Dr. Curtis McElroy

Category: Vitamins

  • Are There Any Health Benefits of Probiotics

    The Health Benefits of Probiotics

    Most people spend a lot of time trying to get rid of bacteria in their lives, but what if we told you not all bacteria is bad for you? In fact, your body relies on millions of healthy, helpful bacteria to keep you safe and healthy every day. And by giving your body beneficial probiotics, you can improve the population of helpful bacteria inside your body that are necessary for your continued health.

    Eating foods rich in probiotics can not only prevent illness but also treat some disorders and imbalances. Learning which foods are high in probiotics, as well as the benefits these organisms offer to your body, will help you feel better and stay healthier over time.

    Understanding Probiotics

    You have bacteria, yeast, and other microbes all over your body, both inside and out. Luckily, many of those organisms are helpful bacteria that perform vital functions for your cells, tissues, organs, and body systems.

    Probiotics and the beneficial bacteria they support can help:
    • Boost your immune system, allowing you to heal faster from sickness and injury.
    • Prevent infection by stopping hostile bacteria from taking over.
    • Improve your digestion, which allows you to better absorb nutrients from the foods you eat.

    The majority of helpful bacteria in your body live in your gut and keeping your digestive microflora healthy not only aids your digestion but also ensures your immune system is working properly. These two systems are directly linked.

    When you throw off the balance of good versus bad bacteria in your gut, such as when you are sick or when you are taking antibiotics, you need to help your body replenish the friendly bacteria in your system. Eating probiotics can restore this balance, which creates a barrier against harmful microbes.

    Probiotics and Antibiotics

    When you take antibiotics to treat an infection, you not only eliminate the bad bacteria that are making you sick but also the healthy, beneficial bacteria that can make you well. When you take probiotics during and after using antibiotics, you are helping to restore the natural gut microflora that your body needs quickly. This also can help increase the effectiveness of antibiotics, which can help you feel better faster and require fewer and smaller doses of antibiotics in the future.

    Probiotic-Rich Foods

    Foods that are cultured or fermented are good sources of probiotics, as bacteria are what create their flavor and texture. Examples of foods that are high in probiotics include cultured yogurt, miso, tempeh, kefir, buttermilk, sauerkraut, kombucha, kimchi, and natto. While some of these foods have bacteria which grow naturally, some include bacteria that are adding during the preparation process.

    These foods and beverages contain one or more of the following strains of probiotics:
    • Lactobacillus acidophilus
    • Lactobacillus casei
    • Bifidobacterium bifidum
    • Lactobacillus bulgaricus
    • Lactobacillus gasseri
    • Saccharomyces boulardii
    • Lactobacillus plantarum
    • Bifidobacterium lactis
    • Enterococcus faecium
    • Bifidobacterium longum
    Any food that claims to have probiotics should contain at least one of the strains listed here. This is also true for probiotic supplements, so always read the label if you are in doubt.

    Supporting a Probiotic Environment

    In addition to eating foods that contain probiotics, you can create an environment that is supportive of the healthy bacteria in your body. You can start by altering the pH of your digestive system by eating more sour foods. Fermented vegetables and vinegars contain small amounts of probiotic, but their acid content is the most powerful part of their benefits. They contribute to a gut environment that allows probiotics to flourish.

    You can also be sure the bacteria in your system have plenty of fuel by feeding them a high-fiber diet. The fermentable fiber in fresh vegetables, fruits, flax and chia seeds are perfect for giving probiotics the food they need to maintain your healthy bacteria levels.

    Eating Probiotics

    Adding probiotics to your diet is one health move you can make to improve your health. These foods contain beneficial bacteria your body needs to fend off unwanted visitors. Help your body today by including probiotics in your next meal or snack.

