12 million HIV infections could be avoided: UNAIDS (AFP)

AFP - Twelve million HIV infections could be prevented by 2015 by using a combination of prevention methods including condoms, circumcision coq10 other measures, UNAIDS officials said at a conference here Wednesday.

Possibly the most misunderstood part of evaluating daily vitamin supplements is how they enter your bloodstream. Or if they do at all. As a consumer, you might know which ingredients to look for on the label and their optimal dosages. But, tell me, what good is knowing that if your supplement is ravaged by stomach acid? If nutrients reach your small intestine damaged and unable to be absorbed, who cares what they are?

This article will take you beyond the label where crazy claims are often made. Be warned, most supplement companies won't like you digging this deep. Adding these 3 evaluating criteria to your arsenal will make you a supplement consumer to be feared.

(1) Disintegration & Dissolution - Does Your Supplement Even Break Apart?

Generally, after you swallow a supplement, you forget about it. You just assume it will somehow break up into tiny pieces, dissolve into your blood, and make you healthier. With cheap, mass-produced supplements, this is hardly the case.

Some supplements disintegrate too slowly and are dissolved in the wrong place. Some never break up at all and pass through you intact. branched chain amino acid supplements, however, disintegrate in 20-30 minutes in the small intestine.

The United States Pharmacopeia (USP) and British Pharmacopeia (BP) set disintegration and dissolution guidelines for daily vitamin supplements and pharmaceutical drugs. Unfortunately, they're only guidelines, not laws. Reputable supplement companies voluntarily manufacture in accordance with USP and BP standards.

If your supplement meets these standards, you can be sure that it was formulated with cutting edge technology---and that it represents the best of today's science.

(2) Excipients - Those Things Listed Way Down on the Label

Excipients are non-active ingredients. They give a supplement tablet form and consistency; they hold everything together. The type and number of them affects a supplement's ability to disintegrate and be absorbed.

Natural ones are best:

• gelatin
• magnesium stearate
• (colloidal) silicon dioxide
• silica
• titanium dioxide
• microcrystalline cellulose
• (di) calcium phosphate
• calcium sulphate
• potassium aspartate
• pregelatinized starch
• sodium starch glycolate
• croscarmellose sodium
• sodium citrate
• ascorbyl palmitate
• stearic acid
• carob
• acacia gum
• guar gum
• vanilla
• beeswax
• lecithin
• tapioca flour
• purified water
• vegetable acetoglyceride
• hydroxypropyl methylcellulose
• rice/flour/bran powders
• modified corn starch
• sodium chloride
• shellac
• soap
• maltose
• sucrose
• fructose
• mannitol
• sorbitol
• stevia
• glycerine
• maltodextrin
• dextrose

Beware of artificial ones:

• colorings
• sweeteners (including sucralose/Splenda)
• sodium benzoate
• propylene glycol
• aluminum silicate
• wheat, corn, yeast, dairy, soy (allergenic substances)

Professional-grade daily vitamin supplements contain about 5-10 excipients. Any more than that is a red flag.

(3) Passing Through Stomach Acid Safely - With Enteric Coating

As mentioned above, stomach acid damages and destroys many nutrients---like pancreatic enzymes, vegetable enzymes, and highly potent ingredients (l-glutathione, alpha lipoic acid, herbal extracts).

Pharmaceutical companies developed enteric coating to solve this problem; this is why their drugs work so well and so fast. Enteric coating provides a protective layer as the supplement passes through the stomach. Once it reaches the small intestine, it peels away and nutrients are released.

This is the key to absorption.

Without enteric coating, a great supplement becomes mediocre at best. But...many companies don't use it because of cost or lack of expertise. They'll only include vitamins and minerals in their supplement, because they're cheap and unaffected by stomach acid. But that's no way to formulate a quality supplement.

Okay, so natural co-q-10 you've become a much sharper consumer. You've learned the 3 things it takes to get the nutrients in a supplement absorbed into your body:

1. Proper disintegration and dissolution
2. A few safe, natural excipients
3. Enteric coating

By applying these criteria, you'll save money and time. Do you really want to take a supplement for years and then one day discover that it's not being absorbed? Or that is was formulated by a sales team, not a biochemist? Or that the ingredients are synthetic?

What a waste!

Daily vitamin supplements are long-term investments in your health - be smart from the start.

Zach Zufall is the author of the free 6-Day Mini-Course, "The Consumers' Guide to Choosing a Supplement That'll Slow Your Aging Process". Drop by Dietary Supplements Guide for your free copy.

Yahoo! News: Diseases/Conditions News

Diseases/Conditions News

What is B12? Why Do We Need It?

B-12 is a water-soluble vitamin (versus the fat soluble vitamins: A, D, E, and K). It is necessary for the proper functioning of the nervous system and helping the body purchase bulk dicreatine malate make blood. This vitamin is known for the energy and vitality it imparts to individuals who take it. For this reason, thousands of individuals elect to get shots or injections. But are shots necessary when there is a sublingual (dissolved under the tongue) alternative? This issue will be discussed below. B12 is sometimes referred to as Energy in a Bottle! Its source is chiefly from dairy products and meats.

B12 Deficiency

A deficiency or lack of may lead to anemia and problems with the sensation of vibration. Anemia can make one continually tired or fatigued and even crave things such as clay or ice. Your energy is depleted!

B-12 deficiency is also associated with dementia and mood swings or other mood disorders. A significant deficiency could possibly alter your pap smear results. Excessive alcohol intake, chronic stomach diseases, strict vegetarianism, or any chronic poor absorption states places one at increased risk for buy choline bitartrate Also, recent research suggests that bulk ellagic acid on a certain medication may be at increased risk for deficiency. If you are a diabetic, discuss this very important issue with your health care provider. Finally, the older we get, the greater the risk of deficiency. Individuals over the age of 65 may be at greatest risk.

Injections (Shots) versus Sublingual

It is no secret in the medical community that swallowing a vitamin b12 pill and depending on full absorption from the gut is unreliable. For this reason shots and sublingual routes are the more popular ways of getting b12 in your body. Shots can be painful. So, are shots really necessary? In some unusual cases yes, but for most people shots are not necessary. Under your tongue are numerous blood vessels. That is why medicines taken sublingually can gain rapid access to the blood stream. This rapid access to the blood stream can lead to a rapid increase in the level of a medicine. If you don't believe me, ask the patient with heart disease who develops chest pain if sublingual nitroglycerin works.

Vitamin b12 can gain rapid access to the blood via the sublingual route. So leave behind painful and expensive injections. Do have your health care provider check your b12 levels to monitor if you are staying in a mid-range targeted level. Get a quality supplement with has little artificial flavoring and fillers as possible. Start enjoying the benefits without the painful shots.

Orville Campbell, MD is an internist and nephrologist. He is board certified by the American Board of Internal Medicine. His expertise include: anemia, health and wellness, hypertension, diabetes, vitamin D, and kidney diseases. Dr. Campbell is an entrepreneur. He has owned several businesses and medical practices since finishing Emory University in 1995. He serves on multiple medical advisory boards for several multi-million dollar companies. Dr. Campbell is currently pursuing an MBA degree. He gives back to the community through his church's health and youth ministries and his children and youth mentoring organization called Teaching Kids to Dream, Inc.

Get Sublingual Vitamin B12 Now! Click on link below, Nutrition Supplments, then click on Sublingual B12

http://www.ClaimWellness.com