Monthly Archive: July 2010

Polyunsaturated Fats

Polyunsaturated Fats

Polyunsaturated fats are essential fats the body can’t make and needs to obtain from the diet. They are usually in liquid form at room temperature or when refrigerated. The two main categories of polyunsaturated...

Monounsaturated Fats

Monounsaturated Fats

Monounsaturated fats, like all dietary fats, provide the body with an efficient energy source. These fats are in liquid form at room temperature but can become more solid when refrigerated. The two types of...

Function of Fats

Function of Fats

Fats provide the body with a key source of energy. Although glucose is the main source of energy for the brain and nervous system, muscle tissues prefer fats for energy. During exercise, muscles rely...

Dietary Fiber

Dietary Fiber

Fiber is classified as complex carbohydrates (more than two sugar units linked together). In 2002, the Institute of Medicine created the following definitions for fiber, separating it into three components: dietary fiber, functional fiber,...

Starch

Starch

Some of the starch derived from complex carbohydrate-rich foods in the diet is stored in the human body. Glycogen Glycogen, also known as animal starch, is the term given to stored glucose in the...

Sugars

Sugars

A variety of foods and beverages contain simple sugars. Some are naturally occurring, but many are created through refining and added to processed foods and beverages to enhance their taste, smell, texture, and color....

Physical Activity and Exercise

Physical Activity and Exercise

Physical activity is the umbrella term used to describe any bodily movement produced by contracting skeletal muscle that increases energy expenditure above a basal level. Exercise is physical activity that is planned, structured, and...

Underweight

Underweight

Underweight is defined as having a BMI below 18.5. The World Health Organization (WHO) created the following definitions for thinness based on BMI: • Mild thinness – BMI between 17 and 18.99 • Moderate...

How to Lose Weight

How to Lose Weight

To lose weight, you need to create an energy deficit, or use up more calories than you consume. But before you cut calories or increase energy intake, it’s important to see where you’re starting...

Overweight and Obesity

Overweight and Obesity

According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLB), BMI is the common measurement used to determine weight status. Overweight, obesity, and extreme obesity are defined suing BMI as follows: • Overweight –...

Phosphorus and Magnesium

Phosphorus and Magnesium

Phosphorus is a mineral found throughout the body (but mostly in bone) that helps all body cells function optimally. It works with calcium and vitamin D to build and maintain strong bones and teeth....

Nattokinase and Blood Pressure

Nattokinase and Blood Pressure

Natto has been used as a traditional folk medicine in Japan to treat high blood pressure, and recent studies confirm this benefit. In 1995, researchers studied the effects of nattokinase on high blood pressure...

Nattokinase

Nattokinase

Perhaps you’ve heard about nattokinase, a natural enzyme that recent studies have shown to have anticoagulant properties. Perhaps you’d like to know more. Any discussion of nattokinase must begin with a discussion of natto....

Calcium Functions

Calcium Functions

Calcium is a major mineral that plays several important roles in the body. It’s more abundant in the body than any other mineral: most of it in bones and teeth and a very small...

Potassium and Chloride

Potassium and Chloride

Potassium Functions Potassium is a major mineral that’s involved in a variety of important processes in the body. It helps two other minerals – sodium and chloride – balance water levels, help the heart...

Functions of Minerals

Functions of Minerals

Minerals are micronutrients that have vital functions in the body. Although they’re needed in very small amounts and don’t provide calories or energy the way carbohydrates, fats, and proteins do, they help the body...

B-Complex or B Vitamins

B-Complex or B Vitamins

Thiamin, Riboflavin, Niacin, Pantothenic Acid, Biotin, Vitamin B6, Folate, Vitamin B12. B vitamins, also known as B-Complex, include eight water-soluble vitamins commonly found in foods. Thiamin Functions Thiamin, also known as vitamin B1, helps...

Vitamin C Function

Vitamin C Function

Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is a water-soluble vitamin that has many important functions in the body: Vitamin C: • Helps produce collagen, a protein that holds bones and other tissues together...

Vitamin K Functions

Vitamin K Functions

Vitamin K is a fat-soluble vitamin needed by the liver to help it create several proteins required to help the blood clot. It also supports proteins involved in bone metabolism and cell growth. Several...

Vitamin D Functions

Vitamin D Functions

Vitamin D is a fat-soluble vitamin that helps control the level of calcium and phosphorus in the blood to help the body build and maintain strong bones and teeth. It also helps increase the...

Vitamin A Functions

Vitamin A Functions

Vitamin A is a fat-soluble vitamin that performs several key functions in the body: • Helps create and maintain healthy teeth, bones, and soft tissues in the body • Preserves your skin and mucous...

Functions of Vitamins

Functions of Vitamins

Your body needs small amount of vitamins to help it grow, develop, and function properly. Although vitamins are micronutrients and don’t provide calories or energy to the body the way the macronutrients (carbohydrates, fats,...

Functions of Carbohydrates

Functions of Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are critical components of a healthy body and a well-balanced, nutritious diet. In the Body Carbohydrates provide the body with glucose, its key source of energy. The brain, red blood cells, and nervous...

Glaucoma

Glaucoma

During your last visit to the eye doctor, he or she probably measured the internal pressure of your eyes and then administered a few drops to dilate your pupils. Both of these tests screen...