  • Is Taking Vitamins Necessary

    Why Is Adequate Vitamin Intake So Important

    Performing a plethora of roles to maintain good health and development, vitamins are essential nutrients that we can’t live without.
    Yet there are so many that perform wonders without our even actually being aware of it, until we don’t get sufficient amounts and problem occur.

    vitamins

    Vitamins are characterized by the following:

    • They’re found naturally in food, with varying amounts
    • They can’t be made by the body (save for vitamin D after sun exposure)
    • They are organic in their structure and can be broken down by air, heat or acid, making it more difficult for your body to absorb them since cooking and storage affects their chemical structure – even exposure to air.
    • They’re crucial for normal and healthy development and functions
    • When they become absent from the diet, it can cause certain deficiencies

    There are 13 essential vitamins which are divided into 2 categories:

    Water-soluble

    – B vitamins
    – Biotin (vitamin B7)
    – Folic acid (folate, vitamin B9)
    – Niacin (vitamin B3)
    – Pantothenic acid (vitamin B5
    – Riboflavin (vitamin B2)
    – Thiamin (vitamin B1)
    – Vitamin B6
    – Vitamin B12
    – Vitamin C

    These vitamins need to be replenished on a daily basis since they’re easily absorbed into the bloodstream as food is digested or supplements are dissolved. Present in the watery sections of the food you eat, water-soluble vitamins are continuously regulated via your kidneys. Any excess is flushed out with urine.

    Some of the roles these vitamins play are:

    – produce and release energy
    – boost immune system
    – maintain tissue health
    – build proteins and cells
    – Produce collagen present in skin cells, blood vessel walls and gums that aids in the process of healing wounds

    Fat-soluble

    – Vitamin A
    – Vitamin D
    – Vitamin E
    – Vitamin K

    These vitamins are quite difficult to figure out because we’re more likely to be deficient in these types of vitamins; yet taking them for prolonged periods of time, especially supplements, can be toxic and very harmful to your health. These vitamins aren’t as easily transported through the body as water-soluble vitamins.

    In fact, any excess is stored in the liver and fat tissues for up to 6 months. First, they’re absorbed through the intestinal wall, then they enter the lymph vessels before making their way into the bloodstream.

    Most fat-soluble vitamins need a protein carrier to facilitate their movement throughout the body.

    Fat -soluble vitamins are responsible for the following:

    – protect vision
    – build bones
    – protect the body against illnesses, diseases, and free radical damage
    – blood clotting
    – formation of healthy red blood cells
    – interact together favorably to enhance absorption

    Vitamin Deficiencies

    Unfortunately, nutrient deficiencies are extremely common. The main culprits are poor diet, digestive problems, or chronic stress.

    “Nutrient deficiencies alter bodily functions and processes at the most basic cellular level,” says lecturer at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health in Washington, DC, Tricia L. Psota, PhD, RDN. “These processes include water balance, enzyme function, nerve signaling, digestion, and metabolism.

    Resolving these deficiencies is important for optimal growth, development, and function.” They can also lead to diseases and chronic illnesses.

    A common example is the lack of vitamin D and calcium can cause osteoporosis, a condition characterized by brittle bones.

    People who are at most risk for nutritional deficiencies are:

    – the elderly
    – athletes who train intensively for long periods of time
    – those with low income
    – smokers
    – consumers of alcoholic beverages

    Some of the most common symptoms of vitamin deficiency are:

    – hair loss
    – oral health problems
    – muscle cramps in the calves and arches of the feet
    – muscle weakness
    – fatigue
    – shortness of breath
    – dizziness
    – irregular heartbeats
    – mental fogginess

    Every one of the 13 vitamins has a certain role but each also works in unison with the other 12 to lead to best possible physical condition.

    This is why it’s so important to eat a balanced diet of fruits, vegetables, dairy, whole grains, beans and lentils, lean meat, and fish to make sure you’re getting all the essential nutrients your body needs to prevent deficiency, promote fat loss and enhance muscle gain.

    Supplements and multivitamins are a great way to make sure you’re getting the vitamins you need. Talk to your doctor to make sure you’re getting the right amount instead of getting too little and not getting the most out of your supplements or getting too much and increasing your risk for toxic reactions.

    A simple blood test is all you need to know whether or not you’re vitamin deficient.

