Are you suffering from malnutrition and don’t even realize it?

You might have read this title and thought  “there’s no way this applies to me.  I eat healthy, I take a multivitamin.”    Most people that come to see me are on some sort of vitamin, mineral or other type of supplement.  And they feel that this is helping to make them healthier.  These days the food industry even fortifies our foods with vitamins and minerals by adding them into frequently consumed foods like breads, milk, etc. 

So given all of these wonderful technologies we have in place how is it possible that you could be suffering from malnutrition?  The problem in North America is rarely that a person isn’t consuming enough vitamins and minerals the problem is that most people in North America are not properly digesting and absorbing their nutrients.  There is a very good chance that you’re wasting your money on your multivitamins and other supplements because you’re not absorbing most of them into your body so your body can’t actually use the vitamins and minerals you’re supplying it with.

Most people these days have digestive dysfunction believe it or not.  A lot are getting pretty significant symptoms and think that they are “normal” because so many people these days are experiencing them.  Unfortunately this day and age what is typical is far from “normal.”  If you’re experiencing any of the following you’re probably suffering from digestive issues: bloating, gas, belching after meals, stomach pain, cramping, getting sick once or more a year, not having 1-3 bowel movements per day, having bowel movements that have a strong odour, frequent headaches, and indigestion/heartburn.  There are many more symptoms that can result from having digestive issues as well; these are just the most common.

If you’re having digestive problems depending on the type of digestive dysfunction that are occurring you will probably not be able to absorb the nutrients properly from your supplements.  Some of the most common digestive issues are hypochlorhydria (too little stomach acid), leaky gut syndrome (your small intestines don’t properly absorb food), parasite infection and bacterial imbalances.  All of these can create an environment in your gut that can be preventing you from being able to get the bang for your buck from the supplements you’re taking. 

Step one is to work on your foundational principles. 

1.        Make sure you’re not eating any processed food (read ingredient list, if you don’t recognize and ingredient don’t eat it!). 

2.       Make sure you’re eating lots of raw foods (fruits and veggies that are uncooked).

3.       Make sure you’re drinking enough water (1/2 an ounce of water for every pound of body weight).  And I do mean water, not processed beverages, not vitamin water, not coffee or tea.......water!

These are the first step to begging the repair process of your gut function.  The next step is to identify what digestive issues could be creating your problems.  We can help you with this step, shoot us an email at info@peak-personaltraining.com to find out how we can help you.  And finally you have to fix that dysfunction to make sure that your body is actually able to get the nutrients it needs.   This is typically done through nutrition and lifestyle change, exercise change, and intelligent supplementation.

The important lesson for today.......you can’t just take a “magic” pill or shake to get health, you have to make sure your body is actually functioning properly.