Wellness and Nutrition lesson 1.

We have all been trained to believe that the US Dept of Agriculture's RDA is all we need in the way of vitamins and minerals to keep healthy. The RDA (Recommended Daily Allowance) is the barest minimum we need to function. Wellness requires considerably more than the RDA. We need many substances the the body cannot produce on it's own. Some say we get all we need in our food. Did you know that as food is pasturized or cooked large amounts of vitamins and minerals are destroyed. If we really want to energize our lives we not only need more than the RDA, but we need vitamins that are pharmaceutical grade and easily and thoroughly absorbed. It is true that we need to use care in the taking fat soluable vitamins. Most forms of Vitamin A are dangerous in pregnancy. Vitamin E is readily dumped by the body. Unless you are on Coumadin you need Vitamin K in your diet (common in green tea and leafy vegatables), and long ignored Vitamin D has been shown as neccesary not only in absorption of Calcium, but in the wellness of other body functions. We are exposed to dangereous oxidants in our environment on a daily basis. You are never to young to begin supplementation if it is done withe the proper products,, with the guidance of an expert, nor are we ever too old. It may surprise you to know that most vitamins and minerals bought in pharmacies and health food stores don't make the cut on consistancy of manufacturin in a pharmaceutical process, but neither are they of a grade where they are completely absorbed. This is refered to as highly bioavailable.
With highly bioavailable products you know you are getting all that is on the label which is made in a form easily absorbed by the body. Wellness requires among other things optimal nurtrition. Do you get your 5 servings of friuts and vegatables daily? Optimal nutrition includes such substances as vitamins, minerals., antioxidants, as well as other substances we consume in small amounts, as well as proteins, carbohydrates and fats in low glycemic nutrition. Glycemic levels in foods refer to the amount of insulin produced in response to eating the product, whether it will leave us with carbohydrate cravings, and the ability to avoid to a large extent the onset of Insulin resisitance in otherwise healthy people. As we get older we Boomers have been bombarded with oxidative substances all of our lives and as I mentioned in a earlier blog, >60% of Americans are overweight. However most of us never gets the amount needed to remain healthy.
It is true that maintaining the RDA will prevent acute deficiency states, but is that all you want. Not I. I wand to achieve the title of this blog Wellness, in most cases weightloss and by all of the to be energized to achieve all we wish. We won't even discuss fitness and exercise in this series. Remember that the RDA doesn't even take into accounts chronic nutritional deficiencies that require increased nutrient intake to correct. While the body isn't able to store many important nutrients, optimal levels of nutrition can make sure these substances are present for optimal function and protection from oxidants, many found in the pollution we are exposed to daily.
According to many surveys only a small portion of the US population even manages to get the minimum RDA's. Fewer than 1 in 5 consumes the recommended amounts of fruits and vegetables. It is common in the US that few consume adequate amounts of of important minerals, such as calcium, magnesium, zinc and copper. This is true for every age level, race and ethnicity. More and more meals consumed away from home in a fast paced life are relegated to fast foods. Our diet is "calorie rich and nutrient poor." The importance of getting adequate levels of minerals, and antioxidants as well as proper nutrition can effect your state of wellness for years to come. I will continue this series on nutrition supplementation in future blogs. There are publications that evaluate both production practices and bioavailability of nutritional supplements.
I will put out lesson 2 sometime this weekend. Hope to see you there.