Monthly Archives: February 2023

Today’s society has become quite health conscious as more attention is paid to nutritional supplements and vitamins and the important role they play in maintaining optimal body health. In addition to promoting overall body wellness, vitamins and supplements are used to protect the heart, reduce the risk of cancer, boost the overall immune system, relieve symptoms, relieve depression and improve memory and weight loss .

Theories have emerged advocating the use of extremely high doses or megadoses, of some vitamins; However, it is always advisable to consider this type of supplementation. While some are safe in large doses, others can prove quite harmful and so moderation is important

Some theories have been published advocating the use of extremely high doses or mega doses of certain vitamins. Caution should be exercised when considering this type of supplementation. While some vitamins are safe in large doses, others can be harmful. Here are the most commonly used
Here are some of the vitamins most people take and the recommended dosages:

Vitamin A – Vitamin A is a fat-soluble compound that is important for healthy vision, cell growth and immune system function. Vitamin A should not be taken in excess of twice the recommended daily dose for adults.

Vitamin B6 – Vitamin B6 is a water-soluble vitamin needed for protein metabolism, cellular oxygenation and blood sugar regulation. Excess vitamin B6 can cause debilitating and dangerous nerve damage. Do not exceed 100 mg of vitamin B6 per day.

Vitamin B12 – Vitamin B12 is important for healthy red blood cells and nerve cells in the body. Vitamin B12 also plays an important role in the formation of human DNA. Although it has low toxicity, it is recommended that you do not exceed it per day.

Folic Acid – Folic acid helps build DNA and is also needed for the metabolism of important acids. It is especially important for pregnant women. Folic acid has low toxicity; However, the maximum recommended dose for adults is 1,000 mcg.

Vitamin C – Vitamin C is necessary for the production of collagen, growth and repair of body tissues and a healthy immune system. However, too much vitamin C can cause harmful oxidation in the body. No more than 2000 mg per day should be taken.

Vitamin D – Vitamin D is essential for normal levels of phosphorus and calcium in the blood. Vitamin D is an important factor for strong bones and teeth. Excessive intake of vitamin D can lead to bone pain, nausea, vomiting and even kidney stones.

Vitamin E – Vitamin E is an antioxidant that protects the body from free radicals. However, taking more than 1,000 mg can cause heart problems and excessive bleeding.

It’s always best to speak to your doctor or health care professional to learn more about proper and safe dosages of vitamin compounds before deciding to take any supplements.

We have criticized them and their members for many years for spending a lot of time discrediting the use of dietary supplements and too little time pointing out the problems of the food industry. This may be because the food industry supports their organization and educational process so financially.
It seems we are not the only ones troubled by this misguided focus of attention.
According to the food industry, marketing practices are to blame for the obesity epidemic.
The efforts, claimed, are helping to fatten America. 35 percent of adults, 12 percent of adolescents and 14 percent of children in the United States are overweight.
In a question-and-answer session, the Times reported, making the following comments:
Q. How does the food industry encourage overeating?
A. Only by promoting food. By spending a year in direct media advertising. That’s so much more than is spent on health and nutrition education, you can’t even put them in the same stratosphere. The Fruit and Veg Campaign spends about millions annually on public education.
Q. Why do you say the food industry specifically wants us to eat more processed foods?
A. Therein lies the benefit. Potatoes are cheap. It’s not potato chips. And those really delicious rosemary olive oils, which I happen to be particularly fond of, are shockingly expensive. The aim is to process food as much as possible. But many of these highly processed foods are junk food — relatively high in calories and low in nutrients.
The food industry spends another billion annually on indirect marketing, which would include things like the mealtime set and placing their logos on soft drink displays. These practices are so acceptable that people think it’s normal to constantly drink soft drinks. Every time you walk into a restaurant, you’re told in a thousand ways to eat more. Their job is to sell you food, sell you drinks, sell you appetizers and desserts.
Q. Why are we receptive to the message from the food industry?
A. Well, why shouldn’t we be? The message is appealing. The food tastes good. The message about healthy eating is very boring.
Q. Good nutritional advice is notoriously complicated and difficult to follow, isn’t it?
A. No, it’s not complicated. It’s simple: Eat more fruits and vegetables and don’t overeat. And be active and don’t smoke.
What is complicated is the advice on individual nutrients. People think we have to worry about calcium. I have to worry about folic acid. We have to worry about protein.
I have to keep track of these 40 different nutrients and they are so confusing. And then one day you’re telling me to eat margarine and the next day you’re telling me trans fat isn’t good and why can’t you guys make up your mind? I have a lot of understanding for that.
Q. You think the food industry is taking advantage of the confusion about eating right, don’t you?
A. Claims are made that relate to marketing, not health. The margarine with pulp in it, which is said to lower cholesterol, is just another way of selling margarine. I don’t think we need everything fortified with vitamins. My feeling is if people are concerned about their vitamins they can take a daily supplement. They don’t need zinc in their froot loops.
Q. Your book singles out cereal and froot loops for special criticism. Can you explain?
A. We currently have a major problem with nutrition, as evidenced by the rising rates of obesity and diabetes.

