Let’s start off with a little reality check. The Recommended Daily Intake is 5-10 servings of fruits and vegetables to satisfy our minimum vitamin and mineral needs. How many people can honestly say that they eat 5-10 servings of fruits and vegetables a day? What is a serving?
Based on the national food pyramid guidelines a serving of:
Vegetables and fruits is
• 1 medium piece of fruit
• 1 cup raw leafy greens
• ¾ cup fruit or vegetable juice
• ½ cup raw or cooked non-starchy vegetables, such as asparagus or squash
Multiply this by 5 or 10
How many people can say they eat 3-5 cups of fresh raw leafy vegetables a day? How about 1-2 cups? The reality is that most Americans do not get nearly enough fruits and vegetables in their daily diet. That’s why taking a nutrient dense vitamin such as a whole food multi-vitamin is so important. Remember taking a multi vitamin is not a reason to stop striving to eat right and live a healthy life style it just helps keep you up with the daily nutritional demands for your body.
Going Green is the new buzz word and mantra of the politicians and environmentalist, and we think it is great. We love the idea of taking care of our little home floating around in the universe. After all it is the only one we have for now. From the perspective of a health and wellness professional we have been chanting this mantra for decades, GO GREEN, in fact we say GO SUPER GREEN, super green food that is.
The health benefits of super green foods have been well documented through the years. Studies have shown that green foods such as wheatgrass, barley grass, alfalfa, chlorella, spirulina, blue-green algae (AFA), and green tea can have a remarkable impact on improving and maintaining health. Some of the well know documented health benefits of consuming Super Green foods are more energy, neutralizing and removing toxins from the body, alleviating or control asthma, obesity, skin, anemia, arthritis, digestive problems, diabetes, heart disease, and hepatitis. The list goes on but I think you get the point it’s SUPER.
We hope you continue taking steps to keep the planet healthy and green and use the same philosophy for your health as well.
As most of us go through the day it is not always practical let alone easy to eat right. Getting all the daily recommended intake of vital nutrients to keep us on top of our game can certainly be a challenge in today’s fast paced nearly nonstop world. But without vibrant health it is nearly impossible to keep up with the modern day demands and the break neck pace of life. Plagued by the temptation of easily available fast food, the option for Americans is usually to opt-out for high calorie low nutritional foods.
That is why it is so important to take a daily multivitamin supplement to insure getting optimal daily nutrient intake. Whole Food nutrient dense vitamins are always the best choice whenever possible as they supply not only a full spectrum of daily nutrients it is also “real food”. Taking an organic formulated daily vitamin is even better when available.
In an ever present world of rising health care costs people are realizing that a pound of prevention is worth a ton of cure. It use to be an ounce and a pound but inflation is rampant in the medical business forcing basic services out of the reach of many. Between the cost of medical services and medical insurance (if you can get it) more and more people just can’t afford to get sick, literally.
The bad news is there is no end in sight soon, but the great news is prevention awareness is on the rise. People are making healthier food choices and using alternative therapies such as massage and acupuncture to stay healthier.
Many people are going back to the basics and are taking there own health into there own hands by finding ways to “stay” healthy. Staying healthy is truly the best way to avoid rising health care costs. We are not of course suggesting you should not seek out medical help when necessary or you should self diagnose. However we do believe that you can do some simple things to be pro active in prevention and to avoid the high cost of medical services. Prevention is allot less expensive.
With just a few simple basic time tested steps you not only can help minimize having to go to the doctor you might just find that you fell better, are fully energized and getting more living out of life.
Here are our top six steps to a healthier you “Health Basics 101″.
- Eat Whole Foods – Organic Whenever Possible
- Drink Plenty of Pure Fresh Water
- Get Lots Fresh Clean Air
- Get Proper Rest
- Take Appropriate Nutritional Supplements for Nutrition Insurance
- Exercise,- Get Your Body in Motion.
Watch for future blogs as we take an in depth look at these six simple ways to staying healthy.
