FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

I eat a healthy diet. Are multi-vitamins really necessary?

Yes. Even with a healthy diet, you still need a good multivitamin-mineral supplement that also contains plant nutrients known as phyto-nutrients. Your body needs vitamins, minerals, and phyto-nutrients so it can build healthy cells.

In our modern world, you just can’t get all the nutrition your body needs (unless you’re growing your own food in organically-rich soil and eating it straight from the garden). Read the first two chapters of Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific for a more thorough explanation

What does it actually mean to “Supplement”?

The dictionary says “to supplement” means “to make whole, to make complete”. Adding high-quality vitamins, minerals, phyto-nutrients, essential fatty acids, and other important nutrients makes your diet more whole, more complete. Informed supplementation helps fill the nutritional gaps that are pretty much unavoidable in your daily intake of food.

However, supplementing doesn’t mean you can make up for a poor diet by popping a few pills. Supplements just can’t do that much heavy lifting. Learn more about informed supplementation in Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific.

Is it true that, when you take vitamins, you flush your money down the toilet?

Well, people say often say that taking supplements is a waste of money. In all likelihood, these people haven’t done their homework on nutrition and supplements. They’re running on out-dated information or mere beliefs rather than on their knowledge of the latest in nutritional science.

After all, the Canadian and American Cancer Institutes both recommend eating ten servings of fruits and vegetables every day. If you can’t or don’t, where are you going to get your nutrients if not in supplements? Many healthcare professionals would like to see North Americans increase their daily intake of carotenoids (nutrients contained in plants), but it’s unlikely that you’re going to eat four times as many carrots, peaches, spinach, or apricots as you’re eating now. What’s the alternative? Allergies? Cataracts? Prostate problems? Heart disease? Or supplements?

As you can see, when the Harvard School of Public Health and the American Medical Association advise that everyone would benefit from taking a daily supplement, they’re right. The thing is, you have to learn how to take supplements in an informed way. For example, if you take fat-soluble vitamins with a glass of water and on an otherwise empty stomach, you may just flush your money away because these vitamins (A, D, E, and K) need fat to act as a solvent.

You also may flush your money away if you take minerals without adequate amounts of vitamins because minerals depend on vitamins in order to be effective. Some vitamins and minerals that work together include calcium and magnesium (which also need Vitamins C and D to be most effective), Vitamin A and zinc, and iron and Vitamin C. There are many more that work together in a process we know as synergy.

As you learn about vitamins, minerals, and important plant nutrients called phyto-nutrients, you’ll see how they all weave together. Pull too many threads from your nutritional tapestry and you’ll weaken the fabric of your nutritional status. Pull out a few more, and it may fall apart altogether.

It’s true that the supplements industry is poorly standardized and poorly regulated, so consumers can spend a lot of money needlessly. It’s therefore important to learn the difference between quality supplements and hype. You need to learn how to differentiate between good, bad, and totally terrific supplements.

Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific will help you do just that. It will explain informed supplementation in an entertaining and engaging format, and it will provide you with Ten Totally Terrific Questions to ask your supplements provider so you don’t waste your hard-earned money when you go shopping.

There are so many supplements on the market. How do I choose?

Gloria Askew (co-author of Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific) is a Retired Registered Nurse. During her nursing career, she wondered how to choose supplements, too.

Gloria spent two years researching supplements, and she called 200 companies to ask about their supplements. During that process, she developed Ten Totally Terrific Questions to ask your supplements provider before you buy. If they can’t or won’t answer, go someplace else.

Chapter 13: How to Find Totally Terrific Supplements lists those 10 questions along with the answers you should be looking for. Already, people are reporting improved nutritional understanding as a result of reading Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific and because they are asking its Ten Totally Terrific Questions.

What does the word Natural actually mean?

There are no standards around this word. Arsenic is natural, but how much of that would you want to consume? Natural is just a marketing term designed to make you think something is good for you. Beware.

I'm told that diabetes is on the increase, even in children. Is this true?

Yes, it is true. Sadly, children, teens, and young adults all are developing Type 2 diabetes at alarming rates. The Lancet (a prestigious medical journal) reported a shocking 69% increase in diabetes rates between 1995 and 2005, with the highest increase being among younger people. Fast food, refined sugars, high fructose corn syrup, bad fats, and sedentary lifestyles all contribute to the increase. Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific explains this in considerable detail.

What is all the fuss about Vitamin D? We get plenty from the sun don't we?

Are you aware that nine out of ten North Americans are deficient in Vitamin D? Vitamin D is a fat soluble vitamin that is more like a hormone than a vitamin. Your body generates Vitamin D when the sun shines directly on your skin, but many people avoid the sun altogether, work long hours indoors, or slather on sunscreen when they are outside. Surprisingly, even people who spend plenty of time in the sun can still lack this vital inflammation fighter.

