Do you need advanced nutrients?

Our body is a remarkable work of art, and function. It can take tons of beating and pounding, and still live to see the next day. Every day, our bodies are subjected to a lot of stress, but I’m always amazed that at the end of the day, I come out quite alright. Anyway, my health is something I take seriously, although it can be a pain in the butt to keep it in tip top condition.

That’s why I take vitamins. Life is stressful these days, and so everything helps, especially what you eat. Multivitamins are all advanced nutrients, and so are substances or compounds that boost the health of the body, for example, phyto-chemical compounds in tablet form, or Coenzyme Q10. But there are reasons for, and against, taking advanced nutrients.

I know many people take vitamins because they know they aren’t eating like they should, but even some of them are taking a little too much. When you take too much nutrients, the liver needs to work overtime, and rid the body of what it doesn’t need, or can’t use. This can also wear down the liver a little at a time. In the case of vitamins, if the body doesn’t need a particular vitamin, it is flushed out of the system more often than not. Some vitamins don’t get flushed out easily, especially fat soluble vitamins like vitamin A, D, and E.

Since it is hard to know if we are overdoing it (substance build up in the body takes time), it might be best not to overdo it (taking advanced nutrients). Do you really need Coenzyme Q10 or do you just need to eat more sea cucumber? Sea cucumber contains lots of enzymes that help in cellular integrity.

You see, most of the time, you just need to learn how to eat better. In other words, eat better, more nutritious meals. It is cheaper than going to the pharmacy and ordering a ton of vitamin pills, without knowing how to make best use of them. I’m not saying taking advance nutrients as supplements is not good, but usually, people don’t really need them, if they are eating a balanced diet in the first place.

Some people can indeed benefit from advanced nutrients. For example, children, or elderly people, who by reputation, do not eat well. Also, people who are sick or infirm, may need some extra boost. Athletes and people who lead physically demanding lifestyles need advanced nutrient supplementation too.

For average people, as long as you stick to a balanced diet, and lead a healthy lifestyle, you don’t really need supplements. If you think you do, you should first seek your doctor’s or nutritionist’s advice. And you know what, most of the time, they’ll tell you to go over your diet first, and see if you can improve it. At the end of the day, the food you eat is the most important thing (nutrition wise). Everything else comes second.