About This Book
My previous five books - The Natural Prostate Cure, Zen Macrobiotics for Americans, What is Beta Glucan?, No More Horse Estrogen! and Lower Cholesterol Without Drugs- were all very heavily documented with published international studies from the most prominent scientific journals. The next two books, Test-osterone Is Your Friend and The Natural Diabetes Cure will be just as heavily documented. There will be no such documentation in this book, however, as there just isn’t any needed. Please be as-sured your author went through the last fifteen years of research in Chemical Abstracts (the “Scientist’s Bible”) for all these minerals and dug up studies that no one else on earth has written about and given to the general public. Everything you read here comes di-rectly from published clinical research around the world. You will find unique information here not found in other books or articles.
There are only ten minerals with an established RDA, yet we know of at least that many more that are known to be essential. And there are still others that may well prove to be essential even in the small amounts they’re found in our foods and soils. There is always a lag of many years between scientific discovery and application in the everyday world we live in. Science has known for a long time we need to fortify our soils and farm animals with a great variety of minerals so that our foods will be nutritious rather than mineral deficient. Science has known for a long time that lack of trace elements is responsible in part for EVERY disease, condition and illness known to man. Supplementing our diets with these vital minerals will go a long way towards preventing and curing the endless list of health problems we suffer from. We live in the richest, most affluent and productive country on earth, but ironically suffer from the poorest health generally.
Why is it that farmers are not using more minerals in their soils to get better, more bountiful and more nutritious disease resistant crops? Why aren’t ranchers giving more minerals to their livestock for healthier, more feed efficient and more prolific animals? Most of all, why aren’t people demanding real, effective nutritional supplements with all the known minerals we need?
Please read this book so you’ll know the minerals you need to be in the best of health and live a long, happy life.
Put the Periodic Table on this page
Chapter 1:
Minerals in General
Ninety-six natural elements exist, and of these there are only ten with an established Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA). Those include calcium, magnesium, iron, zinc, manganese, copper, iodine, chromium, selenium and molybdenum. There are at least eight more known to be needed in human nutrition with no RDA set. It is well known, for example, that boron is necessary for life, but no RDA has been set for it at this point. Just recently it has become well known that vanadium is also necessary for life, but it is difficult to even find any vanadium in a vitamin/mineral supplement. There is no doubt silicon is a necessary mineral but you will rarely find this offered in any supplement. There is good initial evidence that such other minerals as barium, beryllium, cesium, europium, indium, gallium, lanthanum, lithium, neodymium, praseodymium, rubidium, samarium, scandium, thulium, yttrium and other ultratrace minerals may also well be necessary for plant and animal life only in small microgram amounts of less than one-tenth of one milligram.
We basically just do not show any deficiencies of phosphorous, potassium, sodium, sulfur, chloride or fluoride. These are often used as “filler” in promotional vitamin mineral supplements.
If there is one thing to understand it is that all minerals work together as a biological team just like a sports team. When one mineral is deficient the others simply cannot do all of what they want to do. It is important to get all the known minerals we need in the necessary biological amounts. Minerals often work together in pairs synergistically. There are a few relationships we do know such as the calcium to magnesium ratio and the zinc to copper ratio, but there are countless more relationships we have no idea of yet and have not discovered.
Americans are overfed and undernourished. We eat twice the calories we need from refined and devalued foods. We eat an amazing eight times the fat we need - 42% of our caloric intake- and most all of this is saturated animal fat. We eat twice the protein we need. We eat an unbelievable 150 pounds of various simple sugars we do not need at all. Yet we still don’t get the vitamins and minerals we need in our daily food! The wealthiest country in the world is also the most mineral deficient of all. America leads the world in obesity, coronary and heart disease, blood sugar disorders including insulin resistance and diabetes, arthritis and rheumatism, osteoporosis, PMS and menstrual problems, menopausal condit- ions, most types of cancer especially prostate, breast, lung, ovarian, cervical and uterine, and most every other illness that plagues human beings.
The question comes up about which forms of the minerals to take. The various bioavailable forms of each mineral will be mentioned in chapter. Some are inexpensive common salts such as zinc sulfate while others are chelates (KEE lates) which are simply minerals bound in a manner they can easily be digested. Should you take your minerals before meals, during meals or after meals? It just doesn’t matter. The important thing is that you take them every day for the rest of your life and get all the ones you need in the biologically required amounts you need.
Due to highly sophisticated analytical techniques such as PIXE, SRFXA, ANN, ICP-AES and ICP-MS we can now pinpoint minerals down to picograms- trillionths of a gram. (There are one million picograms in a microgram!) We can now easily and accurately measure the precise mineral content in our soils, the food we eat, our bodies and all important actual blood levels. It would be wonderful if we could just go down to the doctors office and get our blood analyzed for dozens of different vital minerals so we can know which ones we are deficient in. We could also test the toxic, harmful ones - lead, aluminum, cadmium, mercury and others. But this is costly and we can only practically and inexpensively test a few like iron, calcium and magnesium currently. Urine analysis only tells us what we excrete, and not what we retain in our blood. Hair analysis is more suited for revealing harmful minerals like arsenic poisoning. In the next 20 years the price for patient testing will come down so we will be able to measure all our basic minerals levels inexpensively.
No matter how well you eat, how many other supplements you take, how much you exercise or anything else, you are never going to have the health you want unless you have all the vital minerals you need. Mineral nutrition still is not well understood and the mineral supplements available are woefully incomplete.
Chapter 2:
Where Can I Find A Good
Mineral Supplement?
It is simply unbelievable that it is almost impossible to find a complete mineral or vitamin mineral supplement anywhere in the world in the year 2003. Take a look in the biggest vitamin catalogs in the world and see what kind of mineral supplements they offer.
Now look in any health food store especially the mega-chain stores and see if you can find a good mineral supplement. Check the drug stores as well. Go to the Internet and you’ll see nothing but promotions with very poor products. What you find will be woefully incomplete and lacking not only in the minerals themselves, but in the biological amounts you need of them.
The key to finding a valid mineral supplement is to READ THE LABEL. If it’s not on the label, it’s not in the bottle. You must see all the minerals listed and the exact amount of each contained in each tablet or capsule. If the manufacturer hides behind the loophole phrase “proprietary formula” put it back on the shelf as there is nothing in there. Don’t settle for one that contains a mere dozen minerals even if they are in the biological amounts you need. Also, do not be taken in by “window dressing” such as potassium, sodium, phosphorous, sulfur, chloride, fluoride, and other minerals we do not need. Adding these just makes the label appear better, longer and more complete.
