Whole Food vs Synthetic Vitamins

[KajunDC]

Kimmer PMed me a couple of days ago and asked me to explain about the difference between "whole food" and "synthetic" vitamins in her "Ask Kimmer" thread. I also posted this there but decided to post it here for everyones info. Below is an in-depth explanation. Thank goes out to Dr. Janet Lang, whose seminars on health and whole foods have been invaluable to my practice, my patients and myself.

NATURAL VS. SYNTHETIC VITAMINS
It could be argued that never in history has so much money been spent on the advertising and purchasing of any merchandise, with so little knowledge of the product itself, on the part of either the seller or the buyer, as has been spent on vitamin and mineral supplements.

Billions are being spent annually, and most of the purchasers, wholesalers, retailers or direct-to-the-consumer salespeople do not know the difference between a synthetic, a crystalline, and a truly natural vitamin, or the difference between chelated organic and an inorganic mineral.

They know little of how supplements are made, their characteristics, their attributes, their sources, their uses, their advantages and disadvantages, and how to tell one from another by reading a label.

WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN NATURAL AND SYNTHETIC?
In short, it's the difference between something that's living and something that's dead.

That's a big difference.

NATURAL WHOLE FOOD VITAMINS
On vitamin labels the word "natural" has no specific definition other than that the substance exists somewhere on the planet or in outer space.

The key words to look for are "Whole Food Vitamins" - this means vitamins as they are found in food, untampered-with in any way that would change their molecular structure, their biological or biochemical combination, or their actions.

Vitamins in their natural state always exist as living complexes with specific synergistic co-factors, enzymes, phytonutrients and organic mineral-activators, and never as isolated single factors.
A VITAMIN NEEDS ALL OF ITS SYNERGISTS TO FUNCTION.
Further, we have literally hundreds of such synergists, most of which have not yet been studied but are nevertheless VERY IMPORTANT.

Organic food sources are preferred since they are more nutrient-dense and contain no pesticide residue.

CRYSTALLINE means that a natural food has been treated with various chemicals, solvents, heat and distillations to reduce it down to one specific "pure" crystalline vitamin. In this process all the synergists, which are termed "impurities," are destroyed. There is no longer anything natural in the action of crystalline "vitamins" - they should more accurately be termed drugs.

SYNTHETIC means that a chemist attempted to reconstruct the exact structure of the crystalline molecule by chemically combining molecules from other sources. These sources are not living foods, but dead chemicals. For example, Vitamin B1 is made from a coal tar derivative, and d-alpha tocopherol (so-called Vitamin E) is a byproduct of materials used by the Eastman Kodak company to make film. However, it is not legally necessary to give the source from which the synthetic "vitamin" is derived. Synthetic "vitamins" should more accurately be called drugs.

HOW TO READ A VITAMIN LABEL
To identify synthetics on the label, look to see if a source is given. If it isn't, assume the product is synthetic. These terms also identify a vitamin as synthetic:
acetate, bitartrate, Chloride, gluconate, hydrochloride, nitrate and succinate.

Whole food natural supplements never come in high dosages. It is only possible to create high-dosage "vitamins" if you isolate one fraction of the vitamin complex as in crystalline, or synthesize one fraction as in synthetics.

In naturally-occuring Vitamin C complex, the ascorbic acid portion only comprises about 5% of the whole complex. Similarly, alpha tocopherol only comprises a small % of the Vitamin E Complex.

Legally, the only portion of the vitamin C Complex that is allowed to be called Vitamin C is the ascorbic acid portion, and the only part of the Vitamin E Complex that can be called Vitamin E is the alpha tocopherol piece.

THE FALLACY OF "HIGH DOSAGE EQUALS HIGH POTENCY"
We, as consumers, have been thoroughly fooled and misled about vitamins. We have been hoodwinked into believing that large quantities of dead chemicals are more nutritionally potent than smaller amounts of high-quality living compounds.

Relatively small amounts of whole-food natural vitamins, with all their naturally-occuring synergists, are far more potent than high doese of synthetic imitation "vitamins."

DO SYNTHETIC VITAMINS FUNCTION AS WELL AS NATURAL WHLE FOOD VITAMINS?
No one would argue that high-performance, complex mechanisms like computers or space shuttles require very specific, high quality materials in their makeup.

Living systems are even more complex and specific in their need for building materials. In addition, living systems are constantly breaking down cells, orgns and tissues, and rebuilding and repairing them. For these processes the body must have a continual supply of high quality material.

If you build a house with cheap, imitation construction materials, your house will quickly fall into disrepair. The same is true for the physical body. The body has a very precise design, which is so incredibly intricate and complex that even with all the scientific and medical research thus far, we have only scratched the surface of understanding it.

