|
|
|
Balanced Diet: Know More on Healthy and Nutritional Balanced Diet!
In this fast paced world, good nutrition may sound very simple but it is indeed really difficult to practice it. We eat too many processed foods or we tend to miss some meals. Some of us even smoke or drink alcohol. We also choose food on the basis...
Proper Nutrition
Life, these days, is at such a fast pace, many people do not
take the time to eat properly, thereby shortening their lives.
When people do not eat right, their body cells cannot repair
themselves. It is increasingly difficult to supply the...
Should You Be Cutting Back on Caffeine?
Many sober, law abiding people who would never dream of knowingly ingesting a mind- altering drug, actually consume one every day.
Before you say that you don't take any drugs at all, can you guess what mind altering drug is so common? It's...
The In-Office Emergency Nutritional Kit
Tired of having stare-downs with those boxes of Krispy Kremes, trays of brownies, and platters of cookies some well-intentioned but nutritionally clueless co-worker brings into the office? Be prepared for these and other nutritional setbacks at...
Warning! Lack Of Exercise Could Be Harmful To Your Health
You know it’s bad when the Surgeon General issues a warning that lack of exercise is hazardous to your health. And that was back in ’96. Since then, the stats haven’t improved much, either: 25% of the American population is still sedentary...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Why should you take Nutritional Supplements?
A busy lifestyle leaves little time for planning meals and cooking. It's far too easy to fill up the diet with empty calories in fast and convenience foods. Packaged and prepared mixes make life easy, but seldom provide all the nutrients your body needs to stay healthy. A good multinutrient supplement can help fill in the gaps in your diet when you're too busy to eat balanced meals.
But what if you eat a healthy diet? Do you still need to take vitamin and nutritional supplements? According to most experts on nutrition and the American diet, the answer is, quite honestly, yes.
Over the past ten years, scientists who study medical conditions like diabetes and coronary disease have all noted alarming rises in the incidence of those diseases. It's not just that there are more people being diagnosed with diabetes or heart disease. The profile of those being diagnosed has changed dramatically. For the first time ever, doctors are seeing significant number of children with adult onset diabetes and other conditions that were once thought to exclusively begin in middle age. Nearly every one of those conditions has been linked to diet and nutritional deficiencies. Why is this happening in a society as wealthy and well-fed as ours? The reasons are all wrapped up in our way of life and the changes to society and the environment over the past 100 year some nutriitonists argue.
One hundred years ago, most foods were grown and raised on small farms. Farmers rotated their crops regularly to get the best harvests because they knew that the soil needed replenishing in order for the food to grow healthy and strong. Their livestock was fed a varied diet because the animals were allowed to free range and graze at will. This meant that the meat derived from those animals contained the nutrients from the food that they ate. The vegetables and fruits that appeared on the dinner table had been sliced and cooked in the kitchen, not canned months or even years earlier. There wasn't as much of a need to add vitamins that processing robs from food simply because the foods weren't processed.
Farming has changed in major ways since then. Crops are grown in soil that has been sterilized and robbed of its
natural nutrients by overuse, insecticides, pesticides and chemicals meant to promote large, attractive fruits and vegetables--at the cost of vitamins and minerals. The natural fertilizers that kept soil healthy have been replaced with chemical fertilizers that contain only a few of the needed chemicals, and none of the enzymes that allow the body to process and absorb vitamins and minerals from food. Mass production and processing robs foods of still more nutrients. Cooking and canning and sterlization methods can remove or destroy as much as 90% of the vitamins present in a fresh peach or carrot. Even many foods that appear fresh are likely to have been sprayed with gasses meant to preserve their color and crispness as they travel across country. The end result is vegetables and fruits that contain a fraction of the vitamins and minerals that the same foods contained 100 years ago, much of it unusable by the body as it is.
When you add that to the fact that most Americans eat diets that are high on convenience and low on nutrition, the need to add vitamins and other nutritional supplements becomes very clear.
It's important to remember that taking nutritional supplements is not a substitute for a healthy diet. They are meant to be exactly that--supplements--to fill in the gaps that our lifestyle leaves in our diets. Most doctors recommend, at the very least, a high-quality multi-vitamin supplement daily, but nowadays sophisticated nutraceutical companies are producing products that go far above basic vitamins and minerals. These products may include speciality antioxidants that are much more powerful than vitamins, and other substances beneficial for health that won't be found in any typical multivitamin supplement, such as enzymes for digestive health, herbal extracts, or other natural supplements.
