Cod Liver Oil
My #1 supplement. High Vitamin A is crucial for many basic functions, but I note it for help in boosting immunity. High doses can be used to fight major illness. Instead of spending money on fish (body) oil, get the cod liver oil. Even if it costs a little more (which it may not), you will get more benefits for your money. It will give you the Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs or Omega 3-6-9, of which there are various kinds of these) so critical for health, but you get the Vit A and D also.
My favorite in terms of a compromise between the best vitamin amounts, taste and price is
Nature's Answer in lemon lime flavor:
http://www.vitacost.com/
Nature's Answer is very inexpensive.
My second favorite is Garden of Life brand. It currently only comes in lemon mint. Green Pastures Blue Ice is the best in terms of correct vitamin amounts/balance of A and D but it is more expensive and tastes like fish. Please read this page about cod liver oil and dosages.
Update: Other good looking brands are Health from the Sun and Nature's Answer (I'm trying a bottle of each) It's got a higher amounts of Vit A and D than many others and is similar to Garden of Life in vitamin amounts. Olympian Labs is similar but diff flavor/brand.
Update May 1: Meredith and Erik resisting taking cod liver oil. So, I'm looking at making sure they get the Vit A & D first (and I'll look at the EFA intake later). So, I'm getting Food Science of Vermont brand Vitamin A capsules which source Vit A from cod liver oil and do not contain soy oil. They also carry a combo Vit A & D, however, since it is summer and both will receive plenty of sunglight on the skin, I'm going to get only Vit A. Will get the combo in the winter. I also have some Carlson D Drops that I can use on them intermittently this summer.
Now that cod liver oil is out of the way, lets talk about my basic approach. I've been looking at vitamins and supplement formulas in depth for a few years. I don't know everything. That said, my approach has come out of trying to get inexpensive and few number of things to take each day. I find that you cannot cheat--that is, if you don't want to buy the gold standard because it is expensive, you look at buying a cheaper product. The cheaper product doesn't have everything you want in it, so you have to start adding on other bottles of stuff. This cost adds up and pretty soon you have a total solution that costs more than if you just bought the gold standard in the first place.
When I looked at nutrients recommended for Restless Leg Syndrome, and for basic immune system boosters (as in for children and adults), and on recommendation of the Weston A. Price Foundation--for mineral amounts needed for essential function, electrical function, strong bone matrix and knowing that high amounts of minerals help with proper body weight, I found that there were a few nutrients I wanted to get and which were difficult to find in a multivitamin. A few came close, but then I still would have to add on more bottles if I wanted to get the missing ingredients. I found Dr. Rons Doc's Best Multi. Yes, it's not cheap. See paragraph above. It has all the critical components I was looking for. You could even skip the Ionic Fizz which I highly recommend below. If you only took two things, they would be Cod Liver Oil and Doc's Best Multi. You could ignore all of the following if you just buy Doc's Best Multi and Garden of Life Cod Liver Oil!
Doc's Best has K2, minerals, Vit D, Vit E and Antioxidants and all are high quality. It all abosorbs well because it doesn't have stearates added (added to 99% of the products out there due to manufacturing/machinery/production issues--not for your health). So, you can even take fewer than the 6 capsules recommended daily and I think you're still coming out better.
Vitamin D
After selecting your cod liver oil, take a look at your Vit D intake to balance your Vit A from the cod liver oil. See below under Bone Calcification. You may use the Ionic Fizz listed below or the Carlson D Drops.
Bone calcification
Many nutrients (minerals, fat soluble vitamins and water soluble vitamins) work together for the body to utilize calcium optimally and to create strong bone matrix.
For the easiest solution to getting many of the most critical nutrients for strong bones and basic health, I recommend this product:
Pure Essence Labs Ionic-Fizz™ Super D Calcium Plus™ Raspberry Lemonade - 15 oz
This will cover you for Magnesium, Calcium, Vit D, K2, Boron, Silica, Zinc, Copper, Manganese and a few other things. The people who designed this product were really smart (according to me, HA!). I like how this product is a great add on to your regimen and covers many bases in one fell swoop. Mix it in cold water. I like it as is. Or add a small amount of juice to it. It's fizzy and slightly sour, sort of like fruit soda. Or dilute it in water and drink it throughout the day for better use.
Another combo product that I like, though not as much as Ionic Fizz is Peter Gillham Natural Calm Plus Calcium -- 16 oz. This contains Calcium, Magnesium, Vit C, D3 and Manganese and Boron. It's good as an add onto your regimen, though you will still want some extra Vit C and D3. In this case I would take the Carlson Baby D Drops for and extra 400IU of D3. Mom/Becky takes this in the morning because the calcium interferes with her sleep if she takes it after 4 p.m.
Again, I'm not sure any of us need to take extra calcium. More likely that if we do eat some dairy products, we really just need to add on a Magnesium supplement.
Still not read to give up your calcium supplement? It's more likely that we need a magnesium source. However, if you are going to take calcium, consider taking MCHC instead. Microcrystalline Hydroxyapatite is a freeze dried calf bone and it contains all the elements that comprise bone, so it is a whole food product that will supply many minerals and protein and not just one kind of mineral such as calcium from rocks. The calcium in MCHC is much more bioavailable (since it's from another animal which already utilized it!) Solaray Calcium Hydroxyapatite Microcrystalline With this Solaray product you would need to add a magnesium source for sure. Read more about it and compare Dr. Ron's product with added nutrients for human bone growth and health: Cal 1000 – Mag 500 Hydroxyapatite Plus Dr. Ron's is much more expensive.
