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The Willner Window Product Reference Catalog, Summer 2014
since 1911
• Willner Chemists •
the nutritional supplement professionals
Trace Minerals
not taken with food.
There are some people who would
have you believe that various types
of nutrients have to be taken at spe-
cific times and that one cannot be
taken at the same time as another,
and so forth. Pay little attention to
this. Remember what we just said
about how the body is designed to
obtain the nutrients it needs.
One example is calcium. There are
some people who advise taking cal-
cium supplements only before bed-
time. Bear these facts in mind: First,
the body has an elaborate and sensi-
tive mechanism in place to ensure
that serum calcium levels remain
within a strict and narrow range. As
soon as blood calcium levels fall
below this range, the body desper-
ately reaches out for any source of
calcium it can find to raise calcium
back up to the required level. To the
body, our bone is a calcium reser-
voir, a source of calcium when it
needs it. When calcium levels in the
blood fall, the body pulls calcium
out of our bones to correct the
deficit. It makes no sense to artifi-
cially create a deficit of calcium
throughout the day, encouraging
bone loss, just to attempt to replen-
ish it at nighttime. Second, it is our
nature to obtain calcium from food
throughout the day. The optimal
way to supplement with calcium is
to divide the dosage to two or three
times a day.
Another example involves a theory
that there is some advantage to eat-
ing only one type of nutrient at a
time. This makes no sense for many
of the same reasons already dis-
cussed. Few foods in their natural
state consist of only one type of
nutrient. A substantial part of the
digestive process takes place in the
small intestine, under the influence
of pancreatic enzymes. The pan-
creas secretes a mixture of enzymes,
composed of proteases, amylase,
and lipase (protein-digesting, carbo-
hydrate-digesting and fat-digesting,
respectively.) And most vitamins
are absorbed through a passive dif-
fusion mechanism.
There are times when supplements
should not be taken with food. This
usually is when the item is being
used as a therapeutic agent rather
than as a nutrient.
One example would be the amino
acids. If you are using amino acids,
especially in a mixture, as a source
of efficient protein supplementa-
tion, you could take the supplement
at any time. But if you are taking an
individual amino acid for its thera-
peutic activity, you should take it
between meals, when there is no
other protein present to compete
with its absorption.
Another example would be prote-
olytic-enzyme
supplements
designed to be used as anti-inflam-
matory agents rather than as diges-
tive enzymes. When taking an
enzyme supplement containing pro-
teolytic enzymes (trypsin, chy-
motrypsin, papain, bromelain) for
the purpose of enhancing the diges-
tion of dietary protein, the obvious
time to take the product is with
meals. But if the intention is for
these enzymes to be absorbed and
exert a systemic anti-inflammatory
action, you do not want to take them
with meals, where they would be
partially deactivated by interacting
with food. Instead, take them
between meals, so that more will be
absorbed into the bloodstream.
Usually, if a supplement is intend-
ed to be taken at times other than
with meals, the directions on the
container will state that. As a gener-
al rule, you can assume that unless
stated otherwise, a supplement
should be taken with food. If in
doubt, ask a qualified health profes-
sional, such as a nutritionally
trained pharmacist or physician.
How Often to Take
Supplements
To obtain maximum benefit, it is
usually best to divide your supple-
ments in two or three doses per day.
Many nutrients are water-soluble.
They will be absorbed in an hour or
two, reach maximum blood levels,
and then begin to be eliminated
from the body. Within a half-day,
much of the dose is gone. When you
take several doses (at least two)
throughout the day, you maintain
blood levels over a much longer
time. This is why we have suggest-
ed that a two-a-day multivitamin is
much superior to a one-a-day multi-
vitamin.
For fat-soluble nutrients (such as
vitamin A, vitamin D, and CoQ10),
this is less of a problem, as they are
stored for a much longer period in
the body. To maximize the utiliza-
tion of these nutrients, take them
with food, especially food that con-
tains some fat or oil. CoQ10 is now
available suspended or emulsified in
oil in soft gel capsules.
Summer_2014_Tab_Tab12_1.qxd 5/29/2014 4:47 PM Page 111
*Source: SPINSscan Natural Channel 52 weeks ending 2/18/12.
*Source: SPINSscan Natural Channel 52 weeks ending 2/18/12.
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©2014 Trace Minerals Research
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