1. Calcium – According to the National Institute of Health, the recommended total calcium intake is 1,000 mg a day for women between 25 and 50 years of age, 1,200 – 1,500 for pregnant or lactating women, and 1,500 mg per day for postmenopausal women. The average calcium consumption among North American women is currently only 600 mg per day. I take a calcium magnesium supplement and find that it really helps me with nighttime leg cramps.
2. Fish Oil – fish are rich sources of Omega 3s, most especially EPA and DHA, highly specialized fats that cannot be made by our bodies in the levels we need. Taking these essential oils also has an added skin benefit, and because we all know that fish is brain food – well, the thought of improved brain function never fails to sway me. Make sure it’s an encapsulated version so as to avoid fish oil burps. (I take mine at night.)
3. Vitamin D -The major biologic function of Vitamin D is to maintain normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus. Vitamin D aids in the absorption of calcium, helping to form and maintain strong bones. The FDA has increased the levels of Vitamin D recommended, and a low level of this important vitamin has been shown to affect mental stability.
4. B Complex – The Vitamin B Complex is comprised of the essential B Vitamins – Vitamin B1, Vitamin B2, Vitamin B3, Vitamin B5, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B9, Vitamin B12 plus the vitamins Biotin, Choline and Inositol. Vitamin B Complex is needed for the proper functioning of almost every process in the body, including energy production, healthy digestion and great looking skin, hair and nails – a wonderful side benefit!
5. Multi-Vitamin – My other choice would be a quality multi-vitamin, one balanced in the key nutrients and close to 100% of the RDA without going over with enormous numbers. Many of those high numbers are impressive, but they are often water soluble vitamins and can cause you to have nothing more than “expensive pee.”

What would you add or subtract?

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Five Key Supplements For Good Health

The week of July 20 is Healthy Pregnancy Week at DietsInReview.com.

Postpartum depression (PPD) is different from the “baby blues” that effect up to 80% of women following childbirth. PPD is clinical depression, diagnosed using DSM-IV-TR diagnostic criteria and effects approximately 1 in 10 women following child birth. PPD may or may not include Postpartum Psychosis, made famous by Andrea Yates, or postpartum anxiety. If symptoms are interfering with your functioning or you believe you are experiencing any hallucinations, please seek the help of a mental health professional. Many people find it is helpful to talk to a caring counselor during any life transition. Other moms may prefer to use diet and exercise to help them overcome PPD.

The number one nutritional suggestion for treating PPD is omega-3 fatty acids and DHA. Your DHA stores can be diminished during pregnancy and breastfeeding, and DHA blood levels drop further with each pregnancy. According to Dr. Beth Levant Omega-3 fatty deposits in the brain will stay there even if a rat’s diet contains an insufficient amount of good fat content, unless that rat is pregnant. An expectant rat whose diet is deficient of Omega-3 fatty acids will transfer fatty deposits from her brain to that of her babies who need it for healthy development. This will leave the pregnant and postpartum rat with an insufficient amount of Omega-3 fatty deposits. Luckily healthy levels of fatty deposits can be renewed with a diet rich in good fats.

Science assumes it similar in humans. Research has linked diets low in Omega-3 fatty acids to depression, including higher incidences of depression in countries and cultures that eat less seafood, such as New Zealand, compared to diets rich in Omega-3 fatty acids in countries like Japan. A survey of women from the United Kingdom found that those who ate more Omega-3 fatty acids during their third trimester were less likely to show symptoms of PPD. Eating seafood during pregnancy can be discouraged due to the risk of high levels of mercury found in some species. Discuss with your doctor what is safe and when.

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Omega-3 Can Prevent or Treat Postpartum Depression

New research from two teams in Australia shows that omega-3 fatty acids can reduce the risk of developing a retina-destroying condition known as age-related macular degeneration (AMD). On the flip side, researchers found that those who ate the most trans fats were almost twice as likely to develop AMD.

The findings aren’t new. In fact, experts have known about the eyesight/omega-3 connection for about a decade. But the latest study helps reaffirm earlier evidence.

“It’s sort of consoling to see that we have this convergence of findings coming from different continents,” says Jean-Paul SanGiovanni, a staff scientist with the National Eye Institute in Bethesda, Maryland.

Age-related macular degeneration (AMD) is the top cause of blindness among people 65 and over in the developed world. It occurs when blood vessels or cells in the central portion of the retina, called the macula, begin to break down.

Nervous tissue and the retinas contain high levels of omega-3 fatty acids, especially one known as DHA (docosahexaenoic acid, a particularly beneficial omega-3). So it’s not surprising that omega-3-rich foods would be beneficial. Foods that have a high concentration of omega-3 include fish (salmon, mackerel, anchovies, sardines), nuts, and olive oil.

