[Kim Jaeho's Life Story]<218> The Folly of Obsessing Over Nutrients

There are many foods and nutrients in our society that are said to be good for health. Foods that are good for the eyes, bones, skin, blood vessels, intestines, teeth, or immunity can be easily found on SNS or the internet, and it is also common to hear that nutrients such as protein, minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants are beneficial. Supplements of specific nutrients like protein or vitamins are widely sold, and especially vitamin C is favored by many people.

To judge how much certain foods or nutrient supplements, including vitamin C, can help health, it is necessary to closely examine how our body works. Unlike plants that use the sun’s light energy to produce substances necessary for survival, animals and humans live by eating nutrients contained in plants or other animals as food.

The nutrients in food are first absorbed by the body, then some are burned inside cells to be used as energy, and some are used as raw materials to produce substances needed by the body. Nutrients like carbohydrates, proteins, and fats are too large and complex to be absorbed directly, so digestive enzymes are secreted to break them down into small and simple structures for absorption; this process is called digestion.

There is an important point to note about the roles of nutrients and our body in this metabolic process. Nutrients are essential substances for our survival, but in terms of function, they are used only as raw materials. Whether protein, minerals, or vitamin C, although they are very important nutrients, they are always used only as raw materials, and these nutrients themselves never directly perform any function in our body.

Every cell in our body contains countless factories that use these raw materials to produce the energy needed or to make necessary substances. We call these factories genes, and it has been confirmed that a single cell contains more than 20,000 such genes. Remarkably, these genes produce all the substances necessary for our survival, which is why I say that the best master doctors are prepared inside our body.

Our body digests food and absorbs nutrients, then uses these nutrients as raw materials in over 20,000 genes to produce tens of thousands of necessary substances in the required amounts at the required times. The process by which genes produce necessary substances is very complex and precise, but the clear fact is that genes use nutrients as raw materials to make substances needed by the body. Under no circumstances do any raw materials act as genes.

However, the world often gets excited about raw materials. People generally do not understand the role of the factories well, so they mistakenly think that some raw materials perform the role of factories. Let’s look at an example. There is a gene that produces a certain substance needed by the body, and for this gene to produce the substance, all necessary raw materials must be present, and the gene must be activated to work. Suppose vitamin C is lacking among the necessary raw materials.

If the necessary substance is not produced due to vitamin C deficiency, some function that requires this substance cannot be performed, resulting in a disease. When vitamin C supplements are taken in this case, the substance is produced, and the disease is cured. People then become enthusiastic about vitamin C, but vitamin C itself does not cure the disease. The gene that could not work due to vitamin C deficiency starts working once vitamin C supplements are supplied.

Raw materials are important, but if the factory gene does not operate, they are useless. Some people think that the more nutrients, the better, but that is not true. Having enough raw materials is sufficient, and having too much actually incurs various costs to dispose of the excess. There was a time when semiconductor shortages for automobiles caused car manufacturers to be unable to produce cars properly. In such a case, would having more semiconductors be better?

Fortunately, our body has a perfect system capable of producing any necessary substance. That is why I have said that the best master doctors are prepared inside our body. What we need to do is to supply the necessary raw materials appropriately and create an environment where the genes, the factories that produce necessary substances, can work smoothly. Then the best master doctors inside the body will take care of the rest.

Providing the necessary raw materials appropriately is what a healthy diet is. A healthy diet is sufficient by eating a variety of grains, fruits, and vegetables without picky eating, and especially sugar, saturated fats, trans fats, salt, and alcohol, which cause many problems if consumed excessively, should not be eaten too much (see Life Story episode 201). We must not fall into the foolishness of worshipping any nutrient as a god by mistaking raw materials for factories.

Kim Jae-ho, Independent Researcher