NUTRITION SUPPLEMENTS: AN ELIMINATION DIET SHOULD TAKE A NUTRITIONAL SUPPLEMENT
Doctors who are concerned about possible nutritional defects suggest that anyone embarking on an elimination diet should take a nutritional supplement. They argue that many are likely to have deficiencies anyway, especially if they number diarrhoea among their symptoms, and that the restrictions of the elimination diet will only make the situation worse. Such doctors also recommend a special type of nutritional supplement to anyone coming off the Pill -and certainly to anyone staying on it. It is quite easy to overdo things with both vitamins and minerals, particularly with the fat-soluble vitamins, A and D, because these are stored by the body if taken in excess – water-soluble vitamins such as vitamin C can be washed out of the body in the urine. So grabbing a handful of ordinary vitamin pills is not the answer – they can be dangerous if the body already has an excess of vitamin A.
Ideally, anyone who is concerned about their nutritional status should have a full analysis done, so that a supplement can be tailored to their specific needs. Unfortunately, testing itself is a contentious issue. The traditional method of just testing a blood sample is now considered inadequate by many doctors. It appears that some nutrients – zinc for example – can be deficient as a whole but show normal levels in the blood. The suggestion is that the blood ‘needs’ the mineral more than other parts of the body, so there are mechanisms that ensure a good supply, scavenging the mineral from other tissues to keep the blood level high. A more extensive method of testing, using hair and sweat samples, as well as blood, often shows up nutritional defects that are not revealed by the blood alone. This form of testing seems to be vindicated by the results in individual cases – correcting the deficiencies shown by hair or sweat tests often does wonders for patients with previously intractable health problems. This Ts not hard, scientific evidence of course, and some carefully designed trials are needed to test these new approaches to nutrition.
In the meantime, what can be advised? Extensive nutritional testing is only available privately, but for those who can afford it there is little to lose, and. For anyone corning off the Pill, a special supplement is probably advisable.
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