AntiAgingByDesign.com

Another reason to learn more about the benefits of Performance.. a healthier choice in the sports drink industry and definitely better than soda or sugary drinks.

When you are the leader in the natural food supplement industry, people sometimes test your products without you even knowing about it.

That was exactly what happened with a recent study comparing the effects of Shaklee’s Performance and Gatorade on the risk of kidney stone formation.

This was the ultimate independent study.

Shaklee didn’t initiate it. They didn’t support it. And, in fact, they didn’t even know about it until it was published a couple of weeks ago (J.W. Goodman et al, Urol. Res., 37: 41-46, 2009).

Before I get into the results of the study, perhaps I should start with an explanation of why you would even want to do that kind of study. Let’s start with the problem – kidney stones. They are extremely painful, and they can damage the kidney – particularly if they form over and over again.

To a urologist the solution is simple – just drink two liters of water a day.

The problem is that you have to really, really, really like water to drink two liters a day, and most people just aren’t that into water. In fact, previous studies had shown that even when patients had a previous kidney stone and were told by their urologist to drink two liters of water a day, the average result was an increase of only 0.3 liters a day of water.

So this group of urologists asked what people were drinking instead of water.

The latest trends show that soft drink consumption is decreasing and consumption of sports drinks and energy drinks is increasing. And, there was absolutely no information on whether sports drinks increased or decreased the risk of kidney stone formation.

So they decided to look at two well-known sports drinks, Shaklee’s Performance and Gatorade, to see whether they would increase or decrease the risk of kidney stone formation compared to the consumption of an equivalent amount of water.

They looked at the effect of each sports drink on the amount of citrate in the urine and by how much they increased the pH of the urine because each of these decreases the risk of kidney stone formation.

They also looked at the effect of each sports drink on the amount of sodium and calcium in the urine because each of those increases the risk of kidney stone formation.

Performance significantly increased the amount of citrate and the pH of the urine, while Gatorade had no effect on either of them. Neither Performance or Gatorade had a significant effect on sodium or calcium levels in the urine.

Thus, they concluded that Shaklee’s Performance was superior to either Gatorade or water alone at deceasing the risk of kidney stone formation.

Now you might be tempted to say that this study was of more interest to urologists than the general public. But my guess is that if you have ever suffered through a kidney stone this study is of great interest to you.

But to me the more important conclusion is that, once again, independent clinical studies show the superiority of Shaklee products.

To your health!

Dr. Stephen G. Chaney, PhD
Full Professor of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Nutrition
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
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Dr. Chaney has been teaching biochemistry, biophysics and nutrition to medical and dental students for over 30 years. In addition he has an active program in cancer research, focusing on chemotherapy. He has authored 80 publications in peer – reviewed journals. Dr. Chaney was instrumental in establishing nutrition education as an important part of the medical school training at UNC at Chapel Hill.

To learn more about Performance, visit our sports drink page.

The Power of Protein

It’s essential to the growth, repair, and maintenance of all body tissues. It’s also required for making enzymes – catalysts essential to all life processes, and hormones – powerful chemical messengers that circulate through your bloodstream to specific target cells, where they generate a wide range of biological responses. It also helps your body maintain fluid and electrolyte balance, provides a source of energy, and helps your body fight off disease. These are the powers of protein!

These powers are made possible by consuming adequate amounts of dietary protein from a variety of lean meats, fish, and poultry, as well as soy and milk, which supply the body with amino acids, the basic building blocks from which the body can make its own body proteins.

Not All Protein Is Created Equal
Foods provide about 20 different amino acids, of which more than half are considered to be “nonessential.” In other words, the body can make them for itself. However, nine other amino acids are considered “essential,” meaning the body is unable to make them on its own. And unlike the carbohydrates and fats we consume, amino acids are not stored in the body. Therefore, the body must rely on a constant and steady supply from the protein-rich foods we eat every day.

