As a registered nurse with over 9 years of experience in pediatrics, I am well aware of the influence of nutrition on health.  My experiences as a mother have led me to research nutrition more deeply and work to improve our family's general health.  I hope I can share some information with you to help you choose good quality vitamins and nutritional supplements for your family. 

The most important things to determine when choosing nutritional supplements are potency, purity, and clinical performance.  Find out what kinds of testing and clinical research are being done with the vitamins you use for yourself or your family.  A reputable company will do testing to verify that their vitamins contain what is stated on the label, are free of harmful contaminants, and are bioavailable.  Bioavailability refers to your body being able to absorb the vitamins from the pills, powders, or liquids.  The company should be able to prove that their products raise blood levels of the nutrients they provide.

Please note:  I have no control over the content here that is labelled "Google Ads" or "Ads by Google," or anything in the right margin.  These are placed by outside sources.

Test Tube or Synthetic (Usual drugstore or grocery store variety)
No enzymes
Man made
Inorganic substances (tar, plastics, coal)
Stimulant
Side Effects

Natural Isolate/Organic Extract (Usual healthfood store variety)
Weak enzymes
Uses chemicals and heat extraction
Organic substances (low quality raw materials)
Stimulant
Imbalanced
Harsh binders
Fillers

Natural/Unaltered (Top Quality Nutritional Supplements)
Strong enzymatic action
Low heat, low pressure processing
Organic substances (highest quality raw materials)
Feeds and improves cell's health
Balanced
Contains essential unknown nutrients
Independent testing of potency and purity
Extensive clinical research
Laboratory testing proves bioavailability

As I learned more about nutrition, I took a look at the multivitamins I was giving my kids. I thought they were good, I had purchased them at a natural foods store. Shockingly, the vitamins I was giving them were incomplete. I would encourage any parent to take out the multivitamin your child is taking and see for yourself.

The b-vitamins are a good place to start when you are looking at the label. Most brands put in more of the inexpensive b-vitamins and little of others that cost more to produce. Does your child's vitamin contain 100% of the RDA of biotin? Folic acid? What about the other six: thiamin (B1), riboflavin (B2), niacin, B6, B12, pantothenic acid? B vitamins should be taken in balanced, complete form to work best. How many total nutrients are in your child's multivitamin, including trace nutrients?

A good quality childs multivitamin is complete and balanced, including all 8 vitamins of the b complex and iron in plant form such as ferrous fumarate. Inorganic iron, such as ferrous sulfate, is difficult for the body to utilize and may cause constipation. A child's multivitamin should contain no sugar, artificial sweeteners, colors, or flavors. Here are my favorite choices of Children's Vitamins.

The term "whole food supplements," has no legal definition, and has therefore been used quite loosely by marketers of dietary supplements. While it is the intention of some marketers to lead consumers to believe that nutritional products can be made by condensing or compressing whole foods into efficacious, nutritional tidbits, such a result is impossible.

Consider that a supplement condensed or compressed from a whole food would contain little nutrient value, and would require taking an inordinately large number of servings or tablets to get even one serving with adequate nutritional value. Take spinach, for example. If we consider a reasonable serving size for spinach to be one cup of cooked spinach, the spinach in that serving would weigh approximately 180 grams. Dried and made into a powder, it would weigh about 30 grams. Since a normal-sized tablet holds about a half gram of powder, at best, to get the equivalent of a cup of cooked spinach, you would need to consume a minimum of 60 tablets.

Something must happen between the time raw ingredients are harvested and put into an end product that provides benefit for the consumer.
So a good working definition of "natural" would be "as close to nature as possible with the least amount of processing needed to deliver claimed
nutrients." A reputable company is committed to providing the purest and most bio-available nutrients derived from naturally occurring sources whenever possible. Dr. Forrest Shaklee once said, "True, no one can improve upon nature's nutrition, but we can improve upon the methods used by man to capture nature's values." Accordingly, while it is very important to use the finest natural sources for nutritional formulations, we can also reap the rewards of the beneficial advances in food technology that make available highly bio-potent nutrient sources where nature has not provided them.

