Make a good diet into a GREAT diet

The big difference between adequate and optimum nutrition

Most of the food we eat will adequately support life.

But it does not necessarily sustain ideal health.

Witness the fact that UK national statistics show the average person will live the last 10 years of their life in ill health and some level of dependency.

We all want to avoid that. So what’s optimum?

Optimum nutrition

Health experts at University College London and the American Cancer Society recommend a daily intake of 10 portions of fruits and vegetables and oily fish 3 times a week!

Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals

Why such high levels?

Because at these levels, your diet has a pharmacological effect. A high level of a wide range of nutrients is continuously delivered to your cells and tissues via your bloodstream.

The nutrients ‘switch on’ positive genes, build healthy new cells, fight inflammation and help prevent DNA damage.

It’s a level that is genuinely health-protective and proven to increase healthy lifespan.

Why 5-a-day fruit and veg is not enough

Health authorities have known for some years that the optimum intake of fruits and vegetables was a lot more than 5-a-day.  But they felt that a a higher target would be too daunting and put people off even trying  – so they cut the target to 5!

The fact is that very few, even conscientious, people can manage 70 portions of a wide range of fruits and vegetables a week.

That’s when a nutritional health supplement can help – but only if it supports you reaching towards the optimum nutritional level the researchers have defined.

When you are considering a supplement, there are three important facts to remember:

1. RDAs (Recommended Daily Amounts) for vitamins and minerals are only set at a minimum ‘sufficient’ level

Taking just the RDAs will certainly prevent deficiency diseases. Vitamin C, for example, prevents scurvy and the RDA for vitamin D prevents rickets. But that is a low threshold.

Whether the RDAs are enough to sustain ideal long-term health is entirely another matter.

In the case of the B vitamins, (vital for energy), vitamin D (vital for immune function), vitamin C (vital for heart and skin health) and selenium (vital for DNA protection) there is a large body of convincing evidence that the optimum levels are much higher.

2.  Your health depends on far more than just vitamins and minerals

Research clearly shows that polyphenols and carotenoids found in fruits and vegetables are as important for health as vitamins and minerals.

Polyphenol, carotenoid and other nutritional supplements extracted and derived from plants help ensure that your bloodstream is delivering that constant supply of high quality protective nutrition to your cells.

They include

Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals curcuminoids from turmeric
Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals lycopene from eg. tomatoes
Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals lutein from eg. spinach
Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals beta carotene from eg. carrots
Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals betaine from beets such as beetroot
Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals catechins from green tea
Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals procyanidins from eg. grapeseed
Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals anthocyanidins from eg. bilberry, blueberry
Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and Minerals isoflavones from soybeans

To those add CoEnzyme Q10 and Omega3 fish oil to help achieve the pharmacological effect.

A simple one-a-day vitamin/mineral pill cannot and does not provide these nutrients.

3. Nutrients in supplements are processed in the body in just the same way as nutrients from food

Vitamins, minerals, plant nutrients like curcumin, green tea extract, lycopene and lutein – and Omega 3 fish oil – in supplement form are processed by the body in just the same way as those nutrients would be if supplied in food.

Of course fruits and vegetables have other benefits – for example, they supply fibre, salicylates and nitrates, as well as energy and protein – so your first priority is always whole food.

But a comprehensive supplement in addition to an average 5-a-day fruit and vegetables is undoubtedly valuable to move you to an OPTIMUM level that is health protective. So use a supplement as the name implies:– to supplement and boost your intake of the nutrients we know improve long term health.

Make a good diet into a GREAT diet NutriShield Multi Vitamins and MineralsWe developed the NutriShield comprehensive daily supplement to help us – and our customers – achieve an optimum daily level of nutrition that mirrors the levels found in individuals and populations (called Blue Zones) that do manage to live healthily for far longer.

To explore this topic in depth see: https://nutrishield.com/why-you-need-supplements-even-if-you-eat-a-healthy-diet/


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Lymphocyte Lycopene Concentration and DNA Protection from Oxidative Damage Is Increased in Women after a Short Period of Tomato Consumption. Marisa Porrini and Patrizia Riso; Curr Cancer Drug Targets. 2007 Aug;7(5):425-31.

Nutrition and DNA repair–potential molecular mechanisms of action. Mathers JC, Coxhead JM, Tyson J.

Enzymatic formation of apo-carotenoids from the xanthophyll carotenoids lutein, zeaxanthin and β-cryptoxanthin by ferret carotene-9′,10′-monooxygenase. Mein JR, Dolnikowski GG, Ernst H, Russell RM, Wang XD. Arch Biochem Biophys. 2011 Feb 1;506(1):109-21. Epub 2010 Nov 21.

The carotenoid beta-cryptoxanthin stimulates the repair of DNA oxidation damage in addition to acting as an antioxidant in human cells. Lorenzo Y, et al 2009 Feb;30(2):308-14.

Dietary carotenoid lutein protects against DNA damage and alterations of the redox status induced by cisplatin in human derived HepG2 cells. Serpeloni JM et al;  Toxicol In Vitro. Mar 2012;26(2):288-94.

A role for supplements in optimizing health: the metabolic tune-up. Review. Ames BN; Arch Biochem Biophys. 423(1): 227–34.2004.

Advanced glycation end products key players in skin aging? Paraskevi Gkogkolou and Markus Böhm; Dermatoendocrinol. 2012 Jul 1; 4(3): 259–270. doi:  10.4161/derm.22028

Long-latency deficiency disease: insights from calcium and vitamin D. Robert P Heaney; 2003 American Society for Clinical Nutrition

Multivitamin-mineral use is associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease mortality among women in the United States. Bailey RL et al; J Nutr. 2015 Mar;145(3):572-8. doi: 10.3945/jn.114.204743.2015 Jan 7.

The efficacy and safety of multivitamin and mineral supplement use to prevent cancer and chronic disease in adults: a systematic review for a National Institutes of Health state-of-the-science conference. Huang HY et al; Ann Intern Med. 2006 Sep 5;145(5):372-85. Epub 2006 Jul 31.

Effects of a multivitamin, mineral and herbal supplement on cognition and blood biomarkers in older men: a randomised, placebo-controlled trial. Harris E et al; Hum Psychopharmacol. 2012 Jul;27(4):370-7. doi: 10.1002/hup.2236. Epub 2012 Jun 18.

Vitamins for Chronic Disease Prevention in Adults: Clinical Applications. Robert H Fletcher, MD, MSc; Kathleen M. Fairfield, MD, DrPH; JAMA. 2002

Online data

http://www.pnas.org/content/71/11/4442.full.pdf

hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/vitamin-b/

alzheimersresearchuk.org/b-vitamins-slow-brain-changes-in-a-subgroup-of-older-people/

http://www.berkeleywellness.com/supplements/vitamins/other-supplements/article/vitamin-d-whats-latest

http://jn.nutrition.org/content/128/11/1845.short