You May Not Be as Healthy as You Think

Why Multi-Vitamins are Essential to Your Health
By Gabriella Marin

My dad was an avid reader, his favorite topics being nutrition and healthy living. He made sure that every morning before school I’d take my daily vitamin… those Flintstones ones, remember those? Of course, I didn’t really understand why I had to take the vitamin; it looked like a little candy so I'd happily eat it without asking questions.

But for some reason, as I got older, I found that I slowly stopped taking my multi-vitamins, and slowly began feeling less alert. Actually, I know of a handful of people who used to take vitamins as a child but stopped as they started to grow older.

So what makes us think it’s okay to stop taking our daily multi-vitamin once we reach adulthood? Is it because we think we are now big and healthy? Big? Yes. Healthy? Don’t be so sure.

Many Americans don’t realize that the foods today are not providing all the nutrients and minerals their bodies need to stay healthy. Even if a person is eating a balanced diet everyday and eats the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables, there are numerous things that affect and prevent our bodies from absorbing the necessary nutrients it needs, including:

·     Farming; modern-day farming practices are not the same as they were 200 years ago. We use pesticides, synthetic chemicals, herbicides, and more! The use of chemicals affects the way produce grows and naturally develops its natural nutrients.

·     Cooking; did you know that if you cook food over 118 degrees, all of its nutrients and enzymes are practically destroyed? The enzymes in “live” foods aid in digestion and can help prevent diseases such as arthritis and cancer.

·     Processed foods; the worse of all. How many isles would you say a grocery store has? 15? Maybe even 20? If you’ve noticed, most of the refrigerated section goes around the store, and most of those foods are the less processed ones. Think of the grocery store's layout as a "U" with a bunch of lines in the middle. The "U" is the refrigerated section; the lines are the grocery isles (or pantry foods). So guess what types of foods are stocked in all of those isles that are not in the refrigerated section. Processed foods that are filled with chemicals to keep them from going bad in your pantry.

When I do my grocery shopping I try to stay away from the isles as much as possible because I know that the freshest foods are OUTSIDE the grocery isles; in the "U". Fruits, veggies, deli meats, cheese and dairy, etc.

But you might say, “Apple sauce is inside the grocery isles, and it’s healthy, isn’t it?” For the most part it can be. But unless “apples” is the first ingredient on the ingredients list and it is not packed with sugar, you're much better off eating a fresh apple (preferably organic) from the produce section, or the "U".

I’ll be the first to admit that I have no time to make myself a healthy and wholesome breakfast in the morning. It’s so much more practical to grab a granola bar (which is likely full of sugar), a breakfast sandwich in a drive-thu, or skip breakfast all together. During lunch break, 30 minutes is not enough time to go home and create a healthy meal, so I go with a sandwich or last night’s leftovers I brought from home. And for dinner, sometimes I’ll cook, and sometimes it’s just easier to pop in a TV-dinner in the microwave.

And like me, there are many others. Keeping a balanced diet and making sure you get the necessary vitamins and nutrients your body needs to stay healthy is a lot harder these days than it may seem. That’s why it is so important that we keep taking our daily multi-vitamins even after childhood.

Just like children need vitamins to grow healthy and strong, adults need vitamins to STAY healthy and strong. Nutrition though our diets is simply not enough anymore, unfortunately. It is recommended to take a daily multi-vitamin every day to:

·         Keep our defenses strong

·         Prevent sickness and diseases

·         Get the Recommended Daily Allowance of nutrients

·         Activate enzymes essential to cellular function

·         So much more!

Dr. Cara Jakob at Total Family Healthcare recommends COMPLETE+, a complete multi-vitamin from our TFH PLUS line of vitamins and supplements. It delivers more than 60 well-balanced nutrients that benefit:

·         Brain and nervous system

·         Liver, heart and vascular system

·         Immune system

·         Musculoskeletal system

·         Energy production

·         Digestion, metabolism and antioxidant defense

You can purchase any of our vitamins and supplements at our Clermont or Orlando office, or order online at TotalFamilyHealthcare.com