Are you bad to your bones? There is a growing trend in the United States and Canada: calcium and vitamin D deficiency. Bone mass reaches its peak around age thirty so calcium and vitamin D are critical in helping you to prevent breaks or fractures down the road. As important as strong muscles are to your overall health, bones are what hold us together. Otherwise we’d just be a puddle on the ground. I’m hoping I can shed some light on all the benefits that calcium and vitamin D have to offer.
What is vitamin D and why do I need it?
Vitamin D is key in helping to produce strong bones. It also helps absorb calcium from the intestines so that is why you find so many products with the two in combo. The current recommendation depends on age, but for a woman age 18-30 you are looking at around 600 internal units (IUs) per day. Our bodies naturally convert vitamin D into a usable form from midday sun (between 10 am and 2 pm). People like me who live in northern parts of the world and get to see old man winter usually do not get enough midday sun to make our own vitamin D.
Read Full Post >
If you’re faithfully taking your daily multi-vitamin, you should be proud of yourself. You’re doing a good thing for your body and your overall health, right? Unfortunately, you may not be helping yourself as much as you think.
A recent MSNBC article reported that many of the vitamins and supplements on the shelf are not as nutritious as they claim and, in some cases, they are more potent than they claim.
The FDA has strict guidelines and regulations for prescription drugs, however there is not process for regulating vitamins and supplements. The only testing on these products is done independently. ConsumerLab.com and its researchers conducted a test on 38 multi-vitamins and published their findings this week. The tests concluded that eight products contained too few of the specific nutrients, two contained more nutrients than the label stated, and three simply had improper labeling.
Read Full Post >
The Baby Food Diet has taken Hollywood by storm but as more Americans who want to lose weight are jumping on the jarred, pureed food bandwagon, nutrition experts and parents are questioning whether the diet is safe and effective.
“Meeting adequate nutritional needs while following a diet that promotes eating small portions of low calorie pureed foods isn’t so easy,” said Toby Amidor, MS, RD, CDN, nutrition expert for FoodNetwork.com and mother of three. “Jars of baby food vary from 15 to 100 calories so it can really be up to the dieter to mix and match various food groups to meet dietary needs.”
While eating baby food alone can put a person at risk for certain vitamin and nutritional deficiencies, there are variations to the diet that can make it healthier, more accessible and more sustainable.
Read Full Post >
Most people want to live long, healthy, and personally fulfilling lives. Unfortunately, there’s not a Fountain of Youth that will magically give you these things. If there was, I bet we would all be waiting in line for a glass of water from that spring. However, there are some things you can do to improve the quality and length of your life.
Get Physical. Physical fitness is a great way to keep yourself healthy and in shape. All you need to do is add 20 minutes of fitness to your day. Try something that is fun for you, whether it is dancing, walking, yoga, or something else entirely.
Milk It. You need calcium in your diet to prevent osteoporosis. Try eating at least one food that contains high levels of natural calcium, such as dairy products, salmon, and leafy greens.
Read Full Post >
Protein is essential for normal body functioning and crucial to help build and repair muscle tissue after strenuous workout sessions. Protein is defined as organic compounds made of amino acids that are arranged in a linear chain, typically found in meat, fish, nuts, eggs, dairy products, legumes, and protein supplements. They are considered to be the building blocks for your muscles and immune system. Protein can also be used as a form of fuel to provide the body with energy if you are not getting enough fat or carbohydrates, which are the primary energy sources.
The recommended daily value (DV) of protein based on a 2,000 calorie diet is 50 grams. For those who exercise frequently, it is recommended to get .8 to 1.2 grams of protein per kilogram of body weight. For instance, a 200 pound (90.9 kilogram) male is recommended to intake 72 to 108 grams of protein per day. If you don’t get enough protein in your diet, your immune system may become weakened, you can lose muscle mass, experience growth failure, and even weaken the heart and respiratory system. So, please make sure you are getting enough protein in your daily diet.
Read Full Post >
