Vitamin/Mineral Depletion

This week’s assignment to discuss reasons for a drop in available vitamins and minerals in our food and also the diseases associated with deficiencies is really quite eye-opening and scary!! I had no clue just how depleted our resources have become! First, I need to backtrack. Where do the vitamins and minerals found in our food come from? It seems like a no-brainer but really I don’t think that most of us have even pondered this question, I know I didn’t. I just assumed that a carrot was a carrot, an apple just an apple, however this is not the case at all! The vitamins and minerals present in our food comes from the soil it is grown in, if it is not present in the soil, guess what… correct, it is not present in our food! Ugh!! Soil today is not the same soil years ago and the USDA has known this for 70+ years. They were warned in 1936 that our soil erosion and over farming was creating mineral and vitamin deficiencies in our soil and yet they have not done anything to combat that! If in 1936 it was already depleting, can you even
imagine what it is like now?? So what has happened to our soil?? Soil is full of micro-organisms and bacteria that are necessary and vital in creating the minerals we need. From over farming and pesticide use these organisms and bacteria are becoming non-existent. Here is a fantastic website that delves even further into the causes of depletion: http://www.nutritionsecurity.org/Nutrition%20Security.htm
Other factors also include our water supply. We all know all the harmful chemicals and poisons that are in our water, which is why most of us drink either bottled or filtered water. However, they are not filtering the water that is growing our food!! UGH!! Another good link is a pdf on research that has been done into the mineral and vitamin deficiencies in our food: http://www.mineralresourcesint.co.uk/pdf/mineral_deplet.pdf
Now that we have that established, what does it really make a difference if we have less vitamin and minerals in our food anyway?? Well… many diseases we know all too well are actually associated with vitamin and mineral deficiencies. For example, a calcium deficiency causes arthritis, high blood pressure, and osteoporosis; a copper deficiency is associated with anemia, hair loss, arthritis, and aneurysms, and a selenium deficiency can cause cancer, cataracts, age spots, and multiple sclerosis. Also, studies have shown that the adrenal glands, blood, bones, capillary walls, cells, connective tissue (skin/ligaments/bones/gums), heart, mucous membranes, nervous system and teeth are effected with deficiencies in Vitamin C and our blood, lymphatic system, muscles, and nerves are affected with a sodium deficiency. On the following website you can find the nutritional content of most fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, and protein sources and also a breakdown of vitamins and minerals and what they do for your body and what a deficiency in them can cause: http://www.healthalternatives2000.com/minerals-nutrition-chart.html
I know this seems quite depressing, however, we all need to be aware of what the USDA has been for our whole lives and has yet to change! We are the only ones who can force this change and make them accountable for what they are putting on the grocery shelves for us to consume. Also, it is under the above stated premises that organic farming was started. In organic farming it is necessary to rotate crops as to not completely deplete the soil and also to work symbiotically with nature. When this world was created the micro-organisms and bacteria were in place for a reason and we should honor that by continuing to farm and take care of this land that was given to us!