Minerals are needed for many functions. For example, many vitamins and enzymes cannot function without minerals. Many hormonal responses need minerals to function.Minerals are needed for the proper composition of body fluids, the formation of bone and blood and in the maintenance of healthy nerve function. Therefore, a lack of minerals may lead to immobilization of many metabolic functions in the body.
The best way to get minerals is from food. Alarmingly, we know that foods today seldom contain enough essential minerals and trace elements. It is estimated "that only 15 percent of the unfarmed (unused) mineral supply remain in the soil after 100 years of traditional farming". (Crawford, p. 66). As a result health professionals recommend that we supplement with minerals and trace elements to offset the lack of minerals in our foods. However, we can easily become very confused within the broad world of supplemention, because of the different claims touting the benefits of one mineral supplement over the other. Should the mineral in a supplement form be a chelate, malate, picolinate, collidal, fumarate, ascorbate, etc....?
Our answer to that question is very simple, "The best way to get minerals is from food!" The following paragraphs should explain why when it comes to minerals or any other nutrient, you should rely on whole foods to nourish your body.
First of all, it is important to explain the terms inorganic or organic mineral. The way elements in a compound are connected determines whether it is organic or inorganic. Here are some definitions:
When a mineral is chemically inorganic, it means that its chemical composition is without carbon. When a mineral is chemically organic, it means that its chemical composition is with carbon.
When minerals are labeled agriculturally inorganic, it means that the food grown is tainted with chemical fertilizers. When the mineral content of food is labeled agriculturally organic, it means that the food containing the minerals is grown without chemical fertilizers.
When a mineral is nutritionally organic, it means that it is chelated or bound to organic molecules. (Jensen, pp. 74-84)When a mineral is nutritionally inorganic, it means that it is without any organic (carbon-based) molecule.
Ted Morter in his book, Health and Wellness , defines organic minerals as easily broken apart and inorganic minerals as tightly held together (p. 62).
There is much controversy in the scientific community as to whether or not the body can utilize inorganic minerals in carrying out life processes. However, the vast majority of the scientific community recognizes that ONLY chemically and nutritionally organic food can adequately provide substances, including minerals, that can be utilized by the body at the cellular level (pp. 140-145).
As humans, there is only one way that we can fully access minerals on a cellular level and that is through the consumption of offerings from the plant kingdom. We do not possess the ability to perform photosynthesis, therefore we must rely on the plant kingdom to prepare (chemically assemble) our foods (ingredients) . Plants, through the process of photosynthesis attach enzymes to inorganic minerals found in soil or water and can make them living or organic minerals. In other words, the attached enzymes act as a "passport" to assist the transfer of the minerals into the cells of the human body and aid in the cells utilization of the delivered minerals. The key here is that the enzyme must be active and attached to the mineral in order for the body to utilize it.
Any form of processing nature's foods (such as pasteurization, cooking, adding preservatives, etc.) breaks the bonds between the food components as well as destroys the enzymes. The result is inorganic or denatured food components and thus inorganic food.
Raw foods have active enzymes and thus directly assist the production of life processes in the body. Because they have intact/active enzymes they are chemically organic. Enzymes are catalysts; in this case, the catalysts are substances which help the body work more efficiently in utlizing food for life maintaining purposes.
An example of an inorganic substance is table salt. It is simply sodium and chloride. No enzymes, thus it is enzymatically inactive and the body cannot use it. Our bodies cannot attach an enzyme to inorganic substances (minerals), except at great cost to our health.
Remember, it is only the plant kingdom, through its various living and developing processes, that can attach enzymes to inorganic substances and make them chemically bonded, active and organic.
The plant kingdom utilizes sunshine, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, oxygen, water and inorganic minerals in the process of photosynthesis to feed itself and grow. The result is a living plant (food for our consumption) containing: Glucose, protein, fatty acids, minerals, enzymes, vitamins and water. Eating fruits, vegetables, seaweeds, seeds and nuts daily as staples in our diets will provide us with a set of usable nutrients that are reasonably complete for our needs.
Worried that you might not be getting certain types of minerals? The solution is for you to find foods that contain high amounts of those minerals and make"juice" out of those particular foods. This way you are getting chelated, assimilable and usable organic minerals the way mother nature intended us to have them.
References:
Crawford, Mark. (March, 1999). Minding Our Minerals. Healthy & Natural Journal. Jensen, Bernard. (1973). Empty Harvest. New York: Avery Publishing Group Inc. Morter, Ted. (2000). Health & Wellness. Hollywood, Florida: Frederick Fell Publishers, Inc. http://www.healthyf utures.net/ unlimited/
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