So what are the best sources of dietary protein? And is there a difference between animal and vegetable sources? Well, it’s true that not all dietary protein is created equal. It really is the protein quality of one’s diet that, in large part, determines how well a child will grow and develop and how well an adult will maintain his or her health. Put simply, high-quality proteins provide enough of all the essential amino acids needed to support the body’s work, and lower-quality proteins don’t. Two key factors that influence protein quality are the protein’s digestibility and its amino acid composition. Protein digestibility is a measure of the amount of amino acids absorbed from a given protein intake, and amino acid composition refers to the simultaneous availability of all the needed amino acids from a food we choose to eat. In general, animal-sourced proteins (meat, fish, poultry, eggs, and dairy) are considered high-quality proteins, as is soy, a vegetable-sourced protein. However, other vegetable proteins tend to be of much lower quality and are often referred to as “incomplete” proteins because they do not provide all the essential amino acids the body needs. Incomplete proteins can come from fruits, vegetables, grains, and nuts.

Health Benefits
When most of us think about the health benefits of dietary protein, its role in bodybuilding comes to mind—and rightly so. No new body tissue can be built without it. However, research also suggests that the intake of high-quality protein in the context of an overall healthful diet may also have positive effects on our body weight and body composition as we age, as well as play a role in the prevention of chronic diseases such as heart disease, certain types of cancer, and osteoporosis.

• Weight Management: Studies have shown that achieving a healthy weight and maintaining that weight can help add years to your life, and scientists believe that dietary protein may play an important role in weight management. High-protein diets may promote significantly more weight loss compared to lower protein diets because of protein’s role in promoting satiety. In a fairly recent study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, researchers studied the effects of increasing dietary protein while maintaining carbohydrate content on weight loss, appetite, calorie intake, and fat mass in a small group of study participants. Initially, participants were instructed to follow a weight-maintaining diet (50% carbohydrate, 15% protein, 35% fat) for two weeks. Then for the following two weeks, they were asked to follow a diet providing the same amount of calories but with 50% of calories coming from carbohydrate, 30% from protein, and 20% from fat. Two weeks later, they were given an ad libitum diet of  50% carbohydrate, 30% protein, and 20% fat to follow for an additional 12 weeks. Even though subjects could eat as much food as they wanted in those 12 weeks, they actually reduced their calorie intake by an average of 441 calories per day. They also lost an average of 10.8 pounds in body weight and 8.2 pounds of body fat.

• Age-Related Muscle Loss: After about age 40, most adults will lose anywhere between 0.5% and 1% of their skeletal muscle mass each year. And in the early years, this gradual loss may go unnoticed because it might be masked by a concurrent increase in body fat. However, chronic muscle loss—or what is known as sarcopenia—is estimated to affect  about 30% of people over age 60 and may affect more than 50% of those over age 80. Insufficient protein intake in older adults can contribute to a loss of muscle, and although the optimal amount of protein to prevent or offset the progression of sarcopenia has yet to be established, research findings suggest that protein intakes modestly above the present recommended dietary allowance of 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight per day (i.e. 1 gram per kilogram of body weight per day or higher) enhance muscle mass in older adults who regularly perform resistance exercise. Protein intake in older adults also appears to have a more beneficial effect when consumed within an hour or so of resistance exercise. Emerging research also suggests that dairy protein, especially whey protein, may minimize sarcopenia because of its high concentration of leucine, an amino acid known to stimulate muscle protein synthesis. For example, findings in older adults suggest that increasing leucine intake may help restore the protein synthesis response to protein-containing meals, which has been shown to diminish with age.

• Cardiovascular Disease: One concern that has been raised about the trend in high-protein diets for weight loss has been that eating diets high in protein and fat, and low in carbohydrate, would harm the heart. However, recent research findings suggest that if done in a healthy way, eating a little more protein, especially vegetable protein, while cutting back on refined carbohydrates may actually benefit the heart. A 20-year prospective study of 82,802 women found that those who ate low-carbohydrate diets high in vegetable sources of fat or protein had a 30% lower risk of heart disease, compared to women who ate high-carbohydrate, low-fat diets. But women who ate low-carbohydrate diets that were high in animal fats or proteins did not have a reduced risk of heart disease.