What arrogance it is to think that we can alter a design we don't even understand.


Many conventional and non-conventional healthcare practitioners think that there is no difference between natural and synthetic vitamins, or between natural chelated minerals and inorganic minerals. This, of course, is incorrect, and has led to enormous confusion in the nutritional field.

THE FOLLOWING EXAMPLES ARE A HANDFUL OF HUNDREDS THAT COULD BE GIVEN TO ILLUSTRATE THIS POINT:
- Reported on April 14, 1994 in the New England Journal of Medicine was a study in which 29,000 male smokers were given synthetic beta-carotene and synthetic Vitamin E to evaluate the cancer-protective effect of these "vitamins." After 10 years, the men taking the synthetic beta carotene had an 18% higher rate of lung cancer, more heart attacks, and an 8% higher overall death rate. Those taking synthetic Vitamin E had more strokes.

Food sources of these ame nutrients, such as fruits and vegetables, consistently demonstrate protection against cancer, heart disease and stroke.

- On November 23, 1995, the following was reported in The New England Journal of Medicine: 22,748 preganant women were given synthetic vitamin A. After four years the study was halted because of a 240% increase in birth defects in babies of women taking 10,000 IU (International units) daily, and a 400% increase in birth defects in babies of women taking 20,000 IU a day.

Women eating natural food sources of vitamin A showed no increase in birth defects.

- Reported in Reuters Health, March 3, 2000 was a study on men who took 500mg of synthetic vitamin C daily. It was found that over an 18 month period, these men had a 250% increase of the intima-media lining (inner lining) of the carotid artery. This thickening is an accurate measurement for the progression of atherosclerosis. That is, SYNTHETIC VITAMIN C INDUCED ATHEROSCLEROSIS, even at a 500mg dose.

Whole-food vitamin C protects and repairs the inner lining of blood vessels, and is preventative against atherosclerosis.

IN SUMMARY
You can't repair and rebuild a living body with dead chemicals.

It simply isn't possible.

[2bdancing]

Thank you.

[deb3]

Wow- I've been wondering about this since I'm taking a bunch of supplements. Without having them in front of me I can still guess that they are synthetic considering the high dosages.

Does this mean I've been flushing my money down the toliet??

[Jammer]

Whoa . . . I was just about to replenish my supply of daily multivitamins at GNC. Hmmmmmm. I love the idea of getting what I need from food. A lot of work, though.

[luckyduck]

I tried using a whole food multi-vitamin supplement (Vitamin Shoppe brand) and I can't say as I noticed a difference. Was it just that particular brand?

[Kimmer]

Kajun, I'm glad you posted separately also. Important info, good stuff.

[pooticus]

thanks kajun!

[KajunDC]

Originally Posted by Jammer

Hmmmmmm. I love the idea of getting what I need from food. A lot of work, though.

And in this day and age of processed crap, almost impossible to do without organic foods. This is the reason I take Whole Food supplements - not in place of food but in addition to it.

I was going to start a new thread later but I guess I'll go ahead and do it now. It will explain what processing does to our food source and why Whole food supplementation is necessary. Be on the lookout, within the hour, for a thread entitled, "The Story of Food."

This will shed more light on this situation.

[Sharis]

I mean no disrespect to those who believe this but there are plenty in the scientific and medical community who do not. I would just encourage everyone to investigate this issue on their own and look at both sides of the controversy. I just don't want anyone to stop taking their vitamin supplements because they aren't "natural" or "whole food" or whatever and are therefore "useless."

[KajunDC]

Originally Posted by Sharis

I mean no disrespect to those who believe this but there are plenty in the scientific and medical community who do not. I would just encourage everyone to investigate this issue on their own and look at both sides of the controversy. I just don't want anyone to stop taking their vitamin supplements because they aren't "natural" or "whole food" or whatever and are therefore "useless."

There was a huge debate on this topic in the scientific community up until World War II, where "other more pressing matters" became the topic of the day, and it was never revisited the same way since WWII.

Synthetic vitamins are not entirely useless. Short-term they do stimulate - but they do not repair and regrow.

And I think my signature gives my view on the need of people to educate themselves in this day and age. But I do think the quoted studies speak volumes.

[Texas Lady]

Are the liquid vitamins natual?

[salongirl]

Are "Whole Food Natural Vitamins" hard to find? and can You recommend a brand name? This makes so much sense.

[Naturegirl]

I definitely notice a difference with whole food vitamins. For one thing every regular brand I took ( I tried about 5) made me nauseous to the point of vomiting.

Creating some straw-man nutrients by slapping together isolated chemicals in a lab just seems less than optimal to me. I suppose that's why people cant live off vitamins (aside from the body's calorie requirements), and I bet you'd be in an even sorrier state if the sources were synthetic.

