Coenzyme Q10 – What Is It Good For and Does It Really Work

Coenzyme Q10 is the third to most purchased food supplement in the United States, coming in only after omega 3 and multivitamin supplements. There are many claims to the health benefits of Co Q10 and I always like to find the scientific proof to these claims. With Coenzyme Q10 that is not so difficult because the recommendation for Co Q10 are based on basic chemical reactions that happen in every cell of our body. Co Q10 is essential for the creation of ATP in the mitochondria of every cell. ATP is the readily available energy that the cell needs to complete any task needed.

Here is a list of how much Co Q10 different foods

"CoQ₁₀ levels in selected foods^. Food Co enzyme Q₁₀ concentration [mg/kg], Beefheart113, liver 39–50, muscle 26–40, Pork heart 11.8–128.2, liver22.7–54.0, muscle 13.8–45.0, Chicken heart 116.2–132.2, Fish sardine 5–64, mackerel red flesh 43–67, white flesh 11–16, salmon 4–8, tuna 5, Oils- soybean 54–280, olive 4–160, grape seed 64–73, sunflower 4–15, rice bran/coconut Nutspeanuts27, walnuts 19, sesame seeds 18–23, pistachio nuts 20, hazelnuts 17, almond 5–14, Vegetables- parsley 8–26, broccoli 6–9, cauliflower 2–7, spinach up to 10, grape 6–7, Chinese cabbage 2–5, Fruit- avocado 10, black currant 3, strawberry 1, orange 1–2, grape fruit 1, apple 1" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coenzyme_Q10

Dosage

You should take between 3-6 mg per day

Ok so now the question does it really work and for who?

So what does the research say?

For Athletes

This study showed that Co Q10 was not effective in improving performance.

Does exogenous coenzyme Q10 affect aerobic capacity in endurance athletes?

This study showed that Co Q10 was effective in reducing muscular injury.

Reducing exercise-induced muscular injury in kendo athletes with supplementation of coenzyme Q10

For Heart Disease

This study shows how beneficial Co Q10 can be.

Biochemical rationale and myocardial tissue data on the effective therapy of cardiomyopathy withcoenzyme Q10

All I could say is wow everyone who has had heart problems should take Coenzyme Q10.

Overview of the use of CoQ10 in cardiovascular disease

Migraine Headaches

Efficacy of coenzyme Q10 in migraine prophylaxis: a randomized controlled trial

Cancer

CoQ10: could it have a role in cancer management?

Partial and complete regression of breast cancer in patients in relation to dosage of coenzyme Q10

Wow after reading all this research I am going to recommend Q10 to a lot of my clients.


 

Bee Propolis – What is it good for and does it work?

Bee Propolis is a material that bees collect from different plants. The bees use the propolis in the building of their hives. Bee Propolis has anti-inflammatory, anti-bacterial and immune stimulating properties. Many people take Bee Propolis to help prevent sore throat and in the treatment of colds, flu, strep throat, mouth ulcers, tonsillitis and acne.

Research articles

Antibacterial properties of propolis (bee glue).

Bee propolis versus placebo in the treatment of infertility associated with minimal or mild endometriosis: a pilot randomized controlled trial. A modern trend

What is Bee Pollen and what is it good for?

Bee pollen is a powder like substance that is produced by the flowers and then collected by the bees. It is rich in protein (10-15%) and contains a wide range of nutritional materials. Bee pollen contains B complex vitamins, vitamin C, amino acids, essential fatty acids, enzymes, carotene, iron, copper, calcium, magnesium, potassium, manganese, plant sterols and simple sugars.

What can bee pollen be good for?

Bee pollen has anti microbial properties to it. It can be helpful in treating fatigue, cancer, depression colon disorders and allergies.

Bee pollen may cause allergic reactions (0.05% of the population) so take a small amount at first to make sure you are not one of the few who are allergic.

What is DNA RNA Supplementation

I just read about DNA RNA supplementation about a week or so ago and I think that it's something everyone should be taking. It just seems like a great thing to be giving our bodies. for anyone who doesn't know DNA and RNA are the material in every cell in our body's that has the code, recipe, building plan or whatever else you want to call it, for making new cells and body tissue. Now when a cell reproduces itself the child cell should be an exact duplicate of the parent cell. But then why is it that we get old? So one theory is that by providing our cells with extra amounts of nucleic acids, which are the building blocks of the DNA and RNA, we can help our cells to produce better replicas of themselves and by that slow down the ageing process. What could sound better?