Why Take a Multivitamin?

There are many reasons for taking vitamins. The reasons can usually fall into one of two categories: nutritional or therapeutic.

nutritional needs

Vitamins and minerals are essential to life. These essential nutrients must be obtained from the food we eat. They cannot be made in our body. If we don’t get enough of any of the essential vitamins, minerals or amino acids, we will develop what is called a deficiency disease and if this deficiency is not corrected, we will die.

From this standpoint, in order to prevent clinical deficiency, one would hope that all that would be necessary would be a well-balanced diet consisting of a variety of fresh, nutritious foods properly prepared to preserve nutritional value.

Unfortunately this is not the case. Food isn’t what it used to be, our lifestyles aren’t what they used to be and, just as important, our environment isn’t what it used to be.

Today, fresh food is often transported across the country for several days, which means that the nutrients are naturally reduced by exposure to oxygen. Fruits and vegetables are grown using chemical fertilizers and pesticides, meat and dairy products are obtained from animals raised on hormones or other growth-promoting drugs and bleached or brominated grain products.

Processing food to enhance flavor and extend shelf life is a major cause of nutrient deficiencies. When brown rice is processed into white rice through milling, bleaching and other processes, 80 percent of many trace elements such as magnesium, manganese, copper and zinc are lost.

A corresponding loss occurs when whole grain berries are reduced to bleached white wheat flour, one of the mainstays of the standard diet.

Nutrients can be lost in other ways. Various cooking techniques such as microwaving can oxidize nutrients in food, resulting in lower nutrient levels. The same goes for a type of preservation, like canning fruits and vegetables.

Through the repeated cultivation of crops, nutrients are lost from the soil and are not replenished. Selenium, for example, is depleted in large parts of our soil.

Nutrients are also lost when plants are harvested before they are naturally mature. The still green picked products are then force ripened with chemicals.

Even when we strive to eat well, it may not provide the amount of nutrients we think it does. How many of us can resist the marketing pressure to buy and eat highly processed, low calorie foods that are so heavily promoted by the food industry? How many of us, when going to a restaurant or eating lunch and breakfast on the run, can avoid foods with too much fat and not enough nutrients? Why do the foods that taste the best always appear to those that are at least healthy?

Major national surveys consistently show that many people’s diets are not balanced. Inadequate intake of vitamins and minerals, including vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, folic acid, vitamin B6, calcium, copper, iron, manganese and zinc, is commonly reported. In addition, it is estimated that 9 out of 10 diets are low in chromium and magnesium intake is about half the recommended amount.

Avoiding clinical deficiencies is one thing. Avoiding subclinical deficiencies is another. Certainly we don’t move from adequate to inadequate in the blink of an eye. Obviously there is a situation when a person can have a partial deficiency of certain nutrients.

Are Vitamin Supplements Really Necessary?

