Vitamin Supplements and Your Health - What You Must Know Right Now!

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The phrase vitamin supplement is almost synonymous with dietary supplement. The category of vitamin supplements encompasses all supplements whether it is a weight loss, protein, herbal, mineral, or vitamin.

A subset of protein supplements, bodybuilding supplements are believed to aid in the growth of lean muscle tissue. These include individual amino acids, like glutamine, branch chain amino acids (BCAA), and complex protein compounds. While some evidence exists that confirm these substances do increase lean muscle tissue, many people debate whether the effectiveness is worth the price.

As with any nutritional supplement, “you don’t get what you don’t pay for.” Meaning, quality products yield more results and are more expensive. But don’t be penny-wise and pound-foolish, cheap or discounted bodybuilding supplements are almost always a waste of time and money.

The weight loss industry in the United States is a multi-billion (if not trillion) dollar industry. Whether the supplement is designed to speed up your metabolism or magically melt off the pounds while you sleep, major money is spent on substances marketed as help to shed those unwanted pounds. Many of the most popular weight-loss products come from herbal and other plant extracts. Standardized herbal extracts can make the task of product formulation much more effective. Choose a product using these extracts and not plant material. This ensures you will receive an efficacious amount of the active ingredient.

If you are one of the many who cannot swallow pills, for whatever reason, then a liquid version of a vitamin and mineral supplement is perfect for you. Look for a quality supplement, as mentioned above, and use it. Do not let your inability to swallow pills keep you from taking in the necessary nutrients. Most liquid supplements are readily absorbed as well, so even the hardiest of “pill-poppers” can benefit from liquid vitamins.

Many times choosing a multi-vitamin and mineral is often the most convenient way to get your necessary amount of nutrients. One dose is much easier to remember to take than many pills throughout the day.

Because you are reading this you probably believe in having a healthy balanced diet. Meal planning is crucial to know how much to consume, whether it is organic produce, or vitamins and nutritional supplements. There are many excellent meal planning tools available, some online. Look for one that uses scientifically researched and accurate food nutrient information, like the USDA Food Nutrient Database. Visit The Nutrition Guru! to see a demo of an excellent planner.

J. Lance Curtis is editor and contributor to The Nutrition Guru! Discover how vitamin and mineral supplements can improve your health by visiting The Nutrition Guru! - Vitamins Supplements

An Overview of Unintended Weight Loss and Cachexia

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Unintended weight loss involving depletion of a person’s fat tissue and skeletal muscle mass is sometimes related to a condition called unintended weight loss and Cachexia. Unintended weight loss and Cachexia is a separate disease from intended or explained weight loss associated with eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa.

Unintended weight loss and cachexia as specific diseases have been recognized for two decades within the medical community and by numerous United States government health agencies. The Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services excludes appetite stimulants for cosmetic weight gain from the Medicare Part D prescription benefit, however, it does not exclude drugs “to improve your appetite and gain weight due to a long-term disease such as cancer, AIDs, heart failure, or lung, kidney, or liver disease. CMS also includes drugs for AIDS wasting or cachexia. There are also several drugs approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in the management of unintended weight loss and cachexia separate from the appetite stimulants.

There are numerous adverse health outcomes caused by unintended weight loss and cachexia. These include:

• Increase in mortality rate. Causes are likely multifactorial and may include systemic dysregulation of metabolism, increased resting energy expenditure and immune changes, notably increased activity of proinflammatory cytokines.

Causes of unintended weight loss and cachexia and the differences from other weight loss are:

• The two main factors are felt to be altered metabolism and inadequate energy intake

An altered metabolism is likely the result of a reduction of various anabolic factors such as insulin, testosterone, growth hormone, and an increase in various catabolic factors such as glucagons, cortisol, proinflammatory cytokines, eicosanoids, proteolysis-inducing factor, cholecystokinin.

