I am willing to bet that you’ve never given it much thought because, admittedly, the question is quite ridiculous. Monkeys just seem to know what to eat. Through this mysterious force we call “instinct”, most animals exit the womb and just know exactly what to put in their mouths.

Although humans are more than animals, we do have instincts, like our monkey ancestors.

In recent years scientists have been trying to understand what man consumed when we didn’t have government agencies to tell us what to eat. During this time, approximately 50,000 to 100,000 years ago, Paleolithic man was comprised of hunters and gatherers who consumed a diet motivated by instinct. Then approximately 10,000 years ago began the Neolithic Revolution.

The Grand Mistake

During this new age of human development; we adopted more of an agriculture and animal husbandry practice. I imagine this is about the time when those nasty little creatures called “food scientists” came into existence. A “food scientist” is someone who thinks they can make food better, tastier, and more nutritious than nature.

Although the study of the Paleolithic lifestyle is quite complex, it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out what kinds of foods our ancestors consumed. It’s no surprise to see that most experts in the area of Paleolithic eating suspect that these people consumed primarily fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and some wild game. If you’re reading this list and feel that this is common sense, that “knowing” that you are experiencing is the remnant of your Paleolithic instinct.

Our abandonment of the Paleolithic way has resulted in a number of harmful and even life-threatening nutrient deficiencies…

Potassium Deficiency and the Benefits of Potassium

One nutrient that many scientists believe was much more abundant in our diet during Paleolithic times was potassium.

The Stone Age humans likely consume approximately 15 grams of potassium on a daily basis. Compare that to the recommended daily allowance of 4.7 grams per day. A ridiculously low level, I may add, that most of us never achieve.

In addition to a deficiency of potassium, the average American consumes a large excess of sodium. The sodium to potassium ratio is important for proper function of the body; when this ratio gets imbalanced the body suffers. Our Stone Age ancestors only consumed less than a gram of sodium (0.6 g) and it is estimated that the average American now consumes approximately 3.5 g of sodium and an embarrassing 2.8 g of potassium.

Why Should We Be Concerned With Our Sodium/Potassium Balance?

The balance of sodium and potassium is crucial for the function many cellular systems; some signs of potassium deficiency include:

1. Fatigue
2. Heart arrhythmias
3. Heart failure
4. Muscle weakness
5. Constipation
6. Delayed emptying of the stomach

Isn’t Potassium Dangerous?

Contrary to popular belief, potassium is a safe nutrient when taken properly. In healthy adults without heart or kidney problems, daily potassium intake should not exceed 8 grams.

If you suffer with kidney and/or heart disease, or you are on certain medications for blood pressure, potassium toxicity can occur at lower dose. For this latter group, ask your doctor before taking potassium supplements.

When supplementing with potassium, you must take into account how much potassium you are taking in through diet. Fruits, vegetables, nuts, fish, legumes are all good sources of potassium. It is possible to get sufficient potassium levels from your diet, however, it requires discipline and a hefty appetite for fruits and vegetables.

For the rest of us, supplementation may be required in order to achieve healthy potassium levels.

Who’s At Risk of Potassium Deficiency?

Before we get into the benefits of potassium, let’s talk about the risks of potassium deficiency.

It is important to realize that certain lifestyle habits, medications, and conditions can lead to an increased risk of potassium deficiency, these include:

1. The use of diuretics
2. Diarrhea or vomiting
3. Chronic dieting
4. Chronic kidney failure
5. Magnesium deficiency
6. Strenuous exercise

Keep these variables in mind when considering supplementation. See our Daily Potassium Requirements for Optimal Health for more information on supplementing with potassium.

What Are the Benefits of Potassium?

