Tag Archives: minerals

Magnesium Deficiency

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According to the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey, many adults in the United States are not getting enough magnesium in their diets! Early symptoms of magnesium deficiency can include: Loss of appetite, nausea, and/or vomiting Fatigue and weakness Advanced symptoms of magnesium deficiency can include: Numbness and/or tingling Muscle contractions and cramps Seizures Personality changes Abnormal heart rhythms Symptoms of magnesium deficiency can look like other diseases and vice versa. Talk to your doctor for an official diagnosis. For many people, magnesium intake isn’t low enough to result in deficiency but isn’t high enough to promote optimal magnesium status. … Continue reading →

How to Get More Magnesium in Your Diet

Magnesium is available through a wide variety of foods. It is entirely possible to get enough magnesium solely through food choices and not need a supplement at all! Any green vegetable is a great source of magnesium. Why? Because the chlorophyll molecules that give a plant its green color have magnesium in the center. Good sources of magnesium include: Halibut — a three ounce serving contains 90 milligrams of magnesium. Dry roasted almonds or cashews can contain between 70 and 80 milligrams of magnesium per ounce. Dry roasted peanuts and peanut butter contain 50 milligrams of magnesium per serving. A … Continue reading →

Why Does My Body Need Magnesium?

I’ve been a fan of magnesium since I read about a study about magnesium helping something like eighty percent of migraine sufferers find some relief. But this mineral does other good things for your body! Of all the minerals in your body, magnesium is the fourth most abundant. About half the magnesium in the human body is found in the bones; the other half is mostly found inside tissues and organs. About one percent of the magnesium in the body is found in the blood. So what does all that magnesium do? Helps the body maintain normal nerve and muscle … Continue reading →

Zinc Deficiency

When the body isn’t taking in enough zinc — or zinc isn’t being absorbed in the right amounts — it is possible to develop a zinc deficiency. What are the signs of zinc deficiency? Growth retardation including delayed sexual maturity Hair loss Loss of appetite, diarrhea, weight loss, and other gastrointestinal issues. Skin and eye lesions Delayed wound healing Problems with smell and taste Mental lethargy Some people are at higher risk of a zinc deficiency than others, including: Vegetarians. The body tends to absorb less zinc from plant foods than from animal sources. If you are following a vegetarian … Continue reading →

Can Calcium Prevent Disease?

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Calcium is essential for the body’s bones. But this mineral has a big role in preventing other health problems, too! Calcium has been associated with lowering blood pressure (and the risk of high blood pressure). Researchers have noted that a vegetarian diet that is high in minerals (including calcium, magnesium, and potassium), high in fiber, and low in fat tends to lead to lower blood pressure levels. Clinical studies have also looked at the effect of an increased calcium intake on blood pressure. The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health tested different types of … Continue reading →

How to Make Sure You Get Your Daily Calcium

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A survey of Americans in the late 1990s found that many children and adults aren’t getting enough calcium! If you’re looking to get more of this essential mineral in your diet, here are some tips that might help. Try using low fat or fat free milk in place of water in recipes. Substitute milk when making pancakes, mashed potatoes, and hot breakfast cereals. Try making smoothies for breakfast or for a snack. Mix fresh or frozen fruit with low fat or fat free yogurt in a blender. Sprinkle grated cheese onto salads. Sprinkle grated cheese onto soups. Swap one soda … Continue reading →

Why Does My Body Need Calcium?

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Calcium is the most abundant mineral in the body — more than 99 percent of all calcium in your body is stored in the bones and teeth. Where is the rest of the calcium? It can be found throughout the body in your blood, muscles, and more. What does calcium do? The number one thing calcium does is support bone and tooth structure. Your bones are constantly breaking down and being rebuilt — the pace at which this happens changes throughout life. During childhood, your body does much more building and much less breaking down. In early and middle adulthood, … Continue reading →

Iron Deficiency

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According to the World Health Organization, iron deficiency is the number one nutritional disorder in the world — as much as eighty percent of the world population may be iron deficient. As much as thirty percent of the world population may have anemia resulting from iron deficiency. Iron deficiency usually develops gradually. It starts in the body with a negative iron balance — when your iron intake doesn’t meet the body’s daily need for iron. At first, your body’s stores of iron are depleted but the hemoglobin level in your blood stays the same. Anemia develops when the body’s iron … Continue reading →

Why Does My Body Need Iron?

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Iron is one of the most abundant metals on the planet. Good thing, too — iron is essential to most life forms, including humans. Iron is important to many of the proteins and enzymes that help maintain good health. What does iron do for the body? Iron is an essential component in the proteins that carry oxygen through the body. An iron deficiency can reduce oxygen delivery to the cells, leaving a person fatigued and with a compromised immune system. Iron is used by the body to help regulate cell growth and cell differentiation. The majority of the iron in … Continue reading →

If Diets Don’t Work …

I’ve been there. I’ve thought the same thing. If dieting really doesn’t work, what is the point of dieting? Dieting itself isn’t meaningless, the problem is that we associate dieting with a short-term solution. We think of a diet as something we go on – ergo it is also something we will go off. The changes we need to make are lifelong ones. We need to improve our eating habits. We need to exercise more regularly. We need to make better choices in what we do or don’t do. If you can’t imagine yourself doing a diet for the rest … Continue reading →