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What other benefits could you get from the ThinkPharm Formula?
Every claim on our label has been authorised by the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA).
The EFSA reviews the evidence behind claims relating to supplements and decides whether there’s enough evidence to make a claim.
Have a look at all the claims we can put on our label:
Contribute to the maintenance of normal:
Why Our Formula Works: The Nutrients Essential For Maintaining Your Best Hair, Skin and Nails
The forms and doses are more important than people think. Read more below to find out: why you're not getting enough through food, why we suggest this dose and why we suggest this form
OR
you can read further down why you should stop taking your multivitamin and what you can take instead to optimise your skin, hair and nails!
Evidence and Formulation Science (The Science-y Bit)
Why you're not getting enough
Why this dose
Why this form
Selenium
The concentrations of selenium in our food depend on the concentrations of selenium in our soil. Although this can vary from place to place, the UK is known to have low concentrations of selenium in the soil. The end result is that our land-based foods are an unreliable source of selenium and a lot of people don’t get enough.
What about fish?
Seafood can have relatively stable levels of selenium but it also contains mercury and mercury has been shown to block many functions and effects of selenium in the body (3). That’s how mercury can exert its toxicity effects. Consuming some fish can be beneficial as part of a varied and balanced diet thanks to its omega-3 fatty acids (amongst other nutrients). Depending on the fish species consumed, trying to get all your selenium from seafood can lead to excessive amounts of mercury. This is why we don't recommend trying to meet your selenium requirements through seafood.
What about Brazil Nuts?
Amongst the alternative health community there are some who advise the consumption of Brazil Nuts to get enough selenium.
Brazil Nuts can have quite high selenium content because the trees have very deep roots which go deep enough to have access to some selenium deposits in countries like Brazil and Bolivia.
Unfortunately, a lot of Brazil nuts that you can buy in stores do not come from these countries and therefore have much lower concentrations of selenium. One needs to buy organic Brazil nuts that have the country of origin marked as Bolivia or Brazil. Sometimes the label will actually state the selenium content, so you can see it clearly. Many supermarkets will intentionally grow their Brazil nuts in conditions that yield lower selenium levels as they are afraid of giving their customers selenium toxicity.
Beside from getting access to the correct Brazil nuts, there are other issues that make Brazil nuts a less than ideal food. As we’ll mention in the section on zinc, Brazil nuts are very high in phytic acid which can negatively affect our calcium and zinc (as well as other minerals). One only needs a small amount of Brazil nuts to get an unfavourable amount of phytic acid which can have real consequences on our nutrient absorption. More on this in our section on zinc.
Apart from the phytic acid, Brazil nuts can quite often be contaminated with a mold species called Aspergillus Flavus (4). This will depend on many factors such as the storage conditions and freshness.
Generally speaking it's best to try and avoid these mold species as they can produce aflatoxin. Aflatoxins are a family of mold toxins capable of causing cancer and mutating our DNA which is why the EFSA recommends we try to keep exposure as low as possible (5). So consuming nuts which contain these mold species isn't very advisable.
Zinc
Why does the WHO estimate zinc deficiency to be so high? Two main reasons:
1) The best sources of zinc are animal products that people don't eat that much of (red meat and oysters).
2) Most people eat foods which inhibit their absorption of zinc and are capable of depleting the body's zinc reserves. All nuts, grains, seeds and legumes contain something called phytic acid (to varying degrees).
Phytic acid binds to certain minerals in the diet and blocks their absorption. With regards to zinc, phytic acid can even bind to zinc in your digestive enzymes and avoid this zinc being reabsorbed like it usually does (8), thereby causing depletion. That's why in order to maintain a positive zinc balance there is a ratio of zinc to phytic acid that needs to be met or exceeded.
According to a paper from the world’s leading scientific journal (Nature), 76.9% of people in China fall below this ratio with a median (average) daily intake of zinc and phytic acid being 10.6mg and 1186mg respectively (9).
This implies the 76.9% of Chinese people are constantly losing zinc from the body.
This explains why the WHO estimates at least 1 in 3 people are affected by zinc deficiency (10).
To put this into context, you would only need about 50 grams of certain beans (not soaked or fermented) to reach this unfavourable quantity of phytic acid (1186mg) (11).
So although more evidence is needed, this is why we think most people should supplement with zinc.
This is why we believe more than 1 in 3 people are affected by suboptimal zinc levels.
Many populations have been shown to have a daily phytic acid intake higher than China; South Korean populations (1676.6mg), Indian populations (1560mg-2500mg), Nigerian populations (2000mg-2200mg) (9). Which is why we think it is especially important for Black and Minority Ethnic (BAME) groups to supplement with zinc.