Potassium is essential for regulating fluid balance, acidity within the body, blood pressure, and muscle function. There are numerous outward benefits of supplementing with potassium, including:

1. Lowering blood pressure – An analysis of 33 published studies have demonstrated potassium supplementation to be of benefit in people who suffer with hypertension. The effective dose used in the research was 2,400 mg daily. (JAMA 1997;277:1624–32
2. Protection from Cardiac Arrhythmias – Studies show that people with low potassium levels are at a heightened risk of arrhythmia. Supplementation with 1,000 mg of potassium was shown to decrease the risk of arrhythmias in people who were prescribed a potassium-depleting blood pressure medication called hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ). (Int J Cardiol 1989;25:93–8)
3. Prolonged life and Improved Quality of life – One study demonstrated that men who consumed high levels of potassium had a longer life. More importantly, those with higher potassium intake enjoyed an improved quality of life. See the article: Potassium for a Longer and Healthier Life – Benefits of Potassium for Seniors
4. Improved energy – Electrolytes, such as potassium, can allow the body to manufacture needed energy. Potassium deficiency can cause physical and mental exhaustion.
5. End to muscle cramps and charlie horses – Potassium deficiency can promote muscle cramps, as can calcium or magnesium deficiency.

In fact nutrient deficiencies are quite common, and such deficiencies are the direct cause of many health problems that result in hospitalization and even death.

One such nutritional deficiency is potassium and in today’s article, we will talk about the benefits of potassium supplementation as well as the daily potassium requirements for optimal health. Published research shows that potassium deficiency can be a direct or indirect cause of many health problems, including:

• Cardiac arrhythmias (irregular heart beat)
• High blood pressure
• Fatigue and muscle weakness
• Constipation

Benefits of Potassium

Potassium can be an important part of any supplement program. Studies have shown that potassium supplementation can result in significant decreases in blood pressure, improvements in constipation, decreases in cardiac arrhythmias, and improvement in fatigue and muscle weakness.

Daily Potassium Requirements

The majority of your potassium should come from your diet; supplementation should be used as a means of optimizing your dietary potassium intake. I recommend reading the article on the Benefits of Potassium for a discussion of dietary potassium from the perspective of our evolutionary history. Although the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of potassium is 4.7 grams (4700 mg), our Paleolithic ancestors consumed between 10-15 grams per day from fruits and vegetables!

For most healthy people, taking up to 1,000-2,000 mg of potassium daily in supplement form should be very safe (depending on diet). If you are on medications, such as loop diuretics or ACE Inhibitors, or suffer with heart or kidney disease, check with a health care provider prior to supplementing with potassium.

The Potassium Supplement That I Recommend

K+2 Potassium is a high potency potassium formula that provides 300 mg of potassium per capsule. In addition to providing 300 mg of potassium per capsule, this formula provides two impressive forms of potassium…

Potassium glycinate is a chelated form of potassium that mimics food sourced potassium in absorption and utilization.

Potassium bicarbonate provides a source of bicarbonate, which helps to alkalinize the body. This advanced combination makes this one of the most potent and powerful potassium supplements on the market. This form would be especially good for people who have bone loss and/or those who eat a high meat diet.

As an alternative, Potassium Amino Acid Complex by Your Prescription for Health is an inexpensive and high-quality form of chelated potassium. Each tablet provides 99 mg of potassium in a form that mimics potassium found in food. Potassium chelate by Your Prescription for Health is considered the most cost-effective form of potassium. The only negative to this potassium supplement is it is limited to 99 mg per tablet.

Summary:

As I mentioned in the article, Benefits of Potassium, we are designed to consume far more than the ridiculously low amounts suggested by the RDA. So if you are a healthy person, with normal kidney function and currently not taking any medications for blood pressure or heart problems, eat as much potassium as you can from fruit and vegetable sources. If you have difficulty getting large quantities of fruits and vegetables, try 4-6 capsules of K+2 Potassium by Designs for Health.

In this study, researchers gave 51 diabetics who suffer with neuropathy a dose of vitamin D that equates to just over 2,000 IU daily. After three months the treatment group enjoyed significant decreases in neuropathic pain. All patients who were enrolled in the study had low blood levels of vitamin D at the start of the study and researchers noted significantly increased blood levels by study’s end. These increases in blood vitamin D correlated with decreases in nerve pain.

