Vitamin Overview
Krystal Hammett, from Hotze Vitamins, reviews some key supplements and important tips.
Detox/Vitamins & Minerals
Why do I need vitamins?
In today’s environment, we are overloaded by toxic exposure. To combat this, we have a detox system in our body. Vitamins and minerals and nutrients are required so that detoxification occurs in the cells, as in our liver. It also occurs in our gut, which is probably the most important of all the detoxification.
Not only are they integral for detox, but vitamins and minerals build proteins and bones, are components of enzymes, produce energy and make collagen, just to name a few benefits. They strengthen the immune system and are critical for achieving optimal health.
What problems are caused by toxic exposure?
When toxins back up, they cause a toxic load in our system and make our cells sick. When our cells get sick, we get sick. It manifests itself in numerous different ways: heart disease, cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, degenerative arthritis, Alzheimer’s disease, Multiple Sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, brain fog, insomnia, depression, you name it.
Where do the toxins come from?
The air we breathe, food we eat and chemicals we slather on our bodies all play a role in our toxic exposure. One of the biggest contributors to toxic load comes from plastics. Plastic chemicals come from the clothes that we put on, trichloroethylene when we get our clothes done at the cleaners, we drink out of plastic bottles, and we cook in plastic. There are plasticisers in the carpet and that are put into our clothes to keep them from wrinkling.
Do toxins affect my hormones?
Absolutely. These petrochemical products are “hormone disruptors.” Hormones, such as thyroid, sex and adrenal hormones, are those chemical messengers sent by specific glands in our bodies that instruct our cells what to do and how to do it. The chemicals in the environment disrupt the production of hormones and their utilization in the cells. These toxins also damage the cells, affecting their ability to produce energy.
How can I avoid toxins?
While it’s impossible to avoid toxins altogether, there are some things you can do to minimize your exposure. For starters, clean up your eating program. Eat whole, natural foods as best you can, particularly a lot of greens and fruits. If you can, buy them organic. We recommend minimizing your meat products, particularly red meat, because all the petrochemicals and toxins get stored in the fat.
In addition to eating well, it is important that you stick to your vitamin and mineral regimen, as these will help to continually aid in the detoxification process.
Also, be sure that you have excellent air filters in your home, along with good water filters. If you are drinking regular tap water, you’re getting fluoride, chlorine and a host of other bacteria and other chemicals that are in the water.
I eat a healthy diet, so I don't need to supplement, right?
This is a common misconception, but we have found that, no matter how healthy your diet may be, vitamin and mineral supplementation is still necessary to achieve optimal health. This is partly due to the processed foods we eat and partly because of the increased toxic load over the last several decades; we need additional nutrients to keep up. Compound that with the fact that there has been a loss of nutrients due to over-tilling of the soil, and you will find that it is nearly impossible to achieve optimal nutrition without vitamin supplementation.
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