This is dangerous because Vitamin D deficiency is a major cause of rickets in children (which is on the rise in North America), and it is a major contributor to muscle loss in seniors, osteoporosis at any age and in both genders, as well as multiple sclerosis, heart and brain issues, early dementia, blood sugar imbalances, and many other serious health problems.

In Chapter 10 of Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific, learn more about this critical nutrient—and the important blood test to check it that many doctors don’t order.

What are the major energy sources for your heart?

Co-enzyme Q10, also called CoQ10, is critical for your heart. CoQ10 is an enzyme the human body produces well in early life, but not so well later on.

As you get older, the effects of illness, stress, and inadequate nutrition all can affect your heart. If it can't keep pace with your body's needs for oxygen and nutrients, you risk a weak and tired heart—and that spells trouble.

To avoid these problems, you need to nourish your heart with the right kind of fuel, which includes adequate amounts of CoQ10. And if you think you're getting enough from your diet to energize your heart, well—think again! Research shows that’s just not so. Learn more about how to keep your heart happy in Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific.

I’m so confused about fats. Can you tell me what’s healthy and what’s not for me and my family?

If you’re confused about the whole fats issue, you’re not alone. Many people are baffled by fats. In fact, the confusion is so widespread that we’ve written a whole chapter (Chapter 6: Baffled by Fats) to help sort things out. Chapter 7: Indispensable EFAs also is devoted to the subject of fats.

To determine which fats are the bad guys, which are the good guys, and which have been wrongly accused, we’ve written Chapter 6 like a court case. In it, we’ve looked at opportunity, means, and motive; presented evidence; called on expert witnesses; provided a summation; and reported the jury’s verdict. The next chapter takes a hard look at EFAs including flaxseed and flaxseed oil, fish and fish oils, and a few others.

As you can imagine, these chapters contain a lot of information that can’t be adequately addressed in these short FAQs. Briefly, though, here are three things to watch when you’re shopping:

First, don’t fall for all that packaging declaring something is “fat free”. It may be fat free, but has the food been processed within an inch of its nutritional life?

Second, be wary of claims that saturated fats are always the bad guys (they’re not). According to some of the latest research, coconut oil and even butter and lard can be good for you in moderate amounts—and they’re definitely better for you and your family than all those highly processed trans-fats (and inter-esterified fats) found in some margarines, various spreads, and many baked goods and packaged foods.

Third, know what you’re buying and eating. Research shows that some oils (olive oil and flaxseed oil, to name just two) can be totally terrific. But even good guys, can quickly turn into really bad guys. Fats and oils can be oxidized (turned rancid) by heat, air, and light; eating oxidized fats and oils introduces unnecessary levels of free radicals into your body. Unfortunately, oxidation can occur in the refining process before the oil ever leaves the plant, right on the shelf in the grocery store, in your cupboard at home, and in your pan on the stove.

So, what does all this mean for you and your family? Well, it means you have to stay alert to trickery and plain old uninformed advice. A food may be fat-free, but did it contain fat in the first place? How much sugar and salt have been added to replace the flavor lost when the fat was extracted? Your local restaurant may proudly declare that it doesn’t cook with trans-fats anymore. Maybe not, but using rancid canola oil, for example, isn’t much of an improvement. Besides, industry has introduced a new processed fat to replace trans-fats: inter-esterified fats—beware.

Whether you’re dining out or eating in, understand that fats and oils turn rancid through poor handling. When you’re shopping, look for cold pressed oils packaged in dark bottles. Buy flaxseed oil only if it’s been stored in the refrigerated section of your local store. Look for Extra Virgin olive oil. It comes from the first, chemical-free pressing of a low-acid olive.

Once you get your fats and oils home, use them quickly and keep them in the fridge—never for months in a cupboard. Also, watch how you cook with them. If you heat a fat or oil until it smokes, it’s oxidized. Throw it out and start over. Your favorite cooking show may see no problem with heating olive oil until it smokes—but there is a problem, and you need to be aware of it.

Of course, there’s much more about fats in Chapters 6 and 7 of Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific.

What is a Supplement Secret about minerals?

Well, for one thing, minerals work best in tandem. Copper and zinc are good examples. If you buy a supplement with copper but no zinc, your zinc stores can be depleted and vice versa. Make certain you have a totally terrific supplement that contains balanced mineral combinations. Learn about minerals in Chapter 11.

Why am I so tired?

You may be tired because you’re skipping breakfast, eating breakfast too late, or eating the wrong things at breakfast. Sugars and starches such as cereal and fruit can’t give you the energy you need on their own. You need adequate amounts of protein, too. To learn about protein, read Chapter 4: Powerful Proteins; Energized Enzymes.