Comment by Dr. Ray Hinish

Vitamin D appears to play an important role in preventing nerve damage and maintaining healthy pain receptors. In addition, it is believed that adequate vitamin D levels result in improved nerve repair and growth. Over the last few years vitamin D has moved up the ranks of natural medicine to reach superstar status. This is just one more notch in the belt of vitamin D. Remember, always choose natural vitamin D3, also called cholecalciferol. I recommend NOW Vitamin D3 1,000 IU .

Why are we deficient in vitamin K?

This deficiency likely occurs for three main reasons.

1. We don’t eat enough vegetables. Most vitamin K in the diet comes for plant sources in the form of vitamin K1. The vitamin K1 is then activated by intestinal flora and absorbed as K2.

2. Our intestinal bacteria are out of balance. Many of us are deficient in healthy bacteria that play important roles in the conversion of vitamin K1 into the active K2. Many things can decrease the number of healthy bacteria in the gut such as: antibiotics, chlorine, stress, etc.

3. We do not eat organ meats, fermented foods or egg yolks. These foods are the primary sources of vitamin K2.

Knowing that both factors are important in the maintaining healthy vitamin K levels, you can see that it is important to get more vitamin K in the diet and to make sure that your intestinal bacteria are in good balance.

How do we do this?

In our society, I believe that it is necessary to supplement with vitamin K in order to optimize the vitamin K levels in the body. You can find vitamin K supplements in both the K1 and K2 form. It is generally recommended that you opt for the vitamin K2 as the research confirms that it is far superior for the prevention of bone loss and the protection from artery calcification. If you are generally healthy, I recommend a low-dose vitamin K2 from Jarrow formulas called MK-7 which provides 90 mcg of vitamin K2 from natto. This is a small dose that meets your daily vitamin K needs which may suffice to maintain healthy bones and arteries. If you suffer with bone loss or calcification of the arteries I recommend a therapeutic dose of 15 mg (15,000 mcg) three times daily. This dose has been studied and proven to be safe and effective for improving bone loss while normalizing carboxylation to activate the osteocalcin and matrix GLA-protein. You do not need to worry that vitamin K will cause excessive clotting unless you are on a medication called Coumadin (warfarin) which works by blocking vitamin K in the body. If you are on Coumadin, research has shown that a small dose of vitamin K2 such as the dose found in the Jarrow MK-7 can actually help you to achieve more consistent INR levels while possibly preventing complication of long term Coumadin use which includes bone loss and artery calcification. Always discuss vitamin K supplementation with your health care practitioner prior to starting as you will likely need to increase the dose of the Coumadin to account for the effect of the K.

What is Oracine ™?

Oracine ™ is the brand name of a formula that contains two main ingredients, magnesium orotate and inosine phosphate. Magnesium orotate is superior form of magnesium that readily enters the cell where it can have its positive effects. The oritic acid, which is bound to the magnesium is used in the production of DNA and RNA as well as the production of energy in the cell. The inosine is known as a purine ribnucleotide that is also used in the production of energy as well as DNA and RNA.

Sounds good, but is there research to support the health claims, much less the high price tag?

In six words, ” yes and no…but mostly no”.

As I stated earlier, magnesium orotate is a superior form of magnesium and the orotate itself is likely beneficial to the body. In our practice, we use magnesium for heart health as well as blood pressure problems. Magnesium also appears to benefit people with diabetes and heart failure. But is the 40 mg of magnesium provided in a daily dose of the formula enough to benefit the body? Possibly, but there just isn’t enough research to gauge the benefit. There certainly is not enough research to support the wild claims that are made on the website and radio infomercial. Magnesium deficiency is common and most people would benefit from supplementing with magnesium, however, the 40 mg provided by this formula is likely insufficient to result in significant therapeutic benefit.

