Are you aware that a deficiency in certain sugars could be causing you to be ill? That can't be true, you say. We all know that too much sugar is bad for us. However, scientists discovered, quite recently, a family of 'nutritional' sugars that are found in plants. These sugars play an important part in the functioning of our immune systems, boost kidney function and help prevent disease.

Scientists know that there is a direct link between disease and diet. The human body, an amazing machine, can heal itself of disease if it is given the proper nutrition as fuel. If, however, there is a lack of appropriate nutrition in the diet, the body is left defenseless and susceptible to disease.

Our modern day lifestyle means we spend more money than ever before, on fast foods that have little or no nutritional value. Dietary deficiencies contribute to obesity and a myriad of other problems that have never been more prevalent.

Essential nutrients have been processed out of many of the foods that we eat. This means the body's immune system becomes weaker and loses the ability to combat disease. The packaged foods that are so much a part of our regular diets are loaded with additives to increase their shelf life. These additives contribute nothing to the nutritional value of the food. Most fruit and vegetables are picked too early and then gassed to ripen which means they lose valuable nutrients.

Let's now go back a little in time. It had been known for a long time that the aloe vera plant had remarkable healing properties. It seemed though, that once the aloe was processed commercially, it did not show the same health benefits as did the fresh, newly picked aloe.

It was during the early 1980s that a research pharmacologist was hired to attempt to isolate the medically active ingredient from the aloe vera plant. He set out to discover why the same benefits that were obvious with the freshly harvested plant, were not evident after processing.

It was discovered, after lengthy research, that the active ingredient in the aloe vera gel was a long chain carbohydrate made up predominately of a sugar called Mannose. It was noticed that within a day or two of the aloe leaf being picked, this long-chain sugar molecule rapidly began to disintegrate, causing the gel to lose much of its effectiveness. A new process was then developed and patented that protected this long-chain sugar from being destroyed. This new stabilized aloe extract was then made available to the public in the form of a juice, and the testimonies began to flow in.

Many people who tried this new product were reporting great benefits to their health and it was soon realized by the scientists that this was a significant discovery.

Not a lot was known at that time about this science of carbohydrate structuring and it was being taught at only one or two universities in the world. Before long, however, researchers all over the world began studying these carbohydrates and by 1990 there had been about 4000 papers published about this new science that became known as Glycobiology. It was named as one of the 'hottest' new fields of medical research, with a complete chapter of Harpers Biochemistry in 1996 being devoted to a review of these sugars, which were identified as being essential for cell-to-cell communication and immune function.

Over 200 carbohydrate monosaccharides or sugars are found in nature, and, of these, there are eight that are biologically active and are critical for cellular communication and that provide the structural support network for our cells. It was found that these glyco-forms work to keep our hormones in balance, fight off disease invaders, enable blood to clot and create a complex cellular messaging system. Our bodies need these glyconutrients.

About the Author, Welldec:

Find out more about why you should be adding glyconutrients to your diet and consider carefully which other supplements are important and how to make the right choices when selecting them. Glyconutrients, glyconutrition.

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