What is food?
It’s any nourishing substance that is eaten, drunk, or otherwise taken into the body to sustain life, provide energy, promote growth, etc.
What is a supplement?
Something added to complete a thing, supply a deficiency, or reinforce or extend a whole. A nutritional supplement should not take the place of your food but add to the diet the nutrition it’s missing.
What is Nutrition?
The act or process of nourishing or of being nourished. It is the act of eating and using the food you need for growth, repair and maintenance of the body.
What is a drug?
It’s a chemical substance that stimulates or suppresses functions some functions of the body. Any article, other than food, intended to affect the structure or any function of the body of humans or other animals.
What does our body need?
Our body needs organic, nutrient dense, real foods that are grown on healthy soils, and animals that are raised in humane, natural conditions.
Why do we get nutritional deficiencies?
- Soil depletion
- Processed foods with barely any nutritional value
- GMOs
- Exposure to toxins which drains nutrients form the body.
- Inactivity
- Stress
“The macro- and micronutrients we need for optimal health are found first in nature, in forms biologically recognized by the body” Jean Franklin PhD
What is an non-food Isolate supplement?
An imitation of a real food nutrient made by isolating (separating out) a specific part of a nutritional complex OR taking a substance form a non-food to extract a specific nutrient part OR artificially producing the nutrient part.
When you take a synthetic or isolate supplement it might increase the level of that nutrient in your blood, but that doe not prove it works. It just shows that the nutrient has entered circulation and it is possibly behaving like a drug, by altering functions of the body. Is it really functioning as a nutrient though? Is it feeding, repairing, supporting the body? Is it fixing the underlying deficiencies? Is it healing?
No! No manufactured nutrient can replicate the nutrients in nature made food.
Let’s see why!
There are innumerable interrelated and cooperative, functional aspects to food and humans.
“The healing power of nature is that right relationships are hardwired into living systems in ways and by means that we must appreciate and acknowledge even when we don’t understand the full mechanisms and implications” Dr. F. Brinker
The effects of whole food supplements VS isolates
- Nutrients act through multiple mechanisms VS isolates only perform one function
- Their effects show in small increments over long periods of time VS drugs have immediate, powerful effects
- Nutrients work in a synergistic way in nutritional combinations (ex. Vitamins) VS Isolates have to utilize the body’s own stored resources to create a usable combination.
- The body has the opportunity to selectively absorb only what it needs VS overdosing one single nutrient of isolates.
- They are easily absorbed and utilized VS They are excreted in the urine because not recognized by the body.
- Never toxic VS Toxic when taken at high doses of for long periods.
- Are whole synergistic complexes VS lack the synergistic co-factors and transporters.
- Nourish, heal and replace the cell components VS Just stimulate the cell metabolism.
- Aids other nutrient’s absorption VS disturbs other nutrients absorption.
CONCLUSION
There are specific situations when an isolated nutrient is needed. For example when urgently suppressing a symptom. (ex. alleviate muscle cramps with calcium or magnesium)
This approach is not a nutritional approach but a pharmacological one!
This should be done only for very short amounts of time, or biochemical imbalances will add to the nutritional ones.
To address nutritional deficiencies biologically active real food supplements should be used.
Real food supplements are made from dried foods, organically grown. They are low-potency compared to isolates, BUT their true potency is the power, strength and vitality which produces a real effect on the body’s cells.
Real food is better absorbed, utilized and has a much bigger power to nourish.
True potency is the actual nourishment a food supplement provides.
This post was inspired and it is based on the nutritional information contained in the book “The Real Truth About Vitamins And Antioxidants” By Judith De Cava. I am extremely grateful to Ms. DeCava for her great contribution to the study of supplements in nutrition.
What brand(s) of supplements would you consider real food supplements?
I use Standard Process. You can get them from most chiropractors, acupuncturists, or naturopath. They should be prescribed by a practitioner!
just an FYI, standard process is not completely gluten free, and can reverse a lot of patient’s gut healing if they are not aware of that. As a practitioner I cannot recommend them because of that issue and how slow they have been to change their formulas over to gluten free. Curious if you have any info on that? Thanks!
Hey Kelly, They are actually starting to create several gluten free formulas. Mostly I see that only true celiacs have a problem with the gluten formulas, as it is in such minimal quantities.
What about Keto OS? Where does that fall in with the above info?
Hey Michelle. Keto OS is not a whole food, but it also not a chemical isolate. It falls more into the category of protein powders, as it is only a source of calories in form of ketones (BHB salts) and MCT oil. So, yes it is refined, but it is still a food.
At this point I focus on organ meats and use Primal Flora for my gut. I’m trying to get my fermented foods in daily now due to a recent, unintentional, self experiment.
Interestingly enough I recently stopped feeding my body fermented foods and kombucha because I ran out, and just kept thinking “I’ll care tomorrow”. This went on for the last week (ish).
Yesterday I wound up getting wobbly from low electrolytes and drank salt water. The light headedness and weakness immediately left.
I didn’t even realize I was naturally getting all the electrolytes I needed from all my pickled veggies. Honestly I just didn’t feel as ‘mentally bright’ without them.