What about the inosine? Inosine has, in fact, been studied for its effect in improving muscular endurance in athletes. The conclusions of the research, however, go contrary to those reported by n3 Oceanic, Inc. A study published in the International Journal of Sports Nutrition gave trained athletes high doses of inosine and found no benefit to endurance. This is consistent with other research which also found no benefit to endurance. Uric acid did increase in subjects who took the inosine, an effect that the n3 Oceanic website lists as a benefit due to uric acid’s antioxidant benefit. Although uric acid is, in fact, an antioxidant its buildup is also a cause of gout and kidney stones. Some research suggests that increases in uric acid could help protect the nerves of patients suffering with multiple sclerosis. A recent study did, in fact, show inosine to increase uric acid in multiple sclerosis patients, however, the researchers recommend that patients be closely monitored while pursuing such a treatment. As for the claims about inosine’s benefits to regenerating damaged heart cells and reversing heart failure, there just is no research to support these claims. After searching the research literature, I can only assume that n3 Oceanic Inc. is basing these claims on pure hypothesis. Isn’t it interesting that n3 Oceanic offers no reference for the outrageous claims surrounding their formula?

So, the bottom line is this…Most of us are already taking a number of supplements and in my opinion the addition of this formula is simply not worth the expense. Your money is best spent on supplements with a more proven record, in fact, any record of benefit would be an improvement over Oracine™. It is easy to get caught up in the latest and greatest thing, especially when such claims are being made. In this instance, the hype far outweighs the science. With that said, if you are still convinced that Oracine™ is effective then I recommend that you purchase the individual ingredients separately and save a boatload of money! Source Naturals produces an inosine supplement and magnesium orotate is available from Priority One.

A recent study evaluated the effect of certain supplements on slowing the process of telomere shortening. In this study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, scientists discovered that taking a multivitamin daily can actually slow the rate at which the telomeres shorten. In fact, regular multi-vitamin users enjoyed 5.1 percent longer telomeres. This may not sound like much but it may turn out to be quite significant. What if that results in a 5.1% increase in lifespan? What if that 5% difference means the difference between developing a disease and not suffering with that disease? Admittedly, we do not know what that 5.1 percent difference translates into as far as health and wellness is concerned. With the information we have, I feel that any protection we can provide to the chromosome the better off we will be.

Other findings of this study include:

1. B12 supplementation also resulted in increased telomere length
2. B-complex showed no benefit or detriment to telomere length
3. Vitamin C and E from food protected the telomere from shortening
4. Iron supplementation sped up the process of telomere shortening

Supplement Recommendations Based on Article:

This study used a simple once-daily multivitamin. If you are a regular reader of the newsletter or a regular listener of our radio program then you know that a standard one-a-day multi is insufficient for optimal benefit. If you would like a simple multi-vitamin then I usually recommend the Multi-T/D by Pure Encapsulations which is taken one capsule twice daily. This simple formula would be significantly better than the one-a-day multi used in this study. If you want even more protection then I would recommend trying the Nutrient 950 without iron by Pure Encapsulations. This formula is taken 3 capsules twice daily. For a detailed discussion of the multi-vitamins we offer, check out our Virtual Pharmacist section https://www.illnessisoptional.com/virtual-pharmacist/78.html .

Overall, vitamin E decreased the risk of life-threatening blood clots by 21%. These included dangerous clots within the legs and lungs. Some people are at higher risk of developing these clots. Women who were at high risk of blood clot (those who had a blood clot prior to starting the study) enjoyed a 44% decreased risk of future blood clots compared to their placebo counterparts. In addition, subjects who took vitamin E enjoyed an 8% decrease in risk of bleeding in the brain, a condition called hemorrhagic stroke; this was an interesting and unexpected finding. (Circulation. 2007;116:1497-1503)

Another study from Harvard School of Public Health evaluated 600 IU of natural vitamin E, 500 mg of vitamin C and 50 mg of beta carotene on risk of cardiovascular disease. At the end of the nine and a half year study the subjects who took their vitamin E enjoyed an 11% decrease in risk of combined cardiovascular event, including heart attack and stroke. When the researchers looked at the people who were nearly flawless with taking their vitamin E they saw a 22% decrease in heart attack risk, a 27% decrease in stroke risk and a 9 % decrease in risk of overall death. People who took both vitamin E and C together on a consistent basis enjoyed a 31% decreased risk of stroke while beta carotene had little or no benefit during the study. (Archives of Internal Medicine, 2007;167:1610-1618)
Given these studies, it appears that natural vitamin E is not the monster that it was made out to be by the press. Other recent research has demonstrated other important facts:

