The pureminerals.uk Natural Minerals Guide

What are minerals? Well, the word literally means 'Mined from the Earth.' They are fundamentally the chemical elements from which all matter is made. There are two groups of elements: metals and non-metals:

Minerals in our food and bodies are not pure elements but their IONIZED forms. For example, when we refer to, say, calcium (Ca) in our food, we don't mean calcium metal (which reacts with water to form hydrogen gas and calcium hydroxide!), but its ionic form. A calcium ion is a calcium atom minus two valence electrons, Ca²⁺.

Different chemical properties

In that form, the mineral has a stable noble gas electronic configuration and carries a net positive electrical charge of +2. That charge permits the ion to interact with biological molecules carrying negatively charged sites. So, don't think of minerals in our bodies as metals. Ionized elements have different chemical properties compared to the parent elements.

Organic Substances

Carbohydrates, proteins, fats, and vitamins are organic substances. They are called organic because they are carbon-based. The carbon atom has a valence of 4, meaning that it can interact with other atoms from 4 points around it, usually in a tetrahedral configuration.

Inorganic Substances

Another atom that does this is silicon, which is much bigger and heavier than the carbon atom. Silicon, like carbon, is widespread on this planet. Whereas loads of carbon compounds form the backbone of life, silicon compounds form the backbone of rocks, soil, and, practicality, the whole planet and Solar System. Non-carbon-based substances are, therefore, referred to as inorganic substances, and that is what all minerals are. In nutritional terms, minerals are inorganic substances of which we need to intake more than 100 mg daily from the food we eat.

Trace Minerals

Minerals required in amounts much less than 100 mg are called trace minerals. Scientists claim that 20 or so minerals and trace minerals are essential for biological or biochemical reactions occurring in human metabolism. Most of these minerals, around 3 kg in weight overall, are in our bones.

Scientific ignorance

Unfortunately, scientists remain mostly ignorant about the functions of the other 60 or so minerals worldwide. Life, indeed, hasn't simply evolved around 20 minerals. To say so is stupid. Scientists don't know what the ions of the other hydrophilic minerals found on this planet do because of the cost of research.

No profit means no research

If there's no profit in research, there's no funding, unless it comes via the taxpayer. So don't listen to nutritionists and physicians who claim that we only need the 12 to 16 minerals present in today's foods. They also ignore soil mineral depletion.

Minerals in the Diet

Food mineral content reflects the mineral content in the soils from which the food came. Plants take up the minerals as they grow, and herbivorous animals like cows, goats, sheep, and insects assimilate the minerals in their tissues after grazing. Omnivores, like humans and pigs, get their minerals from plants and herbivores, while carnivores, like certain insects, all spiders, lions, and tigers, get those minerals only by eating the herbivores. Therefore, the minerals should return to the soil when the animals and plants die.

A Big Problem

Unfortunately, since humans began industrial-scale farming, the levels of minerals in farm soils have nosedived. Tilling upsets the soil biome and exposes the soil to wind and rain erosion. With every harvest, minerals are taken out of farm soils. The foods go to market, and the minerals end up in sewers or waste dumps. Most of the minerals end up in the sea and upset ecosystems.

Small farms

Small farms and allotments do much better, but even those soils have been minerally depleted over time, but less poorly than commercial farm soils, which need industrial NPK fertilizers to put back some minerals. The other minerals are never replaced.

Remineralization

Some glacial clays and volcanic soils are rich in minerals because they have been scraped from rocks (glaciers) or freshly delivered from below the Earth's crust (volcanoes). These can be used to replace lost minerals, but the costs and logistics impact profitability. Instead of wasting energy and resources on wars, humans should cooperate and work together to remineralize our soils. There are plenty of people in the world to do that. But it means the end of corporatocracy and 'manufactured' problems to solve for profit. Think of the pharmaceutical industry... 😱

Vitamins

All of this is in contrast to food vitamin content, which is usually more similar from wherever it comes. Although some vitamins can be made in the body in tiny amounts, minerals, and trace minerals can only come from the food we eat. As a result, mineral deficiency is more widespread than vitamin deficiency, especially among weight loss fanatics, older people, vegans, and pregnant women.

The Function of Minerals in Our Bodies

Minerals have several different functions in the body:

Trace elements such as nickel, tin, and vanadium are necessary for growth in tiny amounts. But as mentioned before, their exact roles are unknown because there is no profit in finding out.

Minerals or Vitamins? Which is More Important?

Minerals. Without them, vitamins will not function correctly.

Synonymous terms: natural minerals list;