[KajunDC]

Originally Posted by salongirl

Are "Whole Food Natural Vitamins" hard to find? and can You recommend a brand name? This makes so much sense.

Personally I use whole food supplements (for myself and my patients) from a company called Standard Process, which has a huge organic farm in Wisconsin, grows all their own foods, and cold processes them down into tablet form (so nothing is changed in the nutritional value of the vitamins and their synergists.) However, they only deal with healthcare professionals, which I am in favor of. The reason is that they want an evaluation performed to make sure people are actually taking what they really need. If you take in a ton of certain minerals, and some vitamins are the same, you can really throw off the nutritional balances of other minerals and vitamins in the body and actually cause bigger issues.

There is only one supplement I sell to people without an evaluation. It is "Catalyn," which is the general multi-vitamin, mineral supplement from Standard Process. (Catalyn as in general body catalyst.) All others I require an eval. To find someone local go to Standard Process' website (do a search - they do not sell direct to consumer) and call or e-mail them for healthcare professionals who carry their line in your area.

FYI - Standard Process was started by Dr. Royal Lee, a dentist and inventor with hundreds of patents to his name. Dr. Lee, back in the 20's, I believe, discovered that most cavities in teeth are not casued from excess sugar but from nutrtional deficiencies in the body. So he developed Catalyn for his patients. He quickly discovered that not only did the cavity situation improve dramatically but also many other health issues his patients were having began to resolve themselves. Realizing he was on to something big, he began Standard Process. Dr. Lee has since passed on but his family still runs Standard Process the same way Dr. Lee did. Best part is the supplements are less expensive than their sythetic counterparts at places like Wal-mart.

There are other good companies out there that offer whole food supplements but I can only vouch for the company I use and have come to trust a great deal.

[KajunDC]

Originally Posted by Texas Lady

Are the liquid vitamins natual?

There may be companies that do liquid whole food vitamins but I do not know of any personally. The only liquids Standard Process offers are herbal extracts from an Austrailian herbal company called Medi-herb - the only company I get my herbal supplements from. (For those that have difficulty taking pills and tablets, all Standard Process supplements - except one or two which are clearly marked on the label and contain digestive enzymes - may be chewed or ground up for taking.)

[KajunDC]

Originally Posted by luckyduck

I tried using a whole food multi-vitamin supplement (Vitamin Shoppe brand) and I can't say as I noticed a difference. Was it just that particular brand?

You will not feel an "immediate" impact from the switch - or if you do then you are extremely low in the synergists. Whole Food Vitamins do not stimulate or inhibit functions. They simply give the body ALL parts of the vast vitamin complexes with nothing removed so the body can do what it needs to do, when it needs to do it. Your body sees them no differently than any food you eat. They do not cause the burning or nauseated feelings many get taking synthetics on an empty stomach.

[Marbel]

Great info, thanks! I'm bookmarking this.

[NBehr]

The whole foods supplements sound good, but why do you need an evaluation to take a vitamin?

[Strawberry]

Dr Kajun, Do you have any recommendations for a calcium supplement?

[aloise]

Originally Posted by KajunDC

Personally I use whole food supplements (for myself and my patients) from a company called Standard Process, which has a huge organic farm in Wisconsin, grows all their own foods, and cold processes them down into tablet form (so nothing is changed in the nutritional value of the vitamins and their synergists.) However, they only deal with healthcare professionals, which I am in favor of. The reason is that they want an evaluation performed to make sure people are actually taking what they really need. If you take in a ton of certain minerals, and some vitamins are the same, you can really throw off the nutritional balances of other minerals and vitamins in the body and actually cause bigger issues.

There is only one supplement I sell to people without an evaluation. It is "Catalyn," which is the general multi-vitamin, mineral supplement from Standard Process. (Catalyn as in general body catalyst.) All others I require an eval. To find someone local go to Standard Process' website (do a search - they do not sell direct to consumer) and call or e-mail them for healthcare professionals who carry their line in your area.

FYI - Standard Process was started by Dr. Royal Lee, a dentist and inventor with hundreds of patents to his name. Dr. Lee, back in the 20's, I believe, discovered that most cavities in teeth are not casued from excess sugar but from nutrtional deficiencies in the body. So he developed Catalyn for his patients. He quickly discovered that not only did the cavity situation improve dramatically but also many other health issues his patients were having began to resolve themselves. Realizing he was on to something big, he began Standard Process. Dr. Lee has since passed on but his family still runs Standard Process the same way Dr. Lee did. Best part is the supplements are less expensive than their sythetic counterparts at places like Wal-mart.

There are other good companies out there that offer whole food supplements but I can only vouch for the company I use and have come to trust a great deal.

just want to say that not all the ingredients in Catalyn in Standard Process are from organic sources.