It should be noted that anybody of any ethnicity can consume high phytic acid foods, but Western diets tend to have lower phytic acid content (12). According to one article, “The average phytate intake in the U.S. and the U.K. ranges between 631 and 746 mg per day; the average in Finland is 370 mg; in Italy it is 219 mg; and in Sweden a mere 180 mg per day” (13).
If deficiency is so common, why aren’t your doctor and the health authorities telling you about this?
Because only really severe cases show symptoms and doctors can’t test for it.
Why?
Because under normal circumstances 84-90% zinc is in the muscles and bones. That’s why experts agree that blood levels aren’t a great way of measuring deficiency (14).
You can see exact quantity of phytic acid from various foods below:
Table of phytic acid content of various foods
Please note that phytic acid content of a food can vary but here is a table that we prepared with worst case scenarios based on scientific studies (15). (Please note this is not a complete table. Most tubers also contain some phytic acid but these have not been included in the table as the concentrations are less significant). You can use this table to help estimate your phytic acid intake:
Copper
Ever since the beginning of the 1900s when we started using artificial fertilisers, the concentrations of minerals in our vegetables have been decreasing.
Why?
Because the artificial fertilisers only ever replace 3 elements. In the case of the mineral copper, some studies have found levels to have decreased by 80%! Whereas for other minerals like calcium the figures may be closer to 17% (16).
Scientists have found there is currently no way of accurately and reliably diagnosing copper deficiency. They are now looking at blood measurements of immune system function to see if these can be a reliable way of detecting borderline copper deficiency (17). This is because the immune system is thought to be sensitive to mild decreases in copper levels.
One study of post-menopausal women found that giving 3mg of copper reduced the amount of bone lost by about 89% (18). In other words, about 10 times less bone loss was observed. This implies average intakes are not optimising the health of certain body systems.
Selenium
The NHS recommends 60 µg of selenium per day for women.
Higher doses have attracted interest because selenium plays an important role in immune function. Some observational research has linked higher selenium status with better COVID-19 outcomes (19), while clinical trials using 200 µg per day have reported potential benefits for viral infections and cardiovascular health (22) (23) (24) (25) (26).
But more isn't necessarily better.
Higher selenium intakes may also have downsides. Research has raised concerns about the effects of excess selenium on bone health (51) (52) (53), and high intakes may deplete nutrients like vitamins C and E.
Importantly, trials investigating higher doses haven't necessarily been designed to detect every possible long-term downside, such as changes in bone or muscle health.
That's why we take a more cautious approach.
We provide 60 µg; enough to meet the recommended daily intake without unnecessarily pushing selenium exposure higher.
Zinc
Most people consume clinically significant quantities of phytic acid which blocks our absorption of zinc and depletes zinc from our body (via our digestive system). See the table under the "why you're not getting enough" section to see the foods which make you consume high amounts.
This is why it's important for most people to supplement; to maintain a positive zinc balance and avoid the usual decline of zinc that happens with age (27).
Taking too much zinc can cause depletions in copper (28). We use a dose that does not cause this problem (28).
Copper
NHS states the requirement is 1.2mg per day (29).
From data we have from the United States, average intakes for men and women over the age of 20 are 1.4mg and 1.1mg respectively (30).
Studies where 3mg was supplemented showed dramatic benefits for bone health (89% less bone loss) (18), thereby implying people need to consume more than 1.2mg to optimise certain body systems.
Although studies using 3mg found beneficial effects (18), another study found that a total (from food and supplements) of 2.6mg of copper per day was deemed an optimal intake when trying to minimise risk of deficiency and minimise risk of toxicity symptoms (31).
Taking a supplement containing 1.4mg helps the average person get as close to an optimal intake as possible.
Selenium
When it comes to supplementation, organic forms of selenium like selenomethionine are retain better than inorganic forms of selenium like sodium selenate or sodium selenite (32). More than 90% of selenomethionine is absorbed by the human body whereas with sodium selenite the absorption is around 50% (33).
Selenomethionine is the same form of selenium naturally found in certain foods like Brazil nuts, cereal grains and soybeans (34), whereas sodium selenite or selenate are not found to naturally occur in foods.
As a result, studies seem to indicate the naturally occuring versions are safer and don't deplete other vitamins (E.G. vitamin E) in quite the same way (35) (36).
Most multivitamins will contain the less safe and less absorbed inorganic forms of selenium (sodium selenate or sodium selenite).