The biggest fraud to ever hit the natural health industry was colloidal minerals - that is, until coral calcium came along a few years later. Millions of people were taken in by the most asinine claims and assertions for coral minerals. Pyramid schemes sold these by passing out audio tapes. If you ever read the label on a bottle of colloidal minerals you noticed they listed dozens and dozens of minerals but never the AMOUNTS of these minerals. That’s because there was almost nothing of any biological value in there obviously. Merely containing meaningless amount such as one microgram of a certain mineral gave them the legal right to list it on the label. You could drink a whole bottle of colloidal minerals every day and not get any benefit except for two or three minerals at most. Fortunately this has faded into obscurity except for some internet advertisements.
Coral calcium succeeded colloidal minerals in the honor of being the biggest fraud in the natural health industry. This is just plain old calcium carbonate (as in blackboard chalk) with a high price tag. They also claim to have dozens and dozens of minerals contained in the formula, but the facts are it is just cheap calcium carbonate with one or two other minerals.
Why is it that the largest vitamin companies in the world won’t put out a good mineral supplement that has all the minerals you need in the biologically needed amounts? Don’t these companies have extensive research facilities to develop cutting edge products? Not at all. They have extensive ADVERTISING departments to promote second rate products with very little actual benefits. These corporations spend almost nothing on research and development, but millions of dollars on advertising.
Look at the best selling and most popular mineral and vitamin mineral formulations in the world. READ THE LABEL. You’ll rarely find boron, vanadium or silicon at all, and substandard amounts of selenium, chromium and molybdenum even in their premier, top-of-the-line formulas. You’ll never find realistic amounts of such important minerals as germanium, tin, nickel, strontium or cobalt.
You will sometimes hear that only liquid or encapsulated supplements work, and that tablets and caplets do not dissolve in your stomach, but merely pass through your digestive system intact. This is merely advertising gimmickry. You can prove this to yourself by putting any tablet in a glass of warm water with a tablespoon of vinegar and watching it dissolve in a few hours. The human stomach is much more acidic, much warmer and subject to a lot of physical motion, so tablets will dissolve much better in your body. You can also prove this by taking a dozen tablets of a certain product and watching your stool the next day. You will not find them in your stool as all tablets have a dissolving agent added to them at time of manufacture.
You will also hear a lot of talk about how only a certain salt or form of a vitamin of mineral is actually bioavailable. Of course it always turns out that the company saying this has a patented form of this supplement that no one else can use without a royalty. The forms of each mineral you need are discussed in each chapter.
Chapter 3:
Calcium
Calcium is number 20 in the Periodic Table, the fifth most abundant element and was discovered in 1808. It has an atomic weight of 40.0, so it is a light mineral, so toxicity is unknown. The RDA for calcium for adults is set at 1,000 mg a day. Calcium is the most abundant mineral in our bodies by far because 99% of it is in our bones. Calcium carbonate, citrate and other forms are very bioavailable and inexpensive. Being the most abundant mineral just does not make it the most important mineral, however.
The government established daily allowance is very scientifically incorrect. Asians, Africans, Mideasterners and Latins eat a fraction of what Europeans (and Indians) eat. The people in these countries eat little or no dairy food, take in less than 400 mg of calcium every day at most, and have far less bone and join disease than Europeans do. The RDA is simply Eurocentric and can only be met by eating large amounts of milk and dairy products. Of the six billion people on this earth only about one billion regularly eat dairy products as a staple food. People of all races stop secreting lactase (the enzyme that digests lactose or milk sugar) about the age of three. All adults therefore are lactose intolerant and should not regularly drink milk or eat dairy products. Most dairy foods like milk, cream, cheese, cream cheese, and sour cream are very high in saturated fats and not good food choices anyway. The only abundant dietary source of calcium (other than sea vegetables) is dairy food; no other food group contains nearly as much.
Take a look at any list of the calcium content of common foods we eat. Other than dairy products there is very little calcium in whole grains, beans, vegetables, fruits, seafood, or meat. To demonstrate how little calcium there is in ALL other foods other than dairy, let’s look at a generous and varied sample daily menu. If you ate three cups of brown rice, two cups of oatmeal, one cup of dried beans, a cup of a green vegetable, eight ounces of fish, eight ounces of beef, a salad with dressing, four slices of whole grain bread, four pieces of fresh fruit and a cup of vegetable soup you would get less than 400 mg of calcium.
The research on calcium is simply too much to digest, and every year even more is done. Calcium is the most popular of all mineral supplements because people are led to believe they are deficient in it. The problem however is NOT deficient dietary calcium at all - it is the lack of ABSORPTION.
Western people take in more calcium by far than anyone else, yet have the highest rate of bone and joint disease in the world, especially arthritis and osteoporosis. The Asian, African, Mideast and Latin cultures which take in the least amount of calcium generally have far stronger bones and joints, and far less arthritis, osteoporosis and other conditions. These people do not and cannot get anywhere near the official U.S. government recommendation of 1,000 mg every day from their diets of meat, fish, poultry, eggs, grains, vegetables, beans, and fruit. True vegetarians who don’t eat dairy products also have less bone and joint conditions. The fact that five billion people eat a fraction of the suggested RDA of calcium and have far less bone and joint disease is inarguable real world proof we just don’t need 1,000 mg a day. You can take ten grams of calcium a day and it isn’t going to make your bones any stronger unless you also get sufficient magnesium, boron, strontium and vitamin D. These are just the four major synergists we know, and there are others, which play smaller roles such as manganese, silicon and other minerals. Calcium just cannot work by itself to make new bone cells (osteoblasts). The fact is that we need less calcium after the age of eighteen when our skeletons are fully formed. As we age we need less calories and less calcium than when we are younger. To have strong bones and avoid arthritis and osteoporosis we have to take in all the known minerals to work with calcium as a biological team. Again, the problem is not the amount of calcium we take in at all, but rather the ABSORPTION of it. We generally don’t get enough magnesium, boron, strontium nor enough vitamin D to help the calcium to be absorbed and grow new bone cells.
Should we take calcium supplements? Are there benefits to adding calcium to the food we eat? Yes. Studies show that supplementation helps to slightly lower blood pressure, is good for our heart and artery health, can alleviate some symptoms of PMS, is necessary for brain metabolism, helps prevent intestinal tumors
(colorectal adenomas), is necessary for blood clotting, and has many other uses other than making new bone cells.
