“For vitamin supplementation product quality begins at the very foundation: the raw materials selected.”

As we know, our food and environment is compromised making it harder for us to stay healthy. This is why supplementation is so important. But how can we decide which ones to choose when the market is full of promising options? Navigating amongst the sea of vitamins may appear like an easy task but in fact it isn’t. Without a good map you might end up at a place that you never intended to visit or even wanted to avoid.

What appears on the surface does not necessarily reflect what is inside. For vitamin supplementation product quality begins at the very foundation: the raw materials selected. If you don’t have therapeutic value in the starting position you will never have it in the final production. And this is where the seemingly same products lead to so different results.
China’s introduction to the pharmaceutical industry has shifted the entire global field. In the few short years they have been in the business they have completely dominated the marketplace and their growth has steadily risen to become the world’s largest bulk supplier of drugs exporting to 200 countries—regions in Europe, North America and Asia. Each year, US pharmaceutical manufacturers import 75—80% of the essential raw ingredients for production of finished drug products that supply the US domestic market from which China and India sourced bulk drugs have accounted for 40% of these imported bulk ingredients.

The problem is that high quality raw materials are only in limited production in China. Some top quality producers are being forced to manufacture in joint affiliation with China in order to remain competitive in the marketplace, which means that something has to go—quality, mainly. Cutting corners in production is the quickest solution this is why e.g. extraction method is substituted for the more labour intensive fermentation process: it shortens production and lessens production costs, but at the same time reduces potency. For consideration, China has created a global monopoly of supply, and in light of the Coronavirus outbreak the supply chain could suffer greatly and affect massive drug shortages.
Other areas of concern are GMO source material; toxic solvents are being used in order to increase the yield, which leads to the main problem: the remaining residue in the extracted material and its dire consequences to our health and wellbeing. The paradox with this scenario is that people are getting sick in an effort to get well. How can the unsuspecting consumer avoid this entrapment when even product licensing does not address the issue?

The problem stems from compromising quality for price point advantage. Take calcium for example. Most think taking a calcium supplement will prevent brittle bones. In theory this may be true but in reality it does not happen. Taking a mineral does not necessarily translate into absorbable calcium as derived from diet. It needs more fine tuning, not to mention the fact that bones are made from more than just calcium, they are actually built on at least 12 different minerals. Taking one will not do the trick; in actuality it may even produce osteoporosis. This is why we formulated our Opti-Cal/Mag Complex that assimilates calcium into the bone. This is achieved by transporters and complementary nutrients: 2 forms of calcium 3 forms of magnesium such as orotates, aspertates, citrates and 6 other necessary nutrients designed for absorption. Keep in mind that the most expensive is no guarantee of higher quality, whereas the lowest price tells you it’s not.

Licensed products being sold in the natural health industry are not all good for you, and trust me when I say I stand for this business; I have dedicated my entire adult life (34 years) to the natural health industry. The only option and defence we have to pharmaceutical dominance and control is the freedom to choose how we treat ourselves and the natural health industry. But in order to have an alternative to allopathic drugs we need to have a standard in place, and that is getting harder and harder to achieve. Take for instance amino acids. These are the building blocks of protein for the body and one of the most powerful tools we have at our disposal for maintaining and regaining our health. The highest quality raw materials were coming from Japan but since the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster production has been reduced and calls into question any materials now originating from Japan. This leaves us with production in the USA, EU (mainly Germany, Spain and Italy), India and with limited production in South Korea and Brazil, yet all these combined don’t come close to China in global dominance. The question is, where are we really going here?

It’s inevitable; we have all become toxic from continued daily attacks, and it becomes evident since everyone is thyroid deficient. Each year in the USA, approximately 12 trillion kilograms of chemicals are produced or imported, with little or no research within the food chain or accountability for how they affect our health and well-being. Our supplements’ purity shouldn’t be among those things we have to second guess and worry about; instead they should be our assurance we are making healthy improvements and exercising the prevention of disease.