Posts Tagged ‘diabetes’

The B Vitamins-Water Soluble Vitamins

Sunday, July 25th, 2010

Over the past few weeks you’ve learned about the fat soluble vitamins. super-vegetables-e2We skipped Vitamin D, since we already have a a former blog post on the many wonderful benefits of this vitamin (see Vitamin D information to read). This week we’re moving on to the water soluble vitamins.

As a review, lets first discuss the difference between a vitamin and mineral.  A vitamin is any compound that contains carbon and therefore is organic.  There are two classes of vitamins…fat soluble A, D, E and K or water soluble, the B vitamins and vitamin C.

Minerals on the other hand do not contain carbon and are what we call inorganic.  There are macro- minerals and micro-minerals.  Macro-minerals are calcium, chloride, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium and sodium.  Micro-minerals are:  chromium, iron, copper, zinc, iodine, manganese, molybdenum, selenium and iron.

There are many factors that can decrease the absorption of vitamins and minerals.  These include: alcohol, caffeine, antibiotics, stress, corticosteroids, aspirin, diuretics, oral contraceptives, sugar and tobacco.  Therefore if you lifestyle includes any of these factors and you are not well there could be a good chance that you are not absorbing your essential nutrients.  You will learn over the next few weeks the critical affect that each of the vitamins and mineral have over the health of your body.

This week we will be discussing the B Vitamins

What it is:  The B vitamins are water soluble, meaning that they are found in the “watery” parts of plants and animals. The B vitamins are known as the B complex, and are made up of several different vitamins. Because the B vitamins enhance the absorption of one another, it’s important to eat a wide variety of fruits and vegetables to ensure you are getting in all of the B vitamins in your diet. Below is a list of the B Vitamins and a few of their functions (too many to list all!), and some foods that contain the B vitamin listed.

The B Vitamins

B1: Thiamin:

  • Needed for a healthy nervous system
  • Helps prevent cardiac spasms
  • Coenzyme for many biochemical reactions in the body

Found In: pork, sunflower seeds, green peas, okra, asparagus

B2: Riboflavin:

  • Required for Energy Production and metabolism of fats and carbohydrates
  • Needed for normal cell growth
  • Regenerates the body’s own antioxidant

Found in: eggs (both white and yolk), milk, mushrooms, spinach, beet greens

B3 Niacin:

  • Required for energy production and carbohydrate/fat metabolism
  • Regenerates the body’s own antioxidant
  • Helps the body use glucose and protects beta cells in the pancreas
  • Needed for synthesis of sex hormones

Found In: tuna, chicken, salmon, mushrooms, kidney beans, nectarines

B5 Panthothenic Acid:

  • Required for energy production nd metabolism of carbohydrates, fats, and protein
  • Helps prevent aging and wrinkles
  • Strengthens metabolism

Found In: shitake mushrooms, sunflower seeds, cauliflower, broccoli, egg yolks

B6 (collectively called Pyridoxine):

  • Important for health of cardiovascular and immune systems
  • Needed to release glycogen from the liver and muscles to be used by the body as fuel
  • Required for the synthesis of serotonin, a neurotransmitter
  • Needed by 100 different enzymes, each for a different biochemical reaction in the body

Found In: hot chili peppers, red/green peppers, spinach, garlic, bananas


Vitamin B12: Cobalamin

  • Helps prevent cardiovascular disease
  • Activates folate in the body
  • Enhances utilization of carbohydrates, fats and proteins, increasing energy levels

Found In: clams, mussels, crab, salmon, milk


Biotin:

  • Needed for the metabolism of fats and cholesterol
  • Needed for the synthesis of fatty acids
  • Needed for metabolism of fatty acids

Found in: eggs, mushrooms, hazelnuts, carrots, almonds


Choline:

  • Helps the body utilize fat and cholesterol (moving them from the liver)
  • Is converted to acetylcholine in the body, a neurotransmitter that affects muscle control and memory
  • Helps decrease involuntary muscle movement

Found In: eggs, cod, shrimp, broccoli, artichokes


Folate:

  • Needed for the proper growth and development of all cells—critical during pregnancy
  • Helps prevent birth defects
  • Helps protect bone marrow

Found in: asparagus, spinach, squash, collards, broccoli


We hope this information has been helpful and you reap the benefits when adding vitamin B rich foods to your diet. Remember, it’s best to eat a wide variety of fruits and vegetables to ensure you are taking in all of the B Vitamins. If you have more specific questions or concerns please feel free to call us and set up a consultation either in person or over the phone.

Dorothy Lizak

Nutrition & Wellness Specialist

Resource:  The Power of Nutrient Dense Food by Pattie Weller, C.C.N

Picture by:  http://www.cosmeticsurgeryandbeauty.com/content/super-vegetables

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Posted in Digestive Health, Hormone Health, Nutrition Tips, Prevention information, Uncategorized, Weight Managment, vitamins | 4 Comments »

Does eating fat cause weight gain?

Saturday, August 29th, 2009

whole and half avocado isolated on whiteIf I asked you does eating fat make you gain weight what would your answer be and why?  When I ask this question in my office the answer that I get is “yes” fat makes you fat.  Many people believe that it is fat that makes them gain weight and the correct answer to this question is no fat does not make you fat, let me explain why.

In order for there to be storage of fat there needs to be a release of insulin.  Insulin is a hormone that is produced in the pancreas and has extensive effects on metabolism.  Insulin causes cells in the liver, muscle and fat tissue to take up glucose (sugar) from the blood, storing it as glycogen in the liver and muscle, and stopping use of fat as an energy source. For example, when you eat something sugary your body will use the sugar that it needs for immediate energy and will then store what it does not need. It is when your liver and muscles can not store anymore sugar the remaining will get stored as fat.  Therefore, it is sugar that causes an insulin response that causes fat storage.  Fat on the other hand does not have an insulin response and therefore fat storage does not come from eating fat.  If you are looking for weight loss it is when insulin is absent (or low), glucose is not taken up by body cells, and the body begins to use fat as an energy source and that’s when weight loss begins to happen.

