What's Missing?
Research conducted in the U.S. and the U.K. support the finding that fruits, vegetables, and meets have a much lower mineral content compared to the very same foods grown and harvested progressively over the past fifty years.
In the U.K., Dr. David Thomas, D.C., compared data from "The Chemical Composition of Food" published in 1940 by the Medical Research Council with the fifth edition "Composition of Food published in 1991" by the Royal Society of Chemistry and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Foods and came to the startling conclusion that there has been a significant decrease in the nutritional value of fruits, vegetables, and meats. *
The table below, published from Dr. Thomas' study that reflects official government statistics, clearly shows a significant drop in the mineral content of foods. According to Thomas:
The results of my investigation demonstrate there has been a 76 percent depletion in the copper content of vegetables over a 51 year period. I have also determined that the seven "new" vegetables introduced and analyzed between 1960 and 1991 there has been a depletion of 59 percent in their zinc content. There are alarming results; especially when the essential nature of these and other trace elements to human and animal health are taken into consideration. In the United States, Paul Bergner, Director of the North American Institute of Medical Herbalism in Boulder, CO and author of The Healing Power of Minerals and Trace Elements, undertook his own study using data published by the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture data (USDA'a Food Handbook No 8).
According to Bergner's findings as reflected in the table below, there has been similar, significant decline in the mineral content of fruits and vegetables from just 1963 to 1997 in the U.S.*
Table: Summary of Changes in the Mineral Content of vegetables, fruit, and meat between 1940 and 1991, United Kingdom
(27 Varieties)
(17 Varieties)
(10 Cuts)1940 Sodium 1991 (Na) Less 49% Less 29% Less 30% 1940 Potassium 1991 (K) Less 16% Less 19% Less 16% 1940 Phosphorus 1991 (P) Plus 9% Plus 2% Less 28% 1940 Magnesium 1991 (Mg) Less 24% Less 16% Less 10% 1940 Calcium 1991 (Ca) Less 46% Less 16% Less 41% 1940 Iron 1991 (Fe) Less 27% Less 24% Less 54% 1940 Copper 1991 (Cu) Less 76% Less 20% Less 24% Table: Changes in the Mineral Content of some fruits and vegetables between 1963 and 1992, United States
Calcium -29.82% Iron -32.00% Magnesium -21.08% Phosphorous -11.09% Potassium -6.48% *These statements have not been evaluated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