Chapter 4:
Magnesium
Magnesium is number 12 in the Periodic Table, the seventh most abundant element and was discovered in 1808. It has an atomic weight of only 24.3. It is one of the ten essential minerals with an RDA of 400 mg a day. It is the fourth most abundant mineral in our bodies and fifth most in the oceans. While mammals use iron as the center of their blood molecules, plants use magnesium as the center of their chlorophyll molecules. Chlorophyll, of course, is the life blood of the plant world. Many soils are deficient in this as farmers rarely replace it with commercial fertilizers. Studies consistently show that most people do not get sufficient intake of this and Americans generally take in only about 300 mg at best. Fortunately you can easily get an inexpensive supplement of 200 mg or more. Common salts such as citrates, lactates or oxides are all bioavailable. You are just not going to get much magnesium from drinking even the most nutrient rich mineral water. The American diet has been shown to be generally low due to the extensive refining and processing of our foods especially whole grains. The best dietary source of magnesium are plant sources, especially whole grains, dried beans and nuts. The fact Americans eat so little whole grains leads to common deficiencies. Black Americans have been shown to be especially low due to their poor diets. It is well documented that the elderly show an increased need and this is one cause of the many problems with aging. People of all economic levels generally don’t get enough and one in seven Americans has seriously low serum levels. Toxicity is not a concern, and everyone should consider a daily supplement since this has been so conclusively shown to be beneficial. The research every year on magnesium is overwhelming because it is such a vital and essential nutrient. Four hundred years ago people were eating Epsom salts (magnesium sulfate) as a cure all, but for the laxative effect. The nutritive benefits they got were not realized since vitamin and mineral nutrition was simply not understood until recently.
Magnesium is used in so many biological functions it is impossible to cover them all. It affects so many processes that it may be the most important of all minerals in human nutrition. New benefits of having healthy magnesium levels are always being discovered as well. Studies of the most common acute and chronic illnesses and conditions that affect us often show low serum levels. Deficiencies of this may be the most underdiagnosed of all mineral shortages. Drinking coffee, drinking alcohol, eating too much salt, drinking sodas (phosphoric acid), the stress of modern life and taking prescription drugs all help deplete what magnesium we do take in.
Cardiovascular health is one of the basic and important needs and includes heart attacks, hypertension, strokes, atherosclerosis (plaque buildup), high blood fats and congestive heart failure. Study after study shows that people with higher serum levels simply have less heart and coronary disease, lower blood pressure, less strokes, and lower cholesterol levels. Heart and artery conditions are THE leading cause of death for all Westerners by far. Having a high serum magnesium level is a good way to help prevent CHD generally.
Diabetes and insulin resistance have been found to be correlated with hypomagnesium levels. Oxidative stress is part of the diabetes syndrome and is shown to be magnesium related. Any program of treating blood sugar disorders should include a magnesium supplement of at least 200 mg a day. Bone loss as we age is partly due to magnesium deficiency. Bone mineral density depends on magnesium, boron, strontium and vitamin D in order for calcium to make new bone cells. There is an important calcium to magnesium ratio, so you should always take half as much magnesium as calcium in your supplement. As much as 40% of asthmatics have been shown to have low serum levels. Treatment of this condition should always include a supplement. Inexpensive supplementation has shown dramatic results in both migraine and muscle tension headaches. Women who take it have found it helps alleviate some of the symptoms of PMS, which affects the great majority of American females.
Magnesium is needed for hormone metabolism, neuromuscular function, energy metabolism and exercise performance, the prevention of various cancers, liver function, skin metabolism, vitamin metabolism, water balance in our bodies, over 300 known enzyme reactions, and is a basic mineral catalyst to accelerate countless biological reactions
Chapter 5:
Iron
Iron is number 26 in the Periodic Table, the fourth most abundant element and has been known to man since the beginning of time. It has an atomic weight of 55.8 and is therefore a heavy metal. It is the fourth most abundant metal on earth. The research on iron is very extensive, of course, partly because three fourths of it is the “heme” in hemoglobin or red blood cells. Iron makes blood red and transports oxygen from our lungs. This is one of the ten minerals with an RDA, which is 10 mg for men and 18 mg for women. Most all vitamin mineral supplements have iron in them as common sulfates, fumarates, and gluconates. Children and pregnant women and often older people have higher needs for iron.
We get lots of iron in any meat, poultry or organ food like liver. We also get a good deal in many vegetables such as beans and peas, nuts and seeds, fish and green vegetables.
The body only absorbs iron when it is needed, so when we eat too much it is simply excreted. Sufficient copper is needed for proper absorption as well as there is an iron to copper interaction. Only recently it has become faddish to talk about the rare people who have too much iron and therefore buy “iron free” vitamin mineral supplements. One factor here is that such people nearly always take in far too much iron from meat, poultry and other animal foods. The real problem though is they have an absorption malfunction where they are storing iron they don’t need. Studies
consistently show that most Americans, especially women and vegetarians, simply don’t get enough in their diets. People with deficiencies suffer from anemia and weak blood function. Some symptoms are heartburn, dizziness, headaches, sore tongue, hair loss, digestive problems, nausea, sensitivity to cold, irritability and loss of appetite. Older people who are not anemic often respond well to iron supplements with more energy and endurance even though they show no evidence of deficiency at all. While the main use for iron is red blood cells, every cell in our bodies contain it. The need for it extends far beyond that to immunity, enzyme reactions, energy metabolism, muscle function and many other uses. Make sure you add this to your supplement program.
Chapter 6:
Zinc
Number 30 in the Periodic Table. This was discovered back in the 13th Century. It has an atomic weight of 65.4 and is a heavy metal. We have about 2.5 grams in our bodies and every part of our body contains some. The male prostate gland contains ten times as much as other organs for example. The established RDA is 15 mg and most Westerners simply do not get that much. Zinc can easily be toxic and you should never take in more than about 50 mg a day. More than this will cause negative side effects. You will find sufficient zinc in most vitamin mineral supplements fortunately. You can take any zinc salt such as sulfate, citrate or oxide as they are easily bioavailable and inexpensive sources. Zinc has a relationship with copper and there is an important ratio between the two. Zinc has excellent topical uses for skin problems as well.
