Wellbeing

with Jacquie Dale

Eat a nutrient rich diet to burn more fat.

If you are trying to lose weight, a nutritional deficiency will compromise fat burning. Every function in your body depends on chemical reactions in your cells, so, without adequate nutrition, your body’s energy and vitality is depleted. Taking a multivitamin has long been considered ‘nutritional insurance’ to cover dietary shortfalls. Environmental and lifestyle stresses can increase the need for essential nutrients to a higher level than can be obtained from the diet. While most people get enough vitamins to avoid the classic deficiency diseases, relatively few get enough of the key vitamins and minerals that may be important in preventing several chronic diseases. These include: folic acid, vitamin B6, vitamin B12, vitamin D, vitamin E, iodine, zinc and selenium.

Anti-aging compound found in broccoli

Broccoli contains twice the vitamin C of an orange, almost as much calcium as whole milk, and the calcium is better absorbed. Not only does broccoli contain compounds that offer anti-cancer benefits, it also contains a chemical called sulforaphane. Sulforaphane may be able to combat age-related decline in immune function. A study published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical reports that older mice treated with broccoli compounds increased their immune response to the level of younger mice.

Nutrition and a wheat-free diet

While most of us are lucky enough to tolerate small quantities of gluten, our modern diet sees many of us over indulging in refined wheat products. It’s little wonder that our immune systems fight back. Gluten contains a gut irritant that can wear away the lining of our digestive tract and cause irritable bowel syndrome and fatigue. If you’ve been diagnosed with wheat or gluten intolerance, you’ll be an expert label reader in the supermarket. Include alternative grains into your diet like buckwheat, millet, quinoa, amaranth, soy, rice and corn. Eat plenty of fresh fruit and vegetables. Rice, corn-based cereals or gluten-free toasts are good breakfast choices. Base main meals around vegetables and lean meat or fish. Lastly, ensure you include essential fatty acids like Omega 3 oils in your diet to help with inflammation.

Exercise for bone health

Workouts for bone health should be targeted to muscle maintenance. As we age, we begin to lose up to two percent of our muscle mass per year. This equates to as much as a kilo of muscle loss in a year. Weight-bearing exercise that works the muscles and keeps them strong is one of the best ways to maintain bone density. Hand in hand with weight-bearing exercise is a diet that provides all the right nutrients to support a healthy turnover of cells. To put it simply, this means that we need to make sure we are consuming enough quality protein to rebuild and repair our body. Our skin, bones, muscles, organs and endocrine system all require protein everyday. Many experts believe that older adults should eat more protein to compensate for the slowdown in muscle repair that accompanies aging.

Health supplement do’s and don’ts

The word supplement means something that completes or enhances something else. A dietary supplement completes a diet. So, rule number one, your diet is important and no supplement will make up for a diet that is too high or too low in energy or is full of beer and chips. Rule number two, if you need to use a protein supplement, first find out how much protein you should be aiming for and know your target calorie intake. Rule number three – always start with a good quality multi-vitamin and a high-strength Omega 3 before you decide to move to the top shelf. Health and fitness is a long-term goal, so I’d definitely invest in some professional advice up front, you’ll save hundreds of dollars in the long run because you’ll be a knowledgeable consumer who doesn’t waste money on useless pills.

www.realnutrition.co.nz