Nutritional
Supplements for Optimum Health
by
Donald W. Miller, Jr.,
MD
by Donald W. Miller, Jr., MD
Nutritional
supplements help us maintain optimum health, along with a good diet,
daily exercise, avoiding stress, and getting a good night's sleep.
There is growing evidence that nutritional supplements – vitamins,
minerals, amino acids, fatty acid nutrients, herbal and botanical
products, and various other natural compounds like coenzyme Q10
and alpha lipoic acid – have specific health benefits. Taken in the
right doses these unpatentable natural medicinal products (i.e.,
nutraceuticals) can prevent cancer, heart disease, neurodegenerative
diseases, and, among other things, prevent loss of vision from macular
degeneration and cataracts.
These are the
supplements that I take, along with their doses and a brief explanation
of each one's benefits:
 The
Top Ten:
- Vitamin
D3 – 5,000 IU/day
Called
the "master key to optimum health," vitamin D controls
the expression of more than 1,000 genes throughout the body,
notably in the immune system, in endothelial cells lining blood
vessels, pancreatic beta cells, and brain neurons. Genes that
vitamin D express prevent influenza and treat tuberculosis,
strengthen muscles, prevent common cancers (and possibly suppress
metastasizes), and prevent autoimmune diseases. Vitamin D also
expresses genes that blunt the immune system–mediated inflammatory
response that propagates atherosclerosis and congestive heart
failure. For most people the dose needed to reach an optimal
vitamin D blood level (25-hydroxyvitamin D) of 50 ng/ml is 5,000
IU/day, ten times the government's recommended dietary allowance
(RDA). People with cancer, chronic illness, and neurodegenerative
diseases should take sufficient vitamin D to attain a level
of 80 ng/ml (which requires 8,000–10,000 IU/day). See my
article "Vitamin
D in a New Light."
- Iodine
– 12.5 mg/day (two drops of 5% Lugol's solution or one Iodoral
tablet)
Iodine
taken in doses 100 times the RDA (100–150 micrograms/day)
has important extrathyroidal benefits. These include its role
as an antioxidant, in preventing and treating fibrocystic disease
of the breast, and in preventing and treating cancer. In the
right dose, iodine helps keep the immune system healthy, and
it provides antiseptic mucosal defense in the mouth, stomach,
and vagina. People who take iodine in milligram doses say that
they feel healthier, have a sense of well being and increased
energy. See my article "Iodine
for Health."
- Selenium
– 200 mcg/day, as selenomethionine
Bound to
cysteine in place of sulfur and called the "21st amino
acid," selenocysteine is the active site in some 35 proteins.
Glutathione peroxidase, which contains four selenium atoms,
plays a major role in free radical defense. Plasma selenoprotein
P protects endothelial cells against damage, and epithelial
selenoprotein protects prostratic secretory cells from developing
carcinoma. People deficient in selenium have an increased risk
of cancer. Selenium prevents cancer through a variety of mechanisms,
which include antioxidant protection, enhanced immune surveillance,
suppression of angiogenesis, regulation of cell proliferation,
enhancement of apoptosis (cell death), and inhibition of tumor
cell invasion. See my article on selenium titled "The
Moon Goddess' Role in Human Health."
- Vitamin
K2 – 90 mcg/day, as menaquinone-7
Vitamin
K comes in two basic forms, K1 and K2. K1 is a cofactor for
blood coagulation. K2 activates osteocalcin, a protein secreted
by osteoblasts that plays a role bone mineralization and calcium
ion hemostasis. Calcium deposits in the walls of blood vessels
play an active role in the formation of atherosclerosis. K2
activates a protein called matrix Gla (carboxyglutamic acid)
protein. It carboxylates the glutamate residues in matrix Gla
protein, which enables it to bind and remove calcium from blood
vessels and thus prevent the formation of atherosclerotic calcific
plaques. Vitamins D and K2 work together in this regard because
vitamin D expresses the gene that makes matrix Gla protein.
Menaquinone-7, the natural form of vitamin K2, is better than
synthetic menaquinone-4, the more widely marketed form of vitamin
K2.
Read
the rest of the article
March
26, 2009
Donald
Miller
(send him mail)
is a cardiac surgeon and Professor of Surgery at the University
of Washington in Seattle. He is a member of Doctors
for Disaster Preparedness and writes articles on a variety
of subjects for LewRockwell.com. His web site is www.donaldmiller.com
Copyright
© 2009 by LewRockwell.com. Permission to reprint in whole or in
part is gladly granted, provided full credit is given.
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