Inadequate energy intake may be due to psychosocial and other factors, which include:

• Lack of access to adequate foods
• Cognitive dysfunction
• Medications that cause nausea or vomiting
• Impediments such as diarrhea, loss of teeth, and oral lesions

The unintended nature of losing weight is what differentiates wasting and cachexia from intended or explainable weight loss as seen in starvation, anorexia nervosa, acute self-limiting illnesses or intestinal malabsorption.

During the process of malnutrition in unintended weight loss and cachexia, energy is preferentially provided by protein. This is caused by a breakdown of body cell mass contained in skeletal muscle and other protein-containing tissues. There is a disproportionate loss of body cell mass relative to body weight and body fat. This pattern is in contrast with the pattern of weight loss seen in starvation, where body fat is depleted in an effort to spare protein stores.

Persons with AIDS, cancer, various other chronic diseases and older people are at risk for significant clinical problems which include:

• Accelerated disease progression
• Loss of muscle protein mass
• Impairment of strength and functional status
• Diminished immune function
• Shortened survival
• Opportunistic infections
• Decreased tolerance of other therapies
• Increased utilization of healthcare resources
• Reduced quality of life

Treatment options include:

• Primary treatment goal of unintended weight loss and cachexia is to stop or slow down the loss of body cell mass and body weight
• Correction of immediate causes of cachexia includes treating of opportunistic infections, diarrhea, malignancies and mood disorders. These treatments should be started immediately.
• Early intervention that includes nutrition and exercise is generally viewed as the best prevention of unintended weight loss and cachexia, however, early intervention is often inadequate.
• Drug therapy to treat wasting and cachexia is usually necessary.
• The FDA has approved several drugs for the treatment of the specific disease states of unintended weight loss cachexia.

In conclusion, unintended weight loss and cachexia are serious conditions that can lead to mortality especially in patients with various chronic conditions. These diseases are recognized as a medical disorder by multiple medical and governmental agencies. There are several therapeutic options to treat unintended weight loss and cachexia. Such therapies are not excluded from the Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit as agents used for weight gain or for cosmetic purposes.

Source: The American Dietetic Association (November 2005)

Disclaimer: *These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. The information in this article is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. All health concerns should be addressed by a qualified health care professional.

Author: Connie Limon. Please visit our collection of Nutrition and Health Articles at http://nutritionandhealthhub.com/ Articles are FREE as reprints to your newsletters, website or blog. Please sign up for our weekly nutrition and health tips.

What is Bioperine and How Does it Help Weight Loss?

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Take a look at the label on your bottle of diet pills, and you might find the ingredient bioperine listed. While not as known an ingredient as hoodia for appetite suppression or guarana for speeding the metabolism, most weight loss companies are finding that bioperine offers essential aid to dieters when taken in supplement form.

But what is bioperine, and how does it help one lose weight?

Simply put, bioperine is an extract of pepper. That's right. Bioperine comes from black pepper and special long peppers harvested in southeast Asia. In this extracted form the bioperine is its most potent.

While shopping for weight loss aids, you may have noticed some supplements include some form or another of a pepper extract. This is because peppers have been found to better assist the absorption of essential vitamins and minerals into the blood. Pepper extracts are enhancers, in effect, and in the case of bioperine it is believed to increase the potency of other ingredients contained in diet pills, like amino acids and antioxidants.

Given this, it has also been found that bioperine aids in increased metabolism, which is helpful in burning fat. As for its role as a bioavailability enhancer, tests on bioperine have shown that the extract can increase the potency of beta carotene and vitamin C, among other essential nutrients.

As for side effects, there are no dramatic risks attributed to the use bioperine. However, anybody considering taking diet supplements to lose weight may be subject to various side effects associated with other ingredients. It is always helpful to consult a physician before taking any weight loss aid, regardless of whether or not they contain bioperine.

Kathryn Lively is a freelance health writer who contributes to Physedge diet supplements and to Compuslim, the custom fit weight loss program for busy lifestyles.