Why do you need supplements when you eat a good diet?

Vitamins are tiny chemicals that are building blocks for bones and other tissues.

Supplements are vitamins, enzymes and minerals that are generally contained in food, but are not present in large enough amounts to keep your body supplied with the building blocks necessary for health. Enzymes are the natural chemicals that make chemical reactions in your body work.   Minerals keep your electrolytes balanced which keeps you alive.  Vitamins are tiny chemicals that are building blocks for bones and other tissues in the body and often also work as communication chemicals in the body.

I believe that taking supplements is absolutely necessary for people living in the modern world. This belief is based on several factors:

• The food we eat is not as nutritious as it was when out parents were young.
• Most meals are not made at home, and now a days Mom or Dad aren’t cooking based on nutrition, but taste
• Nutrition guidelines from the government are wrong: based on the food America grows (so we eat what we grow) and not what we need
• Decrease in the nutrition fortification in our basic food—the government has decided we don’t need iodine, vitamin D in all milk, or magnesium and calcium added to our food, even though we don’t get enough in the average American diet.
• The RDA provided by the government is misunderstood RDA means the smallest amount of a nutrient needed for the AVERAGE American to stay alive! It is not based on the optimal amount of a vitamin or mineral you need, but the smallest amount the average body size and metabolism requires (Men being 170 lbs, not based on the average women at all).  Eg if you weigh more or take meds that use them up.
• Most Americans are on at least on one medication that uses up specific nutrients and leaves the patient deficient! If you take a STATIN (to lower your cholesterol), or a BETA BLOCKER (to control Blood pressure or heart rate) you absolutely need to  take

CoQ 10, and B12 for you to be healthy.

• Where you live determines what is deficient in your diet and local water.
  • If you live in North America and live north of Florida, or work indoors, you absolutely require Vitamin D3.
  • People in the Midwest US you absolutely need Iodine supplementation (12.5 mg/day.
• Special diets such as Vegetarian, Vegan, or the Keto diet, or any popular diets like Jenny Craig are deficient in vitamins and minerals
  • Vegan, Vegetarian: require that you take high dose vitamin B12, Essential Amino acids, iron and Iodine.
  • Keto Diet: require that you take B12, all Bs which are found in breads and gluten products, A WHOLE FOOD supplement with veggies and fruits in it (Miracle Reds or Glorious Greens) and a full spectrum of nutrients in a multivitamin
• People who have had a gastric bypass, and any other bariatric surgery require multiple vitamins and minerals in the Sublingual (under the tongue) form, because they cannot absorb nutrients in what is remaining of the GI tract.
• Women after Menopause and Men don’t need Iron supplementation, unless they have had surgery or blood loss or don’t eat red meat.

It takes a physician, Nurse Practitioner, or dietician to review your medical history, and determine what supplements you need. It takes a pharmacist or a physician to determine what brand of supplements you need and how much.  NOT ALL SUPPLEMENTS ARE EQUAL!  You can take a supplement that looks the same as a more expensive brand, but doesn’t absorb, or are combined with something else that leaves them unabsorbed.  PICK MEDICAL GRADE SUPPLEMENTS like those sold in your doctor’s office to be sure they actually are absorbed and are what you need.

DR MAUPIN’S DIET—AN EXAMPLE OF WHY WE ALL NEED SUPPLEMENTS

I take supplements that are necessary just for me and where I live, and to supplement my diet.

Based on Where I live:  The middle Mid-West—We have an unusual environment here in land locked Missouri.  We all need iodine because there is not any in our soil or water.  The Midwest is called the “goiter belt” for that reason.  Everyone here needs iodine supplementation to remain Euthyroid (normal thyroid).

Missouri is at the 38^th parallel (Latitude) which does not deliver enough sunshine for most of the year to provide enough vitamin D, so I take, and I advise my patients to take, Vitamin D3 daily.

Lastly, winter in the Midwest, is bereft of ripe fruit and veggies.  They seem to stop being shipped across the Rockies from California. To make up for this seasonal nutritional desert I take multiple supplements to make up for lack of complete nutrition in my food.

 Because I’m in the Midwest:

Iodoral 12.5/day:

I live in the Midwest, the Goiter Belt, so everyone needs to replenish their iodine to prevent thyroid disease and breast cancer. I also have low thyroid since my twenties, so I need iodoral 12.5 mg daily.

 Vitamin D3 5000/day:  most of the US is in the upper latitudes that don’t get enough vitamin D daily from the sun, and most Americans live indoors so we ALL need vitamin D3 as a supplement.  I have dark skin and believe it or not, the darker your skin, the less you absorb vitamin D!  So, having a tan is not an excuse for not taking vitamin D3.  Vitamin D prevents cancer of all kinds, Alzheimer’s disease, osteoporosis, loss of skin collagen from aging and almost any disease you can think of.

Magnesium 200 mg. x 2/day:  I have tight muscles so to keep them from causing spasms and restless legs I take 2 Magnesium Glycinate 400 mg/day.  This also keeps my arrhythmia from worsening and prevents side effects from thyroid replacement.

Vitamin K2 200 mcg/day:  to assist in bone growth and heart health

Vitamin E 400 mg/day: protect breast and heart

Selenium/zinc: for healthy hair

Arginine and ornithine: Healthy sexuality

DIM:  prevent belly fat

Flax seed: Dry eyes

Same: assist in neurotransmitters

Supplements that I take Based on my own heritage and genetics:

Methyl B vitamins: I have the genetic abnormality that leads to High Homocysteine (MTHFR genetic trait) which leads to stroke, blood clots and heart attacks.  if I take normal B vitamins, or the B vitamins in food, I am at high risk to get these diseases, so I take a daily vitamin by Thorne called Basic Nutrients 2 it gives me most of the electrolytes and minerals I needs daily, and most importantly it lowers my Homocysteine and risk of vascular disease.

COQ 10: anyone on a statin (I am not on one) or anyone with elevated cholesterol should be on CoQ 10.  I take Ubiquitol/CoQ 10 DAILY

This Health cast was written and presented by Dr. Kathy Maupin, M.D., Bio-identical Hormone Replacement Expert and Author, with Brett Newcomb, MA., LPC., Family Counselor, Presenter and Author. www.BioBalanceHealth.com.