There is so much research on zinc it is pretty overwhelming but has only happened in the last 40 years. Entire books could be written about the volumes of research done on it. Zinc is one of the most studied of all minerals for good reason. Many soil areas in the U.S. are zinc deficient and all plant foods need zinc to grow well. It is found in whole wheat, brown rice, oats, lentils, soybeans, dried peas, black-eyed peas, lima beans, walnuts, peanuts, cashews, brazil nuts, many cheeses, any kind of liver, and animal flesh such as beef, lamb, chicken, turkey and various fish and seafood.
We do sweat out zinc during exercises so people who sweat a lot should take this loss into consideration. The real concern is refined foods since the zinc is removed during refining of whole grains especially rice and wheat. Alcohol also depletes zinc. As we age we absorb it much less efficiently. Zinc is needed for the synthesis of RNA and DNA, growth and development, to fight inflammation, sexual maturity, reproduction, immunity, healing wounds, for countless enzyme reactions, skin metabolism, good vision, our senses of taste and smell, and too many other processes to even try to list. Zinc deficiency is common in America, especially in children, but very easy to remedy with a simple 15 mg supplement every day.
Chapter 7:
Boron
Boron is number 5 in the Periodic Table and was discovered in 1808. It has an atomic weight of only 10.8 making it the lightest of all essential minerals. No one now disputes how vital it is to plant and animal life, but it wasn’t until 1990 it was finally accepted as essential for humans. This is truly the overlooked and neglected mineral for people even though the research on it is very extensive. There are a great deal of studies on real men and women that have been available for almost two decades now. There still has been no RDA established, but a daily intake of 3 mg would be sufficient. Any reasonable salt including inexpensive boric acid is bioavailable. Because the soils are so deficient you cannot rely on whole grains, beans, vegetables and fruits to consistently supply this. Sea vegetables may be the only reliable food source. Toxicity, except in factory workers who are exposed to it, is not a problem as it is so hard to come by. Boron is very deficient in our soils, and therefore in our foods and in our diets. In areas where the drinking water and the soils are rich in this mineral longer life and less morbidity (disease rates) are found. You would think all vitamin and mineral supplements would contain a mere 3 mg of boron, but such is not the case. Take a look in the largest vitamin catalogs in the world and you will rarely even see boron in their top of the line premier formulas much less in the 3 mg amount you need. One of the top three vitamin catalogs refuses to add it to any of their vitamin mineral formulas and offers only 0.75 mg (one fourth of what you need) in its boron only product! It is vital to take a boron supplement no matter how well you eat since our daily food contains so little. Some farmers do add boron salts to their soils, but this is not common practice at all. Few ranchers add boron to the feed of their livestock.
The research on boron is overwhelming, yet most people are seriously deficient. Study after study shows that Americans only eat about 1 mg a day with vegetarians getting the most. Boron is necessary to bone and cartilage metabolism and anyone with arthritis or osteoporosis should be taking it. Bone and cartilage metabolism may be the most important of all benefits especially since arthritis and osteoporosis are so epidemic. Boron supplementation has been shown to help relieve arthritis and osteoporosis in human studies. Taking calcium, magnesium and vitamin D along with it is a powerful combination. Boron and other mineral deficiencies are one of the basic reasons for these conditions. Westerners take in more calcium than anyone in the world, but have the most bone and joint diseases because the calcium cannot be absorbed without boron (and magnesium and vitamin D). Boron is vital to hormone metabolism in general and is the only mineral supplement that can raise low sex hormone levels. Boron supplements actually raise testosterone levels in both men and women. Boron is vital to reproduction and pregnancy, countless enzyme reactions, athletic performance, vitamin D metabolism, brain function and cognition, and blood metabolism, immune function, and many other important health factors. It has been shown to be an important fact in cardiovascular health generally. Hypertension (high blood pressure) is due in part to a lack of it. Cholesterol levels and metabolism depend on boron. Hormone metabolism especially for sex hormones depends on boron. Athletes have shown better performance when taking supplements. Weightlifters and bodybuilders have gotten results from taking boron as well. Boron levels in our brains show relations to cognition, memory and even mental diseases. Women given boron supplements got relief from PMS as well as menopausal symptoms. Women who want to avoid the many problems of menopause must take this. Definitely the lack of this is one of the many causes of our high cancer rates. We need more research on this relation to cancer and lack of boron and other minerals instead of allopathic (cover up the symptom and ignore the cause) surgery, radiation and chemotherapy. Boron is important for diabetes and insulin resistance along with chromium and selenium. Boron has been shown to be necessary in thyroid metabolism and low thyroid activity is epidemic in Americans over the age of 50. Laboratory animals given boron in their feed lived 10% longer than controls with no other changes.
Science has been clear on the vital need for adequate boron intake for over twenty years but we still aren’t taking a simple, inexpensive, safe 3 mg dose every day for all the proven benefits and protection it provides.
Chapter 8:
Manganese
Number 25 in the Periodic Table and discovered back in 1774. It has an atomic weight of 54.9. The research on manganese is almost overwhelming in all aspects. Manganese is one of the ten minerals with an established RDA of 2mg that was only recently set. We only have less than 20 mg in our bodies. Most people get enough in their diets especially vegetarians who eat more grains, beans, nuts, seeds, and green vegetables. Common vitamin and mineral supplements will contain this as simple sulfates or oxides. Even though it is a heavy metal, manganese is not considered toxic and people with illnesses can take up to ten times the RDA (i.e. 20 mg) without side effects.
Common dietary sources are whole grains such as wheat, rye, oats, brown rice, corn, various dried beans and peas, nuts and seeds, leafy greens, root vegetables such as sweet potatoes and beets, and, of course, sea vegetables. The refining of grains takes much of this out of our diets. This is one of the minerals scientific farmers put in their soils to insure good crops, as it is well known how important soil manganese is to crop production. Ranchers often use manganese in the mineral supplements they give to farm animals. Excessive manganese consumption is basically confined to factory workers at refineries and smelters. Manganese is necessary in such diverse areas as insulin production, fat metab-olism, growth factors, reproduction, muscle coordination, neuro-transmitter function, lipoprotein metabolism, our oxidation de-fense system, bone and cartilage growth, enzyme activity, proper blood clotting, oxidative stress and Mn-SOD function. Deficiencies result in such problems as bone and cartilage disease, some cases of deafness, carpal tunnel syndrome, repetitive motion syndrome, infertility and stillbirths, low libido, menopausal problems, and convulsions.
