Nutrition. Vitamins. You.
Photo by I Yunmai on Unsplash A new paper, published in the journal Frontiers in Endocrinology by researchers from the University of Illinois at Chicago and Mahidol University in Thailand, set out to explore whether being a “night owl” (which includes evening activities or going …
Photo by Chris Ralston on Unsplash It’s 2:30pm and you feel your eyes closing. You have no energy to listen to your professor or continue working on that major assignment due to your boss at the end of the day. Your first reaction may be …
The mineral iron is one of the most important minerals in the body. It is an essential component of proteins and enzymes within us. Iron is needed to make hemoglobin, a protein in red blood cells that enables them to carry oxygen around the body. When your body does not have enough iron, not only are your blood cells impacted, but also multiple unpleasant symptoms may arise. Here’s what you need to know.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), iron deficiency is the most common nutritional deficiency in the world, with infants and young children being at the highest risk. Common causes of this deficiency may include a poor diet, increased requirements during pregnancy, and heavy blood loss (during heavy periods or internal bleeding).
There are two forms of dietary iron – heme and non-heme. Heme iron is derived from hemoglobin and can be found in animal foods including meat, fish and poultry. Non-heme iron is found in plants and fortified and enriched foods, including cereal and bread.
Many studies have shown heme iron to be better absorbed than non-heme iron.
You’ll want to speak with your doctor if you think you may be iron deficient. A doctor can diagnose anemia with blood tests, including the Complete Blood Count test.
You’ll want to start to include a few food options in your diet, including red meat, dark green, leafy vegetables, dried fruits, nuts and iron-fortified cereal. Additionally, Vitamin c has been shown in studies to help your body absorb iron. Speak with a nutritionist or your doctor before changing your dietary lifestyle.
If your doctor recommends an iron supplement, you will want to find one that is highly-absorbable and a high-potency, yet gentle enough to not be constipating and irritating. Iron bisglycinate has been shown in clinical trials to be absorbable as ferrous sulphate at lowering potency. A non-GMO iron supplement complete with Vitamin C for absorption allows for all of the energy benefits of iron supplementation while being non-constipating and non-irritating to the digestive tract for most people.†
Photo by Vu Thu Giang on Unsplash In honor of National Relaxation Day, we’re bringing you some tips on how you can stay relaxed and focus today (and everyday)! Your life is hectic. You may be a busy mom trying to juggle a full time …
Photo by Sharon Mccutcheon on Unsplash We’ve all experienced the impact our blood sugar has on our bodies, which includes the crash after the sugar rush. But beyond being energy-draining, our blood sugar can seriously impact our health. Even if you think you are following …
If you’re like the majority of the world, weight loss is difficult. You’re making sure to take the right vitamins, eat the best foods and stick to a workout regimen. But how does fitness actually help to maintain your weight loss?
Here’s the thing – you actually need to understand how your body’s hormones work in order to determine if the exercise you are doing will work best for you. Sometimes a HIT or high cardio workout may not be the smartest option for you.
When you exercise, you are releasing hormones – CRH and cortisol. This is why you feel get into that relaxed and euphoric-state after a good work out; you are releasing the chemicals that would otherwise cause you to feel stress. But overexercising, if the exercises are not right for you, can actually be harmful.
Cortisol levels have been shown to rise with rigorous exercise like running, which can actually lead to wear and tear on the body (especially your joints!) and accelerate aging. You may actually have to tone down your work outs in order to be sure your body – especially your cortisol levels – are not too high, as intense workouts have been shown to increase cortisol levels in the body.
Of course, “toning down” your workouts do not mean to sit them out completely. Inactivity is not healthy; for example, sitting too much has been shown to increase your risk of diabetes and heart disease and can contribute to back pain and stiffness.
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