• Cancer: There’s no good evidence that eating a little protein or a lot of it significantly influences cancer risk. However, eating a lot of red meat (cured and processed meats, in particular) has been linked to an increased risk of colon cancer. There also has been considerable investigation of the potential of soy-protein-containing foods to reduce the risk of cancer, especially breast cancer. In a fairly recent review of studies based on Asian populations, higher soy intake was associated with an overall 29% decreased risk of breast cancer. Despite these positive findings, the relationship between soy foods and breast cancer risk has been controversial because of data gathered from cell culture and animal studies that suggest isoflavones (the plant-estrogen-like compounds in soy foods) stimulate the growth of estrogen-sensitive breast cancer cells. This has led to questions about the safety of soy consumption in women with a history of breast cancer or women at high risk for the disease. Research continues in this area, but it’s important to point out that several lines of existing evidence suggest that women with breast cancer can safely consume soy. First, human studies have shown that isoflavones do not stimulate breast cell proliferation or increase breast tissue density (two markers of increased cancer risk), and a lack of harmful effects have been noted in several clinical studies examining the impact of soy food intake on the prognosis of breast cancer patients. In one study, neither soy nor isoflavone intake was related to the disease-free survival rate of breast cancer patients over a five-year follow-up period, and in a second study, higher soy intake was associated with a more favorable outcome for both total mortality and disease-specific mortality or relapse during a follow up period of two years. And even better news is that the benefit of soy food intake on survival was more pronounced among women with estrogen-receptor-positive breast cancer. Although these studies are encouraging, breast cancer remains a very serious health condition. Women with a history of breast cancer should seek the advice of their doctor concerning the consumption of soy foods as part of an overall healthful diet.

• Osteoporosis: Prevention of osteoporosis is a public health priority and among nutritional factors, most attention has focused on the beneficial role of calcium. However, in addition to calcium, many other nutrients are necessary for bone health, including protein. Findings from many, but not all, epidemiological studies point to a beneficial role for dietary protein in bone health. High-protein intakes have been associated with reduced bone loss, high bone-mineral density, and reduced fracture risk in older adults. In a recent trial, increasing protein intake, especially when accompanied by calcium and vitamin D, reduced bone loss, improved muscle strength, and shortened the hospital stay in older patients with hip fractures whose usual intake of dietary protein was low.On the other hand, some studies suggest that excessive dietary protein intake may have detrimental effects on bone because of its effect on urinary calcium excretion. This controversy may be explained by other nutrients in food or the source of dietary protein. For example, dietary protein has been shown to exert a positive effect on the skeleton of older adults when calcium intake is adequate, but not when calcium intake is low.

  Because protein exists in close association with other nutrients in the diet, it is important to consider protein’s role in bone health in the context of foods or the overall dietary pattern. A number of studies have demonstrated that intake of milk and other dairy products benefits bone health. Dairy products such as milk are a unique source of protein because their calcium content is high relative to their protein content and they contain other bone-supporting nutrients such as phosphorus, magnesium, zinc, and vitamins A, D, and K.

How Much Protein Is Enough?
Although no one-size-fits-all answer exists for that question and research on the topic is still emerging, the current recommended dietary allowance for protein is 0.8 grams per kilogram of body weight per day for healthy young adults. That comes to about 62 grams of protein a day for a person who weighs 170 pounds. Although growing children, pregnant women, nursing mothers, and older adults may need a little more (1.0–1.3 grams per kilogram of body weight), getting the minimum daily requirement of protein is fairly easy. Cereal with milk for breakfast, a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for lunch, and a piece of fish with a side of beans for dinner adds up to about 70 grams of protein.

It’s also important to pay attention to what comes along with the protein in your food choices. An eight-ounce broiled porterhouse steak is a great source of complete protein—54 grams worth. But it also delivers 44 grams of fat, 16 of which are saturated. Saturated fats raise blood cholesterol, and high blood cholesterol increases the risk of heart disease. On the other hand, a cup of cooked lentils has 18 grams of protein, but less than one gram of fat.

Vegetable sources of protein, including soy protein beverage mixes, are also an excellent choice and many also provide healthful amounts of other essential nutrients such as fiber, vitamins, and minerals. The best animal protein choices are fish and poultry. If you are partial to red meat, such as beef, pork, or lamb, stick with the leanest cuts, choose moderate portion sizes, and make it only an occasional part of your diet.

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October 2009 email from our favorite soy protein brand.

Strengthening the immune system can keep us healthier.  We know this.  It has taken many years, lots of research dollars, clinical studies, and life experiences among the general population to confirm that we know how to build better health.  So why do we still get sick?

