Do You Know The Top 5 Vitamin Deficiencies?

Every year for more than twenty years, the Centers for Disease and Prevention has compiled the report called the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) . This information is used to help us understand which nutrients are deficient in our food and our diet . This knowledge helps us understand how these nutrient deficiencies may eventually lead to preventable disease.

The NHANES survey sorts out dietary deficiency from absorption deficiency through questionnaires .

For example, an individual may have adequate vitamin B12 in their diet yet, after age 50, their blood tests will show a serious deficiency because they absorb vitamin B12 so poorly .

In addition, minerals such as calcium and magnesium may be leeched from our bones by the process of homeostasis . While a blood test may show adequate levels of these minerals, a diet survey would indicate that we are not eating enough magnesium and calcium to sustain good health .

If we view deficiencies from the perspective of dietary intake, absorption and “end-point” metabolism, we can identify the top five deficiencies .

End-point metabolism looks at the results of complex biochemistry rather than simply how much of a particular nutrient you eat or how much is in your bloodstream. For example, you may eat enough Vitamin B-12, and you may have an acceptable level of B-12 in your blood . But, we will still need more vitamin B12 if our homocysteine is too high . Homocysteine is an end-point indicator of vitamin B-12 metabolism . The top five deficiencies are shown below.

Vitamin C

For people 50 and over, vitamin C is among the greatest deficiencies in the diet.

This may be the result of choosing “convenience foods” over leafy green vegetables (not a favorite at any age!) . Signs of Vitamin C deficiency include:

• Weakness
• Weariness
• Unhealthy gums
• Nosebleeds
• Bruising
• Slow healing

Our metabolism declines rapidly after age 50 . We need more vitamin C as our metabolism slows down because our ability to utilize it is reduced . Eat leafy green vegetables and other sources of Vitamin C.

Vitamin B-12

“Brain erosion” becomes measurable and serious after age 30 . Our brains literally begin to shrink. It is possible that we will have lost up to 25%, or more, of our brain volume after the age of 50 as compared to our youth . People with the highest levels of Vitamin B-12 in their bloodstream exhibit the lowest level of brain erosion.  

Signs of insufficient B-12 include:

• Mood and memory difficulties
• Mental fatigue and poor concentration
• Irritability
• Poor circulation
• Restless sleep

Our ability to absorb Vitamin B-12 declines with age. Our ability to convert vitamin B-12 into homocysteine-fighting metabolites declines as well . Supplement your diet with sublingual B-12 daily . Remember, the more B-12 in your bloodstream, the less brain erosion you may experience . Sublingual B12 is absolutely the best B12 for vegetarians.

Omega-3

Speaking of “brain erosion,” our brains are primarily made of fat, and the most common fat in our brain is DHA (docosohexanoic acid). Signs of Omega-3 deficiency include mood disorders, such as depression and Attention Deficit Disorder. Hormone imbalance in women and men, and immune system imbalance such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and chronic fatigue are also signs of Omega-3 deficiency .

Increase your dietary sources of Omega-3 from cold-water fish, flax and walnuts.

Vitamin D and Magnesium

We get vitamin D from both dietary sources and healthy exposure to sunshine . It is activated by exercise. Vitamin D is necessary to harden your bones. Poor blood sugar balance, chronic pain, an unsteady gait and clumsiness, as well as numerous imbalances of the immune system and hormones are symptoms of vitamin D deficiency .

Vitamin D is activated in your muscles and made useful in your kidneys, and both systems require healthy levels of magnesium. According to NHANES, many of us do not eat enough magnesium-rich leafy green vegetables. Signs of low magnesium include:

• Muscle spasms
• Digestive disorders
• Tremors
• Irritability
• Constipation

Plant-based foods such as sea vegetables, nuts and seeds, avocados and leafy green vegetables contain an abundance of magnesium . With as little as 20 minutes of safe sun exposure daily, the body can manufacture vitamin D . Vitamin D and magnesium usually cooperate in nature; so, when supplementing it is important to take them in a balanced calcium/magnesium supplement.

Take Control of Your Health

• Get 20 minutes of morning or evening sunshine daily
• Eat 5, 7 or 9 servings of vegetables and fruit daily
• Exercise 30 minutes daily, most days of the week
• Take a multiple vitamin/mineral supplement daily
• Take a sublingual B-12 supplement daily
• Take a Vitamin C supplement daily
  • Vitamin C crystals in the morning
  • Vitamin C time release tablets at night
• Take an Omega-3 supplement daily
• Supplement with a balanced calcium/magnesium supplement