by Robert Thiel, Ph.D.
Naturopath
2007
from
DoctorsResearch Website
Spanish version
Abstract
Even though natural health professionals
agree that humans should not try to consume petroleum derivatives or
hydrogenated sugars, most seem to overlook this fact when vitamin
supplementation is involved.
This paper explains some of the
biochemical reasons that food vitamins are superior for humans. It
also explains what substances are commonly used to make vitamins in
supplements.
Furthermore, it explains some of the
advantages of food vitamins over the non-food vitamins that are
commonly available.
Introduction
For decades the ‘natural’ health industry has been touting thousands
of vitamin supplements.
The truth is that most vitamins in
supplements are made or processed with petroleum derivatives or
hydrogenated sugars [1-5]. Even though they are often
called natural, most non-food vitamins are isolated substances which
are crystalline in structure [1].
Vitamins naturally in food are not
crystalline and never isolated. Vitamins found in any real food are
chemically and structurally different from those commonly found in
‘natural vitamin’ formulas. Since they are different, naturopaths
should consider non-food vitamins as vitamin analogues (imitations)
and not actually vitamins.
The standards of naturopathy agreed to in 1947 (at the Golden
Jubilee Congress) included the statements,
“Naturopathy does not make use of
synthetic or inorganic vitamins... Naturopathy makes use of the
healing properties of... natural foods, organic vitamins”
[5].
Even back in the 1940s, professionals
interested in natural health recognized the value of food, over
non-food, vitamins.
Also, it should be mentioned that
naturopathic definition of organic back then was similar to the
official US government definition today - why does this need to be
stated? Because one pseudo-naturopath once told this researcher that
a particular brand of synthetic vitamins contained “organic
vitamins”, because a sales representative had told him so.
Sadly, that sales representative either
intentionally gave out false information or gave out misleading
information - misleading because by its ‘scientific’ definition, the
term ‘organic’ can mean that it is a carbon containing substance,
hence by that definition all petroleum derivatives (hydro-carbons)
are organic. But false, because those type of vitamins are not
organic from the true naturopathic, or even the U.S. government’s,
perspective.
Officially, according to mainstream science,
“Vitamins are organic substances
that are essential in small amounts for the health, growth,
reproduction, and maintenance of one or more animal species,
which must be included in the diet since they cannot be
synthesized at all or in sufficient quantity in the body.
Each vitamin performs a specific
function; hence one cannot replace another. Vitamins originate
primarily in plant tissues” [6].
Isolated non-food ‘vitamins’ (often
called ‘natural’ or USP or pharmaceutical grade) are not naturally
“included in the diet”, do not necessarily “originate primarily in
plant tissues”, and cannot fully replace all natural vitamin
activities. As a natural health professional, you should be able to
read and interpret, even misleading supplement labels.
For those who are unsure, hopefully this
article will provide sufficient information to determine if vitamin
tablets are food or imitations.
What is Your
Vitamin Really?
Most vitamins in supplements are petroleum extracts, coal tar
derivatives, and chemically processed sugar (plus sometimes
industrially processed fish oils), with other acids and industrial
chemicals (such as formaldehyde) used to process them [1-5].
Synthetic vitamins were originally
developed because they cost less [7].
Assuming the
non-food product does not contain fish oils, most synthetic,
petroleum-derived, supplements will call their products
‘vegetarian’, not because they are from plants, but because they are
not from animals.
Most vitamins in vitamin supplements
made from food are in foods such as acerola cherries, broccoli,
cabbage, carrots, lemons, limes, nutritional yeast, oranges, and
rice bran (some companies also use animal products).
Table 1
Composition of Food and Non-Food
Vitamins [1-10]
Vitamin |
Food Nutrient
* |
‘Natural’
Vitamin Analogue
& Some Process Chemicals |
Vitamin A/Betacarotene |
Carrots |
Methanol,
benzene, petroleum esters; acetylene;
refined oils |
Vitamin B-1 |
Nutritional
yeast, rice bran |
Coal tar
derivatives, hydrochloric acid; acetonitrole
with ammonia |
Vitamin B-2 |
Nutritional
yeast, rice bran |
Synthetically
produced with 2N acetic acid
|
Vitamin B-3 |
Nutritional
yeast, rice bran |
Coal tar
derivatives, 3-cyanopyridine; ammonia and
acid |
Vitamin B-5
|
Nutritional
yeast, rice bran |
Condensing
isobutyraldehyde with formaldehyde
|
Vitamin B-6 |
Nutritional
yeast, rice bran |
Petroleum ester
& hydrochloric acid with formaldehyde
|
Vitamin B-8 |
Rice |
Phytin
hydrolyzed with calcium hydroxide and
sulfuric acid |
Vitamin B-9 |
Broccoli, rice
bran |
Processed with
petroleum derivatives and acids; acetylene
|
Vitamin B-12 |
Nutritional
yeast |
Cobalamins
reacted with cyanide |
Vitamin ‘B-x’ |
PABA Nutritional
yeast |
Coal tar
oxidized with nitric acid (from ammonia)
|
Choline
|
Nutritional
yeast, rice bran |
Ethylene and
ammonia with HCL or tartaric acid
|
Vitamin C |
Acerola
cherries, citrus fruits |
Hydrogenated
sugar processed with acetone
|
Vitamin D |
Nutritional
yeast |
Irradiated
animal fat/cattle brains or solvently
extracted |
Vitamin E |
Rice, vegetable
oils |
Trimethylhydroquinone with isophytol;
refined oils |
Vitamin H |
Nutritional
yeast, rice bran |
Biosynthetically
produced |
Vitamin K
|
Cabbage
|
Coal tar
derivative; produced with p-allelic-nickel |
|
* Note: Although
some companies use liver extracts as a source for vitamins A and/or
D, and at least one company has a herring oil product supplying some
vitamin E, no company this researcher is aware of whose products are
made out of 100% food use animal products in any of their multiple
vitamins.
