Articles
May 10, 2007
Ortho-Bone: "I thought you couldn't mix Calcium and Strontium?"
Q: What do you think about all these new supplements which contain a full day's dose of Strontium along with calcium, magnesium, and other key nutrients all in one convenient bottle?
A: They're a disaster.
In his review, Dr. Reginster specifically notes (pg. 1914) that "The simultaneous intake of [Strontium] and calcium remarkably reduces the bioavailability of [Strontium]. This is probably due to competition at the sites of active absorption. Simultaneous food intake also has a negative influence on the bioavailability of [Strontium]". Based on this critical factor, Dr. Reginster recommends that high-dose Strontium should not be taken "concomitantly with a meal or a calcium intake."
The competition between Strontium and calcium for absorption has long been known, and is the basis for the fact that all of the trials using strontium with major bone-health outcomes have carefully ensured that the supplement is taken on an empty stomach, away from calcium in food or in supplements. In the largest and best-designed trials women have taken their Strontium first thing in the morning, half an hour to an hour before breakfast, and/or three hours after dinner in the evening; they took their calcium supplements separately, with a meal.
This is the protocol supported by pharmacology and by clinical trials, and it is the one that we recommend unless your doctor specifies otherwise. It is obviously impossible to follow this protocol if you're taking a supplement that combines calcium and Strontium in the same pill or powder! Such formulations are, therefore, not the "convenient," "inexpensive" deals they initially seem, but are ill-designed and likely ineffective "kitchen sink" hodgepodges. Persons taking these supplements will not reap the full benefits of Strontium documented in the clinical trials. This is a major health issue, especially for people with advanced osteoporosis. If they and their physicians are taking these combination supplements instead of a reliable, separate supplement, or instead of an established drug therapy, the results could be ruinous.
Note that these problems do not hold if there is only a small, nutritional amount of Strontium in a core bone health supplement - doses in the range of 500 micrograms to 5 milligrams, which are typical of human dietary intakes. Such doses are appropriate, as they preserve the ratio of calcium and Strontium present naturally in whole-food diets. In fact, all natural calcium sources also have a small amount of Strontium in them, because of the similar metabolism of the two nutrients in living beings. The presence of calcium with no Strontium in calcium supplements might be expected to upset this natural balance, leading to suppression of whatever Strontium is in your diet, ultimately perturbing the natural balance of minerals in your bone.
Indeed, some evidence already exists that, over a lifetime, these low, nutritional doses of Strontium do have a role to play in your health. For example, it was discovered in the 1960s that areas with more Strontium in the water have a lower incidence of dental caries14,15 - a finding which was to be reinforced by the findings of at least eight more studies over the course of the next few decades.
Some of these Strontium-calcium combination products further shoot their users in the foot by using poor forms of key ingredients. Some, for instance, use poor forms of calcium, such as cheap calcium carbonate (which has low gastric tolerance and which reduces your absorption of other nutrients by neutralizing stomach acid) and synthetic calcium hydroxyapatite (an extremely poorly-absorbed synthetic calcium phosphate salt, not to be confused with ossein microcrystalline hydroxyapatite complex (MCHC), an extract of bone-health nutrients contained in an intact calcium crystalline matrix). Others use magnesium carbonate as a magnesium source; this is another antacid, and like calcium carbonate is poorly absorbed. Likewise, one of these products is even trading off of the research on Menatetrenone (MK-4) - the mammalian form of vitamin K2 and the one used in all of the "vitamin K2 menatetrenone" clinical trials - to sell another "vitamin K2:" the unproven, bacterial menaquinones.
Everyone concerned about their bone health needs a core calcium supplement such as Ortho-Bone Supplement, along with other key nutrients such as magnesium, vitamin D3, and Menatetrenone. In such a supplement, a small, nutritional dose of Strontium is a good balancing act, reflecting the trace levels of Strontium naturally present in food. But if you need the potent support of a megadose" "Strontium supplement, it should absolutely not come in a combination with calcium. You need a separate Strontium supplement, taken at a separate time.
This information is copyright the Editor of Advances magazine and may not be reproduced in whole or in part in any medium without the express permission of Advanced Orthomolecular Research. Used with permission.
