KTK-Nutrition

Have you ever heard of brain food?   Foods you can eat for a healthier brain?   I always told my students that before an exam they should drink some water.   Why?   Because even being slightly dehydrated (1%-5%) can adversely affect brain function .   A 2% decrease in brain hydration can result in short term memory loss and have trouble with math computations. Besides staying hydrated, what foods can you eat for a healthier brain? My sister sent me an interesting article, “ People who eat magnesium-rich foods like spinach and almonds may have bigger, healthier brains” .    Why magnesium?   According to NIH , about half of Americans have diets deficient in magnesium.   It is known as a “silent deficiency” as most people are totally unaware that they are lacking in magnesium.   What are the health benefits of magnesium?   Magnesium is a mineral that has many roles to play in your body.         Heart – ...

Go to the grocery store and you will see hundreds of varieties of yogurt to choose from.   For years eating yogurt was a popular fad.   And that was great as yogurt is a great health food.   But lately, my husband says there are less and less varieties of yogurt to choose from.   Many of the flavors we love are getting harder to find.   Sad, as this means people are eating less yogurt and may be substituting yogurt for some foods that are far less nutritious. When students in my class analyze their diet recall there is almost two nutrients they are low in, calcium and vitamin D.   These are two nutrients that most yogurts are a great source of.   If you have been cutting back on your yogurt intake, it would be a great time to add some yogurt back to your day. What is Greek yogurt and how does it differ from regular yogurt? According to WebMD , “Greek yogurt has been strained to remove extra liquid and whey.   The result is a thicker, denser fina...

Do you ever even think about the health of your joints or strength of your bones?   Younger people may not but   recent articles in Runner’s World and Bicycling.com brings these important topics to younger and older readers.   Why would younger people be interested in these topics?   My daughter recently was pleased to tell us she and her husband will be running a 10K this year.   This is quite the goal for her as she broke her ankle a few years ago.   I advised her to beef up her bone strength and sent her an article on boosting bone strength.   Older people are concerned about bone strength and joint health because of fear of broken bones and aching joints.    What are some foods and nutrients that promote bone strength and healthy joints? Calcium – Almost all the students I have taught know that calcium is needed for good bones.   But when they analyzed their diets, they were often low and sometimes really low in calcium. ...

So many parents are not giving kids real cow’s milk at meals.   And many adults have forgotten that their bodies need milk too, at least 2 glasses of cow’s milk or dairy servings a day.   What about chocolate milk?   Most people know chocolate milk has added sugar, but are there any health benefits to drinking chocolate milk?   What about the chocolate milk at Fast Food restaurants?   I had a student who wouldn’t drink chocolate milk from Fast Food restaurants as he thought this milk was high in fat.   Is it? What are some health benefits of chocolate milk ?   Nutrition – yes, chocolate milk made from cow’s milk has some added sugar but it also is a good source of nutrients. Protein – each cup of chocolate milk provides 7 grams of protein.   There is also a chocolate milk by Slate that provides about 14 grams of protein per cup.   And milk provides a high-quality protein that provides casein and whey. Minerals – real chocolate milk...

Potassium – why do you need it and what foods can you eat to be sure you are getting enough of this important mineral?   Most of the students in the classes I teach know we should all be cutting back on the amount of sodium in our diets.   But most students don’t know we should also focus on increasing the amount of potassium in our diets.   Why do we need potassium and why is it so important to good health? Why is potassium important to our health?         1.  Blood Pressure, heart disease -   Maxine Yeung, a Registered Dietitian who founded The Wellness Whisk states, “Potassium is an electrolyte that helps with nerve and muscle function in the body.   And, “Potassium also helps regulate heart and blood pressure by counterbalancing sodium.”   Low intake of potassium is related to high blood pressure , while an increase in potassium helps counteract the effects of sodium and helps keep our blood pressure normal.   ...

Odd that so many people are choosing plant-based beverages labeled as “milk” over real cow’s milk.   Most people do this thinking these plant-based “milks” are nutritionally superior to real cow’s milk.   Is it?   If one replaces real milk with plant-based milks, are they missing out on important nutrients?   Yes.   Yet the popularity of these plant-based milks continues.   A recent article in the paper, Stop Milking it, farmers tell plant-based competitors ” describes how dairy farmers are concerned as to why   plant-based beverages can be labeled “milk” when they contain no milk at all.    What has happened to real cow’s milk?   Dairy farmers across the country are pushing to have “milk” mean from a “cow” and not the plant-based milk – oat, almond, soy and other plant-based beverages labeled “milk”.   North Carolina has led the states in legislating what can be called “milk”. The farmers aren’t trying to restrict production ...