First, let’s admit that we all get sick.  However some of us get sick far less than others, and some of us recover much quicker than others.  A host of factors are responsible for how well our immune systems work.  Poor daily diets, stress, lack of restful sleep, lack of exercise are some considerations.  Immune vitamins have been proven to work, and some of us need more of them than others on a daily basis.

Immune cells have very high requirements.  Their job is to react quickly when there are threats to our good health, and because they are high-activity cells they reproduce more frequently.  We can help these new cells be stronger and healthier by giving our bodies the right immune nutrition that they require.

What we eat, drink, and breathe affects our immune system.  Good food (and natural supplements), healthy liquids (especially good, pure water), and clean environments (including indoor) build healthy immune cells.  Alcohol, white sugar and flour, second-hand smoke, and toxins, chemicals and fumes in the air we breathe, can all depress our immune function.

We can try to control lifestyle factors that challenge our immune system, but there are many and they are constant.  For better ways to increase our body’s defenses, we can feed our bodies immune nutrition and the immune vitamins that have been proven to work.

Protein is essential to healthy cells and repairs cells as well.  Plant based protein like soy protein is natural, low fat and completely balanced protein.  That means it has all nine of the essential amino acids that are required to maintain your cells (many proteins are not complete proteins since they do not contain all of the amino acids).

Natural interferon supplements help the body to stimulate the immune system so that it can fight environmental irritants and airborne substances.  That is the simple explanation.  In reality there are some intense processes happening.  When there are optimal levels of natural interferon in the body, more killer cells are present to effectively fight invaders.

A multivitamin nutrition product that is natural and contains optimal amounts of all vitamins and minerals, even the expensive ingredients, is a baseline supplement that everyone should use to help increase immune function and give the body the nutrients it doesn’t get from the food we eat every day.

Garlic, with its anti-bacterial, anti-fungal, anti-viral, and anti-inflammatory properties can help many of the symptoms we get from immune related health challenges.  A natural garlic supplement can help symptoms of chronic asthma, allergies, the flu, colds, ear infections, sinus infections, and yeast infections.  Other nutrients can be added to the garlic to help it work even better in the body.

Vitamin C is one of the most highly regarded nutrients associated with fighting common illnesses.  It can help fight infections and protect us from free radical damage that we are constantly exposed to.  Doctors are recommending Vitamin C for healing and to prevent bruising.  When we are under stress or have anxiety, don’t get enough good sleep, are sick or have surgery, and are exposed to pollution and other environmental challenges, the Vitamin C in our body is decreased.  That’s all the more reason to take a Vitamin C natural vitamin.

Alfalfa is a natural antihistamine and decongestant.  The roots of the alfalfa plant go deep into the ground and can provide us with trace minerals that we do not get in our foods.  Last year my daughter got sick with congestion and a cough and was in a panic because basketball season had started and she did not want to miss practice or games.  We all know how a cough can wear you down and it’s hard to go hard in a sport when you have one. I remembered hearing testimonials where people took large amounts of alfalfa (I believed the brand we use would be very safe) to kick out these kinds of symptoms very quickly.  She was willing and filled up on Alfalfa for two days.  I can’t say that I was amazed at how well it worked because I believed it would.  This is testament to alfalfa’s antihistamine and decongestant properties.

Probiotics are beneficial to the immune system because they feed microflora (our friendly bacteria) to the colon where much of our immune system is located.  Allergens, viral threats and bacterial attacks all respond to the increase of this friendly bacteria that is delivered via a probiotic supplement.

Echinacea is an herb that you take when you feel like you are getting sick, or you are exposed to an illness that a person you are in close contact with is experiencing.  You take Echinacea for five to seven days and it helps stimulate the immune system by increasing white blood cells to fight getting sick in the first place, or at worst case help you fight it by lessening your symptoms and speeding up your recovery.  Echinacea is anti-inflammatory as well and is great to have in your medicine cabinet so you are ready for immediate use when needed.  It works best if you start right away, no delays.  Brand quality makes a huge difference with this supplement.

We have the power to prevent most viral illnesses when we utilize the recommendations that science is telling us will work.  Immune nutrition will help us be healthier and give us better quality of life because we will feel better, enjoy life, get what we want accomplished every day, and be building good health for our future when the diseases of aging become more significant challenges.