March 8, 2007
Osteoporosis Treatment By Traj Nibber
Please click this LINK to download and enjoy a great article by Traj Nibber of Advanced Orthomolecular Research on using supplements to support osteoporosis sufferers.
Loaded with the latest research.
December 21, 2005
Does Vitamin E Kill?
Learn the truth about Vitamin E by clicking here (2.75mb PDF download). Enjoy this write-up from Advanced Orthomolecular Research (www.aor.ca).
Multi Vitamin Mineral Formulation Secrets
Enjoy this write-up from Advanced Orthomolecular Research (www.aor.ca). This is a 3.3mb PDF download.
Click here to download.
December 5, 2005
Dr. Perricone's Recommended List of Supplements.
Many of you have read Dr. Perricone's books, or watched his PBS specials. We represent a premium-grade of all the supplements he recommends to support a long and vigorous life. For your shopping convenience I have listed the products below with links directly to their purchase pages.
Enjoy cost-effective one stop shopping with automatic quantity discounts, then receive your order in only 1-3 days. So easy.
Lipoic Acids
Benfotiamine
Acetyl-L-Carnitine
Astaxanthin
Vitamin C
Conjugated Linoleic Acid
Carnosine
CoQ10
DMAE
Omega-3
Vitamin E
Let me share some very important research with you: Alpha-Lipoic acid is great as a topical skin cream, but for oral use, the new 4th generation, stabilized, R-Lipoic Acids are far superior to alpha-lipoic supplements. We recommend only GeroNova fully stabilized R-Lipoic Acid products, you can learn more about them on this R-Lipoic Buyers Guide page and order them directly from this link: Lipoic Acid.
Geronova Research is the only US based manufacturer of stabilized r-lipoic acid.
December 3, 2005
AOR and Quality
The History of Innovation
In the short space of a decade, AOR has risen to become a leading provider of genuinely innovative nutraceuticals in North America with their Bottled Revolutions: groundbreaking, research backed orthomolecules and botanicals.
AOR released Canada's first defined pollen extract (Prostaphil-2), the first supplement developed to directly affect prostate structure by reducing the volume of the gland itself instead of simply relieving symptoms as with other conventional prostate herbals. It was the first company to bring a geniunely complete E-complex supplement in the form of Total E tocopherols and tocotrienols.
Other firsts include the intoduction of the world's first R(+)-lipoic acid supplement containing the genuine orthomolecular form rather than the racemic hybrid of natural R(+)- and synthetic S(-)-enantiomers found in conventional lipoic acid or alpha lipoic acid supplements; North America's first Menatetrenone (under the name Peak K2), the mammalian-specific vitamer form of vitamin K2 for bone health support; Benfotiamine, a lipidsoluble derivative of thiamine long used in Germany to relieve the symptoms of diabetic peripheral neuropathy; and the groundbreaking delivery of the revolutionary bone health mineral Strontium at a clinically-tested dose.
Priority: Results For You
AOR's formulations have always been designed with an overriding emphasis on ensuring that the final results deliver as promised. This begins with a careful review of the primary science on a supplement, insisting on solid science and real-world outcomes. Ingredients whose only scientific support comes from surrogate outcomes, mechanistic speculation, in vitro studies, or experimental conditions that don't reflect the real challenges of patients are eschewed in favour of the results of high quality evidence and clinical trials. The final formulation is then designed to reflect the clinical trials themselves, with doses, standardization, and forms of nutrients reflecting the original research.
Special care is taken with multiingredient supplements - a class of natural health product that is often subject to shoddy formulation. Supplements with multiple ingredients can and do work very well, - if they’re properly formulated.
Many companies approach the formulation of their products as if the object is to come up with the longest possible list of ingredients of interest to people with a particular health concern. In the process, basic issues around dosage, compatibility, stability, and mechanism of action are brushed aside in a rush to put out a pill which - from a quick glance at the label - appears to be the "broadest," most "comprehensive," most "all-inclusive" and "synergistically complete" product on the shelf.
So consistently good formulation requires both the best science, and the best motivations. Something has to provide the impetus to keep a supplement company poring over medical journals, combing through new research in search of new discoveries, and questioning the market's common formulation cliches.
AOR has built it's reputation for high quality and efficacy one supplement at a time, diligently pursuing optimal formulation from the primary research up.