Vitamin E may protect against Alzheimers disease. (JAMA, 2002;287:3230-3237)
Vitamin E may protect against Lou Gehrig’s Disease (Journal of Neurology, Neurosurgery, and Psychiatry, 2007,78:367-371)
Vitamin E may reduce the risk of advanced prostate cancer by 71% (Journal of the National Cancer Institute,2006;98:245-254)

(This review is a summary of the report by Dr. Jack Challem’s The Nutrition Reporter newsletter)

In addition, due to the over farming of lands there is not enough nutrition in the soil to make for highly nutritive foods. For example, each time a watermelon is picked from the land some of the nutrition goes with it, after all, a fundamental law of physics is you cannot make something from nothing. Over time the soil gets depleted and the nutrition in the fruits and vegetables suffer. To make matters worse, the growers use a process of selective breeding to increase pith and water (the pith is the fibrous material such as the netting around the pulp of the orange and the white fluff just under the skin). This makes for big, attractive and heavy fruit with less vitamin and mineral content. These plant breeders lovingly refer to this process as the “dilution effect”. An example of this effect is with a very popular breed of broccoli called “Marathon” which is big and green and according to the USDA contains half the calcium and magnesium of other more nutritious hybrids of broccoli. All of this results in more weight and less nutrition.

In a 2004 study, scientists discovered that the nutrition content for 6 nutrients have declined significantly in fruits and vegetables since 1950. These nutrients include calcium, riboflavin, vitamin C, iron, potassium and protein. (J Am Coll Nutr. 2004 Dec;23(6):669-82) This study from the University of Texas evaluated the nutrient content over time of 43 garden crops. This study takes into account the effect of many different factors including ethylene ripening, the dilution effect, the use of commercial fertilizer, over farming, etc.
So is it possible to find nutrient dense fruits and vegetables? I believe so. Studies have shown that organic fruits and vegetables have more vitamins, minerals and antioxidants when compared to conventional produce. (J Agric Food Chem. 2002 Sep 11;50(19):5458-62; J Agric Food Chem. 2003 Feb 26;51(5):1237-41) Even if you regularly use organic produce, you will need to eat larger quantities of these fruits and vegetables to meet the vitamin, mineral and antioxidant needs of the body. I believe that people who meet these produce requirements are the exception rather than the rule.

One final argument on this subject doesn’t have to do with the nutrient content of the food as much as it has to do with nutrient needs of the body. Today’s body has to deal with an onslaught of toxic attack that we did not evolve on. Cleaning product, pollutions, stress and out gassing of carpets and paint all cause a withdrawal from the antioxidant and nutrient reserves of the body. We cannot assume that the nutrient needs of yesteryear apply to today! In other words, you need more nutrition today just to meet the minimum needs! Research has found that the great majority of the population does not meet the pitiful RDA requirements for one or more nutrients.

Argument: Doesn’t supplementation just cause expensive urine?
Answer: Whenever I debate the need for supplementation it seems that the first argument is always the same, “All that you are doing with nutritional supplements is making expensive urine.” This argument comes from the point that any excess of water soluble nutrients that you take in will be excreted through the urine. So if you take 1,000 mg of vitamin C and your body only uses 500 mg then you will kick out 500 mg of the vitamin C as “waste”. My answer to this is, better a surplus than a deficiency! When you supplement, you do run the risk of losing some extra nutrients in the urine. This argument can be made for those who eat plenty of fruits and vegetables as you will likely see more vitamins and minerals in their urine as well. Does this mean that you should not eat fruits and vegetables? In addition, if you want to talk about expensive urine let’s talk about the urine of people who take medications. You will find a significant amount of these medications in the urine and stool of these patients. So you choose- expensive urine full of vitamins or expensive urine full of medications.

