The 50 essential nutritional elements required for health

There are 50 essential elements each of us must get to be healthy. Take any one of them completely away, and we will eventually die for the lack of it. There are five widely separated groups of people on planet Earth who traditionally live well past 100 years old. Studies have shown in each case these agrarian societies get all 50 essential elements in their diets because of the unique circumstances of where they live. They also possess a pollution free environment. This includes clean air and water and a lack of pesticides and artificial fertilizers. Cancer and heart disease are virtually unknown among them as they live out their lives in seclusion.

That being the case, for argument sake, it is not a very big stretch of the imagination to propose that most of the people on the Earth are dying prematurely.

Concerning taking care of ourselves, it is a sad commentary about our affluent North American society that with all our resources, we have only gone down hill within the last 100 years. In 1900, Cancer killed 3.3% of the population. Today it kills 25%. Heart disease killed 14.2% in 1900. Today it kills 33%. Ninety-five years ago, the American diet was vastly restricted from what it is now. On the surface, one would think these figures would drop as our food production methods and distribution have improved. But the opposite has happened. Much of the blame lies with the way we process our foods

Name                   RDA^#     % who get less than the RDA in N. America
2 fatty acids         grams
  Linoleic Acid         3                 5%
  Alpha-Linolenic Acid  2                95%

Protein - 8 amino acids (10 for children)
                      grams
  Isoleucine           1.1
  Leucine              1.0       The average intake
  Lysine               0.84      of protein in North
  Methionine         0.65-1.3     America is 2 or 3
  Phenylalanine        1.0       times the RDA.
  Threonine          0.37-0.7
  Tryptophan           0.5
  Valine               0.85
  Histidine    Essential for children
  Arginine     Essential for children

13 Vitamins        milligram/IU
  Vitamin A           5000 IU            50%
  Thiamine(B1)         1.2               45%
  Riboflavin(B2)       1.7               34%
  Niacin(B3)            20               33%
  Pantothenic Acid(B5)  10               25%
  Pyridoxine(B6)         2               80%
  Biotin (B7)           0.3              10%
  Folic Acid (B9)       0.4              10%
  Cobalmin (B12)       0.006             34%
  Vitamin C             60               41%
  Vitamin D            400 IU            10%
  Vitamin E             30 IU           20-40%
  Vitamin K           Unknown            15%
 
21 Minerals         milligrams
  Calcium            800-1200            68%
  Phosphorus         800-1200            27%
  Potassium            2000               ?
  Sulphur        Adequate Protein         ?
  Sodium                220               ?
  Chlorine              220               ?
  Magnesium           300-400            75%
  Silicon               ?                30%
  Iron                  18               57%
  Fluorine               1                ?
  Zinc                  15              35-60%
  Strontium            0.32*              ?
  Copper                2*              85-90%
  Vanadium            1-3.2*              ?
  Selenium           0.05-.1*           50-60%
  Manganese           2.5-7*            20-30%
  Iodine             0.08-.15             ?
  Nickel               0.01*              ?
  Molybdenum        0.045-.5*             ?
  Cobalt              0.008*              ?
  Chromium             0.6*              90%

A source of energy... Complex carbohydrates are best

Water

Oxygen

Light

  # RDA stands for Recommended Daily Allowance
  * No RDA set. Suggested by researchers.