How do you know if you’re really benefiting from your daily vitamin supplements? Is it really necessary to take all those pills and capsules every day?
Where’s the proof?
Well, the evidence may or may not be that easy to find, depending on your reason for taking vitamin supplements. We can take supplements for three general reasons:

1. To prevent nutritional deficiency diseases. When we don’t get enough of the various vitamins and minerals, we actually develop life-threatening diseases. Examples are scurvy, rickets, etc.
2. To ensure optimal health, vitality and longevity. The amount of vitamin C needed to prevent the obvious symptoms of scurvy, for example, may not match the amount needed for optimal tissue health. Is there really a sharp line between scurvy and optimal health? Of course not.
3. To treat a health problem. Vitamins and minerals can be used as therapeutic agents, usually in larger doses. When we take niacin multiple times a day, for example to lower elevated cholesterol levels, it doesn’t function as a food or nutrient. Instead, it is a therapeutic tool. The same goes for using to treat arthritis, vitamin B6 to treat carpal tunnel syndrome, to treat diabetes or high-dose vitamin B2 for migraines.
   Proof?
   The proof is easy to do at first. We have all but eradicated the various deficiency diseases, at least in the more developed parts of the world, through an appropriate diet, fortification of foods with nutrients and the use of nutritional supplements. Someone who begins to show the symptoms of scurvy improves quickly when given vitamin C. The only argument here is whether proper nutrition is sufficient or whether supplementation is necessary. In an ideal world, we would like to believe that eating right is enough. But this is far from an ideal world. Few people are actually able or willing to eat right. And even if they could and would, we still have the problem of increased pollution, stress and environmental hazards.
   For example, what may be adequate nutrition for one person may not be adequate at all for a flight attendant who spends most of her working hours exposed to high levels of radiation and hydrocarbons in jet fuel. A proper diet for an Idaho farmer may not be nearly enough for the person living in smog-ridden Los Angeles.
   And the ultimate proof is easy to come by when it comes to treating health problems. Why? Because the results are impressive. People with arthritis can easily see improvement when they supplement. People with hypertension can easily see the results of supplementing with magnesium, calcium, garlic and arginine. People with carpal tunnel syndrome can easily see improvement when supplementing with vitamin B6.
   Not only do people see the results every day when they use vitamins and minerals as therapeutics, but the research results are also published in respected, peer-reviewed medical journals. NIH is now funded to support ongoing research. The government has increased the recommended daily intake of various nutrients.
   We mentioned vitamin B2 as a therapeutic treatment for migraine headaches. Using this example, a research group treated 49 migraine sufferers with large amounts of vitamin B2 or riboflavin. Both the frequency and severity of migraines decreased by more than two-thirds. In a follow-up study, also double-blind, the same researchers found that 59% of patients receiving vitamin B2 experienced a reduction in the number of headache days by at least 50%, while only 15% of patients receiving placebo experienced that level of improvement.

When we break down the benefits of a liquid vitamin, a biological bonus is that there is no breakdown. With a vitamin pill, your body has to break the capsule or pill apart to get at the it contains. In most cases, this extra step not only reduces the efficiency of vitamin absorption, but also limits the of the food, which is not ideal for a dietary supplement intended to benefit our health.

When you swallow a vitamin pill, your body enters a race against time to break down the outer shell of capsules or the hard pill adhesives so it can access the inside. If the pill doesn’t break down quickly enough, there’s a chance these nutrients could pass straight through the digestive tract without any trace or trace element being absorbed. With sluggish breakdown, a lot of nutrients are excreted, which means you’ve literally flushed those nutrients down the drain.

Recently, multiple reports have found that many multivitamins do not fully dissolve within the meaning consumers were not getting the health benefits their multivitamin promised. As awareness of the problem with vitamins in tablet form continues to grow, several other studies have examined the capsule.

As our foods become more and more nutrient deficient, there is an increasing need to get as many vitamins and minerals as possible from alternative sources. With improved and absorption, liquids appear to be a smart solution for effective multivitamin supplementation.

