Empty Stomach

It got lost the other day in the shuffle, but an anonymous poster asked a good question:

Why do I take my supplements on an empty stomach, and why do I take my folate apart from the other supplements?

The absorbtion of Zinc on an empty stomach is greater than when taken with food:

"The efficiency of absorption (fractional absorption) of a zinc salt on an empty stomach ranges from 40% to 90%. The fractional absorption of zinc with food appears to be lower. "

The same is true of Folate. Folate is absorbed almost a 100% better without food.

"Folic acid taken on an empty stomach is twice as available as food folate"

I take them, therefore, on an empty stomach to increase efficacy. This is signifigant, and a factor of which I routinely make the PTC aware, but which I suspect they fail to take into account in my prescriptions. A patient taking 1 gram of folate on an empty stomach is like one who takes 2 grams with food.

This decision to take supplments al fresco was reached by me following my own research. It was not recommended by the PTC.