Recently research has shown the benefits of supplementation in arthritis and osteoporosis. It is necessary to synthesize mucopolysaccharides which make up support and connective tissue especially cartilage, tendons and bone cells. Other studies have shown promise in such conditions as epilepsy and tardive dyskinesia.
Chapter 9:
Copper
Number 29 in the Periodic Table and discovered over 6,000 years ago. It has an atomic weight of 63.5 and is a heavy metal. Copper is one of the ten minerals with an established RDA, which is 2 mg. Our bodies only contain about 150 mg of this vital mineral. The research on copper is overwhelming every year. Some people actually have high levels of copper while others are deficient. Even in arthritis patients you will find both high and low serum blood copper levels. You will find copper in common vitamin mineral supplements. You can take inexpensive copper salts such as citrate, gluconate or cupric oxide as they are all very easily absorbed. Copper, like zinc, can easily be toxic. While it is rather difficult to take in an excess of copper, as little as 15 mg a day could cause such effects as nausea, abdominal cramps, vomiting and diarrhea.
The main reason Western countries often have copper deficient diets is the refining of whole foods especially whole grains. Ironically, poor people in Third World countries who do not refine their foods have little problem with deficiencies. Many Americans only get about 1 mg per day in their food. Some good dietary sources of copper include wheat, barley, sunflower seeds, almonds, pecans, walnuts, peanuts, cashews, prunes, raisins, apricots, various dried beans, mushrooms, chicken and halibut. People with copper water pipes in their homes should be getting more than enough copper, and highly acidic water could conceivably add to this.
There is an important zinc to copper balance and ratio where these two metals interact and work together. Taking in too much zinc will interfere with copper absorption for example. Copper also helps us absorb iron and prevent anemia. Copper (and zinc) make up the main form of superoxide dismutase (SOD).
Copper is necessary for nerves, nerve transmission, many enzyme reactions, blood vessels and fighting inflammation, cholesterol levels, absorption of other minerals such as iron, and cardiovascular health in general. The uses for copper are simply far too numerous and complex to list.
Chapter 10:
Silicon
Silicon is number 14 in the Periodic Table and was discovered in 1824. It is the second most common element on earth (25% of the earths crust), yet can be deficient in our diets! It is very light, has an atomic weight of 28.0, and, like iodine, is not a metal. A good form is plain silica gel or silicic acid which are very inexpensive and bioavailable. Taking excess silica gel temporarily has the unique property of absorbing excess aluminum in the body and excreting it. This is of great importance since excess aluminum is toxic and builds up in the brains of Alzheimers patients. This is not to be confused with silicone - which is a polymer of silicon and oxygen found in breast implants. There is no doubt at all that silicon is necessary to both plant and animal life, yet it still is not recognized as a necessary mineral by many scientists. There is extensive research available on silicon in the last fifteen years, yet you do not see farmers adding it to their fertilizers, ranchers giving it to their livestock, or vitamins companies adding it to their formulas. The research on grain crops is so extensive, especially for wheat, rice, corn, and barley, that every farmer should routinely add inexpensive calcium silicate to the soil. The research on farm animals is also extensive that all farmers should routinely feed inexpensive silica gel to their livestock. We need more studies on humans though as actual human research is not nearly as extensive as it should be. It is very difficult to find silicon in any vitamin mineral supplement surprisingly. Since it is not toxic you can safely take 10 mg a day, which may even be a little more than you need. It is difficult to figure out a daily value for this as the amount in common foods varies so greatly. You will find silicon in fresh and frozen vegetables such as onions, beets, kale, tomatoes, cabbage, asparagus, cucumbers (technically these are fruits), and string beans, as well as brown rice, oats, lima beans and some fruits such as strawberries and peaches.
We do know silicon is necessary for bone and cartilage growth. Anyone with arthritis or osteoporosis should be taking silicon in their supplements. It is also very important for cardiovascular health. This is a mineral you need to add to your supplements.
Chapter 11:
Iodine
Iodine is number 53 in the Periodic Table and was discovered in 1811. It has an atomic weight of 126.9 (the heaviest of the essential minerals) and is the only other essential mineral besides silicon that is non-metallic. It is a trace mineral and one of the ten with an established RDA, which is 150 mcg, and is therefore the only non-metallic mineral with an RDA. A good source is potassium iodide and you will find this in most vitamin mineral supplements as well as iodized table salt. Table salt has offered an iodized variety for over 80 years now to combat goiter, which has almost disappeared. The best dietary source is seafood and sea vegetables (i.e. seaweeds), but Westerners rarely will eat sea vegetables. Some varieties, like kelp, can be too good a source and cause skin problems such as acne, eczema and dermatitis due to excess iodine intake. A mere teaspoon of kelp powder can contain 20 times the RDA. People who eat seafood even a few times a week need not worry about a deficiency. People who do not eat ocean fish and seafood definitely should take a supplement. Iodine in the soil varies so severely you cannot depend on grains, beans, vegetables or fruits to supply it. Milk and dairy products have considerable iodine, but are a very poor dietary choice due to the indigestible lactose.
Whenever you hear about iodine you just hear about the thyroid gland since that contains three fourths of the approximately 30 mg of iodine we have in our bodies. The other fourth is doing important work in our bodies along with all the other mineral and we need more research on just what those functions are. Thyroid problems are almost never solved by iodine supplements anyway, but rather require either T4 (L-thyroxine) and/or T3 (triiodothyronine). Both of these natural hormones are iodine based chemically.
Hypothyroidism (underactive) is very prevalent among Americans over 50 while hyperthyroidism (overactive) is a much less common problem. It is very easy and inexpensive to get either a blood or saliva T3 and T4 test to determine the status of your thyroid. Low thyroid can have very dramatic effects on our health, metabolism and how much we weigh.
Chapter 12:
Chromium
Number 24 on the Periodic Table and discovered back in 1797. It has an atomic weight of 52.0 and barely qualifies as a heavy metal that can be accumulated easily in the body. Chromium is a trace mineral with an established RDA of 120 mcg. Many vitamin mineral supplements do contain this fortunately. Brewers yeast is highly allergenic and not recommended as a source. People with blood sugar disorders can take 400 to 600 mcg for the first year. The toxic level is very low, but it is also very difficult to get much chromium unless you work with refining and manufacturing it. Studies abound on the value of chromium fortunately especially for diabetes, insulin resistance and hypoglycemia.