1. Magnesium - in 2/1 ratio (twice calcium). Adding magnesium to balance calcium has multiple benefits. you can take it early in the day with your calcium or you can take it at night for a more dramatic effect (as in Peter Gillham's brand CALM, especially served warm) and it may help you calm down and sleep better. Either way the balance will calm your entire system. I've seen this effect in both myself and Van. If you take the Ionic Fizz, consider yourself covered.
2. Vitamin D3 - critical for many functions, but includes synergy with calcium. If you take it as an artificial source, the US RDA's apply because it is toxic in higher levels. However, in natural form, such as in from cod liver oil, you may take much higher amounts without toxicity. In fact, we do need the higher amounts so it is recommended you avoid artificial sources and take only natural source. Most cod liver oils are reduced in Vit D because of the confusion about artificial vs. natural. There are only a few brands that have the natural level of D. Therefore I take an inexpensive and easy form of D which is Carlson D Drops. You only need 1 little drop of oil per day and it is tasteless. If you take the Ionic Fizz you don't need the drops. If not, get the Carlson D Drops 1000 IU (not the 200 IU)
ANTIOXIDANTS
Free radicals
Vitamin C - tissue regeneration. I shoot for at least 1000 mg per day, but you can go even higher. I'm trying out different forms. Ascorbic acid or a buffered type like Ester-C if you have stomach sensitivity. You get some in Ionic Fizz, but not enough. Rainbow Light has a Super C powder you can put into a drink, but it adds sourness. I'm trying out Thompson Vitamin C Powder as an inexpensive alternative.
Vitamin E - another fat soluble vitamin. If you're going to take it look only for
D-Alpha Tocopherol WITH mixed tocopherols. However, Vit E is often recommended as an antioxidant. I eat farm eggs and am not worried about getting Vitamin E. I would look for food sources first. As for antioxidants, there are many, many more available. Yes, you need some. It's probably best to avoid Vit E in a bottle, though. So skip this and find other sources. Start with high amounts of Vit C.
IMMUNITY
Probiotics - Check the label on your yogurt for Live and Active cultures. Better yet, buy Kefir (or make it). Or take a capsule supplement such as Udo's brand. Meijer Organic cottage cheese is cultured also. Cream Top yogurt is excellent as it is not homogenized. Yogurt is expensive and easily made at home. However, getting unhomogenized milk is difficult, so cream top yogurt is one of the foods I would spend a little more money on. I would replace fluid milk with cream top yogurt. Pasteurized milk may cause or exacerbate your anemia.
Garlic - This could be worth adding a daily capsule if you don't like to cook with it. For sure, start taking it at first sign of a cold or flu or when you're in need of an immunity boost.
Coconut Milk - whole fat. You can make hot chocolate whenever you're coming down with a cold! Pour over frozen dark sweet cherries.
Zinc and copper. Take both together as they synergize. Look for a multivatmin that contains these. Ionic Fizz above contains these, as does Doc's Best Multi.
BASICS
Redmond RealSalt. I order this by the case and use about 1 case per year or even less than that. That's less than $50 worth of salt per year (probably much less than that for Grandma and Grandpa). This gives you a whole lot of trace minerals all necessary for good health. It tastes better too. There are other ways to get the trace minerals through supplementation. Many multi-vitamin formulas contain ConcenTrace, such as Peter Gillham's Vitality Life Vitamins and others (there is also a Life Minerals blend). The RealSalt or other Celtic Sea Salt (salt taken directly from sea water and unmodified) is the easiest, though.
Fats
Use lots of butter and coconut oil. I like Nutiva or NSI brand from vitacost.com--best price I've seen yet. There are lots of reasons here. One of them is that butter helps you absorb nutrients better. Coconut oil actually helps with fighting off pathogens but also lots of other protection. Your brain is made of fat and every cell in your body depends on saturated fat for structural integrity. Grape Seed Oil is another one that is liquid and good for cooking or making salad dressing. Also use sesame and olive oil for flavor in un-cooked foods. Always use cold-pressed. Lard from a farm is also great. Use diary products that are not UHT--Ultra High Temp Pasteurized; Meijer brand is good for this.
Sardines with bones in are excellent for health. I could mention lots of other foods as superfoods, too. Many come from farms.
The best bang for your buck is farm raised eggs. The chickens must have access to pasture so they can eat bugs and plants. You will see dark yellow yolks. Seek these out and use liberally. They are the most complete food and you could probably live on them. Even paying up to $4 per dozen for organic, etc. I think is still worth it when you compare what you are getting in comparison to paying for meat at the grocery store.
Liver, especially during the winter. Liver would be great for Grandpa's anemia. Please read the Top Fourteen Foods
Grandpa: Read this article on Nettles.
Pay attention to Vitamin B12 and it's relation to anemia.
REVIEW
To keep it simple, I recommend:
Garden of Life Cod Liver Oil
Doc's Best Multi
Vitamin C
foods
Likely, you will balk at the Doc's Best Multi. If so, then look at taking the Ionic Fizz listed above in addition to what you are currently doing.
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