Diet and Weight Loss Tips

As we age we notice more aches and pains and the knees don’t bend like they used to - our joints basically start hurting. Why is this?

Our joints are protected by a fluid that allows them to move freely. Without the fluid, there is friction, which then causes pain. As we age, cartilage loses its ability to hold water. What we need is something to help us produce a cushion in the joint, this is where the supplement glucosamine comes in. Glucosamine has been proven to have the ability to create synovial fluid, a thick and gelatinous substance, which allows our joints to hold more water. Glucosamine is formed when glucose combines with an amino acid. It is a building block for cartilage.

Glucosamine also inhibits the breakdown of proteoglycans and may aid in rebuilding damaged cartilage. NSAIDs (Non Steroidal Anti-inflammatory Drugs) such as aspirin, have been shown to do the opposite, actually causing the disease to progress at a faster rate while masking the pain.

Glycosaminoglycans, chondroitan sulphates, collagen, and water make up 90% of the cartilage composition. Recent studies have shown that the introduction of large quantities of glucosamine sulphate have an ability to raise the fluid levels within the cartilage from dangerously low levels to levels that are tolerable, if not favorable to joint health. When the fluid levels are close to the norm, there is a tendency for much less damage to the nerves due to a greater resilience in the disk from the higher water content.

Glucosamine also helps attract and keep water in the joints where it can do the most good.

In addition to lessened nerve protection, higher fluid levels over time (say 12-18 months) will allow the peripheral nervous system to grow into areas where previously little or no feeling was observed. Thus, the theory behind taking the glucosamine supplements is that these dietary supplements help you rebuild your nervous system and cartilage and thus regain a portion of your lost mobility.

The benefit of glucosamine for sufferers of osteoarthritis is backed by many double blind, placebo controlled studies. Although initially painkillers have been shown to decrease pain faster than glucosamine, glucosamine is more effective over time. There is no danger of kidney failure or other extremely harmful side effects with glucosamine either and the body absorbs it rather quickly.

Glucosamine is not expensive (you can find high quality liquid products for under a dollar a day). Dosages may be split up and taken prior to a meal or may simply be taken once a day. Most doctors will suggest you take 1,500 mg of glucosamine per day and this can be taken while undergoing other alternative therapy i.e. chiropractic, acupressure, yoga, physio-therapy, etc.

Some people combine their glucosamine with chondroitin

Chondroitin sulfate exists naturally in your cartilage. It’s thought to draw fluid into the tissue to give our cartilage more elasticity and to slow cartilage breakdown by protecting it from destructive enzymes. As a supplement, it is exclusively derived from cattle sources and is often taken along with glucosamine to assist with maintaining joint health. The combined use is known to produce a "synergistic" effect. It’s been prescribed for pain relief in osteoarthritis in some parts of Europe where it is a prescription drug for decades.

Although chondroitin alone hasn't been proven to help with or reverse cartilage loss, in some studies it appeared to help improve function and ease pain. In one placebo-controlled study, joint narrowing in the knee became stabilized in patients who were put on chondroitin supplement. Another controlled study looked at osteoarthritis of the finger joints for a period of three years. Among the group that took chondroitin, there was a significant decrease in the number of patients with new erosions in their finger joints.

Why put up with aches and pains any longer than you have to when there is a natural solution waiting for you?

Pregnant women can reap the benefits of pregnancy nutrition supplements that contain multivitamins and other compounds. And these benefits are not limited during pregnancy. You can start these supplements well before you plan to become pregnant, during labor and delivery, and during breastfeeding too.

Nutrition during pregnancy period is vital; or else, you should be ready to see birth defects in your baby. Unfortunately, the standard American diet is high in salts, sugar, fats, and is devoid of essential vitamins and minerals that are required during pregnancy and nursing. Besides, an average American diet is also low on complex carbs.

By getting proper nutrition guidelines, you can give yourself a well-balanced diet that has a variety. Vegetarian nutrition comes from fresh fruits and vegetables, legumes, beans, whole grains. It is characterized by a limited consumption of refined and processed foods, sugars, and saturated fats. Organic foods, too, are fast becoming popular among pregnant women, who do not want to depend solely on pregnancy nutrition supplements for their health.

Folic Acid Studies

The only vitamin whose requirement doubles during pregnancy is folate. A deficiency of can lead to the birth of a low weight baby as well as one that has neural tube disorders. In a study, women with high risk pregnancy, which means they had earlier delivered infants with neural tube disorders, were supplemented with folate pills. They displayed about 72 percent of protective effect as compared to the placebo group.

In another study, it was found that pregnant women, who were kept on a dose of folate nutritional supplements while pregnant, delivered babies with higher birth weight as well as Apgar scores. Also, they had a reduced incidence of maternal infections and fetal growth retardations.

