamin or mineral boost to help deal with health problems and relieve symptoms.

Supplements are an easy, safe, and inexpensive way to make sure you're getting the vitamins and minerals your body has to have for optimum health. Taking supplements can improve your health now and ensure it for the future.

How much vitamins and minerals do you really need?

Your body needs only small amounts of vitamins and minerals. But because what the body manufactures is often not enough, these must be obtained from your diet and from supplements.

Water-soluble vitamins are absorbed by the intestine and carried through the bloodstream. They are not stored in the body and must be taken daily in order to prevent deficiency.

Fat-soluble vitamins are better metabolized by your body if you take it with fat, oil, or protein in the same meal (or take your pill with this type of food). These types of vitamins are stored in the body, therefore, you do not want to take these in excessive amounts, since your body retains them and the effect can be toxic.

Synthetic Versus Natural

Ideally, all of us would get all of the nutrients we need for optimal health from fresh, healthful foods. In reality, however, this is often difficult, if not impossible. In our chemically polluted and stress-filled world, our nutritional requirements have been increasing, but the number of calories we require has been decreasing, as our general level of physical activity has declined. This means we are faced with needing somehow to get more nutrients from less food. At the same time, many of our foods are depleted of certain nutrients. Modem farming practices have resulted in soils that are lacking in selenium and other nutrients. Harvesting and shipping practices are dictated not by nutritional considerations but by marketing demands. Add to this extensive processing, improper storage, and other factors, and it is little wonder that many of the foods that reach our tables cannot meet our nutritional needs. Getting even the RDI's of vitamins from today's diet has become quite hard to do. This means that for optimum health, it is necessary to take nutrients in supplement form.

Synthetic vitamins are vitamins produced in laboratories from isolated chemicals that mirror their counterparts found in nature. Natural vitamins are derived from food sources. Although there are no major chemical differences between a vitamin found in food and one created in a laboratory, synthetic supplements contain the isolated vitamins only, while natural supplements may contain other nutrients not yet discovered. This is because these vitamins are in their natural state. If you are deficient in a particular nutrient, the chemical source will work, but you will not get the benefits of the vitamin as found in whole foods. Supplements that are not labeled natural also may include coal tars, artificial coloring, preservatives, sugars, and starch, as well as other additives. You should beware of such harmful elements. However, you should also note that a bottle of "natural" vitamins may contain vitamins that have not been extracted from a natural food source. It is necessary to read labels carefully to make sure the products you buy contain nutrients from food sources, with none of the artificial additives mentioned above.

Studies have shown that protein bonded vitamins, as found in natural whole food supplements, are absorbed, utilized, and retained in the tissues better than supplements that are not protein-bonded. Chemical-derived vitamins are not protein-bonded. Vitamins and minerals in food are bonded to proteins, lipids, carbohydrates, and bioflavonoids.

Using a natural form of vitamins and minerals in nutritional supplements is the objective of the protein-bonding process. Taking supplements with meals helps to assure a supply of other nutrients needed for better assimilation as well.