Juice Plus+® is recommended as a dietary supplement because it contains nutrients from a variety of fruits and vegetables, unlike vitamin supplements which are missing the phytonutrients present in the whole food.
As vitamins are only a small part of the nutritional healing picture, and some studies show can be harmful, we have changed from isolated and synthetic supplements to using whole-food supplements.
Although there is always much debate about which supplements are best, owing to the large numbers of companies selling them, and the claims they make, there are a few points to keep in mind when making your selection. Whether one supplement is better than another amounts a few points that must be understood first, not to mention the research data that is published. First, about why whole-food supplements are your best choice.
A whole-food supplement, is one comprised of foods (not extracts, but entire foods) that have been concentrated into supplemental form. Isolated supplements are singular (or groups of individual) vitamins, minerals. Whole foods contain vitamins, but vitamins never contain the rest of the whole-food "complex." It's a fact that we need the whole food to get ALL the nutrients in that whole food, not just because it contains vitamin C for example.
According to Vic Shayne,PhD, author of Whole Food Nutrition: The Missing Link in Vitamin Therapy, "Vitamins never exist in isolation, but rather within an interwoven complex of food nutrients and substances along with myriad cofactors and synergists." For instance, a vitamin A supplement is usually vitamin A palmitate, a synthetic form of vitamin A. Or, the supplement may consist of beta carotene, an isolated precursor to vitamin A. Conversely, a whole-food supplement contains the food(s) which not only consists of vitamin A, but particularly vitamin A1; vitamin A2; retino; retinal; retinoic acid; carotenes (there are more than 500 carotenoids in nature); essential fatty acids; fiber; grass factors; pigments; natural sugars; minerals (such as zinc and copper); lipids; bioflavonoids; and nutrients that fall under the broad spectrum of "phytochemicals," ranging from terpenes to isoflavones. Doctors using whole-food supplements in their nutritional practices look not only for vitamins, but, more importantly, rely on these cofactors to bring the body back into biochemical balance. Whole food supplements help get the body's balance back to an optimal equilibrium.
Many biochemical researchers, nutritionists and herbalists have noted that without the whole-food complex, the body will never achieve whole nutrition, as vitamin supplements lack the rest of the complex. Isolated vitamins eventually lead to biochemical imbalances and consequential nutritional deficiencies, as the body is forced to surrender its stores of nutrients in order to make any isolated vitamin work. The use of isolated/synthetic vitamins amounts to the practice of "chemistry," wherein the use of whole-food supplements translates into the practice of biochemistry. Whole foods are alive with enzyme activity, while isolated vitamins are not living substances in the least. Vitamins do not resemble foods, but they resemble parts of foods. It is the rest of the food complex - the other parts - in which proponents of whole foods are interested. Retired USDA botanist, James Duke,PhD, author of The Green Pharmacy, agrees: "Vitamins and phytochemicals are better taken in their evolutionary context - as they occur in plants - not isolated and out of context." Although it is true that isolated vitamin supplementation "works," we must define the word "work."
Certainly, experiments have shown the efficacy of vitamins against symptomatology, but some experts claim that this is a matter of practicing pharmacology, not nutrition. Nutrition relates to nourishment by foods, not isolated chemicals. Whole foods work biochemically and harmoniously, while isolated vitamins always run the risk of creating biochemical imbalances. When speaking of minerals, there is the added risk of toxicity, as minerals must enjoy a biochemical balance to promote health. Zinc; copper; iron; calcium; magnesium; phosphorus; and other minerals are easily upset and offset by an improper ratio of minerals in the body. Taking isolated minerals and mineral toddies, even in a multivitamin/mineral supplement, is a biochemical risk. Too much magnesium or phosphorus may imbalance calcium; too much copper may imbalance vitamin C; zinc; manganese; molybdenum; vitamin B6; and iron; too much zinc can lead to copper deficiency, and so on. Because nutrients in foods are balanced within the food complex, the risk of toxicity is very low.
Conversely, trying to balance the body's biochemistry with mineral and vitamin supplements is very difficult because of the dynamic complexity of the human organism; the daily diet; exposure to environmental poisons; stress factors; genetics, etc. A whole-food complex supplement containing a multitude of plant foods known to be mineral-rich, and also include synergistic Juice Plus+®, trace mineral activators; and enzymes is most supportive of one's health. Nature's design is a safer choice due its inherent intelligence and perfect balance. When using whole-food supplements, doctors must realize a paradigm shift and the need to stop regarding foods as chemicals. We have to understand that the "more is better" attitude does not apply to food - vitamins or minerals. The quality of the food complex becomes more important than the quantity of individual vitamins and minerals.
Our first recommendation is to get back to a balanced diet, eating an array of fruits and vegetables, and in at least a minimum recommended amount each day to support your lifestyle and body type. Short of that, if you need a supplement, one that is made from whole foods will be superior to any one or multitude of single vitamins. The one that we have selected for our clients is Juice Plus+®, which leads the industry in research on the efficacy of the fruit and vegetable nutrients used in the capsules. Juice Plus+® is a leader in research on the product, so you can feel confident that you're getting the best quality for your health.
The Health & Wellness Institute
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