OldButGame
Hall of Fame
I am a very firm advocate of exercise,...always have been,....as are many, people that take supplements. Its all one big 'healthy lifestyle' picture. A person could exercise regularly but if he/she is pounding a case of beer a night,..every night,...along with their diet of potato chips,....that exercise probably isnt going to do the trick for keeping them healthy. Now,...thats an exageration and i know it,...but the point is valid.
So then it would turn to,..."well,..exercise and a regular balanced diet"...."thats good enough"........
Good point,..and then,...does the 300lb male take in the same Vit C as the 90 lb female??,.....if they do,...then someone is either deficient,...or someone is taking in excess,...(possibly a supplement),....
...But they may be OK,...cuz if one is under high stress and the other isnt,...well that tips the scales yet again,....so bodyweight cant be the only criteria we consider,....
...But wait,...what about particular disease states, or more casual states of illness????...well,,that too would alter the picture creating a greater need than normal,...
...Or wait,...what about bodily trauma???.....injury states???....(in hospitals they give burn patients glutamine to facilitate the healing process,.....also a popular bodybuilding supplement,....).
....OK,...that switches the picture up yet again,....
....BUT wait !!!!!
...What about aging ???!!!!,.....there is another case for altered needs of nutrients,.....aging creates deficiencies and demands quite different from from a youthful person.
I have been at professional workshops (Drs,nurses, soc.workers) where Vit E was recomended (supplementary Vit E up to 400 IU) in the prevention of alzheimers (it keeps the myolin sheath around neurons in the brain 'intact', since studies have shown these areas in alzheimer patients become degraded over time,...causing 'virtual short circuits', in the electrochemical pathway resulting in memory loss,).
Water soluable vitamins are lost in sweat, as are electrolytes,...causing yet one more variable in the need or lack of extra nutrients.
Conversely, yes, certain nutrients are toxic at certain levels. Others interfere with particular medications. Others (eg electrolytes, ) need to be in a relative 'balance'.
Sodium is well known to be a factor in regulating blood pressure (typically a reduction in intake) so again here is a nutrient in which the intake level must be altered.
This could frankly go on forever,...but what it illustrates is that it can be a complicated area,...and the best thing a person can do is educate themselves as much as possible,...never take a supplement 'whimsically' without knowing all You can about it.
And most importantly,...while a 'balanced diet' may allow a person to 'survive',....educated supplementation and exercise as well as lifestyle is what constitutes 'health'.
I believe the better You integrate ALL these aspects,...the better athelete, in better health, You can be.
*Addendum-An exrercise 'critic' would say that exercising too much....(like too many nutrients?),...can make you sick (which it does when 'overtraining'....been there,...done that,.....),.......and to an exercise critic i would say,....."A sensible/wise approach is what makes it healthy"................. (as with supplementation).
So then it would turn to,..."well,..exercise and a regular balanced diet"...."thats good enough"........
Good point,..and then,...does the 300lb male take in the same Vit C as the 90 lb female??,.....if they do,...then someone is either deficient,...or someone is taking in excess,...(possibly a supplement),....
...But they may be OK,...cuz if one is under high stress and the other isnt,...well that tips the scales yet again,....so bodyweight cant be the only criteria we consider,....
...But wait,...what about particular disease states, or more casual states of illness????...well,,that too would alter the picture creating a greater need than normal,...
...Or wait,...what about bodily trauma???.....injury states???....(in hospitals they give burn patients glutamine to facilitate the healing process,.....also a popular bodybuilding supplement,....).
....OK,...that switches the picture up yet again,....
....BUT wait !!!!!
...What about aging ???!!!!,.....there is another case for altered needs of nutrients,.....aging creates deficiencies and demands quite different from from a youthful person.
I have been at professional workshops (Drs,nurses, soc.workers) where Vit E was recomended (supplementary Vit E up to 400 IU) in the prevention of alzheimers (it keeps the myolin sheath around neurons in the brain 'intact', since studies have shown these areas in alzheimer patients become degraded over time,...causing 'virtual short circuits', in the electrochemical pathway resulting in memory loss,).
Water soluable vitamins are lost in sweat, as are electrolytes,...causing yet one more variable in the need or lack of extra nutrients.
Conversely, yes, certain nutrients are toxic at certain levels. Others interfere with particular medications. Others (eg electrolytes, ) need to be in a relative 'balance'.
Sodium is well known to be a factor in regulating blood pressure (typically a reduction in intake) so again here is a nutrient in which the intake level must be altered.
This could frankly go on forever,...but what it illustrates is that it can be a complicated area,...and the best thing a person can do is educate themselves as much as possible,...never take a supplement 'whimsically' without knowing all You can about it.
And most importantly,...while a 'balanced diet' may allow a person to 'survive',....educated supplementation and exercise as well as lifestyle is what constitutes 'health'.
I believe the better You integrate ALL these aspects,...the better athelete, in better health, You can be.
*Addendum-An exrercise 'critic' would say that exercising too much....(like too many nutrients?),...can make you sick (which it does when 'overtraining'....been there,...done that,.....),.......and to an exercise critic i would say,....."A sensible/wise approach is what makes it healthy"................. (as with supplementation).
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