Health benefits-whole wheat flour vs white flour

Healthy Facts About Whole-Wheat Flour Vs. White

by Sylvie Tremblay, MSc, Demand Media

Choose flour made from whole-wheat grains over white flour as a healthier option.

Eating foods made from flour -- wheat grains crushed into a fine powder -- contributes to your grain intake for the day, helping you reach the six 1/2-cup servings of grains recommended daily by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. However, not all flours are created equal: White flour is made from heavily refined and processed wheat grains, while whole-wheat flour is made from grains that have not undergone heavy processing. Whole-wheat and white flours differ in their nutritional value.

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Fiber Content

One of the primary nutritional differences between whole-wheat and white flour is the food’s fiber content. Dietary fiber has a number of health benefits -- it prevents constipation, lowers blood cholesterol and might help you lose weight, according to Colorado State University. The refining process associated with making white flour separates the fiber-rich brain from the rest of the grain, so white flour typically contains less fiber than its whole-grain counterpart. For example, 1/2 cup of white flour contains 1.3 grams of fiber, while an equal serving of whole-wheat flour contains 6.4 grams. As a result, selecting foods that contain wheat flour helps you reach your dietary fiber intake goal -- 28 grams daily if you follow a 2,000-calorie diet, according to Colorado State University.

Effect on Blood Sugar

Any carbohydrate-containing food -- including those containing either whole-wheat and white flour -- has some effect on your blood sugar. After you eat a meal, your body breaks the carbohydrates from your food into glucose, a simple sugar. This glucose then enters your bloodstream, so it can circulate throughout your body and provide fuel to your cells. The glycemic index, or GI, of a food serves as a measure of how quickly this process occurs. High-GI foods lead to rapid blood sugar spikes and subsequent crashes that leave you hungry and irritable shortly after eating. Low-GI foods absorb more slowly to prevent blood sugar spikes and crashes, so you’re satisfied for longer after your meal. Bread made with 100 percent whole-wheat flour has a GI of 51, according to Harvard Medical School, while bread made with white wheat flour has a GI of 71. If you seek to regulate your blood sugar after a meal, choose foods made with whole-wheat flour.

Vitamin Content

Whole-wheat flour provides a nutritional advantage over some white flours due to its vitamin content. Whole-wheat flour contains several vitamins, including folate, riboflavin and vitamins B-1, B-3 and B-5. Some types of white flour contain lower levels of these vitamins, since the processing involved in making white flour destroys the grains’ vitamin content -- for example, 1/2 cup of whole-wheat flour contains 3 milligrams of niacin, while an equivalent portion of white flour contains only 0.8 milligrams. To combat this, some food manufacturers enrich their white flour with vitamins to replace the nutrients lost during processing. As a result, whole-grain flour often contains higher levels of vitamins than unenriched white flour but roughly compares to vitamin-enriched white flour. Check the nutrition label to determine if a bag of white flour has added vitamins, and compare different brands of flour to maximize your vitamin intake.

Eat More Whole-Wheat Flour

Making a few easy substitutions in your diet helps you reap the nutritional benefit of whole-wheat flour without sacrificing the foods you love. When you bake at home, try using a mix of whole-wheat and white flours for cookies, muffins and cakes, and opt for 100-percent whole-wheat flour to make homemade bread. At the grocery store, check your bread labels to select loaves made with 100 percent whole wheat -- this bread is made using whole-wheat flour, whereas those labeled simply "whole-wheat" might contain a mix of whole wheat and white flours. In the pasta isle, skip the white pasta and opt for noodles made from a mix of white and whole-wheat flour. Pasta made with 100-percent whole wheat feels gummy after cooking thanks to the pasta's fiber content, so choosing pasta made using some whole-wheat flour boosts the nutritional content of your meal without sacrificing texture.

