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Showing posts from January, 2014

Vitamin D and Calcium: All Things Considered

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As reported in [1], it states that: Most supplements do not prevent chronic disease or death, their use is not justified, and they should be avoided. Supplementing the diet of well-nourished adults with (most) mineral or vitamin supplements has no clear benefit and might even be harmful . In this article, we will focus on two popular supplements: Calcium (Ca) Vitamin D (VIT D) To Supplement or Not? My friend and I were discussing " taking supplement or not " [2] and here are his questions: My blood test showed significant VIT D deficiency and my doctor prescribed me 4000 IU of VIT D daily. I've been taking it for 2 yrs. However, I'm not taking any Calcium (Ca) supplement , after some controversy about it was reported. What's your thought about taking Ca? And why with Mg? Is it for cardiovascular protection? I'm also taking daily dose of 85 mg aspirin, which is recommended by my doctor. Vitamin D and Calcium VIT D and ...

How Does the Gut Flora Influence Our Health?

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It is now widely appreciated that humans did not evolve as a single species, but rather that humans and the microbiomes associated with us have co-evolved as a "super-organism," and that our evolution as a species and the evolution of our associated microbiomes have always been interwined. -William Parker, Duke University When we are born, our body is sterile , meaning our skin, lungs, and intestines don't contain any bacteria at all. When we pass through our mother's birth canal, we are exposed to outside world. Over time our body gets colonized by a diverse and distinct brew of bacterial species determined by genetics and by bacteria surrounding us. The gut is literally at the center of our body and plays a central role in our health, just as our " gut feeling " plays a central role in our instinct. In this article, we will look at gut flora and its links to our health. Gut Flora There are estimated 100 trillion microbes that ...