Much of our soil has sufficient chromium, as do many farm animals, which are either fed whole grains or allowed to graze freely. Humans are generally deficient because of the refined foods they eat, especially refined grains. This is more proof that whole grains, especially organically grown ones, are a staple food. If we didn’t refine our grains we would have sufficient dietary intake.
The most dramatic benefit of chromium supplementation is blood sugar metabolism. It helps to normalize both high and low blood glucose. Americans have epidemic rates of insulin resistance and diabetes, which is due in part to chromium deficiency. Add to this the more than 150 pounds of various sugars per capita that are consumed each year. This overload of sugars also helps deplete what chromium we do consume. High insulin levels contribute strongly to heart disease and diabetics suffer two to three times the heart attack rate. Studies have shown a continual and serious decline in serum blood chromium levels in the last 50 years. Some estimates reliably guess that 90% of Americans are deficient. Use any good salt or chelate as your supplement.
Coronary heart health is a second major benefit of getting enough chromium every day and chromium helps keep cholesterol and triglycerides normalized. The average American adult has a deadly average level of 240 total cholesterol level. CHD is the leading cause of death by far in America and blood sugar dysmetabolism an epidemic. Taking chromium supplement will go a long way to helping prevent and cure both of these conditions.
Chapter 13:
Vanadium
This is number 23 on the Periodic Table and was discovered back in 1801. It has an atomic weight of 50.1 and is considered a heavy metal. It is an essential trace nutrient for both plants and animals.
It has been known for over 30 years that vanadium is an essential mineral for mammals, yet there still is no RDA established. The best estimate is that 100 mcg is sufficient. Some products put 10,000 mcg in their products, which is irresponsible. Vanadium poisoning is extremely rare and confined to specialists who work with manufacturing and refining of it. Almost no commercial supplements contain any at all. Look at the biggest catalog companies in the world and notice they rarely add vanadium to their vitamin mineral formulas. Whole grains and seafood are good sources of vanadium, but due to our poor soils deficiencies are very common. Vanadium chelates are good sources as are common salts such as vanadyl sulfate. Prepared foods may show higher levels of vanadium due to intense contact with stainless steel, but this would not be very bioavailable and thus of little use despite technical analysis.
The animal and human studies on vanadium are well established especially in the last ten years. Blood sugar metabolism is the most dramatic medical finding, it is involved with bone, tooth and cartilage metabolism
The epidemic of insulin resistance and diabetes is certainly due in part to vanadium deficiency. The human studies on diabetes and insulin sensitivity have been known for over a decade now yet diabetes almost never use vanadium supplements to treat their condition. Any program of curing these must include a supplement. Vanadium has proven anti-cancer and anti-tumor properties and should be a part of any cancer prevention or treatment program. Vanadium is crucial to good heart and artery function and even has blood pressure lowering properties. It is part of cholesterol and blood lipid metabolism. Vanadium has much to do with bone growth as well as cartilage and tooth health. Short term studies have used high amounts as much as 10,000 mcg (10 mg), but this is completely contra-indicated in long term use. Do not use more than 1,000 mcg (1 mg).
Chapter 14:
Molybdenum
Number 42 on the Periodic Table and was discovered in 1781. It has an atomic weight of 95.9 and is very heavy. The potential for toxicity is limited mostly to those who work with refining, smelting and manufacturing alloys with molybdenum. This is a trace mineral with an established RDA of only 75 mcg, but other estimates go as high as 250 mcg. The research on molybdenum is extensive and goes back decades, but is more concerned with soils, plants, livestock and toxicity, rather than essentiality and therapeutic benefits to humans.
This is one of the very few minerals that are often put back into the soil and is even found in plant foods for the home gardener. Many modern farmers make sure they enrich their soil with molybdenum for better crop yields and superior plants. Some progressive livestock ranchers also make sure they feed their animals a mineral supplement with molybdenum. Most vitamin and mineral supplements should have the needed 75 mcg. The average American surprisingly may get enough of this every day, but soils and foods vary so dramatically that it is good insurance to make sure your vitamin mineral supplement contains it. This is surprisingly not very toxic for such a heavy metal, and you would have to take 20 to 40 times (up to 10 mg) the RDA to get side effects from it.
While there is a great deal of research on molybdenum there is very little on its deficiency in various diseases and conditions. It is very vital for many enzyme reactions including over 30 known redox (reduction-oxidation) ones as it functions as an electron carrier. Anti-cancer and anti-tumor properties were attributed to molybdenum over 30 years ago and this should be a part of any cancer preventive or treatment program. This is vital in bone and joint diseases such as arthritis and osteoporosis and should be included in any program for healing these illnesses. It plays an important role in blood sugar metabolism as well. It was shown to help alleviate iron deficiency anemia over 40 years ago.
It was shown to be an immunity enhancer in lab animals 30 years ago. People with Wilson’s Disease also got benefits from supplementation.
Chapter 15:
Selenium
Number 34 in the Periodic Table. Selenium was discovered back in 1817. It has an atomic weight of 79.0. It is one of the ten minerals with an established RDA, which is 70 mcg. Do not take more than 200 mcg, and be sure to take 400 IU of mixed tocopherol vitamin E as a synergist for even better results. Chelates are a good choice here. The best food sources are whole grains, seafood, and of course sea vegetables. This is just one more reason to eat whole grains at every meal. The RDA was only recently established and selenium previously was considered toxic rather than essential. You will find this in most vitamin and mineral supplements fortunately. This is a very powerful anti-oxidant and is considered a “catalyst” element that accelerates other reactions. Most of our soils have enough selenium, and farm animals generally get enough selenium, but farmers rarely test their soils or give selenium supplements to their livestock. Levels therefore vary greatly in various foods. It is the processing of such basic foods as whole grains that has led to widespread deficiencies. The symptoms of such deficiency are so wide ranging they just cannot be named individually. This is a very powerful antioxidant and scavenges harmful free radicals.
Selenium can be a very toxic mineral and even as little as 1,000 mcg or less per day can result in serious poisoning. This is why it was considered toxic and why you must not take in too much.
The most dramatic benefit of having healthy selenium levels is cancer protection, especially for such cancers as colon, prostate and breast. A comparison of 27 different countries showed the higher the selenium intake the lower the cancer rates generally. Another major benefit is cardiovascular health. A third advantage is protection against diabetes and insulin resistance.
Some countries like New Zealand and Finland have selenium poor soils and get an average daily intake of less than 30 mcg. In a Finnish study 12,000 people were compared and the ones with the lowest serum selenium levels had six times the cancer rate of those with the highest levels. Another Finnish study showed those with the lowest selenium levels had seven times the CHD conditions as those with the highest levels.