A shorter shelf life

No, we didn’t accidentally add a liquid vitamin con to our pill-free pro list. While a multivitamin pill has a longer shelf life than a liquid vitamin, that longevity comes . We’re sure you don’t want to think of your multivitamin as a science experiment, but unfortunately, supplements are made to last. The concoction that helps keep pills safe involves a questionable combination of fillers, stabilizers and binders, allowing your pill capsule to essentially serve as a time capsule.

Now that we’ve spotlighted these storage-stabilizing secret ingredients, the value for money of taking a multivitamin pill simply isn’t the same as favoring tablets or capsules. However, if you’re still swayed by the financial benefits that come with a pill supplement that doesn’t need to be replaced as frequently as a liquid form, consider the logic behind that stance.

Many people unknowingly continue to take vitamin pills well past their expiration date. This means you are consuming vitamins that are no longer effective or worse, potentially harmful if not stored properly. With this in mind, it may be worth going with an additive-free liquid vitamin from the start that will provide more telltale signs after expiry.

Easy to swallow

Regardless, swallowing big, chalky pills just isn’t a pleasant process. Aversion to pills has many different causes, including potentially serious medical conditions. This demographic is often most at risk from nutrient deficiencies, meaning that supplementation is a necessity, not a choice. Access to liquid vitamins is essential for people with dysphagia when traditional dietary intake is simply not possible. Dysphagia can be common in the elderly, so it is wise to choose the best liquid multivitamin for the elderly when choosing a dietary supplement.

Those with medical pill aversion aren’t the only demographic to have trouble swallowing hard capsules and tablets: Pill phobia is an all too common mental illness that prevents many from sticking to a dietary regimen that involves a pill. For many, pill anxiety is a mental block that can lead to real physical effects like dry mouth and tight throat muscles that increase the risk of choking. Fortunately, liquid vitamins offer a solution to the pandemic of pill paranoia that is plaguing much of the population.

Joints made the connections between bones in the body. They allow you to move in different movements and also provide support. Any damage to the joints from an injury or illness can affect your movement and cause a lot of pain.

Joint pain can range from mildly irritating to debilitating. In some cases, it can go away after a week or last for months. It doesn’t matter how short or long the pain and swelling in the joint is, as long as you feel the pain it can affect your quality of life. Whatever the cause of joint pain, you can usually treat it with medication, physical therapy or alternative treatments.

drug

When taking medication for pain, it depends on how moderate or strong it is. If the pain is milder and there is no swelling, acetaminophen, also known as Tylenol, may be effective. Just be careful while taking this medicine, especially if you drink alcohol, as high doses can cause liver damage.

There are many medications to choose from, but for moderate to severe joint pain with swelling, an over-the-counter or prescription such as aspirin, ibuprofen or sodium can provide relief. If you are looking for a newer generation you can try what are known as inhibitors and are also good for pain relief. There is one drug that has been pulled from the market due to its increased risk of heart attack, stroke and other cardiovascular events. It can also have side effects that may increase your risk of gastrointestinal bleeding.

If the pain is so severe that it is not enough, you will need to consult your doctor to prescribe a stronger opioid. Opioid medications can cause drowsiness, you should only use them under medical supervision.

physical therapy

To improve your range of motion, stabilize the joint and strengthen the muscles around the joint, you can work with a physical therapist. There are various techniques that therapists use, such as ultrasound, heat or cold therapy, electrical nerve stimulation and manipulation. If you are overweight, losing weight can give some relief to your sore joints. Exercise is an effective way to lose weight with a proper diet, but be sure to stick to low-impact exercises that don’t further irritate the joint. For those who have problems with their joints, swimming and cycling are among the best exercises because you can both work your joints without putting stress on them and water floats, meaning swimming relieves some of the pressure on your joints as well .

alternative treatments

There is a study on supplements that says it can help with joint pain and improve function. Both substances are part of normal cartilage, which helps cushion bones and protect joints.

This may not work for everyone, but supplements are safe to try as they do not have any significant side effects. If the pain becomes severe, seek medical help immediately. Always consult your doctor first. Remember that joints are very fragile, can suddenly become inflamed and deformed or become unusable at all.

