The Vitamin D Affair

We are a nation of sunshine, everyone thinks of Australia as a sunny country, where we are all lazin’ on our beaches and looking tanned and healthy. However this is not the case – whenever I go to another country everyone is tanned and enjoying the sun. Australians have become scared of the sun, we are told to slip/slop/slap; we’re told that the sun causes cancer, we are told to wear hats, cover up, sit in the shade. It is now coming back to haunt us, we in Australia are facing Vitamin D deficiency and nearly everyone is supplementing.

Vitamin D and lack of it has been a big concern of mine for a long time, it comes from the sun and synthesises in our skin to then be processed in our liver. It aids Calcium assisting bone density and bone structure. But apparently, we here in Australia are starting to have proportions of deficiency especially in children and older people because of our avoidance of the sun! Too much slip, slop, slapping so to speak.

The major benefit of Vitamin D is bone health it helps our bones stay strong and stable holding us up and enabling us to move. It’s also known to help aid and support our immune system, studies indicate higher levels of Vitamin D in our blood supply can help ward off the common cold in winter, help prevent cancers, help our moods, balance our hormones and make us feel happier.

Food sources are generally low in this vitamin. The richest sources of vitamin D include fatty fishes such as mackerel, herring, cod and tuna and of course Cod liver oil. The skin of fish and chicken also has some supplies of Vitamin D (if they have been growing in the sun)- but we are encouraged not to eat this because of the high fat content, let yourself go and enjoy some flavor. Eat til your heart is content! Often Milk and milk products are fortified so these are also good sources.

Sun is the best source of Vitamin D yet absorption of the special UVB rays only occur 8 months of the year (no Winter vitamin D) and to get the best absorption experts say you must be in the sun for up to 15minutes between the hours of 11-3 (scary hey). However, over the years we have been encouraged not to go out in it. Now I am certainly not saying to go out and bake in it everyday for hours at a time but we need some sun, preferably 15 minutes a day, and you need to expose more than just your face, as your face is only 9% of your skin coverage, get you back, arms and legs out. Enjoy that summer sun.

Tip: Vitamin D absorbed from the sun lasts up to 3 times longer in your body stores than that taken via a supplement! 

Breathe

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Take a breathe– sounds pretty simple, or even natural but do you know that most of us never use our full lung capacity? 

Breathing, is obviously something that we take for granted, we breathe every day! But do we? 

Try to breathe now. Take a deep long breathe and fill your lungs, feel your diaphragm push out, count to four as you breathe in and then to four as you breathe out. Increase the number that you count too as you sit and breathe for a few minutes in your day. Try and take 10 minutes a day for the next week and breathe your stress away.

Magnesium an elemental mineral - what's it good for?

Magnesium in our community is an underrated mineral. I have just had a client tell me that she thinks it has changed her life! I also love Magnesium. And seemingly everyone else should – I remember one of my university lecturers saying the food with the most amount of magnesium in our trolley is usually in the block of chocolate!

Most of us know that magnesium is specific for our Musclo-skeletal system, it helps our muscles relax, and restores and repairs them after we work out, it helps ease our aches and pains. We use magnesium to prevent muscle spasms, twitches, convulsions and tremors.

The secondary action of Magnesium and I feel it’s most important – it works on our nervous system. It helps maintain healthy nerve function; aids nerve transmission, and ultimately helps our brain function properly. It helps us deal with stress and is involved in aiding cellular energy production.

It is very difficult to get the recommended daily intake of magnesium from our foods, various reasons being - the content of magnesium in our soil is often low, processing and milling removes 60% of magnesium stores and cooking in water also causes leaching.

Food sources that include Magnesium are:

• Leafy greens; Spinach
• Nuts: Almonds, cashews
• Soyabeans: non GM is best
• Whole grains, oatmeal, bran
• Milk and dairy; Natural yoghurt

Symptoms magnesium can treat:

• Muscle cramps, aches and pains
• Fibromyalgia
• Chronic Fatigue
• Depression
• Anxiety
•  Irritability
• Sleep disturbances and Insomnia
• Stress
• PMS and period pain
• Pregnancy; prematurity and prevent intrauterine growth retardation
• Cardio-vascular health

One third of Australians over 18 years do not get their recommended daily intake of magnesium and a deficiency may be exacerbated by stress, strenuous exercise and poor absorption. It is best to use a practitioner range of magnesium because it is formulated properly and will prevent you from having gastro-intestinal cramps and loose stools. 

A Decadent Delight - Happy Valentines Day

I love Valentines day - when it is kept simple and the one you love gives you something picked from the garden, a poem written for you or a decadent delight of chocolate. 

Call me an old fashioned fool but a bit of love and passion goes a long way in keeping you healthy and feeling good about yourself.

Here is my valentine gift.

A very good, very chocolaty chocolate cake that I suggest you try and bake one day, I have taken the recipe from Matthew Evans (see link). Matthew Evans; A very good, very chocolatey chocolate cake

So today I write for you the benefits of chocolate – if it has over 75% cocoa then it is all good, eat til your heart is content, there are both emotional and physical benefits.

The benefits of chocolate!

• Chocolate contains flavonoids, which act as antioxidants.  Antioxidants protect the body from aging and help reduce blood pressure via the production of nitric oxide.
• Studies have proven that chocolate can reduce blood pressure in those with high blood pressure and lower cholesterol (LDL’s) -the bad cholesterol. Thus, making chocolate good for your heart.
• Chocolate contains phenylethylamine, which increases glucose and adrenaline levels in the blood, making you feel good.
•  It stimulates endorphin production, which gives a feeling of pleasure.
• It helps release serotonin, which acts as a thymoleptic (mood enhancer).
• Scientists have discovered that chocolate stimulates the production of serotonin in the brain, which is one of the chemical compounds that makes us feel good.
• It contains theobromine, caffeine and other substances, which are stimulants and may give you energy.
• There is also evidence that it may increase your sexual desire.
• And most importantly chocolate tastes good!