Some companies also use
brewer’s yeast which is inferior to nutritional yeast in many ways
(including the fact that it has not had the cell wall enzymatically
processed to reduce possible sensitivities).
Read The Label
to See the Chemical Differences!
Although many doctors have been taught that food and non-food
vitamins have the same chemical composition, this is simply untrue
for most vitamins.
As shown in table 2, the chemical forms
of food and synthetic nutrients are normally different. Health
professionals need to understand that since there is no mandated
definition of the term ‘natural’; just seeing that term on a label
does not mean that the supplement contains only natural food
substances.
One of the best ways to tell whether or
not a vitamin supplement contains natural vitamins as found in food
is to know the chemical differences between food and non-food
vitamins (sometimes called USP vitamins).
Because they are not normally in the
same chemical form as vitamins found in foods, non-food vitamins
should be considered by natural health professionals as vitamin
analogues (artificial imitations), and not actually as true vitamins
for humans.
Table 2
Chemical Form of Food and Non-Food
Vitamins [1-10]
Primary
Chemical Vitamin Form
in Food
|
Vitamin
Analogue Chemical Form
(Often Called
Natural*) |
Vitamin A/Betacarotene;
retinyl esters; mixed carotenoids |
Vitamin A
acetate; vitamin A palmitate; betacarotene
(isolated) |
Vitamin B-1;
thiamin pyrophosphate (food) |
Thiamin
mononitrate; thiamin hydrochloride; thiamin
HCL |
Vitamin B-2;
riboflavin, multiple forms (food) |
Riboflavin
(isolated); USP vitamin B2
|
Vitamin B-3;
niacinamide (food) |
Niacin
(isolated); niacinamide (isolated)
|
Vitamin B-5;
pantothenate (food) |
Pantothenic
acid; calcium pantothenate; panthenol
|
Vitamin B-6; 5’0
(beta-D) pyridoxine |
Pyridoxine
hydrochloride; pyridoxine HCL
|
Vitamin B-9;
folate |
Folic acid
|
Vitamin B-12;
methylcobalamin; deoxyadenosylcobalamin
|
Cyanocobalamin;
hydroxycobalamin |
Choline (food);
phosphatidyl choline (food)
|
Choline
chloride; choline bitartrate
|
Vitamin C;
ascorbate (food); dehydroascorbate
|
Ascorbic acid;
most mineral ascorbates (i.e. sodium
ascorbate) |
Vitamin D; mixed
forms, primarily D3 (food)
|
Vitamin D1
(isolated); Vitamin D2 (isolated); Vitamin
D3 (isolated) ; Vitamin D4; ergosterol
(isolated); cholecalciferol (isolated);
lumisterol |
Vitamin E;
RRR-alpha-tocopherol (food)
|
Vitamin E
acetate; Mixed tocopherols; all-rac-alpha-tocopherol;
d-l - alpha-tocopherol; d-alpha-tocopherol
(isolated); dl-alpha-tocopheryl acetate; all
acetate forms |
Vitamin H;
biotin |
All non-yeast or
non-rice vegetarian biotin forms
|
Vitamin K;
phylloquinone (food) |
Vitamin K3;
menadione; phytonadione; naphthoquinone;
dihydro-vitamin K1 |
|
* Note: This list
is not complete and new analogues are being developed all the time.
Also the term “(isolated)” means that if the word “food” is not near
the name of the substance, it is probably an isolate (normally
crystalline in structure) and is not the same as the true vitamin
found in food.
Read the label of any supplement to see if the product is truly 100%
food.
If even one USP vitamin analogue is
listed, then the entire product is probably not food (normally it
will be less than 5% food). Vitamin analogues are cheap (or not so
cheap) imitations of vitamins found in foods.
Beware of any supplement label that says that its vitamins are
vegetarian and contain no yeast.
This researcher is unaware of any
frequently used vegetarian non-yeast way to produce vitamin D or
many of the B vitamins, therefore, if a label states that the
product “contains no yeast” then in pretty much all cases, this
demonstrates that the product is synthetic or contains items so
isolated that they should not be considered to be food.
Saccharomyces cerevisiae (the primary yeast used in baking and
brewing) is beneficial to humans and can help combat various
infections [11], including according to the German E
monograph Candida albicans.
In the text, Medical Mycology
John Rippon (Ph.D., Mycology, University of Chicago) wrote,
“There are over 500 known species of
yeast, all distinctly different. And although the so-called bad
yeasts do exist, the controversy in the natural foods industry
regarding yeast related to health problems which is causing many
health-conscious people to eliminate all yeast products from
their diet is ridiculous.?
It should also be noted, that W.
Crook, M.D., perhaps the nation’s best known expert on Candida
albicans, wrote, “yeasty foods don’t encourage candida growth...
Eating a yeast-containing food does not make candida organisms
multiply” [12].
Some people, however, are allergic to
the cell-wall of yeast [12] and concerned supplement
companies which have nutrient-containing yeast normally have had the
cell-wall enzymatically processed to reduce even this unlikely
occurrence.
Food Vitamins
are Superior to Non-Food Vitamins
Although many mainstream health professionals believe,
“The body cannot tell whether a
vitamin in the bloodstream came from an organically grown
cantaloupe or from a chemist’s laboratory” [13], this
belief is quite misleading for several reasons.
First it seems to assume that the
process of getting the amount of the vitamin into the bloodstream is
the same (which is frequently not the case [3-10]).
Secondly, scientists understand that
particle size is an important factor in nutrient absorption even
though particle size is not detected by chemical assessment.
Thirdly, scientists also understand
that,
“The food factors that influence the
absorption of nutrients relate not only to the nature of the
nutrients themselves, but also their interaction with each other
and with the non-absorbable components of food” [14].
Fourthly,
“the physiochemical form of a
nutrient is a major factor in bioavailability” (and food and
non-food vitamins are not normally in the same form) [15].
Fifthly, most non-food vitamins are
crystalline in structure [1].
Published scientific research has concluded,
“natural vitamins are nutritionally
superior to synthetic ones” [8].