On account of the proven links between folic acid deficiency and incidence of delivery of low birth weight babies as well as neural tube disorders, the US Public Health Service has recommended the intake of its supplements for all women of childbearing age. This will alleviate the risk of congenital birth disorders.

Sources Of Folic Acid

Folic acid is naturally present in green leafy vegetables, whole grains, nuts, parsley, and dandelion. However, you should be careful not to take an overdose of folic acid. It reduces the absorption of zinc. This is a mineral needed for the healthy growth of fetus and development of immunity.

Read books, articles, and talk to your doctor about pregnancy nutrition supplements.

Only a few vitamins have been really researched as contributors to a natural gout remedy. One is vitamin C which a few studies have found lowers uric acid levels somewhat. I have written about vitamin C for gout in earlier articles. Make sure you buy a Vitamin C preparation that contains added flavonoids, the more the better, to make it work more effectively. And buy a time (sustained) release Vitamin C product, because Vitamin C is excreted quickly.

Other vitamins which have been reported from various sources to help in natural gout treatment are quercetin, folic acid, potassium citrate calcium, and fish oils.

Quercetin may inhibit xanthine oxidase, the enzyme required to convert purines into uric acid. This is the method used by the leading long term gout pharmaceutical, allopurinol. Quercetin has done this in test tube studies.

Folic acid has been found in at least one study to be helpful because it inhibited xanthine oxidase, but in others to have no effect. It was part of the late Dr. Atkins's (the Atkins diet) formula for curing gout naturally but in large amounts. It should certainly only be taken under supervision by a qualified and experienced practitioner.

Potassium citrate is reported to be helpful in natural gout treatment, and has been the subject of gout studies. It aids excretion of uric acid, by raising the pH of urine. (Higher body pH levels make uric acid more soluble and thus better excreted). Potassium citrate can also head off the danger of kidney stones, of the uric acid variety, forming. One estimate is that there is a 20% chance that kidney stones will form in gout patients who also have acidic urine.

Calcium may be helpful because it helps to alkalize the body, (i.e. it raises its pH levels making the body more alkaline) and thus, the theory is, more uric acid will be excreted. In pH theory, because the blood's pH must be maintained at pH 7.365, the body will scavenge calcium from bones to maintain blood pH at 7.365. Most people, it's said, and probably most gout sufferers too, have acidic bodies (which ought to be alkaline) and therefore a deficiency of calcium.

Vitamins work in other ways to help in natural gout treatment. Those that work as antioxidants perform the helpful function of squelching free radicals. Why is this helpful? Because during gout attacks, free radical levels rise. Some leading antioxidant vitamins are vitamin C, vitamin E, beta carotene and selenium.

Given that gout attacks are inflammatory, as shown by the painful inflammation of the affected joints, any substance which acts as an anti-inflammatory may make the attack less painful and inflamed. Fish oils have well researched anti-inflammatory properties.

Fish oils are also good for gout because they promote a healthier body. Their omega -3 fatty acids (EPA and DHA) are a dietary deficiency for many people, especially those who don't eat fish. Omega -3 fatty acids are required to bring about a better balance of omega -3 and omega -6 oils in the body. Most people, it is thought, do get sufficient omega -6 fatty acids, especially if they fry with oils such as corn, soy, sunflower, safflower or sesame. Or, if they use these oils as salad oils. But people don't get enough of the omega -3's. This better balance promotes better health. Gout sufferers need to be as healthy as possible. Note: gout sufferers should not eat fish high in purines such as mackerel, anchovies, and sardines.

Ensure the fish oil supplement you buy has been manufactured with a molecular distillation process. It takes out mercury, PCBs and dioxins.

Since cherries have been researched as blocking inflammation, they should be considered. Cherries have also been found in studies to lower uric acid levels. When they are not in season their dietary supplement extracts, juice and in dried form can be taken. Cherries enjoy testimonials from gout sufferers both for curing gout naturally and halting the pain of attacks, but they won't do this for everyone.

Celery, in two studies, also reduced pain and inflammation, so you can consider celery seed extract as part of natural gout treatment.

Veins are blood vessels that return deoxygenated blood from the outer parts of the body back to the heart and lungs. When veins become abnormally thick, full of twists and turns, or enlarged, they are called varicose veins. Generally, the veins in the legs and thighs have a tendency to become varicose.

Varicose veins are abnormal, dilated blood vessels caused by a weakening in the vessel wall. They may appear as swollen, twisted clusters of blue or purple veins and are sometimes surrounded by thin red capillaries known as spider veins (group of small blood vessels located close to the surface of the skin). Spider veins may also be called venous telengiectasias.