The dangers of eating Peanut Butter

“Take me out to the ball game. Take me out with the crowd. Show me your peanuts and Cracker Jacks. I don’t care if I never get back.”
These classic lyrics to Take Me Out to the Ball Game directly link peanuts with America’s pastime of baseball. Should the song’s lyrics be changed to reflect a healthier America?
Peanut butter is one of those foods that you just can’t seem to remove from the top of your mouth. Maybe there’s a good reason why this so-called healthy food gets stuck. Is there a chance it shouldn’t belong there?
Peanuts have been deceiving you this whole time. I bet you even think they are nuts? Peanuts are actually part of the legume family. They have lived a long storied history for thousands of years. They originated in South America and were important for the diets of Aztecs and other native Indians. In fact, one St. Louis doctor would create and prescribe peanut butter at the end of the 19th century.
Peanuts and peanut butter contain monounsaturated fats, which are linked to a reduced risk of cardiovascular disease. They are also high in nutrients such as manganese, tryptophan, niacin (vitamin B3), folate, vitamin E, and copper. Peanut butter was promoted as a healthy food, high in protein and low in carbohydrates, and although it does have those benefits, today there are potential dangers and risks associated with peanuts and peanut butter.
That’s enough of what makes peanuts and peanut butter a healthy food. I’m here to tell you why you shouldn’t be consuming this tiny legume, whether it’s crunchy or smooth.
Here are six reasons you should remove peanuts and peanut butter from your healthy food list today:
Peanut Butter Could Contain Trans Fats
When you purchase peanut butter, always check the label. Like with any processed product, the fewer ingredients, the better. With a lot of generic peanut butter brands, sugar and hydrogenated (trans) fats are typically added for flavor.
Natural Peanut Butter Isn’t Better
The better peanut butter brands on the market include those with only peanuts and a little salt and are either natural or organic—or so you think. That’s because even in its most natural form, peanut butter is still detrimental to your health. It is more susceptible to toxic mold growth because it is less processed, which is ironic.
Society thinks the more natural, the better. In most cases this is true; however, all commercially produced peanut butter must go through aflatoxin testing before going to market. This is true, even if it is natural, organic, or straight from the ground.
Toxic Fungus Allergies
So, you’re allergic to peanuts. No, you’re not—you’re allergic to the toxic fungus found within the peanut. Peanuts are one of eight major food allergens in the U.S. The peanut allergy can usually be linked to the natural mold aflatoxin, which can damage the liver.
It is also a potent carcinogen, which can potentially cause cancer. Removing this so-called healthy food from your diet also means you are cutting down on the toxic load exposure from the environment.
Peanut Crops Are Heavily Contaminated With Pesticides
Other than aflatoxin, there are even more nutty problems to worry about. Non-organic peanuts and peanut butters are also contaminated with pesticides. This is a concern because peanuts have a very light shell, which can easily leach to outside materials. Conventional peanuts have a very high pesticide rate, as well as other chemical contaminants.
Too Much Omega-6
Omega-6, or linoleic acid, is an essential fatty acid, and is normally an important component for cardiovascular health, mental function, and energy production. But when your omega-6 is too high, it can result in inflammation.
This is a huge problem when every day you eat a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. In every 28 g (one-ounce serving) peanuts contain 4,000 mg of omega-6. It’s more difficult to obtain omega-3 in the conventional diet with fish and flaxseed being primary sources.
Oxalates Cause Health Risks
Peanuts also contain another natural substance called oxalates. When we eat peanuts or peanut butter, and the oxalates become too concentrated in the body’s fluids, they will crystallize and lead to health problems. It is recommended that people with gallbladder issues or with untreated or existing kidney problems avoid peanuts.
Nutty Replacements
You shouldn’t consume toxic peanuts because there are other options. Tree nuts are less toxic and can also be made into butter such as almonds; however, tree nuts are also one of the major food allergens in the U.S.
If you’re looking for healthy butters, sunflower seed or pumpkin seed butters are another option. Sunflower seeds help lower blood pressure, while pumpkin seeds assist with heart disease prevention and reduce the risk of cancer.
The Foods4BetterHealth Bottom Line
Sunflower seeds are a much better option for a ball game and you should also try it on your organic whole grain toast. The bottom line is that there are several concerns with peanut butter and its toxins, so it would be more beneficial to your health if you just skipped the Skippy

The dangers of eating sprouts

Sprouts: What You Should Know

Do sprouts carry a risk of illness? Like any fresh produce that is consumed raw or lightly cooked, sprouts carry a risk of foodborne illness. Unlike other fresh produce, seeds and beans need warm and humid conditions to sprout and grow. These conditions are also ideal for the growth of bacteria, including Salmonella, Listeria, and E. coli.

Have sprouts been associated with outbreaks of foodborne illness? Since 1996, there have been at least 30 reported outbreaks of foodborne illness associated with different types of raw and lightly cooked sprouts. Most of these outbreaks were caused by Salmonella and E. coli.
What is the source of the bacteria? In outbreaks associated with sprouts, the seed is typically the source of the bacteria. There are a number of approved techniques to kill harmful bacteria that may be present on seeds and even tests for seeds during sprouting. But, no treatment is guaranteed to eliminate all harmful bacteria.
Are homegrown sprouts safer? Not necessarily. If just a few harmful bacteria are present in or on the seed, the bacteria can grow to high levels during sprouting, even under sanitary conditions at home.
What can industry do to enhance the safety of sprouts? In 1999, the FDA provided the sprout industry with guidance on reducing the risk of contamination of sprouts by harmful bacteria. The FDA and other Federal and state agencies continue to work with industry on detecting and reducing contamination and keeping contaminated sprouts out of the marketplace.
What can consumers do to reduce the risk of illness?

