Keep Fit With Karan - Benefits of A Multi Vitamin

 In 2002, a paper by Robert H. Fletcher and Kathleen M. Fairfield from the Harvard School of Medicine, in the Journal of the American Medical Association stated that "it appears prudent for all adults to take vitamin supplements." In this article, which examined the clinical applications of vitamins for the prevention of chronic diseases in adults examined English-language articles about vitamins in relation to chronic diseases published between 1966 and 2002, and concluded that inadequate intake of several vitamins has been linked to the development of diseases including coronary heart disease, cancer, and osteoporosis.
 
Similarly, the April 9, 1998 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine featured an editorial entitled "Eat Right and Take a Multivitamin" that was based on studies that showed health benefits resulting from the consumption of supplemental folate to prevent birth defects and possibly decrease the incidence of cardiovascular disease.
 
A 2007 UC Berkeley School of Public Health study in collaboration with Shaklee Corporation determined that long-term vitamin and mineral supplement users showed markedly better health than people who took no supplements. "After adjustment for age, gender, income, education and body mass index, greater degree of supplement use was associated with more favorable concentrations of serum homocysteine, C-reactive protein, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, and triglycerides, as well as lower risk of prevalent elevated blood pressure and diabetes."
 
Benefits of Blended Proteins
 
Chances are, if you walk into any gym and ask ten people what they think the most important supplement in their arsenal is, nine will probably offer the same response -whey protein. At some point, whey was crowned the king of protein supplements, most likely due to its high bioavailability and low fat and carbohydrate content. As a result, most strength athletes make it a staple supplement, without even thinking why - and that's a problem.
Despite what Joe Bro and most of the supplement industry will tell you, whey protein is not the best source of protein. Alarming, I know. And the grand irony of the entire situation is that the very feature that is touted as whey's best aspect is actually the reason it is ineffective. This characteristic is whey's rapid absorption. While speed has its advantages in some cases, whey protein is just a bit too quick. In fact, almost 60% of it can be oxidized by your liver for gluconeogenesis, meaning it is converted to SUGAR and never reaches your muscles . Simply put, the speedy absorption of whey makes it a potential fat-storing constituent and ineffective at battling catabolism (muscle breakdown).
 
The only way that scientists were able to make whey effective at preventing catabolism was to administer two grams of it every 20 minutes for seven hours; this slow delivery proved to be more than three times better at fueling muscles than a single dose .
 
Unfortunately, that's not a realistic option. So what's the solution? A protein blend, preferably one with hydrolyzed (pre-digested) proteins, whey isolates and concentrates, potassium caiseinate, micellar casein, egg albumin, and other sustained-release proteins.
 
Studies have shown there is a "synergistic effect between soluble proteins and caseins," meaning that a combination of protein sources is superior. Combining a slow-digesting protein sources with whey provides a steady stream of amino acids for utilization by the muscles; one group of researchers specifically noted that whey's "too-rapid dietary amino acid delivery cannot support the anabolic requirement" in the post-workout period.
 
By contrast, the sustained delivery of a protein blend yields much better results. One study found that using a blended protein supplement in conjunction with exercise resulted in twice the drop in body fat percentage, twice the gains in lean mass, and twice the gains in strength compared to whey and exercise. Given this information, the choice is clear -you can either work twice as hard with whey, or ditch the “broscience” and let a blend do the work for you.
 
CLA (Conjugated Linoleic Acid)
 
CLA is a fatty acid that has been shown in many recent studies to have profound fat loss effects in humans. This advanced form of an essential fatty acid can actually reduce body fat while dieting. Researchers have proposed several ways on how CLA works. One, it interferes with a substance in your body called lipoprotein lipase that helps store fat in your body and CLA also helps your body use its existing fat stores for energy. So you prevent fat storage while burning the fat you have. Effective doses range from 1.8 - 6 grams daily.
 
Carnitine (L-carnitine)
 
L-Carnitine is an amino acid essential for energy production and fat metabolism. L-Carnitine helps transport long chain fatty acids across the mitochondrial membrane for subsequent fat breakdown and energy production. There is some research showing the benefits of L-carnitine as a weight loss agent. A special form of L carnitine (L-carnitine L-tartrate) has been shown in newer research to reduce muscle breakdown secondary to weight training. Taking 1-2 grams daily may be effective.
 
