WELCOME to the area of our community to explore and discover NUTRITIONAL REMEDIES.

NUTRITION has the power to overcome ailments and provide OBSERVABLE STEPS TO WELLNESS!

Any registered member of the QC is invited to contribute personal ideas and experiences with nutritional sources, just by e-mailing your articles to Marie or by posting at the forums.

NUTRITION, as defined at this website, includes everything we ingest, including food (whole and processed), water, and supplementation (including whole foods, nutraceuticals, pharmaceuticals, and synthetically derived medications).

NUTRITIONAL VALUE is determined by understanding how such nutritional items are processed by the human body along with the observable physical and mental behaviors that result. Therefore, nutrition derived from naturally grown plants to processed food items to synthetically produced medications may have positive or negative value depending on varying circumstances.

To gain a better perspective on how nutrition actually affects wellness and illness, the following categories are provided:

• Nutritional Medicine (anyone considering participating in the NMRUK program is encouraged to visit the Products Forum - Open letter for updated information)
  
  
• The Power of Nutrition Group - Check this site for articles, research files, current events, and conversations of a community sharing experiences and ideas about what works when nutritional pursuits are used.
  
  
• Nutritional Articles:
  

Here is a featured article for this section:

Nutritional Supplementation and You
by Callie Marie Judd

To supplement or not to supplement – that is the question! Investigation of how best to proceed, like all important life decisions, requires intense time investment while trying to avoid the marketing strategies working to make people’s decisions for them. To assist with analyzing what factors should be considered and why - read on!

Are there special circumstances where it's more important to take supplements, or important NOT to take supplements? There are definite times when a person should ask themselves – should I or shouldn’t I? Surprisingly, that initial first answer does not relate to whether a person is presently dealing with a health breakdown already. Actually, it has more to do with whether a person knows their own metabolism well enough to know whether they are functioning in a normal healthy range. This means an honest self-evaluation, inside and out, (in consultation with a health professional before or when any breakdown has already occurred). In any case, learning your own metabolic needs should be a first priority, even before looking at the myriad of labels encountered in the market place.

The only time to not consider taking supplements is when a person has their diet, environment, and stress levels already correct for them resulting in being where they should to be pertaining to health status. In modern society, it is obvious very few are in such a position. A key to remember is that supplements do not act on the body the same way as medications. Therefore, there are far fewer circumstances when it would be advised to NOT take a supplement as long as ingredients and quality are foremost considerations.

What are the most important supplements to take? According to a U.S. National Health Examination Survey the most popular supplement is the multivitamin. Experience demonstrates the most important are the ones needed. Each of us, understanding our unique metabolism, lifestyle, and background, must custom-design what supplements are important to us. Supplements containing correct combinations of trace mineral are a good start. Taking a comprehensive, BALANCED, formulation (preferably in a liquid delivery form) can suffice unless problems occur, at which time a more definitive status of health should be determined. The majority of pills can’t supply adequate amounts and are now scientifically being found to be lacking bioavailability by 50-80% over liquids.

What kind of nutrients are most people missing out on in their daily eating habits? The most prevalent nutrient missing is clean water. Enzymes are also most often lacking, especially for those who have a kitchen stocked with packaged, canned, and processed foods. Most are also inadequate in fiber intake, which supplements alone will not replace. Evaluation of medication intake is recommended here, since many of the modern synthesized medications can actually deplete essential nutritional components

Are there any concerns about mixing supplements, or using supplements with prescription drugs? It is always a good recommendation for prescription drugs to be researched with the prescribing physician, a pharmacist, AND written resources that can offer guidance of what foods may interfere with the uptake of medications. In extreme cases of poor judgment by users, actual “overdosing” on supplements can and does occur. However, when a natural, organic, whole food source for supplementation is used the body will usually give warning signs if a need for adjustment exists, without long-term, toxic damage occurring.

Historically, nutrition from food was much more substantial for various reasons. Since the Industrial Revolution and the Information Age has now occurred, supplementation of food intake is becoming a necessity to assure our bodies are allowed to function correctly the way they were designed. At present it is estimated by biochemists only about 5% of what is contained in foods has been identified scientifically. Supplementation can offer us all an opportunity to be included in a productive, health enhancing aspect of life, as we now learn from our own experiences and scientific advances what comprises a truly “good diet”.

In knowing about nutritional supplements and the proper use of them, the rule of thumb is patient/consumer KNOW THYSELF first and forever be willing to learn!