Food vitamins are in the physiochemical
forms which the body recognizes, generally are not crystalline in
structure, contain food factors that affect bioavailability, and
appear to have smaller particle sizes (see illustrations in table
3).
This does not mean that non-food
vitamins do not have any value (they clearly do), but it is
important to understand that natural food complex vitamins have
actually been shown to be better than isolated, non-food, vitamins
(see table 4).
Look at
Electronic Photos to See the Structural Differences
Electronic photos demonstrate that isolated USP vitamins have a
crystalline appearance compared to vitamins in foods which have more
of a rounded appearance (see table 3).
Table 3
Physical and Structural Differences
Food Vitamin
C
|
Ascorbic
Acid
|
Food Vitamin
B1 |
Thiamine
Hydrochloride |
Electronic
Photographs
Even before these types of pictures were available, the late Dr.
Royal Lee knew that food vitamin C was superior to ascorbic
acid.
“Dr. Lee felt it was not honest to
use the name ‘vitamin C’ for ascorbic acid. That term ‘should be
reserved for the vitamin C COMPLEX’” [16].
Why then, according to the ingredients
listed in a recent catalog, would a supplement company that Dr. Lee
originally founded currently include ascorbic acid, inorganic
mineral salts, and/or other isolated nutrients in the majority of
its products?
Dr. Lee, like the late Dr. Bernard
Jensen [17], was also opposed to the use of other
isolated, synthetic, nutrients [16].
Dr Lee specifically wrote,
“In fact, the Food & Drug laws seem
to be suspended where synthetic imitations of good foods are
concerned, and actually perverted to prosecute makers and
sellers of real products…
The synthetic product is always a
simple chemical substance, while the natural is a complex
mixture of related and similar materials…
Pure natural Vitamin E was found
three times as potent as pure synthetic Vitamin E. Of course the
poisonous nature of the synthetic Vitamin D…is well
established. WHY DO NOT THE PEOPLE AND MEDICAL MEN KNOW THESE
FACTS?
Is it because the commercial
promoters of cheap imitation food and drug products spend enough
money to stop the leaking out of information?”.[18]
Table 4
Comparison of Certain Biological Effects
of Food and Non-Food Vitamins
Food Vitamin
Vitamin A
Vitamin B Complex
Vitamin B-9
Vitamin C
Vitamin D
Vitamin E
Vitamin H
Vitamin K |
Compared to USP/’Natural’/Non-Food
Vitamins
More complete, as scientists
teach that vitamin A is not an isolate [19]
More effective in maintaining good health and liver
function [20,21]
More utilizable above 266mcg (Recommended Daily Intake
is 400mcg) [22]
Over 15.6 times antioxidant effect [23]
Over 10 times the antirachitic effect [24]
Up to 4.0 times the free radical scavenging strength
[25]
Up to 100 times more biotin effect [1]
Safer for children [26] |
The difference is more than quantitative.
Let’s take vitamin C for an example. Even if one were to take 3.2
times as much of the so-called natural, non-food, ascorbic acid than
food vitamin C, although the antioxidant effects might be similar in
vitro, the ascorbic acid still will not contain DHAA [1],
nor will it ever have negative oxidative reductive potential (ORP).
An in vitro study performed at this
researcher’s lab with a digital ORP meter demonstrated that a citrus
food vitamin C has negative ORP, but that ascorbic acid had positive
ORP [27].
It takes negative ORP to clean up oxidative damage [28],
and since ascorbic acid has positive ORP (as well as positive redox
potential [1]), it can never replace food vitamin C no
matter what the quantity! Furthermore, foods which are high in
vitamin C tend to have high Oxygen Radical Absorbance Capacity (ORAC,
another test which measures the ability of foods and other compounds
to subdue oxygen free radicals [23]).
A US government study which compared the
in vivo effects of a high vitamin C food (containing 80 mg of
vitamin C) compared to about 15.6 times as much isolated ascorbic
acid (1250 mg) found that the vitamin C-containing food produced the
greatest increase in blood antioxidant levels (it is believed that
bioflavonoids and other food factors are responsible) [23].
Furthermore, it is even possible isolated ascorbic acid only has in
vitro and no in vivo antioxidant effects:
“it has not been possible to show
conclusively that higher than anti-scorbic intake of {SYNTHETIC}
vitamin C has antioxidant clinical benefit” [29].
Why should people take supplemental
synthetic ascorbic acid when it is NOT been proven to have
antioxidant effects in humans?
“Cross sectional and longitudinal
studies show that the occurrence of cardiovascular disease and
cancer is inversely related to vitamin C intake…the protective
effects seen in these studies are attributable to fruit and
vegetable {FOOD} intake…
In general, beneficial effects of
supplemental {SYNTHETIC} vitamin C have been noted in small
studies, while large well controlled studies have failed to show
benefit” [29].
The other quantitative is that in
humans,
“Plasma is completely saturated in
doses of 400 mg and higher daily producing a steady-state plasma
concentration of 80 mM…Tissues, however, saturate before plasma”
[29].
De-emphasizing vitamin C containing
foods by attempting to consume higher quantities of isolated
ascorbic acid simply will not have the effects on plasma vitamin C
levels, ORP, ORAC, or other health aspects that many consumers of
isolated ascorbic acid hope it will [3,27,29].
No matter how much isolated ascorbic acid one takes orally.
-
It will never saturate plasma
and/or tissue vitamin C levels significantly more than can
be obtained by consuming sufficient vitamin C containing
foods.
-
It will never have negative ORP,
thus can never ‘clean-up’ oxidative damage like food vitamin
C can.
-
It will never have the free
radical fighting capacity of food vitamin C.
-
It will never contain DHAA (the
other ‘half’ of vitamin C) or the promoting food factors.
-
It will never have the same
effect on health issues, such as aging and cardiovascular
disease as high vitamin C foods can.
-
It will not ever be utilized the
way food vitamin C is.
-
It will always be a synthetic.
