The first call on nutrients by our body is for immediate and acute needs – those needed for short-term survival – for example energy production or “fright and flight”. It is only if nutrients are ingested in excess of these immediate ‘short-term’ needs that there will be sufficient left for ‘housekeeping’ processes or in other words to support long-term health.

In this week’s blog, we discuss factors that may contribute to low intakes of micronutrients and thus to what we at Cytoplan refer to as ‘the nutrition gap’ which can create hidden hunger. This is unlike the hunger that comes from a lack of food. It is a chronic lack of vitamins and minerals and often has no visible warning signs, so that those experiencing it may not even be aware of it.