Argument: We eat more food than most other countries, aren’t my nutrition needs being met?
Answer: I agree with the first statement regarding the quantity of food that we eat, however, I disagree with the second part of the statement which refers to the quality of food. Our society has built a food culture that creates a population of overfed and undernourished people. This means that calories are plentiful but nutrients such as vitamins, minerals and phytochemicals are deficient. This is the main reason why supplementation is so important. Starvation as it pertains to energy is not a common problem here in the United States, however, cellular starvation is a major problem. This means that the cells have all of the fuel that they require to function; however, the cells may not have the micronutrients necessary to be able to convert the fuel to energy and appropriately distribute that energy to various functions such as the immune and repair systems. This is like a car with a full tank of gas and no spark plugs. Remember, practically every study that has evaluated various vitamin and mineral levels in the blood have correlated higher levels of food nutrients with significantly better health. This means getting nutrients from whole food sources when possible and supporting with supplementation as an insurance policy.

Argument: There are no studies to support the need for supplementation.
Answer: This statement is just plain ridiculous! There is a tremendous amount of research on nutrition and its benefit to health. I have never understood how people make this comment when I am drowning in studies published in peer reviewed journals demonstrating the benefit and safety of nutritional supplementation. Search PubMed or Medline (the same search engine used by your doctor) on omega-3 fatty acids, vitamin D, coenzyme Q 10, vitamin E, vitamin C, etc. You will be blown away by the results that you get. As far as safety goes, according to the 2005 annual report in the journal Clinical Toxicity, which evaluates the reports from 61 poison control centers in the U.S., out of 53 billion doses of supplemental vitamin supplements there was not even one death reported. Tragically, Tylenol was not so lucky being responsible for numerous adverse events and deaths.
I have dedicated my life to the study of longevity and, more importantly, to the study of vitality. My definite purpose is to design a system of living that allows people like you and me to live long, energetic lives full of LIFE ENERGY! To accomplish this goal, a system is needed that will prevent disease and promote energy production, circulation, repair and rejuvenation throughout our entire lives. It is my belief that this goal can be met with a healthy diet full of fresh, raw, organic, healthy foods. It is also my belief that with each day that science “revolutionizes” our lives and food industries this becomes harder and harder. Although it is possible to live long and healthy lives without supplementation, it is less likely today than ever before and the majority of us need supplements to meet our body’s needs.

After the publishing of these studies, the press published news articles which were titled “No proof of vitamin C, D, E benefit” suggesting that these two studies prove the ineffectiveness of vitamins and antioxidants for promoting health. Obviously, this headline is both misleading and ridiculous.

The first study which evaluated the effectiveness of vitamin C and E in preventing heart attack or stroke used just 500 mg of vitamin C taken daily and 400 IU of vitamin E taken every other day. These doses are both very conservative and unlikely to offer significant benefit. The vitamin E used in the study was a synthetic vitamin E made from petroleum that is far inferior to natural, mixed tocopherol vitamin E formulas.

In the vitamin D study, just 400 IU of vitamin D was used in the study which studies have shown is not sufficient to improve blood vitamin D levels one bit. Our general recommendation for vitamin D is 2,000 IU daily and this dose may not even suffice. To properly evaluate the effectiveness of vitamin D, we would expect researchers to do vitamin D blood tests and then optimize the dose to achieve sufficient vitamin D blood levels. Research suggests that blood levels in the 50-60 range are considered optimal.

These studies were both heavily flawed. First, the doses of the vitamins were insufficient to positively impact health. This would be equivalent to evaluating the benefit of 1 capsule daily of amoxicillin in treating an infection when 3 capsules daily is the recommended minimum dose. In addition, using a synthetic vitamin E would be like using a chemical which resembles amoxicillin but isn’t quite the same and then making a final conclusion that “antibiotics don’t treat infections.” I hate to say it, but tax payers wasted millions of dollars on two studies which were doomed from the outset. There is an old saying that goes, “At first a new truth is ridiculed, then it is vehemently opposed and then it is accepted.” The good news in all of this bad news is it confirms our belief that we are in the second phase where the world of natural medicine is violently opposed which means that “acceptance” is right around the corner. Call, me optimistic…but that is my belief.