Let’s take vitamin E as another example
- the body has a specific liver transport for the type of vitamin E
found in food [10] - it does not have this for the
synthetic vitamin E forms (nor for the ‘new’ vitamin E analogues
that are frequently marketed) - thus no amount of synthetic vitamin
E can truly equal food vitamin E - the human body actually tries to
rid itself of synthetic vitamin E as quickly as possible [30].
As another example, it should be
understood that certain forms of vitamin analogues of B-6 [19],
D [10], and biotin [1] have been shown to have
almost no vitamin activity.
Fractionated, synthetic, vitamins do not replace all the natural
function of food vitamins in the body.
This is due to the fact that they are
normally chemically and structurally different (they also do not
have the naturally occurring food factors which are needed by the
body) from vitamins found in foods (or vitamin supplements made up
entirely of foods).
Food Vitamins
and Non-Food Vitamin Analogues
Vitamin A/Betacarotene
Vitamin A naturally exists in foods,
but not as a single compound.
Vitamin A primarily exists in the
form of retinyl esters, and not retinol and beta carotene is
always in the presence of mixed carotenoids with chlorophyll
[10]. Vitamin A acetate is from methanol, it is a
retinol which is crystalline in structure [1].
Vitamin A palmitate can be fish oil
[1] or synthetically derived [2]; but once
isolated it bears little resemblance to food and can be
crystalline in structure [1,2].
Synthetic betacarotene is,
“prepared from condensing
aldehyde (from acetone) with acetylene” [2]; “not
much natural beta-carotene is available due to the high
costs of production” [2].
“Beta-carotene has been found to have antioxidant effect in
vitro…Whether {ISOLATED} beta-carotene has significant
antioxidant effect in vivo is unclear” [32].
Carrots, a food high in betacarotene,
do have high antioxidant ability [32,33].
Natural betacarotene, as found in
foods, is composed of both all-trans and 9-cis isomers, while
synthetic betacarotene is all-trans isomers [34].
Carrots, yellow and green leafy vegetables, and turmeric contain
natural betacarotene along with multiple carotenoids.
Natural betacarotene was found to
significantly decrease serum conjugated diene levels for
children exposed to high levels of irradiation, though it is not
known if synthetic betacarotene would provide similar benefits
[34].
Regarding isolated betacarotene,
“The data presented provide
convincing evidence of the harmful properties of this
compound if given alone to smokers, or to individuals
exposed to environmental carcinogens, as a micronutrient
supplement” [35].
“The three beta-carotene
intervention trials: the Beta Carotene and Retinol Efficacy
Trial (CARET), Alpha-Tocopherol, Beta-Carotene Cancer
Prevention Study (ATBC), and Physician's Health Study (PHS)
have all pointed to a lack of effect of synthetic
beta-carotene in decreasing cardiovascular disease or cancer
risk in well-nourished populations.
The potential contribution of
beta-carotene supplementation to increased risk of lung
cancer in smokers has been raised as a significant concern.
The safety of synthetic beta-carotene supplements and the
role of isomeric forms of beta-carotene (synthetic all-trans
versus "natural" cis-trans isomeric mixtures)… have become
topics of debate in the scientific and medical communities”
[36].
Now, although the consumption of
both synthetic betacarotene and food betacarotene raise serum
vitamin A levels about the same, this obscures the fact that
synthetic betacarotene tends to mainly increase serums all-trans
betacarotene, while food betacarotene increases other forms as
well [37].
It is possible that synthetic betacarotene can negatively affect
vitamin E’s antioxidant ability as a clinical study found,
“These results support earlier
findings for the protective effect of a-tocopherol against
LDL oxidation, and suggest that beta-carotene participates
as a prooxidant in the oxidative degradation of LDL under
these conditions.
Since high levels of alpha-tocopherol
did not mitigate the pro-oxidative effect of beta-carotene,
these result indicate that increased LDL beta-carotene may
cancel the protective qualities of alpha-tocopherol”
[38].
In a consumer-directed publication,
Stephen Sinatra (M.D.) observes,
“Research has shown that high
doses of synthetic beta-carotene - the kind found in many
popular brands - may actually increase your risk for lung
cancer. Because at high levels it can become pro-oxidative -
exactly the opposite of what you want… I’ve seen harmful
effects (such as serious vision loss) in people who have
taken up to 80,000 IU of beta-carotene per day.
The bottom line is: Less is more
when it comes to beta-carotene. To be safe I recommend
between 12,500 and 25,000 IU of beta-carotene per day from
food sources such as carrots” [39].
In my opinion, betacarotene in
carrots, however, is safer than even Dr. Sinatra suggests (there
is about 12,000 i.u. of betacarotene in one raw carrot).
The reason for this is because
betacarotene in carrots is attached to lipoproteins which appear
to aid in preventing toxicity. Isolated USP betacarotene, even
if it allegedly comes from “natural” sources, simply does not
have the attached lipoproteins or other potentially protective
substances as found in foods like carrots.
While isolated synthesized vitamin A and polar bear livers have
posed toxicity issues, this is simply not considered to be the
case of any other food that is supplying vitamin A/beta-carotene
[40,41].
Foods containing vitamin A and/or
beta carotene are superior [8].
Vitamin B-1 - Thiamin
Vitamin B-1 exists in food in the
forms of thiamin pyrophosphate, thiamin monophosphate, and
thiamin [10].
The non-food thiamin mononitrate is
a coal tar derivative [4], never naturally found in
the body [10], and is a crystalline isolate [1]
(the same is true for thiamin hydrochloride and other
chloride forms). Synthetic forms are often used in “food
fortification” (where processing removes the naturally occurring
thiamin) as they are cheaper and, in that context more stable.
However, they are inferior to
naturally occurring thiamin forms [8,42].
“The nutritive value of
straight-run white flour… has been found to be inferior to
that of whole-meal flour, even when the defects of the
former in protein, minerals and {SYNTHETIC} vitamin B1 have
been corrected” [42].