  • Vitamin C 101

    Vitamin C 101

    Vitamin C, technical name ascorbic acid is a water-soluble vitamin present in certain foods but that can also be obtained through supplementation.

    Humans are different from other animals in that they can’t synthesize the vitamin by their own bodies but must get it elsewhere.

    The Benefits Of Vitamin C

    • We need vitamin C in order to make L-carnitine, collagen and some neurotransmitters.
    • Vitamin C is also involved in the metabolism of protein.
    • We need vitamin C for the formation of collagen that is part of the connective tissue in the body’s organs and plays a role in wound healing.
    • Vitamin C is also a good antioxidant, which makes it good in preventing cancer. It has the important role of regenerating other antioxidants in the body.
    • There is research going on that looks into whether or not vitamin C is definitely linked to its antioxidant properties or whether there is something else going on that makes this a good cancer fighter.
    • Oral vitamin C produces tissue and plasma concentrations that are tightly controlled. As a water-soluble nutrient, it is excreted by the urine.

    Recommended Intake of Vitamin C

    The dietary intake of vitamin C has been set up by the Food and Nutrition Board. It sets up the Daily Reference Intakes for all types of nutrients.

    According to this board, the recommended intake of vitamin C includes the following:
    • Ages 0-6 months, the intake should be 40 mg per day
    • Ages 7-12 months, the intake should be 50 mg per day
    • Ages `1-3 years, the intake should be 15 mg per day
    • Ages 4-8 years, the intake should be 25 mg per day
    • Ages 9-13 years, the intake should be 45 mg per day
    • Ages 14-18, the intake should be 75 mg per day
    • Those who are older than 19 years, the intake should be 75 mg per day

    Food Sources of Vitamin C

    • Some of the best sources for vitamin C are fruits and vegetables.
    • Citrus fruits, tomatoes, and tomato juice, as well as potatoes are good sources of vitamin C.
    • Other foods that will give you vitamin A include red peppers, green peppers, broccoli, kiwifruit, Brussels sprouts, strawberries, and cantaloupe.
    • While vitamin C isn’t found in grains, it is often added to the cereal we eat.

    Prolonged storage and cooking may destroy vitamin C so it is best when eaten with raw fruits.

    The good news is that many of the best food sources of vitamin C, such as vegetables and fruits, are usually eaten raw.

    The following foods are the best sources of vitamin C:

    • Red pepper gives 158 percent of the daily value
    • Orange juice gives 155 percent of the daily value
    • One medium orange gives 117 percent of the daily value
    • Grapefruit juice gives 117 of the daily value
    • Kiwi fruit gives 107 percent of the daily value
    • Green pepper gives 100 percent of the daily value
    • Broccoli gives 85 percent of the daily value
    • Strawberries give 82 percent of the daily value
    • Brussels sprouts give 80 percent of the daily value

    Dietary Supplements

    Dietary supplements of vitamin C can be given. It is given in the form of ascorbic acid, which has the same bioavailability as the naturally occurring kinds of vitamin C eaten in food sources of vitamin C.

    Other forms of vitamin C supplements include calcium ascorbate, sodium ascorbate, ascorbic acid with bioflavonoids, dehydroascorbate, xylonate, threonate, and calcium ascorbate.

    A few research studies using human participants found that the bioavailability is different depending on the form of vitamin C used.

    Other studies have indicated that there are no differences in the bioavailability of the various types of vitamin C. These vitamins are all extremely cheap and can be used to indicate the individual’s vitamin intake.

    Vitamin C Deficiency

    Vitamin C deficiency results in scurvy.

    The timeline for getting scurvy depends on the body’s initial stores of the vitamin in the body to begin with. Signs begin to show up within a month of withdrawing all vitamin C from the diet. Symptoms start out with tiredness, malaise, and other flu-like symptoms.

    As it progresses, the individual can develop gum inflammation, poor healing of soft tissue, petechiae, purpura, poor wound healing, and ecchymosis of the skin.

    Other signs of a deficiency include swollen and bleeding gums, depression, and corkscrew hairs.

Copyright @ 2017 DrCurtisMcElroy