Tag: folate

• Vitamin B12, Homocysteine and Methylmalonic Acid

  B12 (cobalamin) is a group of cobalt-containing vitamins. Hydroxocobalamin and cyanocobalamin are synthetic forms of vitamin B12. The two forms of vitamin B12 naturally occurring in foods are methylcobalamin and adenosylcobalamin. These forms are biologically equivalent.

  B12 is produced by a number of different species of bacteria which is found in the soil, on the surface of some plants and some red and green algae.

  Lack of vitamin B12 can have serious consequences as does high levels of homocysteine. Determining the status of vitamin B12 and homocysteine can be difficult and can be determined by measuring serum vitamin B12, homocysteine and methylmalonic acid (MMA).

  A number of products contain riboflavin, pyridoxine, folate, B12 and methionine way in excess of dietary requirements in an attempt to resolve B12 metabolism problems.

  Many magnesium supplements contain pyridoxine which is usually unnecessary and possibly detrimental.

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  5 August 2021

• When Vegan Diets Do Not Work

  It is not uncommon for people to claim that they have tried a vegan diet and it simply did not work for them. Not all vegan diets are healthy.

  Much publicity is given to the longevity of the people of Japan and Okinawa (an archipelago that stretches from southern Japan to Taiwan). However, the population with the longest lifespan and the highest levels of health on the planet is the vegan Californian Seventh-day Adventists.

  People are not predisposed to vegan diets or otherwise. When it comes to nutrition, we are pretty much the same – allergies being one significant difference.

  Below are components of a healthy whole-food, plant-based diet. Many people on a unhealthy vegan diet are missing a number of important components of an optimal diet.

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  27 April 2019

• Nutrients Lost When Food is Processed

  A significant amount of nutrients may be lost when food is processed. Below are two charts showing the proportion of selected nutrients found in white rice compared with brown rice and white wheat flour compared with whole wheat flour.

  Often white wheat flour is enriched to attempt to make up for the nutrients removed.

  White rice and white wheat flour are created when the hull, bran layer and cereal germ removed. The germ is part of the grain that germinates to create a seedling.

  Storage life is increased due to the removal of oils and nutrients.

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  25 February 2018