Perhaps a more important issue for consumers than going back and forth on the meaning of such terms as "natural" and "whole foods," might be the scientific basis and actual nutritional value of food and nutritional supplements. How do you choose products that are based on sound science and bring real benefits their consumers. This is where a reputable company distinguishes itself from it's competitors. Clinical studies ensure product safety and support efficacy.

For more information, see our Product Ingredient Philosophy.

Did you know that prenatal vitamins doctors prescribe are not regulated by the FDA like medications are?

Myth: All prenatal vitamins are alike.

Reality: False, recent studies showed that out of 9 prescribed vitamins only 3 actually released the amount of folate that they claimed to contain. This means that even though the others really contained the folate the body can't absorb it. A top brand created and patented a folic acid absorption system, which is used in both the multivitamin and the b-complex, both of which are excellent for prenatal use.

Myth: Doctor prescribed vitamins are better than over the counter vitamins.

Reality: Nope. Not all vitamins are created equally and many vitamins that are available by doctor's order are also available over the counter. What is more important are the ingredients in the vitamins and how well they absorb into your body. Many times doctors choose brands so that the cost of the vitamins will be picked up by insurance companies. Your copay may even be as high as buying the brand of your choice out of pocket.

Dr. Lawrence Gould, an obstetrician and gynecologist with over 40 years experience, has collected some anecdotal data on the use of our vitamins for women and the results have been overwhelmingly positive. Dr. Gould offered the multivitamin and iron with vitamin C to his patients for several years as part of routine prenatal care. Here are the results:

-The vitamins were tolerated better
-Less symptoms of "morning sickness"
-Significantly less anemia
-Less toxemia and other complications
-Easier delivery
-Increased birth weight

Now there are new, expanded Convenient Daily Vitamin Packs that provide superb prenatal nutrition, much more than even Dr. Gould could provide for his patients.

Experiencing morning sickness? The following may help: balanced b complex and/or stomach soothing complex.

Usage patterns, health, and nutritional status of long-term multiple dietary supplement users: a cross-sectional study
Gladys Block , Christopher D Jensen , Edward P Norkus , Tapashi B Dalvi , Les G Wong , Jamie F McManus and Mark L Hudes

Nutrition Journal 2007, 6:30doi:10.1186/1475-2891-6-30

Published: 24 October 2007

Abstract (provisional)

Background
Dietary supplement use in the United States is prevalent and represents an important source of nutrition. However, little is known about individuals who routinely consume multiple dietary supplements. This study describes the dietary supplement usage patterns, health, and nutritional status of long-term multiple dietary supplement users, and where possible makes comparisons to non-users and multivitamin/mineral supplement users.

Methods
Using a cross-sectional study design, information was obtained by online questionnaires and physical examination (fasting blood, blood pressure, body weight) from a convenience sample of long-term users of multiple dietary supplements manufactured by Shaklee Corporation (Multiple Supp users, n=278). Data for non-users (No Supp users, n=602) and multivitamin/mineral supplement users (Single Supp users, n=176) were obtained from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) 2001-2002 and NHANES III 1988-1994. Logistic regression methods were used to estimate odds ratios with 95% confidence intervals.

Results
Dietary supplements consumed on a daily basis by more than 50% of Multiple Supp users included a multivitamin/mineral, B-complex, vitamin C, carotenoids, vitamin E, calcium with vitamin D, omega-3 fatty acids, flavonoids, lecithin, alfalfa, coenzyme Q10 with resveratrol, glucosamine, and a herbal immune supplement. The majority of women also consumed gamma linolenic acid and a probiotic supplement, whereas men also consumed zinc, garlic, saw palmetto, and a soy protein supplement. Serum nutrient concentrations generally increased with increasing dietary supplement use. After adjustment for age, gender, income, education and body mass index, greater degree of supplement use was associated with more favorable concentrations of serum homocysteine, C-reactive protein, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides, as well as lower risk of prevalent elevated blood pressure and diabetes.

