Blog
Let's talk about...Absorbing Nutrients
Friday 9th February 2018
Let's talk about...absorbing nutrients
We may think we know how much we are getting when we ingest a supplement, but how much of that supplement does our body actually absorb?
There are many factors that can affect the absorption rate of vitamins and minerals. Age is the most prevalent factor, because as we get older we digest less well due to a reduction in stomach acid and enzymes resulting in absorbing less than we did when we were younger.
What you eat when you take the supplement can also enhance its absorption. For example, studies have shown that up to 50% more vitamin A, D and E are absorbed when taken with a meal containing fat. This is because they are fat soluble vitamins.
Certain medications and caffeine can also affect the absorption rate of vitamins and minerals so it is always advised to wait at least an hour either side of taking supplements before ingesting other medications of caffeine.
Finally, genetic make up can also affect the amount of nutrients we absorb, with up to 45% of the population poor at converting beta carotene from foods such as carrots, to vitamin A which can be used in the body.
The overall advice is
- Eat a wide variety of fresh fruit and vegetables to ensure a wide range of vitamins and minerals make up part of your diet
- Take supplements with a main meal
- Avoid caffeine and other medications for one hour when taking supplements
Don't forget we will be hosting our salon birthday skin scanning event on Thursday 1st March.
This will be where top specialists from The Advanced Nutrition Programme and Skinade, The Collagen Drink will be present to answer all your skincare supplements questions.