Part I of the protein puzzle-
As we discussed in our Blog metric conversion confusion the use of the metric system can make things a little challenging for those of us on the standard system of measurement and this is especially true when it comes to figuring out how much daily protein you need in your diet for optimal health.
The ongoing discussion among health professionals on how much protein you actually need each day is still a hot debate with no definitive answer in sight. The most widely excepted model for the minimum daily intake is 1 gram of protein for every kilogram of lean body mass ether by whole food or a protein supplement. Here we go with the metric system again. Not to mention getting an accurate reading on lean mass. And do not rely on a personal trainer using the body fat caliber method to be even close to accurate, but that’s for another day.
Lets first get this metric thing sorted out. A 180 lb person converts to 81.647 Kilograms and lets say our average person has a 25% body fat, that leaves 61.235 kilograms of lean mass. Using the current theories this person needs a minimum 61 to 62 grams of protein per day to sustain there health. Derived either through whole foods our protein supplements. This of course is not taking into consideration any other factors such as lifestyle, health and genetics.
Next up how do I meet the required amount I need.
With all the choices in the vitamin isle these days it is not hard to understand why most people get overwhelmed and intimidated trying to figure out what is right for them. Add to that tying to decipher the ingredients and those cool Latin words becomes nearly impossible unless your are an herbalist or nutritionist.
So where do you start? It is not as complicated as you may think. Most people that have a fairly healthy lifestyle such as eating right, regular exercise and adequate rest can usually start with a high quality whole food vitamin supplement to give them that added nutritional boost. After that depending on additional lifestyle factors such as stress and health situations you may want to start a customized plan. For example you my consider adding additional vitamin B-12 for stress situations or vitamin C to boost your immune system . For a truly customized plan it is best to consult a health professional trained in nutritional evaluation for your specific needs. Once you have done that shopping for vitamins gets easy, just look for the recommended high quality product at the best price.
The seven glorious green foods include wheat-grass, barley grass, alfalfa, chlorella, spirulina, blue-green algae (AFA), and green tea. These powerful food sources are rich in antioxidants — phenolic acids, alpha-carotene and beta-carotene — compounds that have all demonstrated powerful free-radical antioxidant protection in test-tube and experimental models. In a study on spirulina conducted by Brazilian researcher, M.S. Miranda in 1998 has proven that consuming green foods have remarkable health benefits .
Each one of these super foods consumed alone has been clinically proven to help lower blood pressure, reduce inflammation, and lower cholesterol along with other amazing health benefits. However when combined and consumed together there synergistic effect become known as the Super Green Food. Readily available in a concentrated tablet or powder form anyone can get the remarkable health benefits from this nutritionally dense food.
Why choose Whole Food Vitamins?
There is continuing debate among the scientific community regarding the use of synthetic vitamins over whole food vitamins with no apparent agreement in sight. As the PhDs of the world continue to sift through the data here is our opinion based on erring on the side of good old fashioned common sense or as we call it uncommon sense.
Until the world of science can agree that Laboratory Synthesized Vitamins are better or as good as real food than we will stick to REAL FOOD. While the scientists continue there debate about Whole Food Vitamins, we asked this question. If a waiter at a restaurant asked you if would you like plastic fruit tonight for desert or fresh picked fruit out of our garden which would you choose? Hm mm let me think about that one. Or do you really need to? It should be a no brain-er.
Obviously laboratory mimicked vitamins are not plastic but we think you get the point. So until the “experts” come to a definitive conclusion I will stick to the real deal, Whole Food Nutrient Rich Supplements.
The word “supplement” has begun to take on a negative connotation in recent years as more and more professional athletes are caught using performance-enhancing drugs. It’s important to understand the difference between anabolic steroids, which have been linked to harmful side effects following excessive use, and mere nutritional supplements. Few diets include the necessary amount of vitamins and minerals, so supplements provide an essential boost.
There are a wide variety of supplements available in health stores across the country. Many of them are closely regulated by the government, and their effects have been studied and proven safe. Most people take some form of vitamin supplement on a regular basis, and the health benefits are indispensable. Be sure you’re aware of the active ingredients in a nutritional supplement before consuming it.