Amino Acid
Chelated Minerals

Look for amino acid chelated minerals (e.g. chromium chelavite, magnesium chelazome) that are easily identifiable by their suffix of chelavite, chelate or chelazome. Avoid minerals that claim to be ionic or colloidal or are listed as mineral salts or oxides (e.g. magnesium chloride, zinc oxide).

Units Seen on the Label: mg = milligrams or mcg = micrograms. There are two different ways that minerals (such as calcium, iron, etc) are listed on bottles: in the combined form (such as magnesium chelate, or magnesium chloride) or the elemental form (the actual amount of the minerals minus whatever they are combined with).

Common Types of Minerals Used in Supplements

• Mineral Salts: Most minerals used in supplements are in the form of mineral salts. They will be listed on the label as the mineral followed by a salt compound such as sulfate, carbonate, or chloride. (i.e. calcium carbonate, ferrous sulfate, chromium chloride). Mineral salts are poorly absorbed and often cause gastrointestinal distress.

• Mineral Oxides: Mineral oxides are even less well absorbed than mineral salts. Less than 1% of the mineral combined with an oxide is actually usable to the human body.
  
  

  Note: Any mineral combined with an oxide is only slightly more useful than licking the side of an aluminum building.

  They are usually listed on the label as the mineral followed by “oxide.” (i.e. zinc oxide).

• Colloidal Minerals: Colloidal minerals have become a popular form of mineral supplement in recent years. Colloidal minerals are minerals that have been suspended (not dissolved) in a liquid medium. Contrary to most of the claims, there is no scientific evidence to support that colloidal minerals are absorbed any differently than mineral salts. Colloidal minerals exist in particle sizes many times larger than other mineral forms, which make them difficult to absorb.

• Chelated Minerals: Amino acid chelated minerals are minerals attached to an amino acid. By binding the mineral to an amino acid, the mineral can be absorbed more easily and it is more readily used by the body.

  Albion Laboratories is the only company that holds a patent on this process.

  There are other chelation processes and companies claiming to use chelated minerals however, only the chelation process used by Albion Laboratories is effective. It is the only process that involves bonding an amino acid to a mineral in the same way nature does and is the only way to produce this natural amino acid-mineral complex.

  Chelated minerals can be recognized on the label by looking for the suffix -chelate, chelavite, or chelazome.

• Avoid synthetic Vitamins (e.g. beta-carotene, pyridoxine hydrochloride, retinol, palmitate, pteroylglutamic acid, thiamin mononitrate, thiamin hydrochloride, ascorbic acid). Vitamins
  
  
• Look for amino acid chelated minerals (e.g. chromium chelavite, magnesium chelazome) that are easily identifiable by their suffix of chelavite, chelate or chelazome. (This Page)

• Many herbal supplements have begun to use “standardized extracts”. A standardized extract simply means that the manufacturer has extracted the portion of the herb that is believed to be the active ingredient. Herbal Supplements
  
  
• Look for a plant enzyme supplement and avoid pancreatic or animal enzymes. Be sure that the supplement label uses FCC units, such as LU, DU, CU rather than milligrams on the label. Enzymes
  
  

  Probiotic supplements should include several different types of bacteria (at least eight different strains), and should list each of the individual microflora found in the supplement by their Latin name with a count of how many of these live cultures are found in each capsule or serving. Probiotic Supplements Return to How to Read Supplement Labels. Top of Page Amino Acid Chelated Minerals