• Children, the elderly, pregnant women, and persons with weakened immune systems should avoid eating raw sprouts of any kind (including alfalfa, clover, radish, and mung bean sprouts).
• Cook sprouts thoroughly to reduce the risk of illness. Cooking kills the harmful bacteria.
• Request that raw sprouts not be added to your food. If you purchase a sandwich or salad at a restaurant or delicatessen, check to make sure that raw sprouts have not been added.

General Information

Safe Eats: Fruits, Veggies, and Juices (FDA)
Guidelines for safe eating during pregnancy include warnings about sprouts.

Background on Previous Outbreaks

Raw Alfalfa Spouts Linked to Salmonella Contamination (FDA)
FDA recommendations to consumers in response to the Spring 2009 outbreak.
Investigation of an Outbreak of Salmonella Saintpaul Infections Linked to Raw Alfalfa Sprouts (CDC)
Includes a map showing the number of cases by state in the Spring 2009 outbreak.

Dangerous Chemicals

The Washington Post reported how the F.D.A. has finally found fault in a chemical known as triclosan. The chemical is found in the urine of more than 75% of Americans, and research has shown for years that it is dangerous. However, new research has grabbed the attention of the E.P.A., F.D.A. and C.P.S.C. The chemical is so widely used that it falls under the jurisdiction of all three federal agencies.
Triclosan is an anti-bacterial and anti-fungal chemical. Astute readers may already be making the connection that anything that is poisonous to organisms is, well, poisonous. The poison is intentionally added to anti-bacterial soaps, pesticides, toothpastes, cleaning agents, shaving creams, and mouthwash. In recent years, it has been infused into children's toys, bedding and some clothing. From observing the history of the chemical industry, we are making bets amongst ourselves as to how long it will be before it is a critical component of vaccines and infant formulas.

"But the FDA, which oversees its use in personal-care products, medical devices and products that come into contact with food, has been working for 38 years to establish the rules for the use of triclosan but has not completed that task."

-- Washington Post

That's right, after 38 years, the Food and Drug Administration has not managed to decide if triclosan is safe. Meanwhile, people are washing their hands and brushing their teeth with this chemical; with direct absorption into the blood through the mouth tissues.
Current research shows that triclosan is damaging to the endocrine system. The endocrine system is made up of glands that are responsible for mood regulation, metabolism and growth. So, we have quite a disease-inflicting cocktail when this is mixed with fluoride in oral care products. When these crucial glands begin to fail, diseases emanate. Failure of the adrenal glands, for instance, can quickly result in the onset of diabetes, or Cushing's syndrome. Failure of the thyroid gland can result in hypothyroidism and diabetes. Meanwhile, the establishment does not seem to know why these are epidemics.
The F.D.A. claims to be re-evaluating triclosan, but if they have been willfully blind to all the dangers for the past 38 years, will they suddenly find them now? The fact that the press has drawn attention to this poison is probably the only reason why the F.D.A. has finally shown it lip service. We would not be surprised if the results of their re-evaluation are quietly released a year from now, showing that triclosan is completely safe. As usual, the involved companies will be paying the F.D.A.'s research costs to ensure that their products are found to be safe. That is how it usually works, and approval fees account for 97% of the F.D.A.'s income. Only 3% comes from taxes.
Most commercial toothpastes should already be avoided, because of the fluoride and sodium lauryl sulfate. The use of anti-bacterial soaps are the equivalent of taking an antibiotic several times each day. Chemicals that are placed on the skin will often sink directly through the skin and into the bloodstream. Not only do we generally recommend against antibiotics, but it has also been shown that anti-bacterial soaps are no more effective than regular soaps. The risk of illness actually increases with their usage.

