Patients who are new to our clinic are often surprised to see that we sell vitamins (we refer to them as supplements) in all our offices. Well, we feel that supplements are an excellent natural treatment.
Here is why…
Believe it or not, there are many symptoms that can manifest due to vitamin or mineral deficiencies. For example, patients who are constantly tired can benefit from supplementing their diet with a B-Vitamin complex. There are many B-Complexes to choose from, but we would like to add that all vitamins are not created equal.
In general, the vitamins found in your local drugstore or grocery store are not high quality. These are not strong enough to raise blood levels of B vitamins and are not even in the correct form for your body to absorb them. The fastest way to check to see if you are taking the correct form is by looking at the Vitamin B12 in the complex. You want your B12 to be in the form of Methylcobalamin.
However, most drugstore vitamins are going to be in the cheaper to manufacture form of Cyanocobalamin. The good news, however, is that you cannot overdose on B vitamins. They are water soluble, so any excess that your body does not use is simply eliminated in your urine.
Another typical symptom that we see is inflammation. Inflammation can be pain in joints, muscles, or many other areas. One typical deficiency that can add to inflammation is Vitamin D deficiency. Most people know Vitamin D as the “sunshine vitamin”. In reality, almost all of the population is deficient in Vitamin D.
Most of us work indoors and do not spend time outdoors without sunscreen or clothing that covers our skin. In order to produce Vitamin D, the body requires regular exposure of the trunk (or mid-section of the body) each day…so, you would have to spend time outside in a bikini without sunscreen.
Supplementing Vitamin D can bring down levels of inflammation all over the body. However, to reiterate, you must have a high-quality D supplement in the correct form for your body to absorb it. Vitamin D is an oil-soluble vitamin, which means that you must have your blood levels monitored by a doctor to ensure your levels do not get too high.
Next in the lineup of symptoms is muscle cramps and restless legs. We have patients that complain of muscle cramps during the day, and of course those who experience this at night. Sometimes these muscle cramps and restless legs are due to a deficiency in Magnesium. Magnesium is important for many functions in the body and helps with bone and teeth structure.
What most people do not realize is that Magnesium is a smooth-muscle relaxer. Meaning that by taking Magnesium you may be able to eliminate muscle cramps and restless leg issues. Magnesium comes in multiple forms as well. The Magnesium we are referring to here is di-magnesium malate. If you are experiencing muscle cramps, you can try Magnesium supplementation.
The list of symptoms from vitamin and mineral deficiencies go on and on. Most of our patients have some type of deficiency because let’s face it…no one eats perfect 100% of the time. If you think you might have a deficiency, feel free to contact our office and arrange for testing.
If you are an established patient, just ask at your next visit about testing your vitamin levels. If you decide to take a supplement, we recommend high-quality, pharmaceutical grade supplements like the ones we carry in our office.