What is turmeric?

Turmeric or also known as Indian saffron or the golden spice is a tall herb. The turmeric that we typically see or have in our kitchen is made from the ground roots of the plant. Due to the bright yellow color of processed turmeric, it is used as a dye in many cultures.

It is also commonly used as the main ingredient in curry powder. There are different types of turmeric products, such as capsules, teas, powders and extracts

One of the active compounds in turmeric is it has powerful biological properties. Ayurvedic medicine, a traditional Indian treatment system, recommends turmeric for a variety of health conditions. These include chronic pain and inflammation. Western medicine has begun to study turmeric as a pain reliever and healing agent.

Benefits of Turmeric

It’s anti-inflammatory

There are several cited studies by the Arthritis Foundation that turmeric reduced inflammation. This anti-inflammatory ability could reduce the aggravation that people with arthritis have in their joints.

It can relieve pain.

Many people, including doctors, cite their own anecdotal experiences of using turmeric as a pain reliever. Turmeric also apparently relieves arthritis pain. There are many studies that seem to support turmeric for pain relief, with one noting that it appeared to work as well as ibuprofen in people with arthritis in their knees. Although dosing recommendations seem to vary, those who participated in the study took turmeric in capsule form every day.

It improves liver function

Turmeric is gaining popularity for its antioxidant abilities. Due to turmeric’s ability, the antioxidant appears to be so powerful that it can prevent your liver from being damaged by toxins. This could be good news for people who are taking powerful medications for diabetes or other health conditions that could damage their liver with long-term use.

It can aid in your digestion

There are several reasons turmeric is included in curry powder and one of the reasons is that it adds a delicious element to dishes. Turmeric can also play an important role in the digestion of food, it has antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties that can contribute to healthy digestion.

Turmeric’s properties are so powerful that Western medicine has begun to study how turmeric may help with intestinal inflammation and intestinal permeability, two measures of your digestive efficiency.

Get the most out of turmeric

Turmeric can be effective in your body and get the health benefits from it depending on how you consume it.

There are several ways to consume turmeric and according to a recent study, the results showed that cooking turmeric with oil could help your body absorb . It is believed that when binds to fat, like the fat in olive or coconut oil, it is more easily absorbed by the gut. And it may be that even small daily amounts consumed in this way can benefit your health.

Because of so many claims about turmeric’s healing properties and health benefits, we know that cooking turmeric with oil as part of a balanced diet could be the best way to get the most out of this spice.

Vitamin E has been shown to help fight upper respiratory infections, particularly the common cold, in the elderly
Vitamin E supplementation has potential benefits in fighting upper respiratory tract infections like the common cold in the elderly, according to a study published in the Aug. 18 issue. According to the Council for Responsible Nutrition, one of the leading trade bodies in the dietary supplement industry, this is another positive study that adds to the mounting scientific evidence that vitamin E is beneficial for improved immune function in the elderly.
All patients received a multivitamin supplement containing 50 percent of the recommended daily allowance of essential 311 of the patients also received a daily capsule with 200 of vitamin E, while the control group of 306 received a placebo. Fewer people in the vitamin E group experienced one or more upper respiratory infections. The researchers also observed that those given the vitamin E supplement had a 20 percent lower risk of catching a cold than those given the placebo. There was no effect on lower respiratory tract infections.
The protective effect of vitamin E against upper respiratory tract infections, particularly the common cold, demonstrated in this study is very promising, especially given the prevalence of such conditions in the elderly and the potential that the common cold can lead to more serious illnesses. As the authors of the study explain, respiratory infections are common in older people, leading to increased morbidity, mortality and use of health services.
This study further sheds light on the importance of vitamin E supplementation for older people, who are generally at risk for nutrient deficiencies. It is recognized that diet has a major impact on disease resistance and the group has previously shown that vitamin E supplementation improves measures of immune response. The current study shows an influence on the actual incidence of the disease.
It found that all participants in both the placebo and vitamin E groups received a low-dose multivitamin because nursing home residents are known to be prone to under-supply. This was good practice and some experts have advocated giving nursing home residents multivitamins as a policy to avoid the consequences of nutrient deficiencies. However, it is possible that the multivitamin will reduce the effects of vitamin E supplementation.
In the article, the authors conclude that the study results indicate important effects on the well-being of older people and call for future studies to further evaluate the effect of vitamin E supplementation on colds, including a more detailed analysis of the effect of the nutrient to specific pathogens.