Dangers of eating out

People assume that restaurant plates, utensils, and cups are dried using heat, not chemicals. Few restaurants dry their food utensils after washing them nowadays. They are using so-called "drying agents" on everything except for the tables and chairs, and perhaps we would have cause to shudder if we knew what was being used on them.
Some of the drying agents used are bone phosphate, calcium aluminum silicate, calcium ferrocyanide, calcium silicate, sulfamic acid, calcium stearate, kaolin, magnesium silicate (synthetic), magnesium stearate, potassium ferrocyanide, salts of fatty acids, silicon dioxide, sodium aluminosilicate, sodium ferrocyanide, tricalcium phosphate, and trimagnesium phosphate.
What we found particularly disturbing is that plenty of the major brands refuse to even disclose their ingredients, and jealously guard them as trade secrets. Jet Dry and Cascade, the leading brands of consumer drying agents, claim that their ingredients are proprietary; and therefore, will never be publicly disclosed. Even the Material Safety Data Sheet available from the National Institutes of Health does not list the full ingredients, in order to protect these corporations, in disregard of U.S. law.
Many people, particularly in hard water areas, choose to use rinse or drying agents to avoid blotchy stains on dishes. The fumes are known to cause coughing and dizziness when dishwashers are first opened. People will undoubtedly inhale these chemicals, as well as ingest them from the cookware. As a result of the associated health problems (particularly from inhalation), health-conscious consumers are switching to white vinegar to get the same result. Drying agents are used in the final rinse cycle, so they dry onto the dishes. The residual chemical coating is intentional.
In a restaurant, this applies to every plate, bowl, utensil, glass and even the pans that are used for cooking. The chemicals seem to be far worse in restaurants than those of household drying agents. When eating out, there is no way to avoid internally consuming the drying agents. While we could find serious negative health implications for virtually every chemical that we discovered in drying agents, we shall focus on a select few for the sake of brevity.
Calcium Aluminum Silicate, Sodium Aluminosilicate, and Kaolin (Hydrated Aluminum Silicate)
It is amazing that chemists were able to combine three separate sources of aluminum into a single product. Aluminum is a heavy metal toxin that is slightly less toxic than mercury. Like mercury, aluminum in even trace amounts will persistently attack the brain and central nervous system for many years. It is already documented to cause Alzheimer's disease, autism, cancer, lowered fertility, and brittle bones. It particularly reeks havoc in the bodies of older women, since it effects the body like an estrogen substitute. In these women it causes breast cancers, osteoporosis, and brittle bone disease. Despite being listed in the Hazardous Substances Data Bank as a skin, eye, and lung irritant, sodium aluminosilicate is present in restaurant drying products, and it is intentionally placed inside some foods and spices as an anti-caking agent, with the full approval of regulators. Aluminum is particularly bad because it accumulates deep inside the body, causing dozens of disease conditions over time. The body cannot normally eliminate it. Aluminum has become a favorite of the chemical industry, and it has become difficult to avoid. It is in most store-bought bread, some baking powders, pharmaceuticals, vaccines, and even the tap water.
Kaolin causes breathing difficulties, bronchitis, decreased pulmonary (lung) function, cumulative lung damage, and stomach granulama (extreme tissue trauma).
Sodium Ferrocyanide and Potassium Ferrocyanide
The "cyanide" part of these ingredients should be emphasized. Restaurants are actually spraying dishes with cyanide, and allowing it to remain on them. When it contacts an acid, sodium ferrocyanide releases the extremely poisonous hydrogen cyanide gas. This is the infamous zyklon B gas that was reported to have been used by the NAZI's. Sodium ferrocyanide is also used in photography for bleaching and toning. It is highly toxic in the lungs, blood, or the mucous membranes. It is known to cause organ damage with prolonged exposure. It is especially hazardous when ingested. If a truckload of this hazardous material is spilled, clean-up crews are required by regulations to wear full environmental suits with self-contained breathing apparatuses. Nevertheless, it is being sprayed on restaurant plates, glasses, and utensils.
Inhalation of potassium ferrocyanide results in coughing and shortness of breath. Skin contact will cause pain and redness. Any contact should be immediately diluted with large amounts of water. If it is involved in a fire, or if it comes into contact with a strong acid, then it will emit cyanide gas.
Bone Phosphate and Tricalcium Phosphate

"Here, kitty, kitty."

Whilst researching these ingredients, we were hoping that "bone" was merely a chemical-industry pseudonym for something that was never alive. Bone phosphate is really made by grinding bones and teeth into a powder. Tricalcium phosphate is a very similar bone-based compound. It is frequently added to spices as an anti-caking agent. If you feel uncomfortable with eating ground up bones, which have been soaked in a hydrochloric acid solution, then we recommend that you avoid bone phosphate, calcium phosphate, and tricalcium phosphate.
Synthetic Magnesium Silicate
The Material Safety Data Sheet for this chemical reads, "Do not swallow". It is a skin, eye and respiratory irritant. In other words, it should never be in or around foods. Ingesting large amounts can cause convulsions and unconsciousness. Silica dust is a known carcinogen when inhaled.
Sulfamic Acid
Inhalation of sulfamic acid results in laryngitis, coughing, permanent lung damage, bronchitis, and damage to the mucous membranes. As a corrosive agent, ingestion of sulfamic acid burns the mouth, throat, stomach, and can lead to death. There have been no studies on the cumulative effects of ingested sulfamic acid, because it has been assumed that people would not be eating this chemical.
Conclusionary Remarks
It should be evident that restaurant chemical drying agents degrade human health. The use of aluminum in these products is especially disturbing because of its cumulative property. Each exposure increases the aluminum content in a body, thereby increasing the risk of Alzheimer's disease, multiple sclerosis, various cancers, hormonal problems, bone diseases, and it will absolutely reduce a person's I.Q. Save yourself and your family by cooking your own wholesome foods.