Vitamin B-2 - Riboflavin
Naturally exists as riboflavin and
various co-enzyme forms in food [10].
In non-foods it is most often
synthetically made with 2N acetic acid, is a single form
isolate, and is crystalline in structure [1]. Some
synthetic riboflavin analogues have weak vitaminic activity
[43]. Some natural variations, especially in coenzyme
forms, occur in plants (including fungal) species [44].
Various studies suggests that food
riboflavin are superior to non-food forms [8,41].
Vitamin ‘B-3’ - Niacinamide
Primarily exists in foods in forms
other than niacin [10].
“Niacin is a generic term...
the two coenzymes that are the metabolically active forms of
niacin (are)... nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) and
NAD phosphate (NADP)...
Only small amounts of free forms
of niacin occur in nature. Most of the niacin in food is
present as a component of NAD and NADP... nicotinamide
is more soluble in water, alcohol, and ether than nicotinic
acid... many analogues of niacin have been
synthesized, some of which have antivitamin activity”
[10].
Niacinamide (also called
nicotinamide) is considered to have less potential side-effects
than niacin [10]; it also does not seem to cause
gastrointestinal upset or hepatotoxicity that the synthetic
time-released niacin can cause [45].
Processing losses for this vitamin
are mainly due to water leaching [46]. Isolated,
non-food, niacinamide is normally from 3-cyanopyridine and can
form crystals [1]. This non-food ‘niacin’ is
synthesized from acetaldehyde through several chemical reactions
often involving formalydehyde and ammonia [2,47].
Beef, legumes, cereal grains, yeast,
and fish are significant natural food sources of vitamin B3
[45].
Vitamin ‘B-5’ - Pantothenate
Naturally exists in foods as
pantothenate [10].
“Pantothenate, usually in the
form of CoA, performs multiple roles in cellular metabolism,
being central to energy-yielding oxidation of glycolytic
products and other metabolites through the mitochondrial
tricarboxylic acid cycle...
Synthesis of fatty-acids and
membrane phospholipids, including regulatory sphingolipids
requires pantothenate, and synthesis of the amino acids
leucine, arginine, and methionine requires a pantothenate
requiring step. CoA is required for synthesis of isoprenoid
derivatives, such as cholesterol, steroid hormones, dolichol,
vitamin A, vitamin D, and heme A” [10].
“It also appears to be involved
in the regulation of gene expression and signal
transduction... may have antioxidant and radioprotective
properties... It has putative anti-inflammatory, wound
healing and antiviral activities... may be helpful in the
management of some with rheumatoid arthritis... shown to
accelerate wound healing” [32].
“Synthetic D-pantothenate... is
available as a calcium or sodium salt” [10], and
is sold in forms such as sodium D-pantothenate or calcium D-pantothenate
or sometime just listed as pantothenic acid [32].
Other synthetic,
“multivitamin preparations
commonly contain its... alcohol derivative, panthenol”
[10].
“Dexopanthenol is a synthetic
form which is not found naturally” [32].
USP pantothenic acid is made by
condensing isobutyraldehyde with formaldehyde [2].
“Pantothenic acid consists of
pantoic acid in amide linkage to beta-alanine”, but vitamin
B-5 is not found that way in nature [48].
Vitamin B-5 is found in food as
pantothenate forms; foods do not naturally contain pantothenic
acid [48].
The vegetarian foods which are
highest in natural pantothenate are nutritional yeast, brown
rice, peanuts, and broccoli [10,32,48]. Specifically,
Saccharomyces cerevisiae is one of the best natural sources of
food pantothenate [10,32].
Calcium pantothenate is a synthetic
enantiomer [10] and is a calcium salt [1]
and is crystalline [2].
Vitamin B-6
Plants naturally primarily contain
vitamin B6 in forms such as 5’0-(beta-D-glycopyransosyl) and
other pyridoxines, not pyridoxal forms [10].
Pyridoxine hydrochloride is not
naturally found in the body [10], is a crystalline
isolate [1], and is generally made from petroleum and
hydrochloric acid and processed with formaldehyde [4].
Pyridoxal-5-phosphate is made by
combining phosphorus oxychloride and/or adenosine triphosphate
with pyridoxal [1]; it becomes a crystalline isolate
[1] and bears almost no resemblance to food vitamin
B6. At least one synthetic vitamin B-6 analogue has been found
to inhibit natural vitamin B-6 action [49].
A study of healthy elderly
individuals found about 1/3 had marginal vitamin B-6 deficiency
[32].
Vitamin ‘B-9’ - Folate
Folate was once known as vitamin
B-9, as well as vitamin M.
Initially food folate was given for
people with a pregnancy-related anemia in the form of autolyzed
yeast; later a synthetic USP isolate was developed [10].
Pteroylglutamic acid (folic acid),
the common pharmacological (USP) form of folate is not found
significantly as such in the body [10].
“Folic acid is a synthetic
folate form” [50].
Folic acid, such as in most
supplements, is not found in food, folates are [15].
Insufficient folate can result in
fatigue, depression, confusion, anemia, reduced immune function,
loss of intestinal villi, and an increase in infections
[11].
Folate deficiency is the most
important determinant in high homocysteine levels [11],
and supplemental folate is effective in reducing homocysteine
[51,52].
“The highest concentrations of
folate exist in yeast… and brocolli” [10].
Insufficient folate can result in
fatigue, depression, confusion, anemia, reduced immune function,
loss of intestinal villi, and an increase in infections
[11].
“(C)onsumption of more than 266
mcg of synthetic folic acid (PGA) results in absorption of
unreduced PGA, which may interfere with folate metabolism
for a period of years” [10].
A 2004 paper from the British
Medical Journal confirmed what many natural health professional
have known all along: since folic acid is unnatural and the body
cannot fully convert large amounts of it into usable folate,
this artificial substance can be absorbed and may have unknown
negative consequences in the human body [22] - folate
supplementation obviously should be in food folate forms and not
folic acid.