As with anything else in life, preparation is key to an effective plan. This is why a pre-workout routine is so important! The way you prepare for your workout can make a huge difference in the results of the workout itself.

Prioritize getting enough good sleep

Sleep gives your body time to recover, conserve energy and repair and build muscles used during exercise. When we get enough good sleep, the body produces growth hormones. During childhood and adolescence, growth hormone, as the name suggests, makes us grow. And as we get older, it helps us build lean muscle and helps our body repair itself when we tear ourselves apart during a tough workout. Growth hormone is essential for athletic recovery.

Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate

Whether you’re a serious athlete or just training for recovery, staying hydrated is important. Staying hydrated means drinking the right amount of water before, during and after your workout. Did you know that as little as 2 percent dehydration can lead to a significant decrease in muscle endurance and exercise performance? Water regulates your body temperature and lubricates your joints. It helps transport nutrients to give you energy and keep you healthy. If you are not hydrated, your body cannot function at its highest level. You may feel tired, have muscle cramps, dizziness or other serious symptoms

Get a snack

It’s hard to perform at your best in the gym or set a new best when your stomach is growling. However, finding a good pre-workout snack can be difficult. Eat too much and you will feel sluggish; barely eat and you will be hungry. When choosing a snack, remember that carbohydrates equal energy. When we eat carbohydrates, they are broken down into glucose, enter our muscle cells and then provide us with the fuel we need for our workouts. Simple carbohydrates are the best option because they are digested faster and are readily available as fuel. Be sure to add protein, which especially helps with strength training. Protein is the fuel that goes straight to our muscles and muscle fibers to strengthen and repair them. And a touch of fat will also serve to satisfy our hunger, which often increases as we burn calories during exercise. A simple guideline for preparing this pre-workout snack would be one that’s about a handful of carbs, half a handful of protein and a quarter handful of fat.

Make sure your outfit is workout friendly

Being able to move, jump, run, stretch and hold specific positions and poses is about more than just your athletic ability or your mobility and flexibility. It’s also about having the right equipment for the job. For example, you might not care that much about which sports bra you choose for yoga, but for running you want one with high impact. Wearing the right sneakers on a long run means a lot more comfort, which could translate into better endurance and a more enjoyable workout. There’s nothing worse than arriving at the gym or walking out the door only to find you’re actually feeling a little uncomfortable. Before you walk out the door, take another look and make sure you’re properly outfitted.

Warm up!

Warm-up activities include a light jog or slow cycling on a bicycle. Warming up before exercise prepares your cardiovascular system for physical activity by increasing blood flow to your muscles and body temperature. It also helps reduce the risk of injury – when your muscles are sufficiently warmed up, the movements, stretches and stresses you put on them during exercise will be less vigorous. This also minimizes muscle soreness

Benefits of warming up

Warming up improves your athletic performance in the following ways:

Improved Circulation — Warming up for 10 minutes with a light activity improves circulation in your skeletal muscles and opens up blood capillaries. Your blood carries the oxygen needed for your muscles to function, so increasing your blood flow is one of the best things you can do to prepare your muscles for a workout.

Improved Oxygen Efficiency – When you do a warm-up exercise, oxygen is released from your blood more easily and at a higher temperature. your muscles require more oxygen during exercise, so it’s important to make that oxygen more available through a warm-up activity.

Faster muscle contraction/relaxation – Warming up with physical activity increases your body temperature, which in turn improves your nerve transmission and muscle metabolism. The final result? Your muscles will work faster and more efficiently.