Hand Sanitizers

The Washington Post reported that the F.D.A. has finally found fault in a chemical. The chemical is found in the urine of more than 75% of Americans, and research has shown for years that it is dangerous. New research has grabbed the attention of the E.P.A., F.D.A. and C.P.S.C. The chemical is so widely used that it falls under the jurisdiction of all three federal agencies.
Triclosan is an anti-bacterial and anti-fungal chemical. Astute readers may already be making the connection that anything which is poisonous to organisms is, well, poisonous. The poison is intentionally added to anti-bacterial soaps, pesticides, toothpastes, cleaning agents, shaving creams, and mouthwashes. In recent years, it has been infused into children's toys, bedding and some clothing. From observing the history of the chemical industry, we are making bets amongst ourselves as to how long it will be before it is a critical component of vaccines and infant formulas.

"But the FDA, which oversees its use in personal-care products, medical devices and products that come into contact with food, has been working for 38 years to establish the rules for the use of triclosan but has not completed that task."

-- Washington Post

For approximately four decades, the Food and Drug Administration has not managed to decide if triclosan is safe. Meanwhile, people are washing their hands and brushing their teeth with this chemical; with direct absorption into the blood through the mouth tissues.
Current research shows that triclosan is damaging to the endocrine system. The endocrine system is made up of glands that are responsible for mood regulation, metabolism and growth. Therefore, we have quite a disease-inflicting cocktail when this is mixed with fluoride in oral care products. When these crucial glands begin to fail, diseases emanate. Failure of the adrenal glands, for instance, can quickly result in the onset of diabetes or Cushing's syndrome. Failure of the thyroid gland can result in hypothyroidism and diabetes. Meanwhile, the establishment does not seem to know why these are epidemics.
The F.D.A. claims to be re-evaluating triclosan, but if they have been willfully blind to all of the dangers for the past four decades, will they suddenly find them now? The fact that the press has drawn attention to this poison is probably the only reason why the F.D.A. has finally shown the issue lip service. As usual, the involved companies will be paying the F.D.A.'s research costs to ensure that their products are found to be safe. Such approvals account for 97% of the F.D.A.'s income.
To exemplify how unsafe and ineffective this chemical is, some leading brands of triclosan-based hand sanitizers were recalled in 2009, after they were found to contain high levels of multiple strains of bacteria. The F.D.A. admitted that some of the bacteria were only found in "particularly unsanitary conditions". It warned that the subsequent skin infections could be so severe as to need surgical attention, and result in permanent damage.
Most commercial toothpastes should already be avoided, because of the fluoride and sodium lauryl sulfate. The use of anti-bacterial soaps are the equivalent of taking an antibiotic several times each day. Chemicals that are placed on the skin will often sink directly through the skin and into the blood stream. Not only do we generally recommend against antibiotics, but it has also been shown that anti-bacterial soaps are no more effective than regular soaps in killing bacteria. The risk of illness actually increases with their usage, because of how the immune system is weakened by exposure to such toxins.

The Condom Coverup

Holes in Condoms . . .
STDs are very tiny organisms, minuscule in size compared to sperm. These super-small viruses can get through a hole in a condom much more easily than sperm can. For example, HIV (the AIDS-causing virus) is so small that two million of the disease-causing agents could crowd on the period at the end of a sentence.
In 1993 the University of Texas analyzed the results of 11 different studies that had tracked the effectiveness of condoms to prevent transmission of the AIDS virus. The average condom failure rate in the 11 studies for preventing transmission of the AIDS virus was 31%.
One reason condoms fail in preventing the transfer of AIDS is that latex condoms have tiny intrinsic holes called "voids." Sperm is larger than the holes, but the AIDS virus is 50 times smaller than these tiny holes which makes it easy for the virus to pass through [Source: Dr. C. M. Roland, editor of Rubber Chemistry and Technology]. To give you an idea of how easy it would be for the virus to pass through these holes, just imagine a ping pong ball going through a basketball hoop.