So let’s look at some recent studies that ended with a different conclusion to the above mentioned studies:
1. Circulation, 2007;116:1497-1503 – In this study performed at Harvard University, 39,876 women over the age of 45 were given either 600 mg of natural vitamin E or a sugar pill for a period of 10 years. The group that was given the natural vitamin E had a 21% lower risk of developing a life-threatening clot and the women who entered the study with a history of forming clots experienced a 44% decreased risk of additional clots. In addition, the group given vitamin E enjoyed an 8% lower risk of hemorrhagic stroke, a stroke that involves bleeding in the brain.
2. Archives of Internal Medicine, 2007;167:1610-1618 – This was another study performed at the Harvard School of Medicine. In this study, researchers studied 8,171 women who were given either 500 mg of vitamin C daily, 600 IU of natural vitamin E every other day or 50 mg of beta carotene every other day. This study was similar in design to the study recently mentioned in the press. The researchers reported that the group who took the vitamin E enjoyed an 11% decreased risk of cardiovascular event. When the researchers only included people who consistently took the vitamin E, there was a 22% lower risk of heart attack, 27% lower risk of stroke and a 9% decrease in risk of death from cardiovascular disease. When the people consistently took the vitamin C and E the results were even more significant.

Get someone else involved who has credentials that your loved one respects. There is an old saying that goes “A prophet is accepted everywhere…but in their own home land.” This basically speaks to a well known truth that your family will not listen to your advice on health just because they are your family and for no other reason! My parents helped to put me through private school, not to mention, 7 years of undergraduate work and pharmacy school only to ignore my advice! It is nothing personal, there just seems to be this unwritten law of life “Thy family shall not listen to your counsel”. Get a health professional involved who has the credentials that your family member respects. This means that the local acupuncturist or chiropracter will not do if they only respect physicians and pharmacists. Just be sure that you get them in touch with a practitioner who knows what they are talking about when it comes to natural products!
Make it VERY easy for them. I take over 60 pills, capsules and liquids daily. I see the long-term value of each and every one of those pills, however, I would never delude myself into thinking that my stubborn loved-one shares in that level of understanding. Pick your battles wisely, in all liklihood you will only be able to get them to take between 1 and 4 capsules daily. Just accept this as better than nothing and choose only the supplements that will provide them with the most benefit.
Use the most powerful negotiation tool known to…child. Children seem to have an instinctual ability to negotiate parents into deals that you would never thought you would have agreed to. They use a technique that has been adopted by some of the greatest negotiators in the world. Here it is…recommend a supplement program that you know they will balk at and then after they cringe or refuse follow up with a more reasonable request. For example, a conversation may go something like this, “Hey John, I am going to treat you to a nutritional supplement program, can you take 4 capsules twice daily?” (John grumbles in discontent) “Okay, that is too much for you, how about if you just take this one supplement every day, can you manage that?” I realize that this is a little tricky, but it works.
Once daily is okay when it mean compliance. In an ideal world, I like to see people get on a twice daily schedule for their supplement program. For stubborn loved-ones, however, once daily is a great victory and usually all that they will agree to. I specifically love blister packed products or supplements in a convenient celophane packet.
Recently I discovered a product that makes your job a lot easier. The product is called Four Pillars and provides a solid supplement program in a convenient blister pack. Each blister packed strip provides 4 capsules to be taken once daily. Each daily dose provides your stubborn loved one with a vitamin and mineral formula that puts Centrum to shame while also providing the other pillers of healthy supplementation: whole food antioxidant formula, an omega-3 fatty acid formula and capsule containing billions of healthy bacteria. Simply give your loved one a box of the Four Pillars with instructions to take one strip of 4 capsules once daily.

The Four Pillars makes your job easy because the blister packs are convenient, easy to take and even a little fun. There are no bottles to pluck through, just tear a strip of capsules away from the pack and swallow them at your next meal.