Don't Forget Your Vitamins

Do you experience any of the following symptoms:

• Night blindness or poor adaptation to low light? 
• Fatigue and headaches? 
• Keratosis Pilaris (chicken skin)? 
• Red, bleeding gums? 
• Chocolate cravings?
• Cracks at the corners of your mouth?
• Easy bruising or red dots on your skin? 
• Decreased smell or taste? 
• Seasonal Affect Disorder? 
• Deep fissures in your tongue? 
• Muscle twitches such as eyelid twitching? 

All of the symptoms above can be caused by common vitamin deficiencies including Vitamin A, B, C, Omega Fatty Acids, Magnesium and Zinc.  We have so much food available to us here in the U.S., and here in the Northwest in particular we tend to be fairly health conscious and eat pretty well, that we often feel like we should be able to get everything we need through diet and skip out on vitamin supplements, but that isn’t the case.  

The reality of food today is that food isn’t what it used to be.  If you aren’t able to eat organic, meats can be full of harmful hormones, and non-organic genetically modified fruits and vegetables can hold less than 10% of the nutrients found in their organic counterparts.  Vitamin deficiencies, therefore, are more common in the United States than many people realize.  Furthermore, almost all the symptoms listed above, can be taken care of by a simple daily multiple vitamin!  

---

Getting the Most out of Vitamin Supplements

Before you run out to the grocery or health food store and grab a multi, however, be warned - recent research has shown that many vitamin supplements over the counter falsely advertise their contents.  Probiotics have been found to contain E.Coli, and herbal remedies sometimes have completely different herbs in them than what the bottle says!  Are there over the counter brands you can trust? Yes, especially for basic single nutrients like Vitamin C or Magnesium, but for multi vitamins and herbs, it is always recommended to get them from a trusted provider.

Acupuncturists, Naturopaths and Nutritionalists have access to provider only brands that undergo much more rigorous testing than what you find over the counter, and who guarantee the contents of their products.  This is in part marketing driven - more expensive brands want to be trusted and want to engender brand loyalty.  To be trusted, they spend time and money on making sure their products test true and make a measurable difference in treatment outcomes.  They spend more money on their products and guarantee purity, and the investment pays off - these brands are more expensive, but they are trusted and the do make a difference so they are worth the money.  

The other important distinction of provider-only brands compared to over the counter vitamins, is that they are guaranteed to be bioavailable.  Many over the counter supplements contain tablet binders that your digestion can’t get through to actually make use of the vitamins inside.  Provider only brands, such as Standard Process, Seroyal and Biotics NW to name a few, use binders that are antioxidant rich and tested to ensure that they break down easily in your digestion so you can feel confident that your body can actually get to the nutrients inside.  These brands are arguably the best vitamin supplements available.

---

How Do I Get the Best Vitamin Supplements Available?

To get the best supplements available, and the right selection for your needs, its ideal to see a provider.  I always encourage all of my patients to take a basic multi vitamin, an Omega Fatty Acid supplement, vitamin D and probiotic for optimal health and I actually created my All Ways Wellness program around this concept.

You can also order and refill prescriptions for provider only brands through my Emerson Ecologics Virtual Dispensary HERE.

If you’re interested in learning or more, contact me via email anytime or book a free consultation online.  I always include nutritional and herbal counseling in all my acupuncture sessions as indicated for your unique case!

Until next time,

~Rebecca