 

Girls Still Get Pregnant!
Did you know that you can use a condom and still get pregnant? A variety of studies have found that condoms have an "annual failure rate" of 10% to 36% when it comes to preventing pregnancy.
Can you imagine the consequences for a couple when their condom fails? It happens all the time! One of the studies found that among teenagers, the condom failure rate regarding pregnancy was 36%! On average, that means that one out of every three teenage couples using condoms will become pregnant each year.

Are You ready to catch a sexually transmitted diseases?
Condoms provide considerably less protection against sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) than they do against pregnancy.
That's because a girl can get pregnant only at ovulation time (that's two to three days each month) but STDs can pass from partner to partner at any time of the month.
STDs are frequently passed through "skin to skin" contact even when condoms are used. This can happen because the bacterial or viral germs that cause many serious STDs (such as human papillomavirus, chlamydia, herpes, and syphilis) do not infect just one place on your body. They may infect anywhere in the male or female genital areas.
So, even if the virus or bacteria isn't passed through tears or holes in the condom itself, you can still get diseases because condoms don't cover or protect all areas of the genital region. That means condoms don't prevent many of the STD infections that take place during sexual contact.

Vitamins 101

Vitamins are little organic molecules we need, but we can’t make them or at least we have a hard time making them ourselves. We must rely on our food to keep us stocked with these essential nutrients, but our food is getting less and less nutritious. Fields are depleted by overuse. Pesticides limit the action of beneficial microbes in the soil that help plants draw in nutrients. Fertilizers focus on certain key chemicals and don’t take into account all the trace minerals, organic components, or beneficial microbes that go into good nutrition. And genetically modified foods have made their way into our food supply when we don’t know how they may affect us in the long term.
On top of these problems, we refine and process our food so it lasts longer, is more convenient, tastes better, and is even made to be more addictive. We strip out and destroy vital nutrients as we process them. Much of the food we find in grocery stores outside the produce section barely resembles what humanity has been eating for thousands of years. There’s no wonder we have so many auto-immune disorders, food allergies, and growing epidemics of obesity. Our bodies don’t know what we’re ingesting, they aren’t finding the nutrients they need, and they’re begging for us to eat more and more so we might manage to give ourselves what we’re missing.
We all know we need a steady supply of vitamins and minerals so our bodies can function properly. Scientists, doctors, and food companies agree too, so they create cheap vitamins in labs, fortify our foods and beverages with them, and dump them into multivitamins. The problem is these synthetic vitamins are not what our bodies are looking for either.
Almost all multivitamins are from synthetics. The same goes for fortified foods. There’s a good reason for this. Synthetic vitamins are cheaper to make and usually more stable. This means they can last on shelves for months or years, be added to foods in high doses, and create small dense tablets packed with insane amounts of every type of vitamin. These vitamins are allowed to call themselves “natural” even when they are actually synthetic because scientists say the synthetics are virtually identical to the ones found in food.

The way these compounds are made is not remotely similar to the metabolic processes that plants and animals use to create them. The finished product is also usually a compound not exactly the same form as any found in nature. These synthetic vitamins, according to a multitude of studies, are not as bioavailable, absorbable, or usable. These “virtually identical” vitamins are not what we find in natural foods, not recognizable to the body, hard on the kidneys, and can often be treated as toxins.