Vitamin B-12
The naturally active forms are
methylcobalamin and deoxyadenosylcobalamin and are found in food
[10].
Cyanocobalamin is not a naturally
active form [10]; it is an isolate which is
crystalline in structure [1]. Initially natural food
complexvitamin B12 was given for people with pernicious anemia
in the form of raw liver, but due to cost considerations a
synthetic USP isolate was developed [7].
According to Dr. Victor Herbert (and
others) vitamin B-12 when ingested in its human-active form is
non-toxic, yet Dr. Herbert (and others) have warned that,
“the efficacy and safety of the
vitamin B12 analogues created by nutrient-nutrient
interaction in vitamin-mineral supplements is unknown”
[52].
Some synthetic vitamin B12 analogues
seem to be antagonistic to vitamin B12 activity in the body
[53,54].
Most synthetic B-12 is made through
a fermentation process with the addition of cyanide [4].
Vitamin B-x, Vitamin B-8, Vitamin B
factors like Choline
PABA was once called vitamin B-x,
while inositol was once called vitamin B-8. They and choline are
considered to be vitamin B co-factors.
In large doses, PABA is,
“indicated for Peyronie’s
disease, scleroderma, morphea and linear scleroderma”
[11].
The non-food version of PABA is
made from coal tar [2].
In addition, there is a non-food
potassium salt synthetic form, called aminobenzoate potassium
[11]. PABA is found in foods such as kidney, liver,
molasses, fungal foods, spinach, and whole grains [55].
The non-food version of inositol is made from phytin processed
with sulfuric acid [2]. Inositol is a lipotrophic
factor, as is also necessary for hair growth. While nutritional
yeast is probably the best source of inositol, it is also found
in fruits, lecithin, legumes, meats, milk, unrefined molasses,
raisins, vegetables, and whole grains [55].
Choline bitartrate and choline chloride, the types most often
encountered in allegedly “natural” vitamin supplements, are
actually “commercial salts” [11] - they are synthetic
forms. Ethylene is involved in the production of one or more of
the synthetic forms [2].
Phosphatidyl-choline is the major delivery form of choline, and
is naturally found in many foods such as beef liver, egg yolks,
and soya [11]. Specially grown nutritional yeast
appears to be the best food form for supplements.
Vitamin C
Vitamin C naturally occurs in fruits
in two ascorbate forms with bioflavonoids [10].
Non-food, so-called ‘natural’
ascorbic acid is made by fermenting corn sugar into sorbitol,
then hydrogenating it until it turns into sorbose, then acetone
(commonly referred to as nail polish remover) is added to break
the molecular bonds which creates isolated, crystalline,
ascorbic acid. It does not contain both vitamin C forms (nor
bioflavonoids), thus is too incomplete to properly be called
vitamin C [2].
The patented ‘vitamin C’ compounds
that are touted as less acidic than ascorbic acid also are not
food (it is not possible to get a US patent on naturally
occurring vitamins as found in food - anytime a health
professional hears that some vitamin is patented, that should
set off warning signals that it is not real food).
An in vitro study found that food
complex vitamin C has negative ORP (oxidative reductive
potential) [27], yet the Merck Index shows that
so-called ‘natural’ ascorbic acid has positive ORP [1]
(negative ORP is much better as it helps ‘clean up’ oxidative
damage whereas items with positive ORP do not) [56].
Food complex vitamin C is also 10x
less acidic than ascorbic acid.
Some of the many functions that vitamin C is involved in include
collagen formation, carnitine biosynthesis, neurotransmitter
synthesis, enhancement of iron absorption, immunocompetence,
antioxidant defense, possible anticarcenogenic effects,
protection of folate and vitamin E from oxidation, and
cholesterol catabolism [1].
One study found that food complex vitamin C had 492 micro moles
per gram T.E. (Trolox equivalents) of hydrophilic ORAC (oxygen
radical absorbance capacity) [57] - ORAC is
essentially a measurement of the ability to quench free radicals
(antioxidant ability) - while blueberries (one of the highest
ORAC sources [23]) only had 195 micro moles per gram
T.E. [57] - thus food complex vitamin C has 2.52
times the ORAC ability of blueberries.
Vitamin C containing food has over
15.6 times the ORAC of isolated ascorbic acid [23]
(food complex vitamin C is even higher). Actually, there are
doubts that isolated ascorbic acid has any significant
antioxidant effects in humans [29]. Food vitamin C is
clearly superior for any interested in ORAC.
Although food vitamin C is superior to isolated ascorbic acid
[8], at least one mainstream researcher has written,
“The bioavailability of vitamin
C in food and ‘natural form’ supplements is not
significantly different from that of pure synthetic AA”
[10] this is simply not true.
As “proof” that particular author
cites two papers.
The first citation is a study that
concludes since serum ascorbic acid levels were at similar
levels after various vitamin C containing foods and synthetic
ascorbic acid were consumed, that the bioavailability is similar
[58]. The conclusions reached seem to ignore that
fact that it may be possible that DHAA or other food
constituents associated with natural vitamin C may have positive
effects other than raising serum ascorbate levels.
The second citation is a study that
probably should not have been cited as it never compared vitamin
C as complexed in food versus synthetic ascorbic acid (it
compared synthetic ascorbic acid to Ester-C which is a
commercial blend of synthetic ascorbic acid and select
metabolites as well as to synthetic ascorbic acid mixed with
some bioflavonoids) [59].
Hence, those who claim that there is
no difference really do not have strong scientific proof for
there contrary opinion.
More recent scientific investigations (cited previously. i.e.
8,23,27,57) have demonstrated that food vitamin C is superior to
isolated ascorbic acid.
Vitamin D
The history of synthetic vitamin D
is a shocking one.
“The first vitamin isolated was
a photoproduct from the irradiation of the fungal sterol
ergosterol. This vitamin was known as D1... vitamin D
obtained from irradiation of ergosterol had little
antirachitic activity” [60] - in other words, the
first synthetic vitamin D did not act the same as natural
vitamin D.
