How well does your body transport oxygen from your lungs to your muscles?  Does it digest proteins and utilize carbohydrates as effectively as it should?  Has your athletic performance started to decline?  Do you frequently feel fatigued or have difficulty recovering from physical or mental stress?  

Posing any one of these questions to your doctor might get you a standard, serum chemistry profile as a general screen to rule out disease.  And while insights from this type of laboratory testing can be helpful, they don’t provide any direct or relevant information about the basic, physiological processes that drive your potential for health.

At Core 4 Nutrition, determining the connection between your biological well-being and your functional performance capacity is our specialty.  Through the use of a series of unique assessments—all performed at home with a simple finger stick, saliva, or urine sample—it’s possible to identify and restore your body’s most essential nutrient needs.

I have been asked a number of times, “What’s so special about the Core 4 assessments? Can’t I just do a few extra tests the next time I go to my doctor?”  

Low Vitamin D: Like smoking a pack of cigarettes a day.

If you've been reading my posts, you already know that an optimal vitamin D3 level will strengthen your immune and metabolic systems while improving your muscular performance and recovery capacities.      

A recent study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition has shown that vitamin D3 is even more important because it prevents the onset of chronic disease and actually increases the human lifespan.  Researchers found that raising serum vitamin D3 levels above 50ng/ml in those who were deficient reduced their disease mortality rate by 20 percent and increased their life expectancy by a full five years.

To put these findings into perspective, consider this:  Having a low vitamin D3 level carries the same health and life expectancy risks as smoking a pack of cigarettes every day for 15 years! ...

For Higher Levels of Nitric Oxide. Let the Sun Shine In!

Chalk another one up for Mother Nature’s infinite wisdom.

While unprotected sun exposure is still actively discouraged by many health care professionals, scientific researchers continue to document—in rapidly increasing numbers—its many benefits (discussed in a previous post).  Lower blood pressure, a decreased risk of both heart attack and stroke, a heightened sense of well-being, and improved athletic performance were among the powerful and healing benefits.

Many active, health-minded people now understand that getting the appropriate dose of sunlight is critical for optimal health and performance because it fuels the skin’s ability to produce an adequate supply of vitamin D3.  But the positive consequences don’t stop there.

It turns out that the skin acts as a storage depot for nitric oxide (NO).  And that sunlight plays a critical role in activating the physiological processes that convert stored forms of NO (from dietary nitrates found in green vegetables and red beets) into the bio-available form of NO that can actually be used by the body. 

Vitamin D: Find a Formula that Works!

What is your vitamin D level? 

Finding out the answer to this simple question may be the single, most important thing you’ll ever do for your health, appearance and performance! Current scientific research suggests that all cells and tissues in your body have vitamin D receptors, which means that each and every cell and tissue in your body needs it for proper function.

Did you know that vitamin D controls your body’s ability to produce energy and determines just how good your coordination, reaction time, strength, speed and endurance are? That a low level of vitamin D can lead to increased body fat? That vitamin D plays a major role in controlling inflammation—the culprit that causes sore muscles and slow recovery? Or that vitamin D has a proven, positive effect on the immune system? If your vitamin D level is low, you’ll be far more prone to flus, colds, and infections.

Research studies have shown that almost 85% of all active people are vitamin D deficient—including those receiving regular sun exposure!

You can't rely on sun exposure or food.

While exposure to the sun’s UVB rays support your body’s ability to manufacture its own (adequate) supply of vitamin D3, its not always practical—or even possible—to rely on the sun, especially during the colder months of the year. Even during the warmer months, its unrealistic for most people to get 30 minutes of full-body sun exposure three times weekly during mid-day hours.