Sulfur

Sulfur is the third most abundant mineral in the body, about half concentrated in your muscles, skin and bones, and is essential for life. Sulfur makes up vital amino acids used to create protein for cells and tissues and for hormones, enzymes, and antibodies. The body uses up its store daily so it must be continually replenished for optimal health and nutrition.

Sulfur is needed for insulin production. Insulin controls carbohydrate metabolism, but insufficient sulfur makes it harder for the pancreas to produce enough insulin, and makes cells less able to absorb things from the blood, contributing to blood sugar problems.

Sulfur detoxifies at the cellular level and relieves pain. Healthy cells can absorb adequate nutrients while releasing toxins and wastes. Sulfur affects this by helping your body build strong breathable cell walls that properly balance cell pressure. Having enough sulfur helps your body to remove toxins that may suffocate the cells, or swell them, causing pain, allergies, stiffness, and muscle soreness!

Sulfur builds flexible cells in the arteries and veins – the opposite of “hardening of the arteries”. Elastic, “breathable” blood vessel tissues are able to pass oxygen and nutrients through their walls to nourish the rest of the body and handle the body’s blood flow without stress.

Sulfur has been called nature’s “beauty mineral” because it keeps your complexion clear and youthful and hair glossy and smooth. Collagen production in your body depends on sulfur to create healthy skin and heal scars. For example, sulfur improves acne by resolving scars, removing toxins from the skin and creating healthy new skin cells. When you have enough sulfur in your body, your skin and hair are more flexible, softer, and smoother.

Where is organic sulfur found in nature? Where do we get organic sulfur we can use? From rainwater and seawater absorbed by plants. Plankton in our oceans absorb it from underwater volcanoes and then release sulfur compounds back into seawater as part of their natural cycle. This is converted to DMS, a gas sulfur compound that bubbles up into the atmosphere. Ozone and ultraviolet sunlight change the sulfur gas to DMSO and Methylsulfonylmethane, known as MSM. The rain now contains MSM which is spread over the oceans and land where it is absorbed by plants and seaweed.

But we don’t eat a large diet of foods rich in organic sulfur like people used to. For most of human history, we could eat fruits and vegetables fresh from the ground and not have to give a second thought to getting this essential nutrient. But food storage, transport, processing, cooking, even washing and drying, dissipates MSM, so by our modern lifestyle we have lost access to the MSM our bodies expect. Also with air pollution and degradation of our soil and water, it has become essential to make sure we supplement our diets with bio-available sulfur to get enough for optimal health.

MSM has an amazing anti-parasitic action. When parasites attach to someone’s intestinal lining, they can live, reproduce and leach nutrients from the body indefinitely. MSM blocks parasites by competing for receptor sites on the mucous membrane. When parasites can not attach themselves, they are simply flushed out of the system with the excess MSM.

MSM has anti-allergic properties. MSM has an ability to bind to mucuous membranes and form a natural block against allergens. Another way MSM can alleviate allergies is through detoxification, elimination of free radicals, and improvement of cell permeability. Several authors including Beth M. Ley in her book- MSM: On Our Way Back to Health With Sulfurhave noted that MSM works as a safe histamine inhibitor, at least as well as the traditional antihistamines, without the negative side effects.

MSM and Vitamin C. Your body uses MSM along with Vitamin C to create new, healthy cells and connective tissue. MSM helps determine how flexible the bond is between the cells. An adequate supply of MSM and Vitamin C supports healthy cell regeneration. As your new cells are created, MSM is incorporated into the bonds that make up cells walls. The result is the creation of cell walls that are better able to absorb nutrients.

Methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) is 34% sulfur, making it the richest source of bio-available organic sulfur. MSM is safe, non-allergenic and easily digestible as a food.