The only confirmed ways of developing AMD is through genes, smoking, and old age. But with the latest findings lending more credence to previous studies, your diet may be soon added to that list.

(via: CNN)

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Omega-3 May Keep You From Going Blind

These Emerald Almond snack packs have only 100 calorie servings and no added salt.

Dr. Oz’s Ultimate Health Checklist says knowing your cholesterol is one of your health’s need-to-know-numbers. Optimal cholesterol should be <100 for LDL (bad) and should be >40 for HDL (good). Here are five foods that will help you get those numbers down before your next check-up.

1. Instead of going nuts trying to lower your cholesterol, eat them! Studies show that nuts, specifically walnuts and almonds, help to reduce blood cholesterol. Walnuts and almonds have shown to lower cholesterol and help keep blood vessels healthy and elastic. It’s recommended to consume a cholesterol-lowering diet in which 20% of the calories you eat come from walnuts. (This has shown to lower cholesterol by as much as 12%)! Remember, nuts are high in calories, so portion control is important… eat a handful a day.

2. Fatty fish pack a punch for heart health. Omega-3 is the miracle worker in fatty fish, which help to lower your cholesterol, blood pressure, and reduce your risk of blood clots. Fatty fish has also shown to help those individuals who have already had heart attacks, by significantly reducing their risk of sudden death. It’s recommended to eat two servings of fatty fish a week (mackerel, lake trout, herring, sardines, albacore tuna, and salmon). If you’re one to pass on fish, try consuming ground/milled flaxseed or canola oil to get the omega-3 you need. There are supplements of fish oil out there, but remember, its always better to eat the whole-food source (you get a mix of nutrients).

3. Oatmeal helps too!  Oatmeal contains soluble fiber, which has been shown to reduce “bad” low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol. This soluble fiber appears to reduce the absorption of cholesterol in your intestines. Only 10 grams of soluble a day can decrease total and LDL cholesterol. One-and-a-half cups of cooked oatmeal gives 6 grams a fiber, to accomplish the 10 needed for the day add fresh fruit to your oatmeal, i.e. a banana to get the other four. You can also find soluble fiber in foods like: kidney beans, apples, pears, psyllium, barley and prunes.

4. The beauty behind olive oil is that it contains a potent mix of antioxidants, which lower your “bad” (LDL) cholesterol while leaving your “good” (HDL) cholesterol alone. It’s recommended to use about two tablespoons (23 grams) of olive oil a day to get its heart-healthy benefits. Some research has shown that extra-virgin olive oil is even better for you because the oil is less processed, therefore containing more heart-healthy antioxidants. Note: Avoid “light” olive oils because that usually means they are more processed, lighter in color, and have no fat or calories (remember you are wanting the healthy fat of the olive oil!). Ideas to incorporate it into your diet include: mix with vinegar as a salad dressing, use as a substitute for butter when basting meat, sauté veggies in it, or use it in a marinade.

5. Try foods fortified with sterols or stanols.  Sterols or stanols are substances found in plants that help block the absorption of cholesterol. Foods like margarines, orange juice and yogurt drinks have been fortified with these plant sterols, which have been shown to help reduce “bad” LDL cholesterol by more than 10%. The amount of daily plant sterols needed to help lower cholesterol is merely at least two grams a day. This is equal to two 8-ounce servings of plant sterol-fortified OJ a day.

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5 Foods to Lower Your Cholesterol

Other lesser known brain foods include brightly colored produce high in antioxidants, including strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, prunes, and my favorite blueberries. Whole grains and whole grain products such as bread, rice, and pasta contain B vitamins and magnesium which assist normal brain and nerve functioning.

Feeding your brain can increase your mental energy. Mental capacity is what we use to organize our lives. When your mental energy is low, you’re likely to become more forgetful, distracted, and have difficulty thinking and completing tasks. Maximum mental energy is derived from oscillation; changing channels mentally permits different parts of the brain to be activated while others rest and can facilitate creativity. This sounds like great news for multi-taskers, but I am still skeptical about how productive multi-tasking really is. It is important that we stimulate different areas of our brains, learn new things, challenge ourselves, and expand our horizons.

How we function in each area of our lives can have a big impact on how we function in the others. To live to your full potential, you want to develop the greatest energy capacity possible in each key life area. When you are thinking more clearly, you can feel more confident and find life more enjoyable. When you have more mental energy, you are less likely to become exhausted by that long meeting which then tempts you to grab something from the snack machine. When you are thinking more clearly, you will find that you have more time for the things that give your life meaning.

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Healthy Brains Come From Healthy Food