Wellness: Nutrient Intake

Environmental influences detrimental to health

• Chemicals, environmental toxins, smoke and fumes all increase our antioxidant needs. Equally, some can impair our ability to absorb and utilise essential nutrients.
• The use of antibiotics has led to widespread probiotic imbalances in our intestines and impaired synthesis of B vitamins and vitamin K, along with decreased uptake of minerals and trace minerals. You have only to look at the physiological activity of probiotics to realise how detrimental to health an imbalance would be. They Support the production of B vitamins, vitamin K and biotin, promote mineral absorption, support carbohydrate and protein absorption, aid metabolism and the breakdown of toxins, maintain appropriate bowel transit time, support the immune system, produce lactic acid for support of digestive processes and colonic pH balance and maintain serum lipid and blood pressure levels within the healthy range.

One of the biggest influences on the Nutrition Gap (and hence hidden hunger) is the shift of foods we consume:

60 years ago our diets were primarily plant based. Now they are primarily animal based.

Antioxidant Comparison of Plant and Animal Foods

The table above illustrates the difference in nutrient intake between these two types of diet.