“At the time of its
identification, it was assumed that the vitamin D made in
the skin during exposure to sunlight was vitamin D2”, but it
was later learned that human skin produced something called
vitamin D3 [60].
It was first believed that
provitamin D3 was directly converted to vitamin D3, but that was
incorrect.
The skin actually contains a
substance commonly called provitamin D3; after exposure to
sunlight previtamin D3 is produced and it begins to isomerize
into vitamin D2 in a process which is temperature dependent,
with isomerized vitamin D3 being jettisoned from the plasma
membrane into extracellular space.
Vitamin D2 was used to fortify milk
in the US and Canada for about forty years until it was learned
that D3 was the substance which had better antirachitic
activity, so D3 has been used for the past twenty-five years
[60]. But vitamin D has many benefits which are
unrelated to rickets: B and T lymphocytes have been shown to
have receptors for vitamin D similar to those found in the
intestines, vitamin D seems to affect phagocytosis, and may even
have some antiproliferation effect for tumor cells [60].
It has not been proven that any
single USP isolated form of vitamin D has all the benefits as
natural occurring forms of vitamin D. (Also, since the vitamin D
was not particularly stable, manufacturers used to put in 1.5 to
2 times as much of synthetic vitamin D as they claimed on the
product labels. This led to neonatal problems and hypercalcemia.
[60].)
One older report found that,
“natural
vitamin D is about 100 times more potent in protecting chickens
and children from rickets than… irradiated ergosterol” [61],
USP vitamin D2.
New vitamin D analogues are still being developed: some which
may have greater affects on calcium utilization [62],
some even may be helpful for breast cancer [63] - but
these really may be pharmacological, and not naturopathic,
applications since these analogues are not food.
In view of the
historical errors in the supplementation with forms of vitamin
D, it is reasonable to conclude that additional benefits of
natural source vitamin D may be discovered, further
distinguishing it from synthetic isolates.
Vitamin D is not an isolate, it exists as a combination of
substances (including vitamin D3), with promoting metabolites
[10].
Non-food vitamin analogues D1, D2,
D3, and D4 are isolates without the promoting metabolites. USP
D1 does not have appreciable antirachitic effects [10],
is crystalline, and is made with benzene [1]. USP D2
is considered a synthetic form and is made by bombarding
ergosterol with electrons [1] and is “recovered by
solvent extraction” [2].
USP D3 and D4 are both made through
irradiating animal fat [1,10,31] or through
irradiating “the spinal cords and brains of cattle” [2].
Scientists are even developing a
‘new’ form of vitamin D (which is admitted to be an analogue)
which is supposed to be helpful for osteoporosis [64]
- natural vitamins cannot be invented! The fact that some drugs
are chemically similar to vitamin D as found in foods, does not
make them true vitamins.
Food vitamin D has been reported to
have at least 10 times the antirachitic effects than one or more
isolated USP forms [65].
Vitamin E
Natural vitamin E,
“as found in foods is [d]-alpha
tocopherol, whereas chemical synthesis produces a mixture of
eight epimers” [66] (natural vitamin E has
recently been renamed to be called RRR-alpha-tocopherol
whereas the synthetic has now been renamed to all-rac-alpha-tocopherol,
though supplement labels rarely make this clear; on
supplement labels d-alpha-tocopherol is generally ‘natural’,
whereas dl-alpha-tocopherol is synthetic [25]).
Natural RRR-alpha-tocopherol has 1.7
- 4.0 times the free radical scavenging strength of the other
tocopherols, RRR-alpha tocopherol has 3 times the biological
activity of the alpha-tocotrienol form, and synthetic vitamin E
simply does not have the same biologic activity of natural
vitamin E (some synthetic forms have only 2% of the biological
activity of RRR-alpha-tocopherol) [25].
The biologic activity of vitamin E
is based on its ability to reverse specific vitamin E-deficiency
symptoms [25], therefore it is a scientific fact
that, overall, synthetic vitamin E has less ability to correct
vitamin E deficiencies than food vitamin E.
There is an interesting reason for
this, which is that the body regulates plasma vitamin E through
a specific liver alpha-tocopherol transfer protein, whereas it
has no such protein for other vitamin E forms [25].
Or in other words, the liver produces a protein to handle
vitamin E found in food, but not for the synthetic forms.
The body retains natural vitamin E
2.7 times better than synthetic forms [30].
Even mainstream researchers teach,
“Vitamin E is the exception to
the paradigm that synthetic and natural vitamins are the
equivalent because their molecular structures are
identical...
Synthetic vitamin E is produced
by commercially coupling trimethylhydroquinone (TMHQ) with
isophytol. This chemical reaction produces a
difficult-to-separate mixture of eight isomers” [67]
(Vitamin E, of course, is not the
only exception - all nutrients are better if they are Food).
Isolated natural vitamin E has been
found to have twice the bioavailability as synthetic vitamin E
[68].
The form of vitamin E found in Food
has been found to be 2.7 times better retained in the body than
a synthetic form [26] - this appears to be because
the body attempts to rid itself of synthetic forms as quickly as
possible [26].
Food vitamin E, as found in
specially grown rice, has been proven to have 12 micro moles per
gram T.E. of lipophilic ORAC (oxygen radical absorbance
capacity) [57] - ORAC is essentially a measurement of
the ability to quench free radicals (antioxidant ability).
It is interesting to note that
so-called “natural” forms (like succinate) do not even work like
Food vitamin E - Even the PDR notes, “d-Alpha-Tocopherol
succinate itself has no antioxidant activity” [32],
so why would anyone want that for their vitamin E supplement?
Both chemical form and source of vitamin E may play a role as
“chemically synthesized alpha-tocopherol is not identical to the
naturally occurring form” [25]. Thus those who claim
that a synthetic vitamin, even when it is in the same “chemical
form” (it is never in the same actual form due to the presence
of food constituents), is as good as one in a natural, food
form, are simply overlooking the scientific facts about
vitamins.
