NADH for Depression – and what you can do about it

The following  short article is translated with a number of amendments from a post by Jorg Birkmayer, Professor Of Medicine at the University of Vienna talking about the wonderful natural substance NADH for depression..

Sleeplessness, low energy, inability to concentrate, anxiety, are the main symptoms of depression. In Germany more than 8 million people suffer from depression. The tendency is increasing. There is
enormous damage to the economy of any country caused by depression.

Depression occurs due to of lack of energy in the brain due to high level of work demands and certain medications like cholesterol drugs, beta blocker, antibiotics, antidepressants, sex hormones etc.

Any of these medications can instigate depression. Due to lack of energy in the brain, important neurotransmitters, like adrenalin, serotonin, and dopamine are not produced in the necessary quantity. People feel ‘burned out’. Therefore, burnt-out-syndrome is considered the precursor for depression. The batteries are empty and need to be recharged. The question is: how can we do this?

The brain consumes one-third of all the energy produced by our body. Therefore, an energy deficiency is first detected in the brain. Attention deficit, weaknesses in focusing, and prolonged reaction times are all caused by too little ATP in the brain. A long term energy deficiency in the brain leads to a shortage of the neurotransmitters, noradrenaline, dopamine, and serotonin. If this condition persists for a long period of time, symptoms of depression such as loss of drive, sleep disturbances, hypochondria, and anxiety will develop. NADH stimulates the biosynthesis of these neurotransmitters.

NADH is a substance that is produced by the body and is the secret of our life energy. This substance is available as a food supplement for everybody whoever is in need of energy.  Example include athletes, older people, people with chronic fatigue, travelers wishing to alleviate jet-lag, those who need to improve mental concentration.

Taking NADH for depression & energy

1-2 tablets per day is usually sufficient to do the trick in those who respond well to this nutrient. It must be taken under the tongue (sublingually) and allowed to dissolve there, otherwise it won’t work.  In other words, do not chew or swallow it. This dosage often works extremely well for chronic fatigue, or any other form of energy loss, and supports the adenal glands

You can purchase and learn more about NADH here

As the years begin to take their toll, many of us become resigned to watching our minds and bodies begin to fail. But it doesn’t have to be that way. None of us is immortal, but there are still plenty of ways we can take care of ourselves and keep functioning well into old age.

Over time, we begin to stop producing the crucial hormones and chemicals that keep everything in perfect balance, while toxins build up in our systems. Our bodies, tough as they are, begin to deteriorate – bones become creaky, thinking becomes foggy and skin loses its elasticity. However, by keeping ourselves in good working condition, we can delay the onset of many of these signs of aging and supplement what we can no longer produce on our own. We’re not talking about drastic measures like HRT here – just simple ways to maintain your health throughout the years.

The first is exercise, which might seem like a no-brainer – we all know that staying active is good for us. It becomes even more important as the twilight years approach; as the saying goes, “use it or lose it”. As well as keeping your bones and muscles in good condition, it ensures that oxygen levels in your blood remain high so that every part of you gets the energy it needs. Exercise keeps stress and anxiety levels low and can help to stave off age-related illnesses like Parkinson’s, as well as relieving the insomnia that many of us encounter later in life. It doesn’t have to be strenuous – as long as it gets you off the couch.We recommend supplementing this with an oxygenating product like OxyLift, which provides not just oxygen and a detoxifying effect but also essential trace minerals, enzymes,and amino acids.

However, our CEO Mark Lester’ssingle favourite anti-aging product is actually NADH, also known as Co-Enzyme 1. It has a multitude of applications including heart health, immune health, and boosting memory, and the Finchley Clinic sells the only authentic sublingual NADH on the market, directly from the developer.And you could do worse than a daily dose of good old Vitamin C. It’s not just for preventing coughs and colds – it actually has strong anti-aging effects.

Diet goes hand-in-hand with exercise as a basic way to keep the system functioning. Your nutritional needs change as you age, in particular your need for more vitamins, antioxidants and fatty acids. You’re also less able to process things like sugar, alcohol and unnatural toxins after several decades, and you might find that a binge hits you harder the next day than it used to. Listen to your body when it tells you that you’re not as young as you were, and treat it gently.

