Nutrition on the Run
Is this your day?
6 a.m. - Up and at 'em!7 a.m. - Out the door with your favorite travel mug of coffee firmly in hand for the commute. WHOA…take the alternate route because traffic is mess up ahead, blood pressure up a few points.
8 a.m. - Prepare for the morning meeting, back to your desk by noon, grab a bag of chips and a soda to eat while you deal with meeting items.
2 p.m. - Sit in front of the computer most of the afternoon, run to another meeting, work till 6 (oops, missed the aerobics class again!)
6:30 p.m. - Stop at the drive-through on the way home, then back on the computer for a few hours of e-mailing friends and family before you fall into bed. Sound familiar at least three days per week?
This may be climbing the ladder of success in the world of business, but it's the road to ruin as far as your nutrition and wellness are concerned. How many vitamins and minerals fall by the wayside in this scenario? Here's something else to think about: Are you predisposing yourself to disease? Let's take a look:
Calcium
This lifestyle is a double whammy for calcium depletion. First, coffee and soda may actually act to increase the body's excretion of calcium, which could lead to loss of bone. Researchers find that increased caffeine and phosphate consumption may be associated with osteoporosis. More importantly, dairy products, which are an important source of calcium, are noticeably absent: at least 3 servings daily are recommended. Talk about a set-up for osteoporosis!
What To Do
Reduce the coffee and soda consumption to less than 2 cups per day. Drink a glass of calcium-fortified orange juice in the morning. Take nonfat yogurt to work for a mid-morning snack, drink a glass of nonfat milk at lunch and presto! There are 3 servings of dairy products and close to 100% of your daily calcium. If you can't consume 3 servings per day, a supplement can fill in the gaps when your diet falls short.
B Vitamins
Eating on the run from vending machines and fast food restaurants makes for a recipe high in fat and calories and low in nutrients. These types of foods often lack essential B vitamins such as thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, B6 and, most importantly, folic acid. Folic acid and B6 have been shown to reduce elevated blood levels of homocysteine-a possible risk factor for heart disease. And don't be complacent about your heart health - approximately one in two women will die from heart disease.
What To Do
Great sources of B vitamins are whole grain cereals, breads, pastas, legumes, green leafy vegetables, and oranges. How can you incorporate the recommended 6 to 11 servings into your daily diet? Sit down with a bowl of oatmeal or grab a whole wheat bagel on the way out the door in the morning, keep an orange in your desk for a mid-afternoon snack, throw a handful of whole grain spaghetti into the pot and serve with steamed leafy greens for dinner. If 6 to 11 servings are not feasible for you, a supplement can fill in the gaps when your diet falls short.
Antioxidants
Never heard of them? Antioxidant nutrients are the stars of nutrition research these days. These powerful nutrients may reduce oxidative damage to cells caused by pollution, sunlight, and smoking. Vitamins C and E are the most thoroughly researched antioxidants; both the combination and Vitamin E alone have been linked to a reduced risk of heart disease. What's more, they are both important in maintaining a healthy immune system. High intakes of Vitamin C have been shown in several studies to reduce the risk of cataracts, yet other studies do not support this conclusion.
What To Do
How to get more of these cell defenders into your diet? Think "C" for citrus. One orange, a handful of strawberries, or ¼ cantaloupe provides the Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) of vitamin C.
Vitamin E is a bit more challenging: the best sources are nuts, seeds, and oil. Don't go overboard as they can add a lot of fat and calories to your day. While the RDA for vitamin E is 8 IU (International Units), recent research from Tufts University School of Nutrition Science and Policy supports the health benefits of consuming 40 IU per day. Since consuming this amount of vitamin E from food usually means adding hundreds of calories to your daily intake, a supplement can ensure you receive an optimal amount without the added calories.
Don't Forget Exercise
Remember those missed aerobics classes? We all know how beneficial physical activity is, but what can you do when life gets in the way? Try incorporating physical activity into your daily activities. Walk for 10 minutes during a break or between meetings. Take the stairs instead of the elevator - did you know that stair climbing is one of the highest calorie-burning activities you can do?A little here, a little there, and before you know it, you've added 30 minutes of activity to your day. And guess what? You'll feel better, have more energy and stay fit and trim.
To Supplement or Not to Supplement?
If you are the typical 45 to 60 year old woman, your diet falls short of the recommended intake for several nutrients-calcium, iron, folic acid, vitamins C and E to name a few. Surprised? You shouldn't be. The lifestyle of today's typical woman is not exactly conducive to getting in 3 square meals a day, with a minimum of 5 servings of fruits and vegetables and 3 servings of dairy products.The good news is that although your nutrient intake may be less than the Reference Daily Intake (RDI), your diet does provide a significant portion of what you need. How can you help fill in the nutrient gap left by a sometimes less-than-optimal diet? Supplements are ideal for bridging this gap. Long-term nutrient inadequacies can impact your health and using supplements is a very effective form of nutritional insurance.