Conclusions
This group of long-term multiple dietary supplement users consumed a broad array of vitamin/mineral, herbal, and condition-specific dietary supplements on a daily basis. They were more likely to have optimal concentrations of chronic disease-related biomarkers, and less likely to have suboptimal blood nutrient concentrations, elevated blood pressure, and diabetes compared to non-users and multivitamin/mineral users. These findings should be confirmed by studying the dietary supplement usage patterns, health, and nutritional status of other groups of heavy users of dietary supplements.

The complete article is available as a provisional PDF. The fully formatted PDF and HTML versions are in production.

Patented B-Complex - with all eight Bs - promotes a healthy cardiovascular system. And here is what makes this product the best available: it's formulated so that the hard-to-absorb but critical B vitamin, called folic acid, is readily absorbed. The folic acid has been integrated into the coating of the vitamin! These provide a full day's supply of biotin, often lacking in other brands.

Remember, adequate amounts of folic acid in healthful diets have been shown to reduce woman's risk of having a child with brain or spinal cord birth defects. B-complex can be very helpful for morning sickness too.

B vitamins are also important for the health of the adrenal glands. This b-complex is more complete and balanced than any other brand I have tried. I have had excellent results with the b-complex, after having bad experiences with other b vitamin products.

Many individuals make the mistake of thinking that calcium is all that's needed for bone health. However, bones are made of more than calcium. Bones also contain several minerals as well as protein. The protein serves as a matrix to which the minerals necessary for bone formation attach.

While many perceive osteoporosis to be "not enough calcium in the bones," osteoporosis is more complicated than that. Insufficient calcium in the bones is called rickets, which is caused by inadequate vitamin D. Osteoporosis involves both low levels of minerals as well insufficient protein in the bones.

So, simply taking calcium by itself will not help bone health. Other minerals, vitamins, and protein are also needed. The intestinal tract also needs to be healthy and fully functional as the site where dietary calcium is absorbed into the bloodstream. Several studies have shown that both prebiotics and probiotics improve the absorption of calcium, by improving intestinal health. Because hormones also play a significant role in bone health, the risk of osteoporosis increases with age, especially in females. Treating hormone deficiencies with the appropriate bioidentical hormones is important for older adults. Lastly, weight-bearing exercises cause the bones to signal the body's need to increase bone density.

When considering a calcium supplement, it is important to be aware of the supporting nutrients necessary for calcium absorption. Vitamin D is one of these nutrients. The body manufactures its own vitamin D under the right conditions. The first ingredient required is natural oils on the skin. Your body forms vitamin D in these oils. If you take frequent, warm or hot showers with soap, these oils may not be present on your skin in sufficient amounts. Secondly, you must have sufficient exposure to the sun's ultraviolet light. During winter, in northern latitudes, in areas with smog from air pollution, and when our skin is protected by sunscreen, we cannot form adequate vitamin D from sunlight. Also, be aware that if you shower too soon after sun exposure you may not have the opportunity to absorb the vitamin D from the skin into your bloodstream. Most of us need some extra vitamin D from supplements.

There are still other supporting nutrients required. Vitamin K is a nutrient supported by new research as necessary for modifying osteocalcin, a bone protein, so it can properly bind minerals and hold them in the bone matrix. Magnesium is another important nutrient, which we need to take in proper balance with calcium. To be incorporated into bone, calcium needs the help of certain enzymes, which require magnesium to work properly. We tend to be more deficient in magnesium than calcium. The proper calcium to magnesium ratio is approximately 2:1. Phosphorus is also required for calcium absorption. The American diet tends to be overly abundant in phosphorus, in contrast to calcium and magnesium.