I always feel the need to mention one important consideration when discussing vitamins and natural supplements.  It is imperative that you do your homework and research the brand that you will use.  Not all brands are created equal, and nobody is regulating the products.  This causes a wide range of quality and efficacy issues.  Bottom line, you want results and deserve results.  Quality ingredients, delivery systems that help your body absorb the nutrients best, the company doing its own research and clinical studies, and testing their ingredients for safety purposes should be expected in order to experience success.

To learn more, visit our immune vitamins page that also links to additional information on individual nutrients.

Facial skin aging ranks right up there with a host of other concerns about our physical body as we grow older. Revitalizing your face with natural skin treatments so that it appears healthier, younger and more attractive is a common desire among women and men. We’ve talked about the fact that what you feed your body will help determine your overall good health. The same is true for our skin.

When we take the extra steps to care for our skin – on a daily basis – we will like the results that we see and feel. Time starts the aging process but modern life can speed it up. There are attacks from so many sources that our skin’s natural defenses have a hard time preventing damage on their own.

Less ozone means more UV light. We are exposed to pollution indoors and outdoors. Tobacco smoke, tap water, weather elements in addition to the sun, stress, poor diet, and other factors all contribute to accelerated aging.

Some of the same nutrients that we use to build good health also play an important role in the appearance of our skin. Vitamins A, C and E, grapeseed extract, and other nutrients can work together to not only protect your skin going forward, but to improve the look of your skin right now, actually reverse and also help slow down visible facial skin aging.

Science has brought us skin care that can break each link in the chain of damage by counterbalancing every free radical reaction that may potentially damage the facial skin. Let’s take a look at what individual nutrients can do.

Vitamin C supports skin’s natural defenses against UV-induced collagen breakdown. An optimal amount of Vitamin C in a skin repair product is 10%. A key consideration is that there is not water in the formula so that it remains stable and potent to do the work it does so well.

Vitamin E provides frontline defense and silky softness so that the skin feels firm, smooth, fresh and renewed. Feeling your skin after a treatment with a high quality skin care product is immediate. We all want fast results and we want to feel them as well. 5% may seem like a high level of Vitamin E but science says it works.

Vitamin A strengthens skin and boosts moisture retention. Aging of the skin is associated with it getting thinner and dry skin is both unappealing and uncomfortable. Pro-vitamin B5 improves the skin’s suppleness and elasticity. These are terms you may not think about on a daily basis but play a large role in the appearance of our skin.

Grapeseed extract in a facial skin care product blocks enzymes that break down collagen that is so important to our skin. Superoxide dismutase is a skin care ingredient that neutralizes surface damage. And when beta glucan is included in a facial product, you have soothing from environmental irritation.

Natural skin treatments that provide results such as 88% of people experience reduction in the appearance of fine lines within two weeks, a 154% increase in skin firmness in only four weeks, and a 104% reduction in the appearance of facial wrinkles over 8 weeks are fantastic to experience.

Skin renewal, recovery, moisturization, nourishment, and protection can be delivered in nutrition for the skin regimens. The skin can become measurably brighter, clearer, and smoother. Scientists have delivered clinical studies and products that support reducing the appearance of wrinkles, fighting UV-induced collagen breakdown, and fighting facial skin aging.

To learn more about natural skin treatments for your face and how you can actually change the face of your future, have a look at this video and visit the link below it.

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Natural Skin Treatments

I must admit I am not a ‘regular tailgater’!  I have been to two this fall, one at my daughter’s college (small Division III school) and then one (on a much larger scale) at Penn State University this past weekend.  Before that, it had been quite a while.  That’s in contrast with probably millions of people across the country who do this ‘tailgate thing’ on a regular basis.  Both of my recent experiences were lots of fun and even though the football teams I favored did not win either game, great times were had by all who I observed.

I was amazed at the amount of people (all ages), cars, tents, rv’s and overall spirit at PSU.  About 110,000 people attended the game, many were there for hours before, and there were lots of people who came only to tailgate, with no intention of purchasing a ticket to watch the game.  If you think about all of the big schools and small schools across the country, the numbers of people who attend really add up.