Your diet and activity levels are personal, and you don’t need to share them with anyone besides your doctor. But no matter how private you are, your habits will still show up for all to see – on your face. Skin is the proverbial coal-mine canary when it comes to your health, since it’s one of the body’s major ways to get rid of toxins as well as the barrier between your body and the outside world. If you are dehydrated, deficient in something vital or catching too many UV rays, your first clue could be your fine lines, wrinkles, under-eye bags and blemishes.

While some of these are useful indicators of health, they can also be depressing reminders of mortality, and it’s just as important for us to feel good about our outward appearances at 60 as it is at 16. Your best defence is a good moisturising lotion, to replenish the loss of oil and moisture that causes our skin to become dry and saggy as we age. We recommend MSM Cream Light, a lotion that includes aloe vera, nut oils and vitamin E as well as dimethyl sulfone (MSM), a sulphur compound that helps to keep your soft tissues flexible at the cellular level. To keep skin oxygenated, we love Aquaspirit, an easy-to-useanti-agingliquidthat you can use as a pick-me-up whenever you like. Lastly, don’t underestimate the importance of sunscreen! Long-term sun protection is often the most important key to maintaining youthful skin.

Plenty of people stay hale and strong well into their 90s and beyond, so there’s no reason to give up on your health when grey hairs begin to appear. In fact, if you’ve been neglecting your body up until now, there’s no time like the present to turn things around!

Here’s a quick exercise for you: how much sugar have you eaten today? Perhaps you only counted a teaspoonful in your morning cup of tea, but have another think. The bacon sandwich you had for breakfast? Chances are there was sugar in that commercially-produced “healthy” wholemeal bread, and you copped an extra whack if you slathered it in HP sauce at 3.5g of sugar per serving. Salad and an energy drink for lunch? One can of Red Bull contains a ridiculous 27g of sugar;if you had dressing on your salad, you may have bumped the sugar still higher. Got peckish around 4 o’clock and had a cereal bar? Whoops – they can contain up to 18g of combined natural and added sugars. Adds up fast, doesn’t it?

To put that into perspective, current WHO guidelines recommend limiting your daily intake of added sugar to38g (nine teaspoons) for men and 25g (six teaspoons) for women: that means that just that one can of Red Bull either puts you over the limit or pushes you close to it. Not to mention that that recommendation is a maximum: you’d be better served by staying well below it!

Of course, by now most of us are aware of the sugar content of sweet drinks, confectionery and so on.What we need to look out for is the hidden added sugar in foods we think are healthy. Processed food labelled with things like “low-fat”, “high-fibre” and “whole grain” encourages us to think we’re making good food choices, but we often miss the secret buried in the nutritional information: extra sugar, under a variety of unfamiliar names, added to make this “healthy” food just as tempting to our sugar-junkie tastebuds.

You might not think your sugar intake is particularly important if you’re not actively trying to lose weight or manage a health condition like diabetes. However, research has shown that excessive sugar can have serious health repercussions beyond the well-known issues of obesity and insulin resistance. We know that yeast, or candida, feeds on sugar; a diet high in sugar encourages the growth of candida in your gut, crowding out beneficial bacteria and affecting not just gut function, but mental function too. Studies have found links between sugar and a loss of cognitive ability: in a 2012 study at UCLA, rats that were given fructose syrup in their drinking water found it much more difficult to remember their way out of a maze than the sugar-free control rats. Their brain cells were slower to signal to each other and they showed far less brain activity – after just six weeks of consuming more sugar than they should.

Quitting sugar can be as difficult an undertaking as quitting smoking; sometimes harder, since we’re bombarded with ads and smells from all sides. Sugar is absolutely an addictive substance: it sparks opioid receptors in your brain, making you feel good and crave more.Your gut bacteria also adjusts over time to fit your diet, so when you change it, your body will protest. You can ease the transition with natural sugar-free sweeteners like Xylitol: a corn-free sweetener that can actually have anti-candida effects.

Some people prefer to cut out sweeteners completely and get their tastebuds acclimatised to the natural flavours of whole foods. It’s true that making the switch from processed to whole, organic food is one of the best things you can do for your health. Things will taste bland at first, but plenty of people who make this change report that after a few weeks of avoiding added sugar, they find they can no longer tolerate the saccharine taste of the treats they used to love – and appreciate the natural sweetness of a piece of fruit so much more. In the meantime, you can try kicking your cravings with Nutrisorb Chromium, which helps you to control your blood sugar, cholesterol, weight and mental state. It’s a big help toanyone working towards a healthier lifestyle.We also recommend Sucroguard for help with balancing your blood sugar while you adjust your diet.