Excellence in Quality Control
In the regulatory vacuum of the North American dietary supplement industry, quality control has always been a concern. Along with opening up the market to greater freedom of choice, the Dietary Supplements Health and Education Act (DSHEA) also had the unfortunate effect of deregulating the manufacture of dietary supplements. To date, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has yet to implement Good Manufacturing Practice (GMP) regulations in the United States - and even when they do, DSHEA strongly limits the standards to which American dietary supplement companies can be held.
From the outset, AOR has maintained a process of self-imposed quality control, creating internal standard operating procedures (SOPs) that are modeled on the pharmaceutical industry's for purity and rigor. Formal, regulatory requirements for the manufacture of dietary supplements have now been brought into the Canadian industry by the new Natural Health Products Directorate (NHPD), using GMPs which are again modeled standards established for use in pharmaceutical labs. AOR operates its facilities under standards created to meet or exceed the requirements of this formal site licensing regime.
Furthermore, all AOR products and raw materials are subject to a regular and ongoing process of third-party analysis by independent analytical laboratories to ensure purity and potency. High performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) is the preferred technology for analysis of active ingredients and detection of contaminants.
This information courtesy of and copyright Advanced Orthomolecular Research. Used with permission.
December 2, 2005
How to Supplement the Smart Way: Buyers Help
Probably the most frequent question we get is- "How do I decide what to buy?" and our response is - "How much do you want to spend and what results do you seek?" As people learn more about supplementation, they also discover just how important it is to stick with pharmaceutical quality suppliers.
It is not so tough to make a smart decision, take just a moment to read through this checklist:
First off, do you have a good foundation in place?
- Are you physically able to exercise everyday, and if so, do you? Exercise is critical to physical and mental health.
- How are your eating habits? Avoiding sugar, white flours, junk food? Eating lots of greens and fish?
- Getting a good nights sleep?
Next, what are you seeking by using supplements?
- Do you have a specific condition that you seek supplemental help for? If so, simply use the Products by Health Concern link and find the products offered for that condition.
- Consider a foundational Multi-Vita-Mineral Mix such as Essential-Mix Powder or the revolutionary Ortho-Core as part of all supplement programs. This isn't your old one-a-day. Great strides have been made in formulation and bioavailability and you are cheating yourself by not taking advantage.
December 1, 2005
Learn how R-lipoic Acid can help you
R-Lipoic Acid (RLA) is one of the most important and exciting new nutraceutical compounds to hit the market, but the problem with reaping its many benefits is poor absorption and bio-availability. GeroNova Research, the worlds foremost authority on lipoic acids, solved these challenges and now provides the only Bio-Enhanced R-Lipoic Acid available.
Stability of finished products is an industry-wide problem as R-Lipoic Acid is a physically unstable compound which must receive special handling. When R-Lipoic is encapsulated in standard conditions, it polymerizes, that is, turns into rubber-like material. GeroNova Research employs a proprietary process that stabilizes the product during processing and storage to avoid this problem.
The second problem, once the product is stabilized, is bioavailability. Other, non-stabilized R-Lipoic Acid products on the market today have demonstrated in studies to mostly polymerize upon contact with stomach acid. GeroNova Research has again solved this problem through proprietary technology which provides for the highest measurable blood plasma levels of any Lipoic Acid supplement available.
Top of the line Mito-GOLD employs an oil base (MCT) to transport a combination of 75 mg R-Lipoic and 75 mg R-Dihydro Lipoic Acid, as well as cholesterol lowering Delta Tocotrienol, past the intestines-liver (entero-hepatic system) for maximum absorption and sustained blood plasma levels.
The R-PLUS contains 75 mg of R-lipoic acid and 75 mg of R-Dihydro Lipoic Acid in the most bioavailable form available with optically pure D-Biotin, and employs the MCT transport system.
For people preferring a liquid form, K-RALA-10 solution contains R-lipoic acid (in the form of Potassium-R-Lipoate), potassium bicarbonate, purified water and is preserved with USP vegetable glycerin.
The original powder form of K-RALA is still available for those that prefer it.
Learn More or refer to this simple Buyers Guide if you desire help in choosing a lipoic product best for you.
GeroNova's pharmaceutical quality formulations are created, compounded and quality assured in their R&D laboratories. GeroNova is the only North American manufacturer and supplier of R-lipoic and R-Dihydrolipoic acid.
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