Friendships, conversations, having a catch with a football, alumni reminiscing about their college days, games set up at individual tailgates like beer pong or cornhole, singing, and even dancing all make for good times and happy memories.  Social networks like these can reduce stress, and psychological well-being can promote good physical health – both providing positive reinforcement for an anti-aging lifestyle.

Here’s a short video of some sites we saw on Saturday at University Park, State College, PA as well as some personal fun at the end

Here is a feel good video that hopefully leaves you smiling

Featuring: Too Much Sugar?, Alzheimers and Diabetes, Health Care, Kids and Vitamin D.

There are quite a few Anti-Aging related pieces of news delivered, in different formats, every week. When you think about it, most every piece of ‘health related’ news is also Anti-Aging news.

The decisions we make in regard to our body – what we feed it (or don’t feed it), what we put on it, the stress we allow in our lives, the amount of exercise or rest we get on a consistent basis, what we are doing to build better health – will all help determine how we age.

1) Too Much Sugar?

Another article from USA Weekend (see last Saturday’s column here for other USA Weekend topics) discussed how much sugar Americans eat every day.  Keep in mind, there are many people that consume even more; however most Americans eat about 22 teaspoons of sugar a day.  This can either be sugar in foods that we eat or that we add at the table.

The article stated that the American Heart Association recommends that calories from added sugar should not exceed 100 for women or 150 for men.  The main culprit that throws these numbers way too high is sugary drinks like soda and other bottled drinks with lots of ‘hidden sugar’.

22 teaspoons of sugar is equivalent to about 350 calories.  If the sugar is primarily inside drinks that we consume, these are hidden calories and can actually add up significantly higher because we may be drinking more sugar than we realize.

For example, if you are drinking more than two cans of soda per day, you are getting more than the 22 teaspoons of sugar – just in those two cans.  How about those extra, extra large plastic soda cups that we see people filling up at convenience stores.  Some of those hold the equivalent of 3 or 4 cans of soda.  That’s a lot of sugar.  Last week we discussed diet soda and the fact that it is not such a great alternative (see last Saturday’s post).

I am looking at a 20 fluid oz bottle of Green Tea with citrus and it has 21 grams of sugar.  WikiAnswers says that each teaspoon of sugar has about 4.2 grams of sugar.  So even a healthier choice of (sweetened) Green Tea (over soda) is still 5 teaspoons of sugar.  That may be less than half the sugar in soda but still a lot of sugar for just that one drink.

2) Alzheimers and Diabetes

I remember reading a short article about the fact that people who have diabetes also have a higher risk of getting Alzheimers, and that scientists do not know the reason for that.  People at risk for either, or who may already have one or both of these health challenges, may want to do further research.  Diabetes brings us back to the topic above and the over-eating of sugar today.  Even though sugar doesn’t specifically cause diabetes, being over weight and consuming too many calories are both related and wouldn’t that include sugar to some extent (and also fat)?

3) Health Care – why we need it

Time Magazine had a feature story about the sorry state of American health.  This was from the December, 2008 issue so long before all of the recent health care news.  The statistics are alarming.  67% of Americans are overweight or obese?  27% have blood pressure that is too high?  96% of the population can not remember when they last had a salad?  40% of people get no exercise?  Wow.  Could these numbers be true?

Experts who study health habits believe that our kids’ generation could be the first ever to have a shorter life span than their parents because parents are passing along the above unhealthy lifestyle choices.  What amazes me is that we have more information about how to BE HEALTHY than ever before, and yet we are choosing not to be healthy.  Why?

These and other statistics factor into the fact that we need a great health care system.  We are hearing about health care proposals daily in the news, and it is a huge task to try and accomplish change.  Given the fact that currently the U.S. spends far more money on health care already, than does any other nation, and the fact that we are not healthier for the money, some kind of reform is needed.  The question is:  to what extent or how radical of a change do we need?

If it is true that we live shorter lives and have a higher infant-mortality rate than many other developed nations, and yet we have more scientific knowldedge than ever before, can’t we do better:  both individually and as a nation?