We’ll end this with the happy news that other tricks to break your sugar habit include exercise, black coffee and weirdly enough, sour flavours. Why is that so great? Because sour fermented vegetables like sauerkraut are also excellent sources of probiotics! How’s that for a two-for-one deal?

Reference:

‘Metabolic syndrome’ in the brain: deficiency in omega-3 fatty acid exacerbates dysfunctions in insulin receptor signalling and cognition. J Physiol. 2012 May 1;590(Pt 10):2485-99.

Click here to see the new and remaining items in our Autumn Sale – Up to 75% off!

Now, my amazing Thyroid and Candida article (I would say that admittedly, since I am writing it)

In the seminal article “Conquerig Candida”, Sherridan L. Stock stated his opinion / observation that 90% of candida victims have low thyroid function, and many thyroid deficiency symptoms, are also typical candida overgrowth symptoms. Candida in fact binds thyroxine (the main thyroid hormone) and thus renders it ineffective. So there is the obvious connection between candida and thyroid problems.

The thyroid is a small but very critical gland found roughly in the centre of the throat. It has a number of functions, the most important of which is that it is responsible for regulating metabolism and energy levels in the body. 

Poor thyroid function is known as hypothyroidism is an extremely common condition. (The opposite condition, hyperthyroidism, is much rarer, and a separate subject altogether). Apart from potentially causing the most well known symptoms of fatigue, weight gain, (though 40% of hypothyroid subjects are underweight), constipation, hair loss, and sensitivity to the cold, it ensures that almost every system in the body is at a low ebb.

A more complete list of possible thyroid deficiency symptoms:

More common in females than males, the list of possible symptoms include (but are not limited to) weight gain, heat and / or cold intolerance, headaches and migraines, dry skin, dry hair, brittle hair, lifeless hair, lacklustre hair, coarse hair, slow growing hair, hair loss, loss of curl, premature greyness, excessive hair fall (especially in Autumn), sparse eyebrows (especially outer third), low motivation and ambition, irritability, anxiety and panic attacks, depression, fluid retention, decreased memory and concentration, unhealthy nails, brittle nails, low sex drive, insomnia, hives, asthma, allergies, slow healing, acne, or carpal tunnel syndrome, female problems (fibroids, ovarian cysts, endometriosis, PMS, cramps, dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea, spontaneous abortion, cyclic seizures, dry vagina and infertility), weight problems (usually high, sometimes low), gallbladder disease (six times higher in women with excess estrogen or on birth control pills or E RT), low blood sugar, attention deficit disorder (ADD), adrenal exhaustion from excess secretion of adrenaline, and osteoporosis (from excess estrogen leading to excess adrenaline and then to excess cortisol). Intestinal symptoms include poor appetite; irritable bowel syndrome, dysphagia; poor digestion (low acid and pancreatic enzymes, decreased gall bladder motility); nutrient malabsorption; gas and wind; colic; decreased peristalsis; constipation; pancreatitis (from hypothermia). In his superb book “The Great Thyroid Scandal”, Dr Barry Durrant-Peatfield claims about about one third of all cases of depression are simply undiagnosed thyroid problems or adrenal gland problems which are causing thyroid problems, as well as a huge proportion of chronic fatigue cases. 

Diagnosis.

Conventional diagnsis normally comes from blood tests. But according to experts such as Dr Barry Durrant-Peatfield, blood tests are notoriously poor at picking up hypothyroidism, and it is recommended that the Barnes Temperature Test be used wherever there is a possible thyroid concern. You can ‘google’ this test for yourself separately after reading this newsletter. Dr Durrant-Peatfield is also a fan of differential diagnosis (diagnosis based on signs and symptoms) where all roads seem to point in the same direction, regardless of the outcome of testing. We cannot ‘recommend’ or advise against this ourselves as this would be practising medicine without a licence. But the law does allow us to mention that this is what some health care professionals do.

Treatment

Conventional treatment involves giving patients the hormone thyroxine, which is an effective but not terribly natural approach, which does not restore thyroid function.