This is an important topic to understand since we are lead to believe that low fat, non-fat food items are good for us but guess what?  Low fat, non-fat food items are higher in sugar; this needs to be done so that flavor can remain. The next time you are grabbing for a low fat food item, flip it around and read the label, you may be surprised at what you read.

Fat is essential to our health, here are a few examples of what fat provides for us.  Fat lines our nerves to help with conduction velocity, fatty acids from fat is what your brain uses to create cells that help you to think and feel and fat in the form of cholesterol is the foundation that your hormones are made from.  Depression, PMS, quality of sleep, ability to detoxify and an improved sex drive all take place when your body is making normal levels of hormones due to healthy fat intake.  Healthy fats are olive oil, coconut oil, avocados, raw nuts, raw butter, nut butters and egg yolks just to name a few.  If you are unfamiliar about coconut oil or would like more information about the dangers of sugar you can read our blog entry’s titled “The truth about coconut oil” and “Sugar- sweet, delicious and causes dis-ease”.

 

Lori Metroka

Nutrition & Wellness Specialist

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The truth about coconut oil

Saturday, August 15th, 2009

coconut3

When working with clients on their preventative nutritional plans we will suggest using coconut oil.  We usually get two responses to this suggestion.  1.  For those who don’t know about coconut oil we usually hear what is coconut oil?  2.  For those who do know about coconut oil we usually hear isn’t it bad for you because it’s a saturated fat?  Both ways the answer is the same and it begins with education about coconut oil.  That is what this blog entry is all about and we ask you that regardless of what you think you know about coconut oil good or bad we encourage you to read on and learn more about this antimicrobial, antioxidant, antifungal, antibacterial, and cancer fighting agent.

Coconut oil has been used for thousands of years and is highly consumed by Asian and Pacific populations. In traditional medicine around the world coconut is used to treat a wide variety of health problems including the following: herpes, influenza and HIV.  It helps in fighting harmful bacteria such as heliobacter pylori and giardia lamblia. In addition, it has helped heal abscesses, asthma, baldness, bronchitis, bruises, burns, colds, constipation, cough, earache, fever, gingivitis, gonorrhea, irregular or painful menstruation, jaundice, pancreatitis, kidney stones, malnutrition, nausea, rash, scabies, scurvy, skin infections, sore throat, swelling, syphilis, toothache, tuberculosis, tumors, ulcers, upset stomach, weakness, and wounds. Coconut oils health benefits are attributed to the presence of lauric acid, capric acid and caprylic acid.  It is through the body’s process of converting lauric acid into monolaurin that gives coconut oil its healing properties in the body.

So, it is quite clear that coconut oil has many great health benefits but lets get to the real concern that most people have about coconut oil and that is that it is a saturated fat.  Yes, it is true that it is a saturated fat. However, did you know that coconut oil is a Medium Chain Triglycerides (MCT)?  MCT’s assimilate well meaning that they do not require bile salts for digestion and therefore do not require energy for absorption, utilization or storage.  Because coconut oil increase the body’s metabolism by removing stress on the pancreas it helps assimilate weight loss. Coconut oil also contains lesser calories than other oils, its fat content is easily converted into energy and it does not lead to accumulation of fat in the heart and arteries. Therefore, it is great for maintaining a healthy heart and it also helps in boosting energy and endurance.

The benefits of coconut oil go on and on it is great for digestion, immunity, pre-mature aging, infections, controlling blood sugars by improving the secretion of insulin, bone health, skin care, hair care and stress relief.  You can purchase coconut oil at any health food store.  When looking for coconut oil be aware that it comes in a solid form not liquid and it is great when cooking at high temperatures.

We hope you learned something new about coconut oil and if you have any questions or concerns feel free to write us on our blog.

 

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Eat to Lose Weight

Sunday, June 28th, 2009

Skipping meals seems like a natural way to lose weight,especially woman-eating-saladsince we’ve all heard that to lose weight, you need to take in less calories than you burn. It’s actually not that simple. When you skip just one meal, your body panics and turns on a stress response through the sympathetic branch of your nervous system called the “fight or flight” system. This response tells your body that it is in a life-threatening situation. Your body then responds to this alarm by telling your liver to release stored sugar from your liver (in the form of glycogen) to raise your blood sugar.  In response, your pancreas releases insulin to help balance out your blood sugar. When skipping meals or eating too many carbohydrates ( or in the absence of protein and fat) this stress response is turned on over and over again causing you to become insulin resistant which causes more and more calories to be stored in fat cells. Any time you miss a meal your body increases the release of fat storing enzymes. When this happens, the amount of fat burning enzymes are decreased. Remember, if your body is in a stress response, the last thing it will want to do is lose weight. It’s going to hold on to whatever energy it gets, because it doesn’t know when the next meal is coming to replenish it’s fuel.    

The key to losing weight is to keep your blood sugar balanced, to eat the right proportions of protein, fat, and carbohydrates for your biochemical needs, to maintain a level of physical activity that is right for you, and to have a system in place to manage the stressors in your life that are affecting your body. To learn more about how your nutrition and lifestyle are affecting your health and may be preventing you from reaching your wellness goals, our Wellness 101 Workshop is a great place to start.  Always feel free to call us for a complimentary phone consult. Our goal is to always help you help yourself.

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