When Food Alone Doesn’t Cut it Anymore
We exist in a time where inorganic fertiliser, increased CO2 levels and other non-regenerative farming practices have influenced the nutrient composition and density of our foods.
Inorganic fertiliser does not contain the full nutrient profile that exists in the soil naturally, and chooses to focus on nutrients that will increase yields over nutritional profile. Year after year, the “missing” nutrients are further and further depleted from the soil. Increased CO2 levels provide plants with more raw ingredients for photosynthesis without a matched increase in soil nutrients which results in a higher yield for farmers, with decreased nutrient density for consumers.
Most of these problems could be offset with regenerative farming practices, whereby controlled livestock grazing livestock and biodiverse crops work to restore soil nutrient levels. Regenerative farming is gaining traction, but will likely only become widespread in decades to come. Until then, it has become ever increasingly important to pay attention to the amount of nutrients we are getting in our diet and to identify where we need to supplement our shortfalls.
Minerals
Some of the more well-known, and generally more important minerals are calcium, magnesium, sodium, potassium, zinc and iron. Other trace elements such as manganese, copper, boron, chromium and iodine are also important, but for the purpose of this article, we will go into the requirements of the aforementioned list.
Mineral | Minimum Daily Requirements | Top 3 Food Sources | ||
Source 1 | Source 2 | Source 3 | ||
Calcium | 1000mg | Cheddar (729mg/100g) | Milk (345mg/cup) | Tofu (250mg/100g) |
Magnesium | 400mg | Spinach (157mg/cooked cup) | Tuna (64mg/100g) | Dark Chocolate (232mg/100g) |
Sodium | 2300mg* | Table Salt (1650mg/teaspoon) | ||
Potassium | 3400mg* | Potatoes (926mg/potato) | Salmon (635mg/100g) | Gem Squash (896mg/cup cooked) |
Zinc | 11mg | Beef Steak (11mg/100g) | Chicken Thigh & Leg (5mg) | Lentils (3mg/cup) |
Iron | 8mg | Beef Liver (6mg/100g) | Beef Steak (6mg/100g) | Spinach (6mg/cooked cup) |
* Research has shown that this number is likely to be closer to 3500-4000mg daily
These amounts are minimum requirements, and in some cases, it might be beneficial to consume more than the minimum recommendation. Sweating (through exercise, sauna, etc) depletes the body of minerals and increases requirements. Caffeine will also in some cases, increase requirements and reduce absorption.
Genologix BodyMAG provides 173mg of elemental magnesium, which you might have noticed has one of the more difficult minimum requirements to reach. Our MindMAG also provides 124mg of elemental magnesium.
Genologix Zinc Gluconate contains 20mg of elemental Zinc and may well prove effective at boosting your immune system and fighting off infections (which increase the body’s demand for it).
Vitamins
Vitamins are another place where our nutrition continues to fall short, daily requirements can be found below.
Vitamin | Minimum Daily Requirements | Top 3 Food Sources | ||
Source 1 | Source 2 | Source 3 | ||
A | 900mcg | Beef Liver (11879mcg / 100g) | Sweet Potato (8417mcg) | Carrots (5513mcg / cup) |
B1 | 1200mcg | Oats (900mcg / 100g) | Pork (655mcg /100g) | Salmon (357mcg / 100g) |
B2 | 1300mcg | Beef Liver (2768mcg / 100g) | Beef Steak (893mcg /100g) | Mushrooms (500mcg / cooked cup) |
B3 | 16mg | Beef Liver (18mg / 100g) | Chicken Breast (10mg/ 100g) | Mushrooms (8mg / cup) |
B5 | 5mg | Beef Liver (6mg / 100g) | Avocado (3mg) | Mushrooms (5mg / cooked cup) |
B6 | 1700mcg | Beef Liver (1071mcg / 100g) | Chicken Breast (952mcg / 100g) | Sweet Potato (600mcg) |
B7 (Biotin) | 30mcg | Beef Liver (37mcg / 100g) | Egg (10mcg) | Sweet Potato (5mcg) |
B9 (Folate) | 400mcg | Beef Liver (588mcg / 100g) | Chickpeas (557mcg / 100g) | Peanuts (246mcg / 100g) |
B12 | 2,4mcg | Beef Liver (60mcg / 100g) | Tuna (11mcg / 100g) | Beef Steak (8mcg / 100g) |
C | 90mg* | Bell Pepper (341mg) | Orange (82mg) | Broccoli (132mg / cup) |
D | 20mcg | Salmon (17mcg / 100g) | Egg (1.1mcg / egg) | Mushrooms Exposed to UV Light (28mcg / cup) |
E | 15mg | Sunflower Seeds (26mg / 100g) | Avocado (2mg / 100g) | Almonds (7mg / 100g) |
K | 120mcg | Beef Liver (263mcg / 100g) | Natto (150mcg / tablespoon) | Blackberries (60mcg / cup) |
* Smokers add 35mg
Vitamin B Complex
B-Vitamins provide a wide variety of functions to the body and are comprised of 8 individual vitamins. Some of their functions are summarised here
Genologix NMN is actually derived from vitamin B3 and is a concentrated form of the vitamin. Ultimately it becomes NAD+, and is utilised to generate ATP and convert food into energy
We also provide Vitamin B7 (or Biotin) as well as Vitamin B (or Folate). Biotin has shown positive evidence in promoting nerve, nail, skin & hair health and is difficult to consume the daily recommendation without supplementation. Folate is important for conception and foetal development. Requirements increase to 600mcg a day at this time
Vitamin C is essential not only for the immune system, but for collagen (such as hair, skin and nails) related systems as well. In times of infection, it has also proven beneficial to up vitamin C levels. We produce a vitamin C ester supplement which increases absorption and efficacy over ascorbic acid along
Vitamin D deficiency may be prevalent in as much as 59% of the global population and is increasingly likely to be deficient in individuals who are not regularly exposed to the sun as the body produces it’s own vitamin D from sun exposure. It is another vitamin that is hard to attain through diet alone and our D3 supplement provides more than 100% of the minimum daily requirements
While it has become harder to ensure that we meet nutritional requirements, we can offset this by understanding how much we need and where we can make up for these shortfalls in our diet. When food alone cannot cut it or when demand in times of stress or illness increases, Genologix has filled in this inescapable gap