4) Kids and Vitamin D

Scientists have discovered that at least one in five kids in the United States do not get adequate amounts of Vitamin D.  That fact can put the children at risk for developing any number of health challenges.  A CNN Health Reports stated, “A whopping 70 percent of American kids aren’t getting enough vitamin D, and such youngsters tend to have higher blood pressure and lower levels of good cholesterol than their peers, according to two new studies published this week in the journal Pediatrics. Low vitamin D levels also may increase a child’s risk of developing heart disease later in life, experts say.”

Harvard Medical School researchers found that black and Hispanic children are at greater than average risk.  There has been a lot of recent exposure in regard to Vitamin D deficiency in children, teens and adults, making it widespread and of serious concern.

Lack of Vitamin D can be related to many health concerns like osteoporosis, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, depression, immune function, and cancer.

Some symptoms associated with Vitamin D deficiencies are:  muscle pain, weak bones/fractures, low energy and/or fatigue, lowered immunity, mood swings or other signs of depression and irregular sleep.  With the high numbers of suspected deficiencies and expected health risks, it is worth further (personal) research on an individual basis.

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Here is a link to a short video that highlights ways to help get kids to consume enough Vitamin D: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=5206408n A high quality multi-vitamin for CHILDREN or INFANTS and TODDLERS with Vitamin D3 is also an excellent way to insure adequate levels.

Do you understand the difference between vegans and vegetarians? I did not until recently. Vegans go a step further than vegetarians since they do not eat animal products of any kind. While vegetarians may still eat milk, cheese, and eggs, vegans do not, and their lifestyles are affected as well as their diets since they avoid leather, wool, fur, silk, down, and any products that are tested on animals.

I read in the college newsletter of my daughter’s school that the college years are a popular time for young people to make the choice to become vegan or vegetarian. It stated that their awareness is increased during this time, and also that they are associated with more people who have the same preferences. My fourteen year old niece recently made the choice to become a vegetarian and is active finding new recipes that support her eating style in a healthy way.

Vegans frequently avoid foods with animal products as ingredients, too: no refried beans with lard; no fries cooked in beef tallow; no margarine made with whey or casein (from milk); no foods made with meat extracts; and no foods with gelatin (from animal bones and hooves).

From the eatright.org web site, I learned that vegans eat baked goods made without butter, eggs or albumin (from eggs) and many avoid honey, which is made by bees. On vegan.org it stated that the transition to a vegan diet is accomplished in different ways. Some simply take out the animal products from their diet and replace them with plant foods with which they’re already familiar, and others jump right in and try entirely new vegan foods, often from international cuisines.

It appears that there is no shortage of vegan foods to help make the transition, and much of the food we eat is vegan. Personally, my favorite breakfast is a protein shake where the protein is plant based and I mix it with water or juice and sometimes a banana. The shake tastes delicious to me if I blend it in a blender with ice to make it a smoothie texture, but the real benefit is in the way that it makes me feel all morning. All the way until the next meal, a protein shake balances your blood sugar levels so that you feel energized for hours.

The internet is a wealth of information on almost any subject, and I was not disappointed when searching vegan and vegetarian terms. On vrg.org there was discussion about the fact that many vegans choose the lifestyle to support their desire for a more humane and caring world, and feel they can show responsibility with this personal choice.

Variety appears to be key to a nutritionally sound and successful vegan diet. Fruits, vegetables, plenty of leafy greens, whole grain products, nuts, seeds, and legumes are desirable choices. The websites I noted have considerably more information if you would like to research further.

To all Vegans: Enjoy Vegan Month and be sure to get all the nutrients that you need to build great health.

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For more information on plant based soy protein that is water washed and low glycemic, there is a great soy protein audio presentation under this ‘Healthy Audios and Videos‘ tab (2nd link under Audio Presentations) that discusses the benefits of soy over ‘dead protein’. Soy choices can be viewed here: SOY Supplement and SOY Meal Shake.

Election days are filled with hope, dreams, anticipation, and also uncertainty in close races.  The right to elect the people that we feel are the best men and women to represent us and make decisions that will affect our lives, lifestyles, health and wellness is something we are proud to have and use.

Below are interviews, at two local voting polls, about the importance of getting out there to vote!  A special thanks to Lt. Colonel Don Belsey, Altoona, PA and Mayor Joe Dodson from Hollidaysburg, PA for talking with us today.

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