Chapter 16:
Germanium
Number 32 in the Periodic Table and was discovered in 1886. It has an atomic weight of 72.6 and is a heavy metal. Many scientists now generally recognize that germanium is a necessary ultratrace mineral for both plant and animal life. Soon it will be firmly established as necessary for human health. No RDA has been established for it. A reasonable dose would be 100 mcg a day, which would certainly supply enough, yet not be excessive. Germanium sesquioxide is safe and non-toxic, but germanium dioxide is toxic. Very irresponsible promoters were, and still are, selling germanium supplements with 100 mg of germanium - this is ONE THOUSAND TIMES more than you need! This is a three year supply per day! On the other hand you find equally unscrupulous promoters selling germanium with only a few biologically useless micrograms in every dose. You will not find this in vitamin and mineral supplements.
Unfortunately there is not a lot of research being done on
germanium. We do know that it is contained in the soil, is taken up in plants, is present in animals and is found in humans. What little human and animal research that exists is very recent within the last 10 years but is very promising. Most of this has taken place in China. We need more human studies where it is measured in people with various diseases and then the levels compared to healthy controls. Anti-tumor and anti-cancer effects were found in laboratory animals. In one human study at Potou People’s Hospital 107 patients with hepatitis were given germanium supplements with good results. We will find out just how important germanium is in the near future. We are already finding out how germanium helps keep our immune systems strong. Studies in both animals and humans show germanium deficiency exists in various cancers.
In 1988 a very impressive review was published in the journal Medical Hypothesis complete with 72 references. This was very convincing as to the benefits for the potential in enhanced immunity, oxygen enrichment of cells, free radical antioxidant scavenging, arthritis, osteoporosis and anti-viral properties.
We need more such work done for this very promising mineral.
Chapter 17:
Strontium
Strontium is number 38 in the Periodic Table and was discovered back in 1790. It has an atomic weight of 87.6. There is no doubt that strontium is an absolutely essential ultratrace mineral for mammals based on the current research. Since vegetables and fruits vary so radically in content, the only foods that have consistent strontium levels are seafood and sea vegetables. It is very difficult to find a supplement containing any meaningful amount of it at all surprisingly. Either an amino acid chelate or asparate is a good choice of form. A reasonable estimate for a human adult dose would be 100 mcg daily based on what is found in soils and various common foods. This would provide the needed amount without any possible toxicity.
Toxicity from strontium is almost unknown since it is so hard to find in any quantity in soils or foods. (This has nothing at all to do with strontium-90, which does not exist in nature.)
There is quite a bit of research on the value of strontium in soils, plants, animals and recently even actual human studies. Yet you do not see farmers adding it to their soil or giving it to their livestock, doctors using it in their practice, or even vitamin companies adding it to their formulations.
One of the most important functions found for strontium is in bone, teeth and cartilage metabolism. Arthritis, osteoporosis, dental caries (cavities) and other bone and joint diseases are epidemic in Western societies. We know that calcium cannot be absorbed without magnesium, boron and vitamin D. Now we see strontium is another important factor in this. Instead of treating these conditions with toxic drugs, we should be using mineral supplements. Bone metabolism is only one of many benefits we are finding for having healthy strontium levels. Various diseases and conditions are being found to be due in part to lack of strontium. One study, for example, found cytoprotective effects on the liver, which would help prevent cancer, cirrhosis and other liver diseases. Other studies including human ones have found low strontium indicated in various other types of cancer. Make sure a strontium supplement is an integral part of your healing program.
Chapter 18:
Nickel
Nickel is number 28 in the Periodic Table and was discovered back in 1751. It has an atomic weight of 58.7 and is a heavy metal. It is well accepted that nickel is as essential ultratrace nutrient in plants and animals in very small amounts. It is vital for plant growth including the common foods we eat. The fact it is found in significant amounts in agricultural crops logically shows it is needed in human nutrition. A reasonable dose would be 100 mcg based on studies of what is contained in diets of various cultures. Germans, Austrians and Indians, for example, were found to be eating about 80 to 130 mcg daily. Many people may not need a supplement, but taking 100 mcg is good insurance since it varies so radically in different areas of the world. You will almost never find nickel in vitamin mineral supplements basically despite this fact. There is surprisingly very extensive research on nickel in soils, plants and even some in animals, but hardly any in humans. At the University of Munich, the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Technische University rats on a nickel deficient diet developed health problems especially with the liver, thyroid and folic acid and iron metabolism. We need more research on humans to see what benefits there are and what effects deficiencies cause. The few studies we have are far more concerned with toxicity than benefits. The University of Arkansas published an impressive review with a full 109 references on the need for dietary nickel and its effect on immunity. Nickel from manufacturing can build up in a few industrial areas and pollute the waters and soils. This excess nickel can then accumulate in plants. It is ironic this can happen when some of the world is deficient in it.
The few human studies have shown some very promising things about nickel. Chinese children with very high IQ’s were much higher in serum nickel than normal children. Infertile women were shown to be very low in nickel compared with fertile women of the same age. Nickel blood levels in diabetics have been shown to be lower than that of healthy controls. Pregnant women with low nickel levels suffered hypertension more often. Fertility is involved with nickel and other ultratrace elements; these serum elements vary in women during their monthly cycle.
Chapter 19:
Tin
Tin is number 50 in the Periodic Table and was discovered thousands of years ago. It has an atomic weight of 118.7 and is the second heaviest essential mineral after iodine. Based on studies of plant and dietary contents 100 mcg of this ultratrace mineral would be a reasonable daily intake. There is a fair amount of research on tin but unfortunately most of it is on pollution from industry rather than benefits for plants and animals. There are few human studies and most of these are simply concerned with how much people take in from their food. There is no doubt this is essential and so little is known about it. We need more research on this. It is almost impossible to find tin in any vitamin mineral supplement especially in a sufficient dose. By the way, “tin cans” are not made of tin nor lined with tin so that is not a source. This is a misnomer.
A complete search of the internationally published clinical studies did reveal a few very important findings to show how essential this is. The problem is that tin is such a very heavy metal and so prevalent from industrial manufacturing that some areas are polluted and people get excessive tin in their food they can only very slowly excrete. Most of the research therefore is concerned with toxicity and pollution rather than the necessity and benefits.
