Vitamin and Mineral Deficiencies
Nutrient and IV Therapy
Many of us experience symptoms that are a result of vitamin and mineral deficiencies such as; fatigue, slow healing, hypothyroidism, decreased stamina, low libido, cardiac arrhythmia’s, hair loss, skin diseases, and the list goes on and on.
Some athletes feel IV nutrient therapy allow them a quicker recovery and enhanced stamina. A nutrient is defined as a substance that provides nourishment for growth and metabolism.
Many mistakenly think that people who live in the USA can’t possibly be vitamin or mineral nutrient deficient. To the contrary, living in the USA is precisely why we commonly show signs of vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Living in an industrialized, technologically advanced, wealthy country makes us susceptible to nutrient deficiencies.
The vast majority of Americans over consume processed, nutrient poor, calorie rich diets that are relatively low in raw vegetables and fruits. This contributes to vitamin and mineral deficiencies. At the same time, most Americans work too hard and endure a daily level of stress and chronic sleep deprivation at a level not experienced in any other country on Earth, EVER.
At the same time, many farmers don’t rotate crops as they once did, rather they inadequately fertilize/replenish the soil. Not to mention the explosion of “created plants” that are Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO). This possibly produces a world where there are more and more food allergies/intolerance’s and autoimmune diseases such as: Crohn’s Disease, Ulcerative Colitis, Scleroderma, Lupus, Ankylosing Spondylitis, Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), GI Cancer, Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA).
This simmering brew of malfeasance creates a gastrointestinal (GI) tract inflammatory environment that does not absorb nutrients as effectively. Simply taking oral vitamins is many times not the best answer. One must fix the gut!
That is why I believe that the land of plenty, has become the land of the malnourished excessive calories and autoimmune. The vast majority of new patients that we perform a nutritional comprehensive evaluation reveal not one but several nutrient deficiencies. Of course Dr. Zacco’s patient population is skewed because patients who come to Anti Aging & Functional Medicine have usually seen other physicians for significant fatigue and other constitutional symptoms. That have been told “There is nothing wrong with you.”
Interestingly most of the time when we meet patients for the first time, they are on oral nutrient supplementation such as multivitamins, yet their initial tests reveal that they have vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Intravenous (IV) nutrient supplementation which delivers nutrients directly to the blood stream instead of having to pass through the inflamed gut. At the same time, Dr. Zacco encourages a healthy and healing diet for a long term answer for a healthy gut.