Yet another necessary, but little known nutrient, is boron. Boron has been shown in recent studies to aid bone metabolism when taken in the proper amount. Lastly, manganese, copper, and zinc are co-factors that activate enzymes to help build bone mass. Here is an excellent example of a balanced calcium supplement

It is also important to know, that while 99% of the body's calcium in contained in the bones and teeth, the remaining one percent has other very important functions in the body. One of these crucial functions is the conduction on nerve impulses. Undersupply of calcium also can cause irritability of the muscles, resulting in cramps and even spasms.

Pregnant mothers should be aware of the importance of an adequate calcium intake, along with its supporting nutrients. A unmet high demand for calcium during pregnancy or lactation can result in future bone loss for the mother.

If you take vitamin E pills, you should be aware that certain forms of the supplement, specifically the synthetic varieties, can block the effects of
natural vitamin E in your food.

There are actually two types of vitamin E supplements -- natural and synthetic -- and the natural forms are twice as potent as the synthetic ones, according to a report by VERIS Research Information Service, which represents the
vitamin industry.

Synthetic vitamin E is made from petroleum chemicals and is 36 percent less active in antioxidants than the natural-source vitamin purified from plant sources, a finding confirmed by an advisory panel for the National Academy of
Sciences.

There's an easy way for you to tell what type of vitamin E you're buying in a health food store. If a vitamin E supplement label reads d-alpha-tocopherol, you're getting the real thing. If it's synthetic, the label will read dl-alpha-tocopherol -- so the dl could be interpreted as meaning "delivers less."

Another explanation: The L form is synthetic. It means it rotates to the left in nature and is not used by your body. It is like trying a left handed glove on your right hand. When you see dl on a label, that means that is some synthetic and some natural. The d form rotates to the right and is a natural form.

This Natural Vitamin E contains d-alpha tocopherol as well as a mix of tocopherols (some of which have shown to be even more potent than d-alpha tocopherol) other ingredients include selenium and grape seed extract. The natural ingredients that are used to produce this vitamin are grown in rich, organic soil and are carefully processed to preserve the natural vitamin E.

Got Omega-3?
Not So Much from the food on our grocery store shelves

By KIM PAINTER, USA Today
11-12-2007

Getting plenty of heart-healthy omega-3 fats used to mean eating fish or taking supplements. But grocery aisles these days are packed with food labels boasting of omega-3 content. You can buy milk, eggs, yogurt, cereal, orange juice, butter substitutes, mayonnaise and other products that carry the claim.

Behind the boom: studies that show certain omega-3 fats can help prevent fatal heart attacks and offer other heart benefits; less conclusive research hints at brain and eye benefits and possible anti-cancer effects.

But don't cross fish off your shopping list yet, nutrition watchdogs say. That's because many of the new products contain little or none of the omega-3 fats backed by the most scientific evidence: DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and EPA
(eicosapentaenoic acid).

"The numbers are tiny, but the claims they are making are huge," says Katherine Tallmadge, a Washington, D.C., registered dietitian and spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association.

"It's all very confusing," says Bonnie Liebman, a nutritionist with the Center for Science in the Public Interest. She reviewed omega-3 food claims for a recent newsletter article (at cspinet.org).

Her conclusion: Consumers are in real danger of being misled. Even a careful label reader won't learn, for instance, that a carton of Breyers Smart DHA Omega-3 yogurt has less DHA than a teaspoon of salmon.

And that bottle of Hellmann's mayo proclaiming the product is "naturally rich in Omega-3 ALA"? True enough, Liebman says: Most mayonnaise is made with
soybean oil, which is a source of ALA (alpha-linolenic acid). But that kind of omega-3 fat, found most abundantly in flaxseed, has not been proven to convey the same health benefits as DHA plus EPA, she says.

One study even suggested high intakes of ALA might increase the risk of prostate cancer. But that finding "doesn't make any sense to anyone at this
point" and needs more rigorous study, says William Harris, a heart researcher at the University of South Dakota.