Kelp Formula for thyroid maintenance

Right now, we have an amazing deal on our core botanical product for thyroid health – Kelp Formula. This is a a polyherbal product containing 7 herbs that help maintain thyroid functuion. (Under EU law we cannot use terms such as “heal or improve” as these would be illegal health claims, but we know that it’s a great product).

Our suppliers last batch was accidentally formulated with one herb within the formula with a short expiry date (02/16) meaning that legally the entire product has to be be given the expiry date of 02/16. Result: they are selling them to us at half price, when it wasnt an especially expensive product to begin with.At the time of writing we have around 25 bottles in stock but we can get quite a lot more if our stocks do run out – probably enough for whatever demand we get after this newsletter.

Usual price £13.99
Current price £6.99 – while stocks last

And as always there are volume discount on more than one bottle, and reward points on every sale, making it an even better deal. This is a unique and probably one-off opportunity to give your thyroid a hand incredibly inexpensively until stocks run out.

How good is the product?

Obviously there is no product on the planet that works for all the people, all of the time. But we’ve been selling it for a long time, and although it’s never been a top seller for us, we think its an excellant product. We have to be careful here, as we almost everything we want to say boarders potentially being construed as an illegal health claim, but we have had what doctors call ‘anecdotal’ reports of significant improvements in energy, vitality, weight loss, improved sense of general well-being and all typical symptoms associated with a possible thyroid concern within anything from around 2-12 weeks (sorry to annoy you, but people do not all respond at the same speed).

Can it ever be harmful?

Not to the best of our knowledge (or experience) based on the label dosage. However theoretically it could be if you are unlucky enough to be allergic to one of the ingredients, which could theoretically occur with any ingredient in any food or food supplement if you happen to be allergic to that ingredient / herb / nutrient / substance etc.  Also, please see the legal note below.

What else can help?

Kelp Formula works very nicely all by itself. But in fairness, the results can often be further improved by combining it with Thyroid Suppot Formula or TH207. These products supply the core nutrients that the body needs for ideal thyroid function, whilst Kelp Formula provides what we believe are the most beneficial herbs legally available. There is more detailed information, full list of ingredients etc on Kelp Formula on the main product page.

Other things that might help

• Treat your candida
• Support your adrenals

(These subjects have been covered in previous newsletters in the past, and will be again in the future).

Legal note:

As far as we are aware, these products can be used alongside conventional medications – at least we have never had any bad reports from any customers who have done this – and there have been quite a few. But do not stop or reduce any conventional medications such as thyroxine or any other thyroid medicines if you are already being treated medically for low thyroid without discussion and the approval of your doctor. Also, do not take these products if you have an over active thyroid (which is a much rarer condition) without discussion and the approval of your doctor. Do not take these (or for that matter any other) products if there is any doubt for any other reason whether you should take them without discussion with your doctor. We are able to give naturopathic and nutritional advice, but we are not allowed legally to give medical advice, and you need to consult with your doctor for this.

Well, that’s it for now but remember we alsio have up to 75% off a number of products in our ongoing Autumn Sale!

Mark G. Lester
Company Director

New research has emerged from California’s McMaster University which links gut bacteria populations to symptoms of stress, depression and anxiety. It supports something we have seen time and again at the Finchley Clinic: that a healthy gut contributes not only to better digestion but to an overall higher quality of life.

Now, as studies go, this one is still small-scale, but it does show for the first time that gut bacteria play an active role in causing depressive behaviour and anxiety. The researchers exposed one population of infant mice to normal bacteria; the other group was grown in a sterile environment. They then induced stress in the mice by temporarily separating them from their mothers, and watched to see the results. The mice exposed to ordinary bacteria levels, with normal populations of gut flora, soon began to show signs of depression with increased levels of corticosterone – a stress hormone. But the group who grew up free from harmful bacteria, though they also had elevated levels of corticosterone, showed no signs of altered behavior: they behaved just like the mice in the control group, who were neither stressed nor kept sterile.

Interestingly, when the germ-free mice were exposed to normal levels of bacteria, allowing them to develop a more complex gut microbiome, they began to show signs of depression just as the other stressed mice had done. This was a further indication that it was the mice’s gut bacteria causing them to either succumb to negative stimuli or “stay positive”.

This phenomenon has been studied several times in the past, with a focus on the benefits of probiotics. We don’t know exactly what it is about the gut that links it to the mind, but it’s well known that the two are closely related: stress-induced gut problems are very common. It does make sense that improving the gut environment would have a knock-on effect on psychological health.