Natural Vitamin A – Vitamin A shows up in food as beta-carotene. The body must convert it into vitamin A to be useful. This sounds less effective, but vitamin A can be toxic in large doses. Beta-carotene allows the body to convert what it needs and discard what it does not as a natural safeguard against damage.
Synthetic Vitamin A – Synthetic vitamin A is retinyl palmitate or retinyl acetate. This synthetic is made from combining fish or palm oil with beta-ionone. Palm oil is leading to deforestation of rainforest and endangerment of orangutans. Beta-ionone is created using citrus, acetone, and calcium oxide.
Natural Vitamin B1 – Thiamin, or vitamin B1, is a water soluble vitamin created by plants and bound to phosphate. Digestion releases the thiamin using specialized enzymes that target phosphate.
Synthetic Vitamin B1 – Thiamine mononitrate or thiamine hydrochloride is made from coal tar, ammonia, acetone, and hydrochloric acid. It is much less absorbable since it isn’t bound to phosphate. It is crystalline in structure, unlike plant-based vitamins. Many synthetic vitamins are crystalline. Crystals in our blood stream cause damage and mineral accumulation where it isn’t needed, like joints.
Natural Vitamin B2 – Riboflavin is easily absorbed, stays in the blood stream for long periods of time, and is readily used by the body in many important enzymes.
Synthetic Vitamin B2 – Synthetic riboflavin is made with acetic acid and nitrogen or using genetically modified bacteria and fermentation. It has been shown to be less absorbable and then quickly removed from the blood stream and expelled in urine like a toxin would be.
Natural Vitamin B3 – Niacinamide or nicotinamide is what we find in food and commonly call niacin. Niacin can have side effects, but these are minimal when coming from plant foods.
Synthetic Vitamin B3 – Nicotinic acid is created using coal tar, ammonia, acids, 3-cyanopyridine, and formaldehyde. It is less absorbable and has more risks of side effects.
Natural Vitamin B5 – Pantothenate is the natural version of this essential B vitamin.
Synthetic Vitamin B5 – Pantothenic acid involves isobutyraldehyde and formaldehyde to form a calcium or sodium salt. The alcohol derivative, panthenol, is sometimes used as it is more stable and lasts longer on store shelves.
Natural Vitamin B6 – Like B1, pyridoxine is bound with phosphate in plants to make pyridoxal-phosphate. This is the biologically active form. Any other form of B6 must be converted into this phosphate combination before our body can use it.
Synthetic Vitamin B6 – Pyridoxine hydrochloride comes from petroleum ester, hydrochloric acid, and formaldehyde. It isn’t readily absorbed or converted and has been shown to actually inhibit the action of natural B6 in the body. It also has side effects not normally found with natural food sources of this vitamin.
Natural Vitamin B7 – Biotin is involved in cell growth, fat production, and metabolism.
Synthetic Vitamin B7 – Synthetic B7 is produced using fumaric acid.
Natural Vitamin B9 – This B vitamin exists in food as folate and is very important in the creation and repair of DNA, thus the vital importance of this vitamin before and during pregnancy.
Synthetic Vitamin B9 – Folic acid doesn’t exist in natural foods, is crystalline, and is not easily absorbed despite the large amounts that are added to vitamins and supplements. It comes from petroleum derivatives, acids, and acetylene.
Natural Vitamin B12 – Cobalamin B12 is only created by micro-organisms like the bacteria that grow in soil and our intestines, as well as some micro-algae and perhaps some seaweed species.
Synthetic Vitamin B12 – Cobalt and cyanide are fermented to make cyanocobalamin. That’s correct. Cyanide. It is in miniscule amounts, but it is still cyanide.
Natural Choline – Choline is often grouped with B vitamins. It is combined with phosphate in nature and is important in cell membranes and keeping fat in check.
Synthetic Choline – Choline chloride or choline bitartrate is made using ethylene, ammonia, and hydrochloric acid or tartaric acid. It is not bound to phosphate.
Natural Vitamin C – This vitamin is readily available in citrus, red bell peppers, berries, and many more fruits and vegetables. In nature it is combined with flavonoids and phytonutrients that help in its absorption and use.
Synthetic Vitamin C – Ascorbic acid is an isolated vitamin from genetically modified corn sugar that is hydrogenated and processed with acetone. It does not include the flavonoids and phytonutrients that make it work.
Natural Vitamin D – Technically this one isn’t always thought of as a vitamin since we make it ourselves. Mushrooms, yeast, and lichen produce vitamin D when exposed to sunlight. Humans do too. A daily dose of about 20 minutes of sunlight provides all we need. Vitamin D3 is the most effective kind, the same that comes from our own skin and lichen. Mushrooms and yeast often yield D2.
Synthetic Vitamin D – To mimic the natural production we find in our skin, scientists irradiate animal fat to stimulate vitamin D3 synthesis. They usually use lanolin, the waxy secretions from sheep skin that keeps wool dry.
Natural Vitamin E – Vitamin E actually refers to 8 different fat soluble compounds and it acts as an antioxidant that protects fats from oxidation. The most biologically active form is found in grains, seeds, and the oils from grains and seeds.
Synthetic Vitamin E – The synthetic dl-alpha tocopherol is created using refined oils, trimethylhydroquinone, and isophytol. It is not as easily absorbed, doesn’t stay as long in tissues, and is quickly dispelled like a toxin or unknown chemical.
Natural Vitamin K – This vitamin is important to proper blood clotting and some metabolic pathways. It is found in dark leafy greens.
Synthetic Vitamin K – Synthetic vitamin K, menadione, comes from coal tar derivatives and genetically modified and hydrogenated soybean oil, and uses hydrochloric acid and nickel. It is considered highly toxic and damages the immune system.
Vitamins should really come from food sources as much as possible. If you want a multivitamin, reach for ones that use whole food sources like holy basil, guava, and other herbs, fruits, and vegetables. Sunwarrior Raw Vitamins for Her and Raw Vitamins for Him come from whole-food sources.
Synthetic vitamins are isolated or simulated nutrients that do not take into account all the countless phytonutrients that come along with them. Nature is not a select few things isolated from the rest. We are only beginning to understand how many of the lesser known compounds in plants react with one another as we eat them, but we do know humanity has been eating whole foods for a very long time. We have evolved to recognize the whole, not just individual chemicals that have been created to approximate an essential vitamin.
Avoid supplements that use words ending in -acid, -ide, and sometimes -ate or that use the “dl” before the name.
Minerals should be from whole foods as well as often as possible. They are not considered organic materials as they come initially from the earth, but plants incorporate minerals into their systems and combine them with organic compounds. This is how our bodies know them and incorporate them into our systems as well. Minerals are often combined with proteins to form enzymes. Your body is begging you for the vitamins and minerals it knows, loves, and misses terribly.

