Much has recently been said about mineral absorption in the body, and there are recent pontifications that the best way to supplement minerals is to take "Colloidal" mineral complexes, while still others professing that "Ionic" is the way to go, and that "Chelated" has never lived up to its promises of bioavailability.

Everything you hear has some ring of truth to it; each side has a point to make. But unfortunately, neither side has ever told you the whole story about mineral uptake and balance in the body, and the limits of all the above methods of mineral supplementation. This has led to considerable confusion, misinformation and to the drawing of many inaccurate conclusions.

Now, those who argue about the inefficiencies of Chelated mineral supplements correctly point out that generally only half of the Chelated mineral dose is ever truly absorbed by the body. But what they fail to mention is that this low rate of absorption has nothing to do with the chemical mechanism of "Chelation," and how wonderfully efficient minerals are absorbed by the body once they have been truly Chelated. Rather, the poor rate of absorption actually reflects how many molecules of the minerals actually get "Chelated" through the industrial chemical processing of Chelation itself.

The industrial manufacturing process of Chelation is very inefficient, expensive and painstakingly laborious. Generally only half of the minerals by weight which are put through the process ever really get Chelated properly. The other half of minerals remain unChelated in their raw state, but remain mixed together with that fraction which has successfully achieved Chelation, their mixture being sold as "Chelated minerals."

Therefore, it's generally true that only half of any Chelated mineral package claim on the market is actually Chelated. The assertion, then, made by some that only half of "Chelated minerals" ever get absorbed stems from the reason that only half of these prepared minerals were ever really Chelated in the first place. It has nothing to do with the bioavailability of Chelation. The unChelated half are generally not absorbed quickly nor completely (unless other steps are taken to further improve these efficiencies which we will address in a minute).

Thus, the criticisms leveled against Chelated complexes are based on a misstatement of the facts, inappropriately leading one to think Chelated minerals are inefficient, faulty and not bioavailable, which just isn't true. Quite to the contrary, 100% of minerals which are actually Chelated are indeed completely absorbed and bioavailable. Minerals which are properly Chelated are exceptionally bioavailable to the body, and indeed are more so than either Colloidal or Ionic mineral complexes by themselves, giving them, as we shall soon see, the "fast track" to absorption.

While there are certainly well argued advantages of bioavailability and efficiency in using either Colloidal and/or Ionic mineral complexes (as V„xa uses) as compared to straight raw supplementation of trace mineral salts and alkaloids, there are simply no minerals which are more bioavailable and efficient than those which have been naturally Chelated by the body itself with the aid of Free Form Amino Acids. Indeed, the truth be known, it is through the natural process of Chelation that the majority of all Colloidal and Ionic complexes are quickly absorbed into the body, otherwise these must wait for the tidal infusions of the body to allow absorption to occur, a passive process which is prone to many difficulties.

It's well documented that nature has evolved its own exceptionally efficient process of absorption of free inorganic minerals into living organic organisms... And it's called natural Chelation. Chelation is simply the process whereby an organic Free Form Amino Acid picks up a molecule of a mineral, wraps it within its structure, actually enveloping it, making it easier for organic organisms then to absorb it.

The process of Chelation is first found within the chemistry of the earth, of the soil itself, where most minerals (through special microbial action) are dissolved from rock, sand and other inorganic materials. These dissolved minerals are then joined (through rain, compaction, etc.) with organic decaying matter rich in Amino Acids. The organic matter within the soil provides a medium for chelating (and holding in available form) dissolved inorganic soil nutrients needed by plants. Many minerals are then absorbed by plants in Chelated form. And soon after, plant metabolism then provides us with minerals in Chelated form almost entirely, including all of the trace elements.

This is nature's way, a way proven to be most efficient and effective. And Chelation is not only the preferred means of mineral absorption and transport in plants, but also within mammals. Although mammals and other animals are a little more flexible than plants, and can absorb non-Chelated minerals, they do so at a much slower rate and depend upon many other factors, which in turn, can affect "what" and "how many" minerals may finally be assimilated by the body. This is a basic biological fact well studied and documented.

The process of Chelation also occurs naturally in the gastrointestinal tract with the help of Free Form Amino Acids. Again, this is a very simpe, yet extremely effective process wherein a molecule of a mineral is physically encased and surrounded by a molecule of a Free Form Amino Acid. This is the natural process whereby the majority of all minerals, be they free, colloidal and/or ionic, can be quickly absorbed into organic mechanisms.

