Many people turn to fortified foods and multivitamins hoping to improve their health, but what if those very products are quietly doing more harm than good?

Fortified cereals, prenatal vitamins, and multivitamins may seem like an easy way to “cover your bases,” but here’s the problem: these nutrients are almost always synthetic, lab-made isolates. Even if the label says “organic,” any nutrient that’s been added in isolation is not how it exists in nature.

Nature is brilliant; it always knows best. It never delivers nutrients alone. Real, whole foods contain vitamins with enzymes, minerals, and cofactors that work together to help your body absorb and use them correctly. When you take an isolated nutrient, your body has to rob those missing pieces from its own stores, which can actually create new imbalances over time. Your body thrives on nutrients the way they were meant to be consumed: in their whole-food form.

From Quick Fixes to True Root Cause Healing

So, how do you ensure you are giving your body the nutrients it needs without supplementing? The Root Cause Protocol, a holistic approach developed by Morley Robbins to address chronic health issues by correcting mineral imbalance, is a good place to start. The protocol aims to address chronic health issues by correcting mineral imbalances. The core idea is that many chronic conditions stem from mineral dysregulation and oxidative stress, particularly from iron overload.

Main principles

1. Focus on balancing minerals

• Chronic illness is often caused by imbalances in key minerals, especially bioavailable copper, magnesium, and retinol (vitamin A).
• Eat foods rich in vitamins and minerals, such as pasture-raised liver, meat, raw dairy, eggs, organic fruits, and vegetables.

2. Reduce iron overload

• Excess unbound iron in the body is considered a major contributor to inflammation and oxidative stress.
• The RCP encourages avoiding iron-fortified foods and supplements and minimizing unnecessary iron intake.

3. Restore bioavailable copper

• Copper must be in its bioavailable form to regulate iron properly.
• Requires sufficient retinol (animal-based vitamin A: raw dairy and eggs ) and whole-food forms of vitamin C.
• Earthley makes it easy to get enough vitamin C with their vitamin C herbal tonic! 
• Earthley’s vitamin C is made from extracting the vitamins from organic amla berries, orange peel, and dandelion leaf.

4. Avoid synthetic vitamins and supplements

• RCP discourages the use of synthetic, isolated nutrients (such as ascorbic acid, folic acid, and iron supplements).
• Focus is instead on whole-food-based supplements (like grass fed liver capsules, Earthley's vitamin C, and nutrient-dense foods.)
• When you take isolated nutrients, you may be throwing off something else. Your body does not properly absorb isolated vitamins when they’re isolated: the enzymes, other vitamins, and minerals in the food all matter for how you absorb those nutrients

5. Take magnesium

• Magnesium is considered foundational in the protocol.
• Magnesium is depleted by stress, toxins, sugar, and medications, and it's involved in over 3,700 enzymatic reactions.
• RCP includes taking magnesium orally and putting on the skin for best absorption
• Earthley has an amazing topical magnesium lotion for best absorption:

6. Restore retinol (vitamin A from animal sources)

• Retinol is essential for copper activation.
• Eat or take pasture-raised organic liver capsules, pasture-raised organic eggs, and raw dairy daily.

7. Support liver and adrenal function

• The liver produces hormones that regulate copper and iron.
• The RCP encourages supporting the liver and adrenal glands through minerals, whole foods, and adrenal cocktails: orange juice, real salt, potassium, & a whole food form of vitamin C added (such as Earthley’s).

True health doesn’t come from managing symptoms or endlessly adding more supplements to your routine. It comes from giving your body what it truly needs to function the way it was designed. Let’s shift back to nature’s wisdom, where minerals, vitamins, and enzymes work in harmony to restore balance. By focusing on real, whole foods, supporting your mineral stores, and avoiding the very fortifications and isolates that deplete you, you can lower inflammation, regain energy, and finally feel like yourself again. Your body was made to heal; sometimes, it just needs the right building blocks to do what it already knows how to do.