In my last article I discussed the different types of carbohydrates and the way that your body uses them. At the end of that article I mentioned that you should choose slow digesting, nutritionally dense carbohydrates where possible. However, sometimes it can be quite difficult to determine which carbohydrates these are. That is why today I am going to be writing about one of the methods you can use to choose the best carbohydrates – the glycemic index (GI). WHAT IS THE GLYCEMIC INDEX? The glycemic index is a system which ranks foods based on how they affect blood glucose levels. It … [Read more...]
What are Carbohydrates?
In a number of my previous articles I have stated that you should go for complex carbohydrates where possible and minimise your consumption of simple carbohydrates. After thinking about this for some time I realised that I had never fully understood or explained the difference between the two. That's why today I am going to be discussing carbohydrates in greater detail. WHAT ARE CARBOHYDRATES? Carbohydrates are one of three macronutrients with fats and protein being the other two. They are made from a combination of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen hence the name 'carbo' (meaning carbon) … [Read more...]
From Vitamin A to Vitamin E: 40+ Vitamin Rich Foods
In my last few posts I have been discussing vitamins in greater detail. I outlined how they were vital to your health and that without them you would suffer from a number of adverse effects. I also discussed the dangers of overdosing on vitamins and said that it was very difficult to overdose on them from food alone. Although I am not completely against the use of vitamin supplements I believe that you should try and get your vitamins from food sources where possible. Today I am going to try and help you do just that by listing over 40 vitamin rich foods. 1) VITAMIN A:- Vitamin A can be … [Read more...]
4 Factors That May Make Vitamin Supplements Necessary
In one of my recent articles I stated that I did not think multi vitamins were necessary. I also said that it was very difficult to overdose on vitamins from food alone and that overdosing is normally the result of excessive vitamin supplement consumption. After reading these articles you probably think I am completely against the consumption of vitamin supplements. However, this is not the case. Whilst I am generally against multi vitamin supplements (for the reasons discussed in my article) I do feel that other vitamin supplements are valuable tools in certain situations. In this … [Read more...]
8 Adverse Effects Of Vitamin Deficiency
Recently I outlined how getting your vitamins can be very beneficial to your health. I also discussed that you can go too far by overdosing on the various vitamins which can lead to a number of adverse effects. Today I would like to discuss the other extreme – vitamin deficiency. Just as getting too many vitamins can cause undesirable symptoms, not getting enough can also negatively impact your health. In this article I will be discussing the adverse effects of not getting enough vitamins and outlining how you can make sure you get enough of each. 1) DIFFICULTY PERFORMING ESSENTIAL … [Read more...]
3 Reasons To Avoid Overdosing on Vitamins
In my previous article I discussed the benefits of getting enough vitamins. This article highlighted the importance of vitamins for good overall health. They play a role in almost everything you can imagine from growth, to production of new cells, to wound healing, to protecting your body. However, you can get too much of a good thing. Whilst sticking to the recommended daily allowance (RDA) for each vitamin can provide you with countless benefits consuming high doses of certain vitamins can have the opposite effect causing pain, discomfort and even damage to your body's cells. In this … [Read more...]
12 Top Reasons To Get Your Vitamins
In some of my previous blog posts I discussed each of the thirteen vitamins in detail. Each vitamin is an essential nutrient that helps your body's cells perform an important function. Together they provide you with a number of significant health benefits. Today I would like to discuss this topic in greater detail and outline twelve of the top reasons for getting your vitamins. 1) HEALTHY VISION AND NIGHT VISION:- Vitamin A and B2 both promote healthy vision. Not getting enough of these vitamins can lead to problems with your sight, particularly at night time. In the worst cases it can … [Read more...]
Are Multi Vitamin Supplements Necessary?
Multi vitamins are one of the most popular health and fitness supplements around. Even people who are not really into their fitness tend to purchase these supplements. A lot of my friends take a daily multi vitamin but would never consider purchasing protein shakes. I myself started purchasing multi vitamins when I moved out of my parent's house to make sure I was getting the recommended daily allowance (RDA) of each of the thirteen vitamins. I used to pop a multi vitamin in my mouth each morning and never thought twice. However, I recently wrote some articles on each of the vitamins and … [Read more...]
The Importance Of Getting Enough Vitamin D This Christmas
Vitamins are important nutrients that help your body function properly. They all have different roles to play and a deficiency of any one vitamin can lead to a number of nasty side effects. Whilst they are all equally important, vitamin D is perhaps even more important over Christmas. In this article I will be discussing why vitamin D is particularly important over the festive period and how you can make sure that you get enough. As I discussed in my previous article on vitamin D it is one of the fat soluble vitamins. The main role of vitamin D is to help the body absorb calcium and … [Read more...]
Can Vitamin C Help You Avoid Christmas Colds?
As I discussed in my last article we are more susceptible to both the common cold and flu around Christmas time when the weather goes cold. Whilst there is no cure for the common cold or the flu there are a number of popular suggestions for preventing it. One such suggestions is to take high doses of vitamin C. Today, I will be discussing if vitamin C really can help prevent the common cold and any of the other potential benefits it can offer you over this Christmas period. In my previous post on vitamin C I mentioned that one of the benefits is that it can reduce the symptoms of the … [Read more...]