As minerals are consumed and extracted from the foods we ingest (or the supplements we take), they pass from the stomach into the duodenum mostly in their free ionic state. Here, within this chemical-rich environment, minerals may become naturally Chelated by Free Form Amino Acids and free peptides. Once Chelated, they are then immediately prepared to proceed through the epithelial cells of the muscosal lining of the duodenum into the blood stream. The critical point where this process can break down is whether or not there are sufficient numbers of Free Form Amino Acids within the duodenum for Chelation to take place. If minerals are not naturally Chelated, they must remain within this environment awaiting the passive tidal flux of ionic transport before they can be transported into the blood stream.

More specifically, the body has a slight problem when attempting to quickly absorb Raw Mineral Complexes of salts and alkaloids (eg., MgSO4), Free Ionic Minerals (Cu2+, Fe2+/3+, etc), and/or Colloidal Complexes. (Colloidal minerals are simply mixtures of raw mineral salts, alkaloids, and ionic minerals in a liquid suspension or dried within a loose flux.) Without Chelation, these minerals can only be absorbed by the body by energy-dependent driven and passive diffusion processes, a much slower and less guaranteed process of absorption than for minerals which have been naturally Chelated. Moreover, these unChelated minerals must all compete with many of the same mineral uptake sites in the mucosa lining of the gut, slowing the process of "tidal infusion" even further.

On the other hand, Free Form Amino Acids become ionized molecules in aqueous solutions, such as the gut, naturally having a resting electric potential and capable of responding to the alkalinity and acidity in the medium in which they are found. Because of this they are called isoelectric (isoelectric pH or pI) and demonstrate free active migrational tendencies according to the pH of the gut. Amino Acids are also zwitterions or dipolar ionic molecules which bear charged groups of opposite polarity, and thus exhibit properties of ionic compounds, being more soluble in polar than nonpolar solvents.

What this means, specifically, is that these unique chemical characteristics make them exceptionally active transport mechanisms and chelating agents, especially to all minerals in solution and allows any mineral to be quickly Chelated (or enveloped) within their versatile structures. Most importantly, once a mineral becomes Chelated, competitiveness for energy-dependent driven and passive diffusion processes (as outlined above) are completely circumvented. Chelated minerals are no longer dependent upon the passive processes of "tidal infusion" as are unChelated Colloidal/Ionic minerals. Most simply, there are no longer any delays or "long waiting lines" to get into the body. Thus, Chelated minerals attain "a higher status" and bypass all of this and are immediately absorbed into the blood stream without waiting for some passive system to initiate the process of absorption on which all other minerals, including unChelated Raw, Colloidal and Ionic, must depend.

Thus, the absorption of all Trace Minerals, whether they are Raw, in Colloidal solution or flux and/or are Ionized, will always be enhanced via natural Chelation by Free Form Amino Acids and peptides. But without natural Chelation, all minerals must wait for the "tides" of passive diffusion and energy-dependent absorption processes before they can be appropriately assimilated.

Therefore, the only way to ensure the fastest way of trace mineral absorption is to provide Free Form Amino Acids in order to allow the body's chemistry to properly chelate them within the gut. V„xa makes sure that all Colloidal/Ionic Trace Minerals and Mineral Complexes offered in the Min-Pac and the Nutritionizer & Pro-Tec come with sufficient Free Form Amino Acids and peptides to ensure ongoing natural Chelation within the gut, and thereafter speedy and appropriate assimilation into the blood stream. With Växa's Nutraceuticals as well, Free Form Amino Acids are available to ensure natural Chelation of all accompanying mineral cofactors as well, ensuring them the "fast track" to absorption.

Selected References:

Cerewski, F.L., Ridlington, J.W., in Hurley, L.S., Keen, C.L., Lonnerdal, B. and Rucker, R.B., eds: Trace Elements in Man and Animals, Plenum, New York, N.Y., 1988.

Linder, M.C., ed: Nutritional Biochemistry and Metabolism with Clinical Applications, Second Edition, Appleton & Lange, Norwalk, Connecticut, 1991.

Lehninger, A.L., Nelson and D.L., Cox, M.M., Principles of Biochemistry, Second Edition, Worth Publishers, New York, N.Y., 1993.

Mertz, W., ed: Trace Elements in Human and Animal Nutrition, Fifth Edition, Vol 1 & 2, Academic Press, New York, N.Y., 1986.

Scriver, C.R., Beaudet, A.L., Sly, W. S., and Valle, D., eds: The Metabolic and Molecular Bases of Inherited Disease, Vol 1,2,3, McGraw-Hill, Inc., New York, N.Y., 1995.

Voet, D. and Voet, J.G., Biochemistry, Second Edition, John WIley & Sons, Inc., New York, N.Y.,1995.

Valentine, J.l., Campaion, D.S., Schluchter, M.D. and Massey, F.J., in Howell, J.McC., et al, eds: Trace Element Metabolism in Man and Animals. Canberra: Australian Academy of Science, 1981.