EFA (Essential Fatty Acids)
 
EFA's may have many benefits including improved metabolism, improve insulin action, increased growth hormone secretion, improved testosterone production, improved blood pressure, liver support and protection (especially with borage oil and evening primrose oil due to their GLA content), improved condition of hair and nails, improved cholesterol profile, decreased inflammation response, improved nerve function, enhanced immune function, improved energy production of cells, and increased nitrogen retention. Low fat diets have been continuously shown to lower testosterone levels. There are two types of EFAs, linoleic acid and linolenic acid. Linoleic acid is included in the category known as omega-6 fatty acids, while linolenic acid—specifically, alpha linolenic acid—is an omega-3 fatty acid. Another omega-6 fatty acid, gamma linoleic acid (GLA), is also important for health and athletic performance. GLA has actually been shown to lower 5- alpha reductase activity which can lower the conversion of excess testosterone to DHT— a great added benefit! There’s a class of “hormone like substances” called prostaglandins in the human body. Prostaglandins are derived from essential fatty acids. There are three classes, or series, of prostaglandins. Series 1 prostaglandins promote performance, series 2 prostaglandins disrupt performance, and series 3 prostaglandins block the formation of series 2 prostaglandins.
Obviously, you’d just want to boost series 1 and series 3 prostaglandins. These prostaglandins can have anabolic effects in the body. Eating plenty of essential fatty acids, especially monounsaturated fats, can have a positive impact on testosterone levels. These include natural peanut butter, hemp seed oil, flax seed oil, olive oil, and canola oil. Eating fish including salmon regularly can also help. One study published in theJournal of Nutrition in 1990 showed that fish oil (containing EPA and DHA) positively impacted testosterone synthesis. Taking 5-10 grams daily of EFA’s can be beneficial.
 
BCAA (Branched Chain Amino Acids)
 
These include the essential amino acids leucine, isoleucine, and valine. They are very popular among athletes and there is some research validating their use. Numerous research studies have shown these 3 key amino acids are extremely important to consume, especially when you are dieting and exercising (and according to one study, BCAA’s are even more important when exercising in the heat). During exercise, your body uses a mix of glucose, fats, and even protein as a fuel source. When you diet and your carbohydrate intake is lower than normal, the percentage of protein your body uses for fuel (specifically Leucine, Isoleucine, and Valine) dramatically increases. The body will pull those needed amino acids from the continuously circulating pool of amino acids in your bloodstream. And if not replenished from an outside source, i.e. specific amino acid ingestion in the form of BCAA’s, your body will again, breakdown other areas of your body in order to supply this pool. Studies have shown that subjects who consume an effective dose of BCAA’s while dieting have greater levels of lean muscle mass retention than controls that ingest a placebo (and typically LOSE muscle during the same dieting period). Results from one study concluded that the subjects consuming the high protein diet including branch chain amino acid supplements lost the greatest amount of bodyfat. Even more compelling is that the group supplementing with branch chain amino acids lost the greatest amount of fat from the abdominal and thigh regions, two areas of concern for many men and women in regards to fat loss. It is important to take gram doses of each of the BCAA’s before, during, and after exercise to maximize a workout program.
 
L-Glutamine/Glutamine Peptide
 
Glutamine is a neutral amino acid and is the most abundant amino acid found in human muscle and plasma. In fact, 60% of the free-floating amino acid pool in your skeletal muscle cells is made up of glutamine. Glutamine has come to be known as a "conditionally essential" amino acid because in times of stress (exercise is stress), the body requires more of it to maintain both blood and muscle stores of glutamine. It is derived from wheat molasses for commercial production.
 
Glutamine has a tremendous amount of benefits to exercising individuals and those looking to increase lean muscle mass and decrease body fat. Supplemental glutamine can help promote cell volumization. This phenomenon is the drawing of water INSIDE muscle cells which can help increase muscle "fullness", increase protein synthesis (the making of proteins), and decrease proteolysis (the breakdown of protein). In fact, some of the "muscle building" benefits of taking creatine have to do with its ability to enhance cell volumization. Glutamine has also been shown to aid in recovery and recuperation, help boost immune function by being one of the building blocks for the body’s most powerful anti-oxidant, glutathione, possibly cause extra growth hormone release with just a 2 gram oral dosage (it is yet to be determined whether that leads to an ergogenic benefit but it couldn't hurt), partially determine the rate of protein turnover in muscles, boost anti-inflammatory cell function, and helps increase muscle glycogen deposition through an unknown mechanism. Many of these powerful effects can help increase lean body mass and prevent the breakdown of hard earned muscle.
 
While glutamine has its great benefits, a large majority of ingested free form L-glutamine does not actually make it into the blood stream and get into muscle tissue. Anywhere from 50-85% of an oral glutamine load is used by the intestines, liver, and the immune system. This is what many scientists refer to as the "glutamine paradox". Well, with the use of glutamine peptide, this problem may be solved. This form of glutamine is peptide bonded (a chain of amino acids) to allow for better transport into the blood stream and muscle tissue where it is needed. Glutamine peptide is also much more stable in solution, higher temperatures, and low PH than free form glutamine (free form L-glutamine tends to break down to ammonia and glutamic acid rather quickly in solution). The digestive tract has peptide transport systems that allow peptides to be better absorbed and utilized than free form amino acids.
 
So basically, the peptide bonded glutamine enhances bioavailability of glutamine in the bloodstream which may allow more glutamine to be available to the muscle tissue. The best time to take a glutamine or glutamine peptide supplement is right after a hard exercise session since glutamine stores in muscle can be depleted up to 40% after exhaustive exercise. A dosage of around 5-10 (15-30 daily in 2- 3 doses) grams at this time is what I recommend to my clients.
 
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