Multivitamin and Mineral

About Multivitamin and Mineral

Multivitamin and Mineral supplements provide you with the essential vitamins and minerals, also known as micronutrients. These products typically provide more than the RDA amounts, which is crucial for supporting wellness. These important nutrients assist in reducing the risk of some chronic diseases and help to maintain optimal health. Examples of vitamins are the B complex and retinol (vitamin A), and minerals such as magnesium and zinc. Minerals are "taken-up" by plants from the soil, while the vitamins are synthesized within the plant.

You may have noticed that any good multivitamin contains more than the RDI. It's worth noting that the RDI is the smallest amount of each nutrient required to prevent a deficiency disease, for 95% of the population. For example, scurvy is a vitamin C deficiency which results in a number of signs and symptoms, some of which are ulcerations of the gums, anemia and pain in the limbs. Fortunately this condition is rare in Australia.

By consuming the adult RDI for vitamin C at 45mg per day, you are most likely not going to develop scurvy. A multivitamin and mineral, however, can contain around 90-100mg of Vitamin C per tablet. Some vitamin C products contain up to 1,500mg per tablet. Although the RDI is the most basic amount of a nutrient required to prevent a deficiency disease, the amount of a nutrient required to support optimal health and disease prevention is another story entirely. In fact, research published back in 2001 by the International Journal of Sports Medicine indicates that 1,500mg of vitamin C taken after exercise assists in reducing inflammation and cortisol levels. 

Vitamin C is required for catecholamine synthesis (adrenaline, noradrenaline, dopamine) and collagen synthesis (skin health) amongst many other roles. Research published in 2009 by Free Radical Biology and Medicine indicates that Vitamin C may assist in the prevention of cognitive decline. And this is just one of the many important micronutrients found within a high quality multivitamin and mineral product.

Multivitamins are especially useful when the diet is lacking in quality whole foods, or even when food intake is low, such as during dieting or illness. A good multivitamin and mineral covers all of your bases for these micronutrients, and can deliver more optimal levels of nutrients as well, easily covering the RDIs. Some formulations even include herbal tonics to assist with general health maintenance, such as Dong quai for women and Tribulus terrestris for men. Other gender specific additions are Vitex Agnus Castus to support hormonal health in women, and lycopene (found in tomatoes) for prostate health in men. 

Multivitamins and minerals are a great addition to a supplementation regime for men, women and kids. They are more important now than ever before due to the fact that the mineral content of food is not what it used to be due to the commonality of over-farming and unsustainable farming practices. This leads to reduced soil fertility, with imbalances in microbes, worms and mineral content.

Parallels can easily be drawn between soil, plant and human health, in that the most readily accepted doctrine of nutrition and fortification is equal to the tinniest amounts of essential nutrients required to grow and be functional, readily casting aside optimal soil fertility, plant and human health as an unnecessary inconvenience. Given that less micronutrients are finding their way onto our plates, a quality multivitamin and mineral helps to make up for deficiencies in standard agricultural practices and unhealthy food choices.