| By :
AnneMarie Berukoff
The concept of nutrition for the average person is vastly uneducated, underestimated and unappreciated. At one time, I would have fallen into that group. I am not a nutritionist but am a certified nutritional supplement distributor from study courses at The International Institute of Cellular Nutrition. What I learned has transformed my view of nutrition. I no longer take for granted that my choice of food and/or dietary supplements doesn't seriously matter for preventative wellness. For the first time, I did research on the word phytonutrient and its relation to our bodies and the earth. The understanding is so much clearer that vital health begin with the spoon and fork in the direction of your mouth. The great news is that only you can switch this movement to ON or OFF. In my opinion, any discussion about food, diet and supplements needs to include the topic of cellular nutrition. But how many times have you recently thought that the food I am eating now is to structure and fuel any number of individual cells? We forget about these 'invisible miracles' or masterpieces of design and function. The cell is the basic unit of the body. It manufactures all the structures and performs all the functions including protection from damaging effects of a toxic environment. Do you ever pay attention to the biology of a single cell like these three doctors? "Just think that we have 75 to 100 million trillion cells and millions must be regenerated every minute, along with organ systems, entire intestinal lining and our skin."(Dr. Laz Bannock's seminar.) "We see the cell is an extremely busy place. In the space of about one-tenth of a millimeter, some twenty-thousand different proteins are manufactured on a regular basis. Each of these proteins requires a half dozen or more steps for synthesis…all these reactions require energy input, which is obtained from the breakdown of sugars… Each day about seven percent of the molecules of the body are "turned over"---disassembled from the structures they are part of and reassembled into new structures. That means that most of the molecules in your body are turned over every two weeks! ( Dr. Wentz: Invisible Miracles 2002) "Every year over 97% of your body is completely replaced, even the structure of the DNA of your genes, reconstructed entirely from the nutrients you eat. The quality of those nutrients determines the quality of your renewed cellular structure, the level at which it can function and its resistance to disease." ( Dr. Colgan The New Nutrition 1995) Here is my greatest revelation. The purpose of the food is to feed the biology of the cell. Food is not just to satisfy our appetites, some mass advertising spiel, store specials or celebrity endorsement.
Each cell needs major macro-nutrients like proteins, fats or lipids and carbohydrates. Each cell requires major micro-nutrients such as vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, and essential amino acids . As well, a proper diet includes fibre, probiotics, phytochemicals and anti-oxidants . We need vitamins because they cannot be manufactured by the body and must be assimilated from our foods or diet. We need at least twenty amino acids for the synthesis of proteins that form living structure, nine of which must be drawn from our diet because our body doesn't produce them. We need dietary minerals which are chemical elements in inorganic forms which participate in a multitude of biochemical and physiologic processes. Minerals can be divided as three groups with major minerals required in amounts of greater than 100mg per day. Trace minerals are required less than 100 mg per day but they participate in thousands of biochemical activities and their insufficiencies occur more often than lack of vitamins. There are even micro-trace minerals that comprise the largest group about which we know the least. Did you know that our mineral intake represents only about 0.3 percent of our total intake of nutrients, yet they are so important that without them, the cells wouldn't be able to utilize the other 99.7% of food stuffs? In fact, it must be emphasized that all these nutrients are essential substances that work together with each other to maintain optimum health. If even one is missing, or in short supply, then the functions of all the others are impaired. Again the focus is on the healthy activity of each living cell. Most people who value healthy eating have read copious charts outlining various nutrients, their functions and food sources. Are you surprised to learn how many different elements it takes to make the living body? The question then becomes a matter of a healthy natural spectrum for a total dietary supplement that can accomplish all these requirements. In my opinion, only the synergy of whole foods and sea vegetables for minerals can begin to address this valuable cellular nutrition. In conclusion, I hope you do not take the food in your mouth for granted. Food means more than taste, cost and convenience. It fits into multiple parts that built the temple of your body. It contains nutrients; it's digested, absorbed and utilized by your universe of cells; it's the very components of cellular structure, function, immune system protection and anti-oxidant protection. Next time you look at a hot-dog or a plate of french fries, let these thoughts become part of the ingredients you wish to eat. More and more we have a greater responsibility for our health. The last words are Dr. Bannock's as he paraphrases the British Society for Nutritional Medicine: "Nutritional medicine, the importance of which is now being more fully realized, may be defined as the "study and regulation of interactions between nutritional factors and human biochemistry, physiology and anatomy. Now the clinical application of our knowledge of these interactions can be used for the prevention and treatment of disease as well as for the betterment of health."
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