You may feel tired because you’re eating too many sugary or starchy carbohydrates through the day. You may be deficient in enzymes such as Co-Q10 or various digestive enzymes. You may be low on minerals (such as iron), have low levels of B vitamins, or too little Vitamin D3.

Your thyroid gland may be functioning poorly. You may need some hormone balancing of estrogen, progesterone, or testosterone. You could have diabetes, Syndrome X, or any number of other health issues. All of these possibilities must be evaluated by your healthcare provider. Don’t sit and stew about the possibilities. Get it looked into.

Whatever the problem, there may be many facets to it. Certainly, though, you can help support your cells’ production of energy through informed supplementation. Learn more about the link between energy and nutrition in Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific.

What is the largest part of my Immune System?

Who would guess it’s the bowel? That’s right: the largest part of your immune system is your bowel. Discover this vital information in Chapter 5: Craving Carbohydrates. Learn how antibiotics, refined foods, and high sugars disrupt good bacteria in your bowel—leaving you vulnerable to disease.

Is there a vitamin or mineral that may help prevent cardiac problems?

Of the 325,000 cases of Sudden Cardiac Death in the USA each year, cardiologists will tell you that many of these deaths could have been prevented. Of course, there’s a great deal that goes into heart health: appropriate exercise, reducing stress, and proper diet.

When it comes to vitamins and minerals, we know that magnesium levels are linked to Sudden Cardiac Death, and magnesium levels often are low in heart patients (and diabetics, too). CoQ10 levels may be low in heart patients, as well.

The Nurses’ Health Study showed that EFAs can make the difference between life and death in a cardiac arrest. Also, supplementation with the correct form of Vitamin E may help reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease by reducing platelet stickiness.

Always consult with your healthcare provider before starting any supplementation regimen, because some supplements can interfere with prescriptions that you may be taking. Also, make sure you’re eating a healthy diet. No supplement can completely make up for the nutritional deficiencies and toxic load of a junk food diet.

Are organic foods any healthier than regular foods?

Several studies, including a 12-year German study, have shown that certified organic food contains more nutrients than conventional food. Also, statistics obtained from The United States Department of Agriculture show that nutrient levels are declining in many fruits and vegetables, and research from the Organic Consumers Association clearly shows commercially-raised eggs, meat, and dairy all contain lower levels of nutrients.

One American study revealed that certified-organic food contained much higher average levels of minerals than commercially-raised food: 63% more calcium, 73% more iron, 125% more potassium, and 60% more zinc. There was also 29% less mercury, which as you likely know, is toxic.

Low levels of nutrients seem to be contributing to rising obesity rates. You see, the brain knows when it’s received enough nutrients. If you eat a nutritionally deficient diet, your brain will keep looking for more nutrients. You feel hungry, hunger leads to eating more food, and eating more food leads to a a bigger waistline and a bigger grocery bill. You’ll get more bang for your nutritional buck with nutrient-rich foods.

When choosing supplements, choose those made from certified organic plants—and make sure the plants have been grown and harvested using sustainable methods that replenish the soil. Again, query the manufacturer, and get it in writing. Don’t just believe whatever someone tells you because they think you want to hear it.

When should I take my vitamins?

There are water-soluble vitamins and fat-soluble vitamins, which means some dissolve in water and some dissolve in fat. So the answer is: Most supplements are best taken with meals.

I’m hearing a lot about Phyto-nutrients. What are they?

Phyto-nutrients are a broad category of critical nutrients scientists are just beginning to study in a focused way. “Phyto” means “plant”, so phyto-nutrients are plant nutrients.

We know there are thousands of phyto-nutrients, but scientists still know very little about them. For that reason, no matter how good scientists are, they can’t create the cornucopia of phyto-nutrients in a lab because they can’t replicate what they have yet to identify or don’t yet fully understand.

Scientists do know, however, that phyto-nutrients help plants fight disease, insects, bacteria, viruses, and environmental stressors such as heat, cold, and pollution. Phyto-nutrients can help people fight disease and stressors, too. That’s why your multivitamin-mineral must be plant-based (contain phyto-nutrients) and why supplements created entirely in a lab cannot contain all the nutrients your body needs.

Phyto-nutrients are also the reason we at Phyte Media Inc. started The Phyte Club. The Phyte Club helps people at the grassroots level phyte (fight) against food and supplementation practices and policies that don’t serve optimum nutrition while also phyting (fighting) for food and supplementation that does support optimum nutrition. Are you a Phyter?

The name The Phyte Club is a play on words from the well-known Brad Pitt movie The Fight Club. Any resemblance between Brad Pitt and Jerre Paquette, PhD (co-author of Secrets of Supplements: The Good, the Bad, the Totally Terrific) is totally coincidental.