Effects of Caffeine

Fact or Myth?

There has been an ongoing controversy surrounding the effects of caffeine. So what is fact and what is fiction? This page will clarify the misconceptions about this common food component.
MYTH: Caffeine is an addictive substance:
FACT: Caffeine is a pharmacologically active substance and works as a mild stimulant drug. Scientists say that moderate consumption of caffeine is safe and should not be classified with addictive drugs of abuse [1]. Some caffeine users report withdraw symptoms, such as headaches, fatigue or drowsiness, but these effects only last a day or so and can be avoided if caffeine intake is reduced gradually. Also, caffeine users do not demonstrate dependent, compulsive behavior that is characteristic of dependency to drugs of abuse [2].
MYTH: Caffeine increases the risk of heart disease:
FACT: A study of 45,589 men conducted by Harvard University researchers concluded that caffeine consumption causes “no substantial increase in the risk of coronary hear disease or stroke” [3]. Also, a study on the effect of filtered coffee consumption on plasma lipid levels was published in 1992. Scientists concluded that coffee consumption actually led to a small increase in the level of HDL or high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, which is believed to protect against and lower the risk of heart disease [1]. Therefore, a moderate caffeine consumption of about 400 mg per day does not associate with cardiovascular effects.
MYTH: Caffeine causes cancer:
FACT: The relationship between caffeine consumption and risk of cancer has been studied, but no associations have been discovered or supported by research.
MYTH: Caffeine is a risk factor for osteoporosis:
FACT: Some studies suggest that the intake of caffeine increase calcium loss in urine. However, this loss has been found to be very minimal and normal levels of caffeine consumption does not significantly affect calcium balance or bone density [4]. In 1994, NIH convened a pane at the Consensus Development Conference on Optimal Calcium Intake. The panel found that caffeine did not affect calcium adsorption or excretion significantly, and any effect was shown to be more than adequately offset by a tablespoon or two of milk [5]. Most coffee drinkers add a milk product to their drink, which can easily offset any negative effects.
MYTH: Caffeine stunts your growth:
FACT: Many parents told their children when they were young that they shouldn’t drink coffee because it would stunt your growth. Well, this is just not true. When coffee or caffeine drinkers were followed over time in different studies, they did not show any effects on their bone growth. Scientific studies do not support this myth. Studies did show a slight limi in how well the gut absorbed calcium, but the studies also showed that the body compensates easily for this change in calcium absorption. How does the body do this? The body decreasing how much calcium it gets ride of in your urine in a 24 hour period. The very slight affect, can be overcome by a tablespoon or two of daily. Some people say that coffee or caffeine drinkers have a lower intake of dairy, but this is a far stretch in claiming that coffee or caffeine stunts your growth.
A study of 81 girls 12 to 18 years old researched the caffeine effect of total body bone mineral gain and hipbone density of a six-year period. The groups ranged from taking 25mg of caffeine per day to greater than 50mg per day. This study found no significant differences in the groups with respect to bone health or growth.
Caffeine is a common drug used in neonatal care when premature babies are cared for. It is used to stimulate them and help with their breathing when their brains are immature. If caffeine really did stunt growth, it would not be used in neonatal care [6].
MYTH: Children are more sensitive to caffeine than adults.
FACT: Children, including ones diagnosed as hyperactive, are no more sensitive to the effects of caffeine than adults [2]. The behavior effects of caffeine in children were examined through 82 published papers, and the results showed that children, not including infants, metabolize caffeine more rapidly than adults, and children in general consume less caffeine than adults. Although there seems to be little solid evidence that children are a risk of negative effects of caffeine, Health Canada recommends that daily intake by children should be limited to 2.5mg/kg body weight [7].