Of course, we as human beings can’t replicate the sterile conditions used in the study – but what we can do is look after our bowels and keep them clean. Every day we expose them to bacteria and toxins from the water we swallow and the food we ingest; diets high in sugar can encourage harmful growths of candida; and waste can build up over the years and prevent our intestines from functioning at their peak.

This is why we encourage the use of a good probiotic as well as oxygen cleansing to maintain healthy bowels. Cleansing is intended to loosen any waste buildup and expel it from your system. The oxygen also creates an environment that promotes the growth of the healthy aerobic bacteria that help you digest your food, while making it hard for anaerobic yeast to grow. We’ve already heard from plenty of happy customers who say they’ve seen improvements in their mental state with the use of products like Oxy-Powder, Threelac and Oxygen Elements Max; and of course we have the testimony of our owner Mark Lester to go on.

We hope to see more from the team at McMaster University. It seems they’re on the right track!

Summer is almost here, which means many of us will soon be jetting off to places unknown. Travel comes with its own unique set of health risks, from unfamiliar foods to contaminated water – not to mention fatigue, jet lag, travel sickness and sunburn. You might even find yourself struck down by stress-induced “holiday flu” the minute you start to relax. After forking out for a holiday and waiting for months, we all want to get the most out of our holidays that we can, and that starts with looking after our health.

En route: Travel sickness can be easily dealt with using ginger, a natural nausea remedy beloved by expecting mothers and other sufferers of queasiness for centuries. If your butterflies have more to do with anxiety than motion, consider a calming dose of theanine, an amino acid found in green tea which promotes relaxation by stimulating alpha-type brainwaves. It encourages an alert but calm state of mind – essential for keeping track of everything during a long journey – and it’s safe to use for kids who might be over-excited or anxious. Once you arrive, the jetlag will start to set in. Some choose to power through it, others choose to nap; but to give your brain a helping hand, try a supplement of 5-HTP. This amino acid is produced naturally by your body just before melatonin, the hormone that regulates your sleep cycle. Obviously anyone on holiday looks forward to sleeping in, but getting solid, healthy sleep is essential as your body adjusts to a new environment.

“Holiday belly”: Even if the water at your destination is safe for the locals to drink, you might still find yourself in a spot of tummy trouble. Unfamiliar bacteria can play havoc with your guts, competing with your usual bacteria population and causing nausea, vomiting and diarrhoea accompanied by dehydration. Bolster your gut flora before you leave with probioticslike Saccharomyces boulardii – a key ingredient in Opti-Bac Probiotics for travelling abroad that’s well known for its effectiveness against holiday sickness,. For the best protection, combine it with an antifungal like grapefruit seed extract, to combat candida overgrowth and lessen the impact of foreign bacteria on your digestive system. Bio-Kult Candea contains seven kinds of probiotic as well as grapefruit seed extract; it also contains garlic to boost your immune system. Keep taking probiotics and antifungals all the way up to and during your holiday to keep your system strong – we recommend long or continuous courses of these supplements in any case for best results. If you do end up with a stomach bug, make sure you stick to bottled or boiled water and drink plenty of it to keep your fluids up.

The dreaded flu: We often tend to push ourselves hardest right before taking time off. It makes sense to get everything done so you don’t need to worry about work during your break – but that extra push combined with the build-up of months of fatigue takes a toll on your body. When you finally relax, your weakened immune system is open to all kinds of viruses and infections, resulting in a far less enjoyable vacation. Start building up your immune system long before you leave, with large doses of vitamin C and other essential vitamins. If you’re not already in the habit of taking a daily multivitamin, this is the perfect time to start. You can also load up your diet with vitamin-rich foods like garlic, onions, broccoli and citrus.

For extra protection, try beta glucans or propolis – they can help your immune system develop antibodies to fight off both fungal and microbial infections, while black elderberry extract attacks the viruses themselves to slow their replication rate. It’s also a source of powerful antioxidants, making it a great year-round supplement.

