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How do Multi-Vitamins Effect Your Mood?

We all know how hard it is to get all you daily nutrition in just from the foods that you eat, and while we have discussed how the fields are stripped of nutrients and minerals before, we have yet to discuss newer studies that show a massive correlation between proper nutrients and minerals and their effects on your mood as well as other major brain functions.

The study was done by the Journal of Nutrition and Intermediary Metabolism and followed 58 individuals were gathered and were offered a multi-vitamin for the course of the study to see how it would effect people. The study was double blind and had controlled placebos in the test to make sure their results were as accurate as possible.

The results are nothing short of amazing as subjects who were on the multi-vitamin were not just healthier physically, but in just four weeks their depression score had been decreased on their tests. To validate this, subjects who had improved mood and brain function had higher level of vitamin b and lower counts of homocysteine.

Here are a list of ingredients you should be on the lookout for when it comes to supplements! Follow this list and research shows that it could be the difference maker in many individual’s lives that are struggling to take control of their mood:

 

  • Folic acid — Studies have shown that folic acid (a B-vitamin) can relieve certain symptoms of depression, particularly women suffering from the post-partum variety.
  • S-adenosyl-L-methionine — Known as SAMe, the substance helps regulate mood by allowing for the steady production of several neurotransmitters involved in mental stability.
  • Gingko biloba — The herbal supplement has been shown to improve symptoms of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. It has also been shown to be useful in alleviating antidepressant-induced sexual dysfunction.
  • Valerian — Unlike benzodiazepines, the herb can relieve anxiety and sleep problems without the associated side effects.
  • Omega-3 fatty acids — Data prove the positive interaction between the fatty acid and mental health. Omega-3 fatty acids are especially useful for the elderly and people with multiple medical conditions. This is because the supplement is potent while having limited interaction with other medicines.
  • St. John’s Wort — One of the more popular alternative remedies for depression, St. John’s Wort has been shown to help people with mild or moderate symptoms of the mental disorder. It is not recommended for those with severe forms of the disease, however.
  • Melatonin — The supplement can improve the sleep quality in people with schizophrenia, major depression, and those with seasonal affective disorder (SAD). (Johansson, 2018)

 To read more on the study, simply go to https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352385915001747 to become further educated on the subject!

Johansson, R. (2018, May 4). Taking a multivitamin has beneficial effects for your brain function, mood. Retrieved May 30, 2018, from https://www.science.news/2018-04-05-taking-a-multivitamin-has-beneficial-effects-for-your-brain-function-mood.html

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Vitamin and Mineral Delivery: Are You Absorbing What You Need?

We all know that we need to take our vitamins. Our parents told us so when we were kids and so do doctors. In fact, since 2002, we have been told that even if we eat our daily servings of vegetables and fruits, we STILL MAY NOT be getting the proper nutrition we need. Most people see this as an excellent reason to get a daily supplement incorporated in their diet, and this is certainly a good way to combat any nutrient deficiency people may have due to the deficiency in the soils we use to grow our food.

With that being said, what method should we use to take the supplements we know we need? Plenty of people take a one a day supplement, but the truth is that vitamins only last in your system for a maximum of 12 hours, so even if you doubled the dosage, it would still pass through your system in 12 hours. Some claim the sublingual vitamins and other extracts work more effectively because they are 98% absorbed into the blood stream this way. The truth is that most vitamins are 98% absorbed, regardless of how you administer them. The question that you should be asking is whether or not it is worth it to pay exorbitant prices for a product that you will absorb the same regardless of how you administer it. Minerals are a much more tricky subject however.

It is impossible for a person to take calcium out of the ground and smash it into a small concentrate and expect the body to be able to absorb the substance. Our stomach is strong enough to dissolve minerals, but they will quickly solidify in your intestines where the majority of mineral absorption will take place. So why are we able to get those minerals when we eat certain plants/vegetables? We can process minerals inside plants because they have already done the work of converting minerals into an absorbable substance. This is also why we get minerals from animals, but think of that at as second-hand minerals. It is better to go straight to the source, and since the source is completely depleted, you will need to have a supplement that can take it’s place and actually give you BOTH the VITAMINS and the MINERALS that you need to be healthy! One amazing brand that does this is Oligo as it has the highest absorption of minerals of any supplement IN THE WORLD! That is according to both the Sterling Study and the Freiburg Study which are both independent studies!

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Supplementation: Is it Healthy or Harmful?

More and more people are using supplements to improve their health. This is a massive move with the global supplement market expected to reach $60 billion by 2020. This is a doubling from 2010.

According to the National Institutes of Health, the most commonly reported reasons for using supplements were to “improve” or “maintain” overall health. For instance, over one-third of women use calcium for bolstering bone health.

Suggested reasons for this increase are greater health awareness, rising medical costs and the increase in chronic conditions. Geographic issues are a part of the picture, too. In the U.S., rising medical costs are a major factor. In Asia, there is a growing geriatric population and Europe is experiencing an increase in chronic disease.

Other interesting statistics show that there is increased usage based upon education; the more educated the greater the use. Also, the greater the income, the higher the use of supplements.

50% of Americans take vitamins regularly. Some of this is blind belief, for there is evidence that many vitamin supplements are not properly absorbed by the body, so the value of the supplement is reduced or lost.

Your goal should be to make sure your supplements provide the nutritional value you are paying for. This is not an easy question to answer, for all supplements are not created equal. The mere ingestion of vitamins and minerals is not enough. The body must recognize and absorb the nutrients.

One American company has developed a patented process that allows the supplements to mimic nutrients found in nature. For instance, when plants absorb nutrients from soil, the vitamins and minerals are naturally integrated into the plant. This allows your body to naturally absorb the ingredients. Without this, many ‘pills’ are not absorbed and, in fact, create a build-up of unabsorbed material in the intestinal tract.

In the final analysis, supplement usage is increasing, and everyone should consider it as food supplies are processed and altered – no longer delivering the nutrition they once did. But, make sure your supplements are working to give you the benefit you need and not just passing through your body, not being properly absorbed.

Seek supplements that are proven to be effective and body-friendly.