Absorption and Colloidal Minerals

Absorption
You will often hear claims that a supplement made by Company A is far more readily absorbed by the human body than another because of how the supplement has been manufactured (see Colloidal Minerals below).

However, the fact remains that it is difficult to claim the percentage of absorption for any product since absorption will differ with every individual person and with every nutrient. Determinants of absorption include age, medications used, daily diet, genetics, intestinal environment, and nutritional status.

For example, children who are still growing absorb calcium very efficiently. Growing children absorb almost 100% of any calcium they consume, regardless of the source.

On the other hand, adults absorb calcium very poorly and absorption is highly dependent upon the source used. For instance, calcium ascorbate is generally far better absorbed than calcium carbonate. Some studies suggest that certain adults absorb as little as 5% of the calcium they consume.

Does Your Body Even Want It?
Another very important factor that relates to absorption is the fact that your body is very much aware of its nutritional needs at any given point in time. Therefore, your body will regulate the uptake of various nutrients on several levels.

The first level occurs in the digestive tract, where receptors on the intestinal walls may or may not take up nutrients to be passed into the blood stream. The activity of these receptors may be inhibited or enhanced depending on the nutritional needs for that particular individual at that particular time.

A second level of regulation occurs at the cellular level, where cells will or will not take up nutrients traveling in the bloodstream. Any unused nutrients in the bloodstream will be excreted within several hours, except for fat-soluble nutrients.

A third level of regulation occurs within the cell, when unused nutrients are extruded from the cell, and released back into the bloodstream.

The process by which your body takes up nutrients is infinitely complex and not completely understood by science. So when you hear claims that this supplement or that supplement is 98% absorbable, take such claims with a grain of salt because a big factor in absorption is whether or not your body is capable of absorbing a particular nutrient as well as whether or not your body even needs it or wants that nutrient at any given time.

Colloidal Minerals
Colloidal Minerals are extracted from humic shale deposits formed through the decomposition of prehistoric plant life. Almost all Colloidal Mineral supplements are taken from shale deposits in Utah. The health benefit claim is that the microscopic size of fossilized minerals taken from this area allows the human body to better utilize these elements at a cellular level.

You will hear some supplement companies claim that their colloidal minerals have 98% absorption, meaning that if you take their product your body will absorb 98% of it. However, there's just one problem with this claim; there are currently no documented clinical test results to show that colloidal minerals are absorbed at all.

This is not to say that colloidal minerals do not work. They may very well be absorbed at a high percentage in the human body. There are just no clinical test results showing this.

It's important that the vitamin and mineral supplement company that you pick should strive to maintain a lead in cutting edge technology and be a leader in new product innovation. However, this technology and innovation must be based on sound science.

This is why you see some companies currently not including colloidal minerals in their product line; it may very well be due to a current lack of scientific studies on colloidal minerals absorption.