Beach-ready: We’ve come a long way from the days when a natural tan was considered healthy. Nowadays, we know skin cancer is a real danger and daily sun protection is our first line of defence. If you’re heading for the sun, a high-SPF sunscreen is absolutely essential – but sunscreen wears off, especially if you’re exercising or swimming, and it’s good to have some backup in case you forget to re-apply. Astaxanthin is a carotenoid, like beta carotene, which is extracted from the micro-algaeHaematoccus pluvialis. A daily dose of just 4mg can help to protect your skin from UV damage as well as fight the effects of free radicals as you age – you might see less sagging or wrinkling in your skin as a result. The effects of astaxanthin are usually best after ten weeks of use. Sunscreen, a hat and shade are still your best weapons against sun damage, but every little helps.

Finally, remember to stay hydrated. Long plane flights, beach days, alcohol and hotter climates can all contribute to dehydration and knock the fun out of your holiday. There’s no reason you can’t let loose on holiday – just keep in mind that your body is with you for life, not just those two weeks in Spain.

Vegan and vegetarian diets are experiencing something of a heyday at the moment. And with good reason: for the most part, humans don’t actually need to eat meat. We can easily absorb most of the protein and vitamins we need from plant-based sources, and a lot of us nowadays ingest far more fat and protein than we need to be healthy. That’s not to mention the huge toll that the meat, dairy and egg industries take on the environment or the accompanying animal rights issues.

But most of us have been brought up on diets that use animal products as the primary source of fat, protein, Vitamin B12 and calcium. Vegans and vegetarians must find replacements or risk developing serious health issues. Going vegan without learning how to eat properly is a recipe for vitamin deficiency, digestive problems, heart troubles and other nasty illnesses.

Protein is the main thing that tends to worry new vegans. Adult males need 56g of protein a day, while women need about 48g, according to the World Health Organisation. But as a vegan, not only have you lost meat as a protein source, but also dairy and eggs – what to do? It’s an easy fix if you think about it: cows and sheep get their protein from the nitrogen in their all-plant diet, and you can do the same. Most vegetables contain some protein already but for an easy fix, nuts and legumes are packed with it. If you have a nut allergy or just need that extra hit, hemp seeds are a fantastic source of protein, healthy fats and amino acids.

So that’s protein – how about calcium? We need it for healthy bones, teeth, heart function and muscles, and from the time we’re toddlers we learn that cow’s milk is the best way to get it – but that’s not exactly true. After all, not every human culture drinks milk, and in fact many of us are lactose intolerant: evidence that dairy consumption is completely unnecessary for a healthy diet. You can easily replace it in your diet with dark green vegetables, like broccoli, bok choy and collard greens – which are also rich in iron for a one-two nutritional punch.

One nutrient that often goes missing in vegan diets is vitamin B12. It hasn’t benefited from the PR that protein and calcium have, but it’s essential for brain function, red blood cell formation, cardiovascular health and DNA synthesis. Humans can’t produce their own and our usual dietary sources are meat, cheese and eggs, so as a vegan your options are fortified processed foodsor a good supplement. B12 fortified foods usually use synthetic cyanocobalamin, which is less well absorbed, so we recommend a vitamin B12 supplement from methylcobalamin. It’s the most absorbable form of vitamin B12, ensuring you don’t miss out on vital nutrients.

Lastly, probiotics – another dietary component you won’t notice until it’s gone. A good population of beneficial gut bacteria is essential for digestion as well as overall good health – as you’ll know if you’ve been reading this blog for any length of time. When you can no longer use yoghurt as a source of probiotics, there are plenty of alternatives. Unsurprisingly, many of them originated in Asia where dairy has historically not been a major part of the diet. Fermented foods are often high in friendly bacteria, from pickled vegetables like kimchi to fermented teas like kombucha and some fermented soy products. However, realistically, you won’t always get a good dose of probiotics through your everyday diet, and that’s fine – switching it up keeps life exciting.This is why we recommend a daily probiotic supplement to everyone, no matter what they eat.

Are you a vegan? How do you make sure you get everything you need from your diet? Let us know in the comments!

Some exciting research came to light recently that highlights the power of multivitamins. We’re firm believers in preventative dosages of vitamins and minerals here at the Finchley Clinic, and always have been. Many of us live on diets that don’t reach anywhere near the official recommendations for vitamin or mineral levels, and most people will consider a multivitamin only if they’re pregnant or feeling under the weather. But we believe that even the nationally recommended guidelines for vitamin dosage fall far short of the levels we truly need for optimal health.