Vitamin E is necessary for the optimal development and
maintenance of the nervous system as well as skeletal muscle
[67].
Vitamin E deficiency can lead to
certain anemias, nutritional muscular dystrophy, reproductive
problems, and hyperlipidemia [66]. Vitamin E has been
shown to reduce the risk of various cancers, coronary heart
disease, cataract formation, and even air pollution [25,67].
It also is believed it may slow the
aging process and decrease exercise-induced oxidative stress
[25,67]. Artificial fats seem to increase the need
for vitamin E [69]. Vitamin E content is highest in
vegetable oils, also relatively high in avocados (4.31 i.u.
each) [70] and rice bran [71].
Natural vitamin E as found in foods is [d]-alpha tocopherol
(also called RRR-alpha tocopherol) and is never found as an
isolate [10].
The so-called ‘natural’ forms are
most frequently in supplements as isolates, a way they are never
found in nature.
Vitamin ‘H’ - Biotin
The only active form found in nature
is d-(+) biotin and is usually protein bound [10].
Non-food biotin is normally an
isolated, synthesized, crystalline form that is not protein
bound [1]. Biotin l-sulfoxide is a lessor used
isolated and/or non-food form, involves pimelic acid, is an
isolate, and has less than 1% of the vitamin H activity of food
biotin [1].
Vitamin K
Vitamin K naturally is found in
plants as phylloquinone [10].
Non-food vitamin K3 menadione is now
recognized as dangerous and is a synthetic naphthoquinone
derivative (naphthalene is a coal tar derivative) [1].
USP K1, though also called phylloquinone, is an isolate normally
synthesized with p-allylic-nickel [1].
There is another form of vitamin K
inadvertently formed during the hydrogenation of oils called
dihydro-vitamin K1 [72]; however since the
consumption of hydrogenated oils appears to be dangerous
[73], it does not seem that this form would be indicated
for most humans.
Dark leafy vegetables, as well as
cabbage [74], appear to be the primary food source of
vitamin K [75].
Types of Available
Vitamins
There are really only two types of vitamins sold:
-
food vitamins
-
non-food vitamins
Food vitamins will normally state something like
“100% Food” on the label. Sometimes the label will also state “No USP nutrients” or “No synthetic nutrients”.
Non-food vitamins, however are somewhat less obvious.
First of all, no non-food vitamin this
researcher has seen says “100% food” on the label and none of them
state "No USP or synthetic nutrients” - thus if none of these
expressions are present, it is normally safe to conclude that the
vitamins are not from food. If a label states that the product
contains USP vitamins or ‘pharmaceutical grade’ nutrients, then it
should be obvious to all naturopathic practitioners that the product
is not food.
Also, if a multi-vitamin or a B-complex
formula states something to the effect that it “contains no yeast”
that is basically a guarantee that it contains synthetic nutrients.
However, just because a company uses the term ‘natural’ or ‘all
natural’ as a description of its vitamins does not make them, in
fact, natural - this is because the US Government has no definition
of natural! Also, just because a company may have a reputation for
having natural products, this does not mean its vitamins are not
synthetic - carefully check the label for proof that the product is
truly 100% food.
Some companies seem to confuse the issue by using the term
‘food-based’ on their supplement labels.
‘Food-based’ vitamins are almost always
USP vitamins mixed with a small amount of food. This mixing does not
change the chemical form of the vitamin, so it is still a vitamin
analogue and not a food vitamin (this differs from food, as true
food vitamins are not simple mixture).
Some other companies (that do not use the term ‘food-based’) mix
foods with the vitamin analogue and seem to imply that the vitamin
is a food. For example, if a label states something like Vitamin C
(Vitamin C, acerola) then it is also normally a synthetic mixed with
a food.
If the product were a food, it would
normally state that the vitamin C was in food or from acerola and
not use the term ‘vitamin C’ twice in a row on the label (many
companies mix ascorbic acid with acerola). Many companies use the
term ‘yeast-free’ on their synthetic vitamin labels, apparently
implying that yeast should not be used in vitamins.
There are a couple of problems with
this.
The first is that several non-food
isolated vitamins are produced by yeast, before they are
industrially processed and isolated, thus it is unlikely that any
multiple vitamin formula has not been partially made up of yeast,
yeast extracts, or yeast by-products [1,2].
The second problem is that nutritional
yeast is not the same as brewer’s yeast, which is essentially a
waste by-product .
Conclusion
Most vitamins sold are not food - they are synthetically processed
petroleum and/or hydrogenated sugar extracts - even if they say
“natural” on the label.
They are not in the same chemical form
or structural form as real vitamins are in foods; thus they are not
natural for the human body. True natural food vitamins are superior
to synthetic ones [8,16,41]. Food vitamins are
functionally superior to non-food vitamins as they tend to be
preferentially absorbed and/or retained by the body.
Isolated, non-food vitamins, even when
not chemically different are only fractionated nutrients.
Studies cited throughout this paper suggest that the bioavailability
of food vitamins is better than that of most isolated USP vitamins,
that they may have better effects on maintaining aspects of human
health beyond traditional vitamin deficiency syndromes, and at least
some seem to be preferentially retained by the human body.
It is not always clear if these
advantages are due to the physiochemical form of the vitamin, with
the other food constituents that are naturally found with them, or
some combination. Regardless, it seems logical to conclude that for
purposes of maintaining normal health, natural vitamins are superior
to synthetic ones [8,16,41].
Unlike some synthetic vitamins, no
natural vitamin has been found to not perform all of its natural
functions.
The truth is that only foods, or supplements composed of 100% foods,
can be counted on as not containing non-food vitamin analogues.
Natural health advocates are supposed to build health on foods or
nutrients contained in foods.
That was the standard set for the
profession in 1947 - that standard - that commitment to real
naturopathy should remain for natural health professionals today.
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Note: Some of these
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conclusive. Professionals can, and often do, come to different
conclusions when reviewing scientific data. None of these statements
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