Florida Agenda

By Andy Kress

Many Americans take supplements to aid in their diets—usually without the benefit of a doctor’s recommendation. Listen to the commercials and you can understand why. According to the ads, the average diet does not supply adequate nutrients. Swallow your nutrition in the form of a pill once a day, and good health will be yours. Or better still some think, take two or three or five. After all, if a little is good for you, then a lot must be better.

If blood tests confirm that you are deficient in certain vitamins or minerals, consult with your physician to discuss how to correct the situation. Make the call on your own with self-diagnosis, and risk doing more harm than good. It is your liver and kidneys that must correct your mistakes filtering out all the extras the body cannot store or utilize immediately. Overwhelm these organs with excess vitamins and minerals and you can expect to become familiar with the symptoms of hypervitaminosis—a toxic condition that can lead to severe health issues.

The easiest vitamins to over-consume are those that are fat soluble—Vitamins A, D, E and K. Elevated doses of vitamin A can cause liver damage, skin problems, fatigue and other harsh symptoms. Vitamin D when taken in high doses produces calcium deposits on the heart and blood vessels; it also upsets calcium metabolism leading to bone loss. Symptoms of Vitamin E overdose include nausea, abdominal pain and fatigue. Take too much Vitamin K and risk blood clots and jaundice. Compounding the problem, as the liver and kidneys work overtime to correct the situation, they mistakenly strip other vital nutrients from the body in the process.

The good news is that in the vast majority of cases, the easiest way to receive your nutrients and vitamins while improving your overall health is to eat a varied diet that coincides with the food pyramid or the newer MyPlate diagram, developed by the Department of Agriculture. These charts illustrate the proper mix of fruits, vegetables, grains, dairy and protein. Notice, there is no spot here for supplements, because none should be needed. In a varied diet, the body receives all of its needs for vitamins and minerals through its nutrition.

Any nutritionist will tell you that diet is the best source for fatty and amino acids, fiber, vitamins and minerals. While many supplements provide one nutritional benefit and lack others, eating the same dietary compound from a natural food source will provide additional energy, fiber and other components for nutritional balance.

Some of the most popular supplements also inhibit or delay the absorption of others nutrients due to the chemical additives and fillers used in these products. The chemicals fillers are highly foreign to the human digestive system compared to natural foods and take days–and even weeks–to process. Vitamin C supplements are the major culprit here.

Supplements can also have adverse affects on medication and vice versa.  Raise the red flag if you are taking oral contraceptives, blood pressure medication, laxatives, antibiotics, and some over-the-counter painkillers.

Should you fall into the category of “moderate or heavy drinker,” you are the exception to the supplementation rule. Alcoholics and heavy drinkers require supplementation to overcome the deleterious effects from a poor diet and nutritional drain over a prolonged period of time. The overconsumption of alcohol affects the body’s abilities to absorb nutrients and places the liver under more stress, leading to liver disorders.

As always, we leave the choice up to you. By knowing the facts about supplements, you discover that there is more of a science to proper diet than just popping a few pills in the morning. Choose correctly and it’s a win-win. Choose incorrectly and you could lose your life. Please read the labels and choose wisely.

Andy Kress is a nationally certified fitness trainer and nutritional counselor. he can be reached at 954-789-3930 or via email at andyfitnesstraner@gmail.com

“…Good fats help slow  protein breakdown after a grueling  workout.”

Take the Frustration Out of Shopping for Nutritious Foods

Did you ever get frustrated going into a nutrition store in search of the right blend of supplements that will lean you out and build muscle as well? Well, here’s good news.

There are many foods you’re already familiar with that can do all these things and more. No, I’m not talking Jello-shots and pizza. I’m referring to popular, tasty, affordable products you can get at any grocery store. Here are my top six and why you need them in your nutritional plan.

Where’s the beef? It should be on your plate once a week, at least! Beef is rich in iron and zinc, two important muscle building minerals. Plus, it is a great source of creatine, a substance essential for pumping iron. As if this isn’t enough, lean fresh cuts of beef are rich in selenium. Studies have shown that men with low levels of selenium are as much as five times more likely to develop prostate cancer.

There’s nothing “fishy” about fresh cold water salmon. It’s simply up to the gills in quality protein and Omega-3 fatty acids. In addition to keeping your cholesterol levels in check, these good fats help slow protein breakdown after a grueling workout. This is important, because to build muscle you need to store new protein faster than your body breaks down the old protein stores.

Yogurt is not just for breakfast. It is a perfect pre-or-post workout snack because it contains an excellent combination of protein (to build muscle) and carbohydrates (the energy you need to pump up). Yogurt also contains linoleic acid, aspecial good fat that supposedly makes your body store less bad fat!

Don’t be an egghead and believe all the bad press! Eggs are the most perfectprotein available. A few eggs a day will keep you fit and healthy because they are packed with riboflavin, folate, vitamins B12, B6, D and E and iron, phosphorus and zinc. And don’t be afraid to eat the yolk, because it is especially rich in B12, a vitamin which breaks down fats and helps fuel muscle contractions.

Oil up and flex those muscles. Olive oil could be called ‘the elixir of the gods’. The monounsaturated fat in olive oil acts as a sort of free radical fighting against muscle breakdown and wasting which comes with overtraining, illness and other forms of stress. Olive oil is also rich in Vitamin E, a fabulous anti-aging agent all its own. Olive oil and other monounsaturated fats have been associated with everything from lower rates of heart disease and colon cancer to reduced risk of diabetes and osteoporosis.

A couple of handfuls of almonds a day won’t make you nutty or fat. They make a perfect, handy snack at any time. Almonds are rich in Vitamin E, a perfect anti-oxidant that will help workout recovery. This vitamin, when consumed in foods like almonds, eggs and leafy vegetables, has been shown to lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease in men. Don’t forget it!

Make your list and get to the grocery store today. Any questions? Contact TrainerTomB@aol.com anytime.

Tom Bonanti, is a certified personal trainer and owner of Pump’n Inc gym at 1271 NE 9th Avenue, Fort Lauderdale, FL 33304, Facebook: TrainerTomB. www.pumpnincgym.com