What are Vitamins

Vitamins are organic substances that are produced by plants, which are essential for proper functioning of our bodies. What is the deal with vitamins? Ever since I was a kid I have heard about vitamin C and that its great to help you body fight off diseases. I know that this is the way that a lot of people fell about vitamins but the truth is that if used correctly vitamins can realy help improve your health. They can help you to fell more energized, relaxed, focused and even happier. A good example of a vitamin supplement that is good for everybody is a B-complex plus C vitamin. As I said before most people know that vitamin C is good for strengthening the immune system but the truth is that vitamin C has over six hundred different uses in the body. It helps in the production and repair of bone, teeth and hair. It helps to control inflammation in the body. It also helps with the production of energy on the cellular level. B-complex vitamins are all essential for the creating of energy on the cellular level. And the good that about these vitamins (B-complex and C) si that they are water soluble vitamins which means that the body is able to secrete them easily through the urine if there is an excess amount in the body. This is unlike vitamins A, D, E and K, which are fat soluble and can be toxic if take in large amounts. A lot of people have tried tacking a multi-vitamin and simply say that they took it because they know that its good for them but they didn’t feel anything. When you take a multi-vitamin that has optimal amounts of b-complex and C vitamins then you really do feel it.

Why Would You Take a Multivitamin?

What exactly is a multivitamin? Why would someone need to take a multivitamin? What are the differences between the different multivitamins? These questions and many other are going to be my focus here. Because I think that it's important for people to know the health benefits of multivitamins and also to how to choose which one is best for them.

A multivitamin is a food supplement that contains all of the essential vitamins and minerals that our body needs to operate at its optimal potential. To truly accurate when I am speaking here about a multivitamin in truth I am talking about a multi vitamin and mineral supplement.

In my opinion everyone should take a multivitamin. I take two every day and so do my wife and my sons. I look at it like super fuel for our biological engines. A lot of people have asked me in the past. What do I need a multivitamin for when I eat food? Well that is a good question and the answer is not so simple.

For starters our bodies need a very large range of different vitamins and minerals to keep us functioning at our maximum potential. And in order to get the full list we need to be eating a large variety of different foods. Please don't mistake variety for quantity because it's not how much you eat, but what you eat.

The recommended daily intake of fresh fruits and vegetables is seven cups. Now most people are not eating seven cups of fresh fruits and vegetables a day. There for these people would benefit from supplementing their diet with a multivitamin.

Also a lot of our foods are not whole. Rice is the classic example of vitamin deficiency do to consumption of food not in its whole form. For those who don't know the story I will tell you it in short. It was when white rice became popular and replaced brown rice. People who had a diet that was made up largely of rice started to suffer from a sickness known as Beriberi. Beriberi in the end was found not to be a sickness at all but a thiamin or vitamin B1 deficiency. This was because the thiamin in the rise was being removed during the polishing process.

So because of this fact, that a lot of the foods that make up our diet are processed and not whole. It is a good idea to take a multivitamin.

One important question to mention when talking about multivitamins or any vitamin really is how much does the body need. When you look a vitamin, or even nutritional information on food labels. What you see written there in the RDA, the recommended daily allowance. But the RDA is the bare minimum that the body needs to function. The new standard for supplements is the ODA. ODA stands for optimal daily allowance and that is what I look for when I go out to buy a multivitamin.

My current multi vitamin and mineral supplement of choice is the GNC brand Mega Men supplement. What I really love about this supplement is that it has 50 mg of B complex in each pill. To read more about why B complex is good for you take a look at my previous post on B complex. Another good multivitamin that I have taken in the past is the Sulgar brand Multimale supplement. I personally think that it's a good idea to switch brands of multivitamins every half a year or so. The reason for this is because today most of the good quality multi supplements have antioxidant and healthy herbal formulas in them as well. I think that is good to get as many different kinds of these herbs as you can. By changing your multi every six months or even four months you increase the variety of health promoting substances you put into your body.

So if you are not eating seven cups a day a fresh fruits and vegetables. If you don't eat only whole and non processed foods. If you want to give your body a boost of good health every day. Go out and get yourself a good multivitamin.

Why Would You Take B-Complex

B-complex is a group of vitamins that are essential for the creating of energy in every cell in our body. So why wouldn't you take B-complex? Well there is talk about dangers of mega dose vitamins and there is a lot to that, but because the B vitamins are water soluble vitamins they are very safe even taken in mega doses.

I find that 100mg of B-complex is just as effective in the treatment of headache caused by hangover as taking Tylenol or any other over the counter pain medicine.

I take B-complex to help me study and for when I feel weak and need more energy.

One of the things that I look for most in a multi vitamin is high concentration of B-complex.

B vitamins assist in the proper metabolism of carbohydrates and can be helpful in keeping balanced sugar levels.

The list goes on and on so why would you take B-complex? Why wouldn't you?