Zinc
Most supplements contain ionic forms of zinc. We suggest an amino acid bound form of zinc called zinc bisglycinate. This form has been shown to be absorbed 43.4% more than other commonly used forms of zinc (37).
The other advantage of this form is that its absorption cannot be reduced by food components like phytic acid, thereby adding to its efficacy. This explains why animal forms of zinc are better absorbed than plant forms of zinc (38). In animal products the zinc is bound to amino acids, whereas in plant foods the phytic acid inhibits absorption (38).
Copper
The form we suggest is an organic form called copper bisglycinate (amino acid bound).
Virtually all store-bought multivitamins will contain copper sulphate (an inorganic form) whereas we suggest copper bisglycinate because it has yielded dramatic levels of efficacy in people (18).
This is the same form used in the trial that showed an 89% reduction in the amount of bone lost (for post-menopausal women) (18).
Animal studies also show that organic forms of copper (like copper bisglycinate) are safer than the inorganic forms commonly used in supplements (39). These same animal studies found copper bisglycinate to be more effective at increasing copper stores and reducing plasma triglycerides (fat in the blood) (39).
On a related note, greater efficacy and safety has also been found with organic forms of selenium and zinc (which we have already suggested).
In case you hadn't noticed, these doses and forms of minerals aren't those you can find in a standard multivitamin.
Apart from using bad forms and doses, there's other reasons you shouldn't take a standard multivitamin...
The ThinkPharm Difference - Where Generic Multivitamins Fall Short
Certain vitamins and minerals can be harmful in the form of a supplement
The idea that vitamins in pill form can be bad for you doesn't just come from any study. The main support for this idea comes from a review of many different studies (also known as a meta-analysis). Meta-analyses are thought to be the highest level of evidence within medicine.
In fact, this meta-analysis looked at 296,707 people over 78 different randomised trials.
They found that certain vitamins were linked to an increased risk of death!
In fact, antioxidant vitamins were overall linked to a 10.5% - 21.7% higher likelihood of death (40)!
Which ones in particular?
When you break up the data, people taking beta-carotene (a form of vitamin A often found in multivitamins) had a 24.3% increased risk of dying and people taking vitamin E had a 16.5% increased risk of dying (40).
But there’s even more harms that certain supplemental vitamins have been linked to.
- Calcium supplements are linked to increased risk of strokes, heart attacks and death (41).
- Common forms of iron increase the risk of infections, hospitalisations and death (42).
- Vitamins C and E reduce the benefits that physical exercise has on our fat burning and our risk of diabetes (43).
- Supplementing with manganese has been related to brain lesions (44).
- Common forms of magnesium negatively alter the gut flora (important for the immune system and much more) (45).
- Common forms and doses of folic acid may increase the risk of cancer (46)
- Vitamin A supplements have been linked to birth defects (causes 20 times more birth defect causing chemicals in the body as food derived vitamin A) (47)
On the other hand, none of these effects have been documented with natural versions you get from food.
More research is needed, but in the meantime we think it's wise to take a cautious approach to supplementation.
That's why we exclude the vitamins with uncertain safety profiles, whilst keeping the 18 nutrients and probiotics with the strongest track records.
For the nutrients we don't include, we give you free information on how to ensure nutrient adequacy when you subscribe.
Titanium dioxide: a lesson in why every ingredient matters
We believe health outcomes should come before profitability.
We fundamentally believe that the vast majority of supplement companies are not taking a truly health conscious approach to formulating their supplements.
The best example of this is titanium dioxide.
As recently as August 2022, the most popular vitamin company in the UK (alongside most other brands) was using titanium dioxide in their supplements to make their tablets look whiter.
That's a big problem. Titanium in the brain has been linked to Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Motor Neurone Disease (49). The science shows that we don't really know whether the titanium we consume ends up in the brain or whether it is only titanium from polluted air that can lead to these neurological problems (49).
Also, as far back as 2011 scientists suspected it may cause cancer in humans (48). Yet for 11 years the supplement companies did nothing.
In spite of the fact they supposedly have scientific advisory boards made up of Oxford professors, "top nutritionists/dietitians" and doctors.
To avoid taking risks with people's health, in February 2022, the EU decided to ban the use of titanium dioxide in foods and supplements (50).
Our approach is simple. Don't put anything in there that isn't needed.
We feature some very small amounts of excipients because they are needed.
In the ingredients section we show these excipients, the quantities included and their purpose.
That way you can be confident that you're not getting anything harmful.
So what are you waiting for?
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