Vitamins: we all know we need them but what for? Organic chemical compounds, we require these tiny little molecules for thousands of processes in our bodies. We classify vitamins by their biological and chemical reactivity. Some are necessary to get from our food (like vitamin C) because we can’t synthesize them in our bodies, and others we can make during certain circumstances (like vitamin D when sunlight hits our skin).
Some are called vitamers-precursors-because they can change into other vitamins or perform different actions, as in the case of anti-oxidants. Others are important catalysts in enzyme formation and functions, like the B’s. There are 13 vitamins recognized in humans and they are split into two classes: water-soluble and fat-soluble. The water-soluble ones (B and C) are required on a daily basis because they are not stored in the body but are less dangerous to overload on because they are easily excreted. The fat-soluble ones (A, D, E and K) can be stored by the body and can be overloaded on, causing hypervitaminosis.
Without vitamins the thousands of processes of the body would stop. Because they are vital to enzyme reactions, those enzymes would stop working also. To get an idea of just how many functions these little packets of wonder are involved in is to be truly amazed at how the human body is put together. There’s a big poster-sized chart put out by a chemical company that shows all the body processes and where vitamins, minerals and enzymes fit in those processes. When I was in medical school, several of us purchased that chart and hung it over our desks at home; I pondered the wonder of it all every day for years.
The one thing to remember about vitamins is that just because some is good does not necessarily mean that more is better, except in the case of vitamin C. Too much of a vitamin causes the same disease that is found in a deficiency state. Many people got themselves in trouble when they overdosed on B6, thinking it would cure carpel tunnel syndrome. The problem is, the B’s should be taken as a complex usually, since many of them work together. Lots of people got in serious hurt from taking an excess of cod liver oil too, as the oil was too rich in A and D and too heavy on the liver, which has to process fats and went into fatty liver syndrome.
Some vitamins we use are created in the intestines by bacteria-‘intestinal flora’–which is why we require the right probiotics in our gut. The anti-oxidants that we obtain from plants are actually the waste product of the plant. That’s right; we need plant poop to be healthy. Interesting the way the world is put together, isn’t it? There are also things called anti-vitamins, which would be better names as inhibitors since that’s what they do: inhibit the absorption or actions. For example, biotin (one of the B’s) is inhibited by raw egg whites. Biotin is vital in carbohydrate metabolism.
While most people can get along with a good multi-vitamin a day and some get everything they need from food-thanks to a varied diet-a lot of people still don’t understand that good vitamins are not cheap. The best formulations have them in the bio-available forms, so the body doesn’t have to go searching for the pieces needed to create the substances that are necessary for the reactions and processes. Good formulations also have much higher amounts, known as the ODA (Optimal Dietary Allowance) rather than just the amount required to prevent hypovitaminosis.
©2010 Dr.Valerie Olmsted All Rights Reserved
Dr. Valerie Olmsted is an author, naturopathic physician, metaphysician, internet entrepreneur, artist, speaker, and lover of life. Traveling with the Quantum Vortex Experience, she has helped thousands of people reach the inner connection they are seeking and has contributed to the discoveries of manifestation practices via quantum physics applications.http://www.BeWhoYouReallyAreCoach.com
Contact: Dr.Valerie Olmsted
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