Whatever kind of supplement you decide to take, it's still important to consult with your doctor to let him know of your intent.
About the Author
Dan Ho is chief editor of one of the most popular resources for nutritional, dietary, and herbal supplements on the Internet, http://www.nutritional-supplement-info.com, which discusses their pros and cons, and how to choose a quality supplement.
|
|
|
|
|
| Nutrition.gov Homepage |
| US federal guide offering access to all government web sites with reliable and accurate information on nutrition and dietary guidance. |
| www.nutrition.gov |
|
| American Society for Nutrition |
| Publication from the American Academy of Nutritional Sciences. Includes past and current issues online with subscription information. |
| www.nutrition.org |
|
| Food and Nutrition Information Center Home Page: |
| Has dietary supplements, guidelines, food guide pyramid, child care nutrition, food safety, and topics from AZ. |
| fnic.nal.usda.gov |
|
| British Nutrition Foundation |
| Promotes the nutritional wellbeing of society through the impartial interpretation and effective dissemination of scientifically based nutritional knowledge ... |
| www.nutrition.org.uk |
|
| NutritionData's Nutrition Facts Calorie Counter |
| Nutrition facts calorie counter and calculator promotes healthy eating by telling you, in simple terms, what is good and bad about the foods you eat. |
| www.nutritiondata.com |
|
| Nutrition Explorations: The Fun and Easy Way to Teach and Learn ... |
| Nutrition Explorations provides nutrition education information and resources for teachers, school foodservice professionals, parents, families and kids. |
| www.nutritionexplorations.org |
|
| About Nutrition - Nutrition, Diets, and Vitamin Supplements Help |
| Guide to nutrition information with vitamin and mineral index, news updates, free e-mail newsletter, chat room, discussion forums, and recipe boards. |
| nutrition.about.com |
|
| MyPyramid.gov - United States Department of Agriculture - Home |
| The Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion created the food pyramid guidance system. Find updated information about daily food recommendations, ... |
| www.mypyramid.gov |
|
| American Dietetic Association |
| Nutrition information, resources, and access to Registered Dietitians provided by ADA and the National Center for Nutrition and Dietetics. |
| www.eatright.org |
|
| MedlinePlus: Nutrition |
| (Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion) - Links to PDF; Whole Grains: High in Nutrition and Fiber, yet Low in Fat (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education ... |
| www.nlm.nih.gov |
|
| Dole 5 A Day - We make 5 A Day fun! |
| Learn the importance of eating five servings of fruits and vegetables every day. Includes recipes for kids to try. |
| www.dole5aday.com |
|
| Nutrition - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
| An encyclopedia article on nutrition, including sections on history, health, food processing, longevity, lifetstyle, policy, holistic approaches, ... |
| en.wikipedia.org |
|
| Nutrition Cafe |
| Be a Nutrition Sleuth, play the Grab-a-Grape game or build a meal in the Have-a-Bite Cafe. [Optional Flash version] |
| exhibits.pacsci.org |
|
| ScienceDaily: Health & Medicine -- Nutrition News |
| Answers to questions about nutrition, body weight, herbal and nutritional supplements, and the role of diet in improving and maintaining your health. |
| www.sciencedaily.com |
|
| Nutrition Source, Harvard School of Public Health |
| Harvard School of Public Health and Nutrition Research covers latest information on fiber, fats, calcium, carbohydrates, eggs, nutritional pyramids, ... |
| www.hsph.harvard.edu |
|
| Welcome to Nutrition Australia |
| Non-profit, independent body promoting the health and well-being of all Australians. Includes nutrition news and health facts. |
| www.nutritionaustralia.org |
|
| WHO | Nutrition |
| Nutrition is an input to and foundation for health and development. ... Better nutrition means stronger immune systems, less illness and better health. ... |
| www.who.int |
|
| Center for Science in the Public Interest |
| Since 1971, the Center for Science in the Public Interest has been a strong advocate for nutrition and health, food safety, alcohol policy, ... |
| www.cspinet.org |
|
| American Journal of Clinical Nutrition |
| Publication with nutrition topics, health news, FDA regulations, and legislative events. |
| www.ajcn.org |
|
| BBC - Health - Healthy living - Nutrition |
| Offers a wealth of health and nutrition information including recipes, weight calculators, diet tips and nutrition advice. |
| www.bbc.co.uk |
|
|