Varicose veins are swollen veins that you can see through your skin. They often look blue, bulging, and twisted. Left untreated, varicose veins may worsen over time. Large varicose veins can cause aching and feelings of fatigue as well as skin changes like rashes, redness, and sores. As many as 40 million Americans, most of them women, have varicose veins.

Varicose veins usually don’t cause medical problems. On occasion, they require treatment for pain, skin problems, blood clots, or other complications. People may choose to have cosmetic treatment to improve the appearance of varicose veins.

Symptoms

• Prominent dark blue blood vessels, especially in the legs and feet.

• Aching, tender, heavy, or sore legs; often accompanied by swelling in the ankles or feet after standing for any length of time.

• Bulging, ropelike, bluish veins indicate superficial varicose veins.

• Aching and heaviness in a limb, sometimes with swelling, but without any prominent or visible blue vein, may signal a deep varicose vein.

• Discolored, peeling skin; skin ulcers; and constant rather than intermittent pain are signs of severe varicose veins.

Vitamins for Varicose Veins

There are many different vitamins for varicose veins available on the market today.

Vitamin C: helps in making the veins wall strong. It is believed that if the walls are strong, they can efficiently help the varicose veins from getting worse. The strong vein walls can easily resist excess pressure without getting enlarged and ultimately allows the valves of veins to work more efficiently.

Vitamin E: There are probably no proper evidences that can show that vitamin E is affective in healing varicose veins, but still it seems that people use it for healing varicose veins. It is actually believed that vitamin E can help in preventing the highest possible complication of varicose veins, the blood clots. According to the different researches made by experts if the stickiness of platelet with vitamin E is reduced, then vitamin can be helpful in reducing the risk of blood clotting in the varicose veins.

Vitamin P is one of the most proven vitamins to help with this condition, and can be found in the skin of fruits such as grapes, berries, and apples. Vitamin B6 an essential vitamin that is required by the body to properly metabolize proteins and carbohydrates. It has also been shown by clinical research to be important in preventing plaque and lesions in blood vessels.

Vitamin K is a fat soluble vitamin that is required for proper blood clotting function, as well as for maintaining bone health. It has been used for many years to help heal bruises and scrapes, as well as for treating varicose veins.

Vitamin E is a powerful antioxidant that works to protect cells in the body from damage caused by free radicals. Free radicals are highly reactive substances that result from normal metabolism as well as from exposure to factors in the environment like cigarette smoke and ultraviolet light. They cause damage to body cells by attacking the cell's membranes, proteins and DNA and ultimately contribute to the development of health problems such as heart disease and cancer.

Vitamin E is also a fat-soluble vitamin that exists in eight different forms with powerful antioxidant activity, the most active being a-tocopherol. Antioxidants protect cells against the effects of free radicals. Free radicals are potentially damaging by-products of the body’s metabolism that may contribute to the development of chronic diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease.

Vitamin E is one of 13 vitamins essential to body metabolism, cell growth and function. It is also known as tocopherol and is an antioxidant important in the formation of red blood cells and the use of vitamin-K-mediated clotting factors. Sources of dietary intake include wheat germ, corn, nuts, seeds, olives, spinach, asparagus and other green leafy vegetables, vegetable oils, and products made from vegetable oils, such as margarine. On average, dietary intake of vitamin E is 10 IU per day. Multivitamin pills usually contain 30 IU to 60 IU of vitamin E.

Vitamin E acts as a powerful antioxidant by neutralizing free radicals in the body that cause tissue and cellular damage. Vitamin E also contributes to a healthy circulatory system and aids in proper blood clotting and improves wound healing. Some studies have shown that vitamin E decreases symptoms of premenstrual syndrome and certain types of breast disease.

Nutritionists categorize vitamins by the materials that a vitamin will dissolve in. There are two categories: water-soluble and fat-soluble vitamins. Fat-soluble vitamins and vitamins A, D, E and k are stored in the fat tissues of the body for a few days to up to six months. If you get too much of a fat-soluble vitamin, it can be stored in your liver and may sometimes cause health problems. Vitamin E is a fat-soluble vitamin.

Cataracts are abnormal growths in the lens of the eye, which cloud vision and can lead to blindness. Scientists are looking at antioxidants to see whether they can help prevent or delay cataract growth. So far, their tests have shown that lens clarity, which is used to diagnose cataracts, was better in regular users of vitamin E supplements.

The facts about Vitamin E show that you can reap the most benefits by taking the natural form (most products on the market use the cheaper, synthetic version) and by taking small dosages along with other nutrients that can not only enhance the benefits, but also offset any of the negative effects.

Vitamin E is a fat-soluble antioxidant that the body uses to snatch up free radicals. It is also used in the body to regulate cell metabolism, protect Vitamin C from oxidizing, acts at an anti clotting agent, and aids in the production of red blood cells.