A study published in The Journal of Nutrition in March 2015 followed almost 9,000 participants for close on twenty years to find out whether multivitamin usage contributed to a healthy heart. They found some interesting results: women who took multivitamin-mineral supplements for at least three years did indeed experience a 35% lower risk of dying from heart disease.

There are a few important keywords here. “Mineral” is one: only participants who took mineral supplements as well as vitamins received the benefits. So while vitamins are important, we can’t neglect the role of minerals in our diets. They work in tandem to keep us healthy, and one without the other is likely to be substantially less effective in filling the gaps in our nutrition.

The second thing to gain from this study is that participants had to take supplements over an extended period to receive the full benefits. We sell a lot of products to which this applies, including our ranges of oxygenation and ozonation products. We tell all our customers not to expect immediate results, but rather a gradually improved quality of life over a long course of the product. A multivitamin is not a magic quick fix and it’s not a medicine. It’s simply a way of giving your body the full range of nutrients it needs to function properly. If you got these nutrients through your diet, you’d be getting regular doses of them throughout your life – so why should a multivitamin be any different?

Several other studies have borne out the link between long-term supplementing of certain minerals and vitamins, and better overall health. The America Heart Journal found that every 20 µmol/L increase in plasma vitamin C levels was associated with a 9% decrease in deaths from heart disease. A US report by CRN found that supplementing with psyllium husk, magnesium and other nutrients at preventative levels could save their health system billions each year in unnecessary medical intervention⁵. That’s something our battered NHS would certainly appreciate.

The best way to keep your health in check is to fuel your body with high quality, organic foods – but unless you watch your diet closely, it’s unlikely that you’re getting enough vitamins and minerals for your body to function at its peak. There’s no point in life at which you won’t benefit from boosting your vitamin and mineral levels. Young, old, pregnant, sick, healthy – whatever your status, you have nothing to lose.

A woman I dated some years ago was completely cured of PMT symptoms which drove her nuts, very simply and easily, by taking one capsule per day of Evening Primrose Oil (recommended, I hasten to add by me). As I recall, the first month after taking it she was a bit better, by the second month a lot better, and by the third month, she was symptom free.

Although Evening Primrose Oil worked well for the lady described above, Mega GLA, which comes from Borage oil is a lot more effective. This is because it provides approximately four times more of the active ingredient –  GLA or Gamma linolenic acid –  as Evening Primrose Oil, delivering approximately 161mg of GLA per capsule.

So why isn’t it flying off the shelves? Well, as usual it comes down to the EU and the dreadful Nutrition and Health Claims Regulation, which makes it more or less illegal for us to provide any useful information for you on the web site. Great for big pharma – not so great for suffering women, who aren’t interested in politics, or the completely unelected EU officicials suspiciously cosy relationship with the big corporations, and simply want to get better. So now, because we can’t advertise it properly (though I would like to think that an honest description of one person’s experience in a newsletter sent to our own customers is still vaguely legal if there is any true concept of free speech) we are in the position of having to sell off some excess stock at cost price. This is great for you in the short run, not so good in the long run, if the pharmaceutical companies succeed in putting small ethical companies like ours out of business – which is obviously what everyone in the natural health industry knows is what is really behind all this nonsense.

Anyway, enough of the ranting – if you’re suffering, why not take advantage of these great offers….

Mega GLA Complex – 180 Capsules – Best Before End 06/2015.
Regular Price £32.95, Sale Price £21.41. You Save 35%

Mega GLA Complex – 90 Capsules – Best Before End 06/2015.
Regular Price £19.50, Sale Price £12.67. You Save 35%

Mega GLA Complex – 60 Capsules – Best Before End 09/2015.
Regular Price £13.95, Sale Price £10.45. You Save 25%

These special offers can all be found on our sales page, along with a number of final sale items with up to 50% off found here. If by the time you get to the page and Mega GLA is not there, it means someone else had already snapped up the sale price items. However you will still be able to purchase at the regular price (with our usual free UK delivery, reward points and volume discounts) simply by typing in “Mega GLA” into our search bar.

PS Other products that can be used for these types of problems with considerable success include Evening Primrose Oil, Rosa Mosqueta a Capsules (both of which also contain GLA), and Damiana Formula.

PPS, Our last newsletter, on how EU regulations are affecting your health is now found on our blog here.