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Posts Tagged ‘Important’

Every nutritional expert stresses the importance of fruits and vegetables in the diet.  Fruits and vegetables are one of those rare cases in which more is better, and the new dietary guidelines recommend that everyone eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables every day.

Unfortunately for the health of America, most people do not eat sufficient quantities of these important nutrients.  That is too bad, since increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables you consume may well be the most important and easiest dietary change anyone can make.

The health benefits of eating large quantities of fruits and vegetables has long been established, and study after study has shown that eating fruits and vegetables is a great way to increase your level of fitness and nutrition.

Fruits and vegetables have been studied for their role in preventing a number of diseases, including heart disease, stroke, aging related conditions and even some forms of cancer.  Some studies have shown that as many as 35% of all cancers are related to diet, and diets high in fat and low in fruits and vegetables seem to make many people especially vulnerable to such illnesses.

Of course the appeal of fruits and vegetables is not limited to their health benefits.  After all, fruits and vegetables are delicious as well as nutritious, and the variety of shapes, sizes, colors and textures mean that there are fruits and vegetables to suit virtually every taste.

Fruits and vegetables are also a great source of antioxidant vitamins, including vitamins A, C and E.  Antioxidant vitamins are thought to play a vital role in protecting the body from harm caused by environmental pollution, UV rays and other modern hazards.

In addition, many fruits and vegetables are chock full of important nutrients like beta carotene.  Beta carotene is the nutrient that gives those pink flamingos their distinctive color, and it is found in many orange and yellow fruits and vegetables.  Foods such as mangoes, peaches, carrots, pumpkins and butternut squash are particularly rich in beta carotene.

While fruits and vegetables are important to everyone, they are just as important to those not yet born.  Women of child bearing age should be sure to consume plenty of foods rich in folic acid.  That is because folic acid is important in preventing many birth defects, such as spina bifida.  Since sufficient folic acid is important to the proper development of the baby, it is important that the mother’s body contain plenty of folic acid, even before she knows she is pregnant.  Good sources of dietary folic acid include vegetables like Brussels sprouts, broccoli and spinach and citrus fruits like oranges.

Fruits and vegetables are important sources of dietary fiber in addition to being great sources of vitamins, minerals and trace elements.  Proper levels of fiber are important in the prevention of heart disease and even some types of cancer.

In addition, fruits and vegetables are usually low in calories, while at the same time they are very high in nutritional values.  Low fat, high nutrition, low calorie foods are hard to find, but the world of fruits and vegetables is full of such foods.  In addition, fruits and vegetables contain no cholesterol or fat.

With all these advantages, it is easy to understand why fruits and vegetables are so important to a good, balanced diet.  In addition, fruits and vegetables are among the least expensive types of foods.  Locally grown, in season fruits and vegetables can be a great value, and most grocery store chains run regular specials on locally grown produce.

Buying locally grown, fresh fruits and vegetables is also a great way to ensure a steady supply of new tastes, colors and textures.  There are literally hundreds of varieties of fruits and vegetables, and eating a variety of produce is a great way to keep boredom from setting in and sabotaging your diet.

Copyright (c) 2008 SharpBrains

Dear Mr or Mrs Next US President,

The health and medical blogosphere would like to make sure you and your team take into account the issues outlined below as you and your aids formulate your policies and put together the team that will further define and implement them.

40 different health bloggers have asked these questions that I now pose to you and your team.

Dear Mr or Mrs Next US President,

1. Your main asset is your brain. What have you done lately to maintain your brain? (SharpBrains).

Health Policy

2. Who do you support as US Science Advisor? (A Blog Around the Clock).

3. Not to depress you but…are you aware that healthcare reform is really hard? how will you change all this? (Medinnovationblog).

4. How will you increase price transparency of medical procedures and engage consumer forces? (Val Jones).

5. Sorry to insist, but this is an important point. Why is there so much confusion and misinformation about procedure prices? (Insure Blog). Read the rest of this entry »

Many of our readers asked for simple nutrition tips for women. Women today are busier than ever before. Their stress is exacerbated by today’s fast paced, pre-packaged, convenience based society and the toxins that come from antibiotics and household cleaners. Iron-deficiency anemia is very common in young women. Women need nutrition and they need to be CLEAN from toxins. Here’s a nutrition tip for all women — berries are your friends.

While women’s role in the food chain is essential to produce that all-important resource, food, it paradoxically does not guarantee women even minimum levels of nutrition. Women are often responsible for producing and preparing food for the household, so their knowledge or lack thereof about nutritions effect on the entire family. Women with adequate stores of iron and other micronutrients are less likely to suffer fatal infections and are more likely to survive bleeding during and after childbirth. Women in developing countries are also regularly deficient in vitamin A, iodine, and energy. Women of child-bearing age are recommended to take folic acid supplements and consume a folic-rich diet. Women are also at higher risk for developing osteoporosis and need more calcium and vitamin D to prevent it. Studies showed that women with vitamin D insufficiency absorb less than 10 percent of available calcium. Read the rest of this entry »

I’ll bet you’ve never even full the time to judge what your nutritional desires might be, or the importance of that diet on your fitness. Did you know that if the brain doesn’t get enough protein, it doesn’t polish precisely, or if the wholesome female body doesn’t get enough flax oil, omega-3 and omega-6 her body’s metabolism will not perform correctly and she is more susceptible to load obtain? All these pieces of information and many more are contributing factors to our nutritional desires, and our nutritional wishes are met through our ingestion routine, good or bad.

Nutrition as it applies to our daily lives means that we take in what we neediness to argue our body’s healthful imperial. Nutrition has become an important word credit to the involvement of the USDA in our daily food requirements, and the FDA’s involvement in determining what is and is not risky for us to consume. Read the rest of this entry »