A series of antitumor drugs based on the tin molecule have been developed called “organotin compounds” and show promise. The best of these studies was a review done at the University of Shizuoka with a full 166 references. Tin is known to be involved in a wide variety of mammalian biological processes. The immune function generally depends on having sufficient tin. At Kyoto University in Japan it was clearly established that tin is essential in diets of laboratory animals by feeding them both insufficient and then excessive amounts. At the University of Aberdeen one of the rare human studies was done and serum tin levels were measured. These were compared to coronary heart health. It was found that low tin levels correlated with high LDL and n-6 fatty acid levels both of which are predictors of CHD in general. At the University of Medical Science (China) researchers did another human study with peptic ulcers and gastritis and found low tin levels.
Chapter 20:
Cobalt
Cobalt is number 27 in the Periodic Table and was discovered back in 1735. It has an atomic weight of 58.9. It is definitely an essential ultratrace mineral for the simple reason that vitamin B-12 is based on the cobalt molecule. This is not the only use for cobalt at all, but simply the most important of them. We are said to synthesize our own vitamin B-12, but this would be impossible without sufficient dietary cobalt. The RDA for vitamin B-12 is only 6 mcg. A reasonable estimate is that 10 mcg of cobalt would be enough for all our needs based on what is found in common foods grown in rich soils. Cobalt cannot be stored in the body and therefore cannot accumulate. It is non-toxic and you would need over 100 times your daily need to possibly get any side effects. There are a few areas in the world where cobalt from industry builds up in soil and crops but this is rare.
The research on cobalt is very extensive, yet the world has simply not taken advantage of this research. Soils often need cobalt supplementation for better crop yields as plants need it for optimum growth. Farm animals need it in their feed to develop and reproduce and farmers will give them mineral supplements with cobalt. Yet it is basically impossible to find any vitamin mineral supplement on the face of the earth that contains cobalt. For decades science has known this to be essential in human nutrition, yet it is unknown in the supplement industry. It is so easy and so inexpensive to make sure our soils, our crops, our livestock and real people get cobalt. And why limit the use of cobalt to the synthesis of vitamin B-12? Cobalt has many other uses in our bodies as we will find as we study it more.
Why not just take B-12 supplements instead of cobalt supplements? B-12 is only 4% cobalt and we need it for many other processes. B-12 is extremely poorly absorbed when taken orally and effective nasal sprays are not approved by the FDA. Injections are expensive, invasive and unpleasant.
Progressive vitamin companies will have to start adding this to their vitamin mineral formulations for complete nutrition. We are going to find more benefits for cobalt supplementation.
Chapter 21:
Minerals We Might Need
It is interesting that there are only 13 vitamins, and there is an established RDA for every one of them. We understand vitamins very well and you can get a complete vitamin supplement very inexpensively at any drug store. Vitamins alone, however, have no value without the corresponding minerals that also occur with them in our foods. We still just don’t understand minerals very well, especially the ultratrace elements that may only be needed in small microgram amounts.
If you do a sophisticated analysis of sea water you will find most every known mineral even if only in the smallest of detectable amounts. If you do the same sophisticated analysis of the various farming soils around the world you will also find most every mineral even if only in barely analyzable amounts. You will also find an amazing variety of minerals if you analyze the common foods we eat in the various countries of the world. Finally, if you analyze the human body you will still find most every known mineral contained in it.
When you analyze actual human blood you will find such varied elements as aluminum(!), antimony, arsenic(!), barium, beryllium, bismuth, bromine, cadmium(!), cesium, cerium, dysprosium, erbium, europium, gallium, gandolium, gold, hafnium, holmium, indium, iridium, lanthanum, lead(!), lutecium, mercury(!), niobium, neodymium, osmium, palladium, praseodymium, platinum, radium(!), rubidium, rhenium, rhodium, ruthenium, scandium, samarium, silver, tantalum, tellurium, terbium, thulium, thallium(!), titanium, tungsten, uranium(!), yttrium, ytterbium and zinconium.
These are the very same elements you find in similar amounts in seawater. This proves the sea is the “mother of all life” and that our blood is a microcosm of the oceans. This is the reasons sea vegetables are the best source of food minerals with fish and seafood the second best source.
Which of these is necessary for plant life? For animal life? Which of these are actually necessary for us humans? Which ones are needed in nutrition and which are poisons? Do we really need such elements as aluminum (the third most abundant element on earth), arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury, radium, thallium and uranium which we consider poisons? Titanium is the ninth most abundant element on earth yet shows no proof of being needed in plant or animal growth. We simply don’t know at this point. Just because they exist in the oceans, in our soils, in plants and in our blood does not necessarily mean they are essential for life. Some of these surely are toxic to us. Some of these are essential but we haven’t discovered that yet.
With the great advances in analytical technology we can now accurately detect minerals in our soils, the foods we eat, and our bodies. For the last decade researchers around the world have been researching which ultratrace elements may be essential. Which are the most promising of these? Cesium may be the most promising of all and has much research. A good many studies show benefits in animals and indicate the same benefits when levels are measured in humans. Rubidium also has a surprising amount of research to show it is essential. At both Schiller University (Germany) and Kyoto University (Japan) it was declared to be essential for plants and animals in 1997. Barium has a lot of research in plant and animal metabolism thus providing evidence as being essential, especially since we take in about 1,000 mcg a day. Europium has been shown to extend lifespan in test animals and more research will be forthcoming. Gallium may well be essential as it has been shown to be involved in bone metabolism. Indium is claimed to be beneficial on Internet promotions, but so far there is little to validate this. Lanthanum surprisingly has considerable research and soon may well be shown to be essential. Lithium is definitely essential but there doesn’t seem to be a deficiency of it. The “therapy” of giving people with bipolar disorders 1,000 times the needed amount causes more problems than it cures. Neodymium has potential in human and animal health. Praseodymium has studies indicating benefits in animals and humans. Samarium also shows potential in plant and crop studies as a nutrient. Thulium (not to be confused with thallium) has a scarcity of research, yet a few soil and plant studies may indicate it may be a necessary mineral. Lastly yttrium may also turn out to be essential although there just isn’t enough known about it so far.
Only future research will answer these questions.
Roger is a nationally known research chemist who promotes holistic health, natural products and life extension. He writes unique and cutting edge books on his findings. He appears daily on national radio and television shows advocating natural health. His weekly Internet column in Longevity News is read by 100,000 people around the world. He lives with his wife in Wilmington, NC.