Harris, who has advised companies making omega-3 products, says he sees little downside to the grocery-store glut as long as consumers know what they are getting. "But if the label just says omega-3 and makes no mention of DHA and EPA, there's a good chance it's ALA. So it can be a little deceptive."

Tallmadge's advice: "Eat fish." Those concerned about mercury, including pregnant women, can choose low-mercury varieties such as salmon and sardines, she says. Walnuts, ground flaxseeds, tofu and other whole foods containing ALA also are great additions to any diet, she adds, even if the evidence for that fat is not as compelling. There's no need to buy "manufactured kibble" spiked with omega-3 fats, she says.

Vegetarians can take algae oil supplements to get DHA, she says. Others who just don't eat enough fish can take fish oil supplements. But read the labels carefully, she warns, looking for levels of DHA plus EPA.

Studies suggest an average of 500 milligrams a day is beneficial, Liebman says. You can get that much by following the American Heart Association's advice to eat fish, particularly fatty fish, at least twice weekly. The association says patients with coronary heart disease should get 1,000 milligrams of DHA plus EPA daily.

Copyright 2007 USA TODAY, a division of Gannett Co. Inc. All Rights Reserved

Studies suggest a ratio of omega-3s that is quite similar to the
ratio present in Essential Omega-3 Complex, and at an amount equal to three servings per day. Combining omega-3s with garlic is particularly helpful when someone is wanting to reduce cholesterol and triglycerides.

Based on clinical research, with the potential to be life-changing! Developing these took years of nutritional expertise and state-of-the-art technological innovations. Click here for a short flash presentation.

New Vitalizing Vitamin Packs Contain:
2 Top Brand Multivitamins
Sustained Release C+B (combined C & B Complex into 1 pill!)
2 Carotene/Vitamin E/Omega Caps (1 new pill!)
1 Probiotic Pearl

How this was developed:

The Vitalizing Pack is based on a clinical study and on the the 8 most used supplements among the healthiest vitamin supplement users. It contains 23 vitamins/minerals, 26 antioxidants & anti-aging nutrients that all work together and are easily used by the body.

Why you should use Vitalizing Vitamin Packs:
20 substantiated benefits
80 bio-optimized nutrients
7 Omega
3 EFAs
4 revolutionary delivery systems

Be sure to ask me how you can save 25% off the vitalizing vitamin packs.

Clinical research for developing Vitalizing Vitamin Packs: Study of long term supplement users and
12 published studies supporting Vitamin Packs

Study: "Multivitamin-mineral Supplementation: Effects on Blood Chemistries of College-Age Women"
- Results: Significant increase in Vitamin C, B12 and folate levels with use of our multivitamin.

Study: "Homocysteine Lowering in Men and Women with Normal Plasma Homocysteine Levels"
- Results: After only 8 weeks, there was a significant reduction of homocysteine levels

Study: "Effects of Long-Term Vitamin-Mineral Supplements on Immune Response in Older Adults"
- Results: Significant improvement in immune function in older adults

Study: "Improvement in Folate Indices in Blood and Seminal Plasma Following Vitamin Supplementation"
- Results: Doubling of blood and plasma folate within 90 days

24% of 31-50 year olds do not meet basic vitamin C requirements.

Vitamin C is the premier water-soluble antioxidant.

Vitamin C improves immune function as well as the health of blood vessels, bone, muscles, eyes, skin, teeth and gums.

40% of adults over 55 are B-vitamin deficient.

B-vitamins promote a healthy cardiovascular system, and are essential catalysts for energy production, healthy adrenal function, brain health, and amino acid metabolism. B12 declines with age and is vital for reducing homocysteine. Drugs can cause a B6 deficiency.

93% of 31-50 year old women do not get enough vitamin E.

Vitamin E is the most important fat-soluble antioxidant. It protects cell membranes from oxidative damage. Vitamin E supports heart, lung, colon and prostate , and is vital for immune function.

This work is licensed under a
Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 United States License.