Posts Tagged ‘nutrition’

Nutrition – Athletic Performance – Enhances Injury Recovery

nutrition, performance, Recovery - Repair | Posted by admin December 7th, 2009

Scholastic, professional, and recreational athletes may be surprised to learn that nutrition can play a major role in enhancing both performance and the healing of sports injuries.

While ice packs, bandages, rest, and physical therapy are significant in both the short and long-term treatment of injuries such as sprains, strains, cuts and bruises, swelling, and broken bones, researchers are discovering that what an athlete consumes after injury and during the treatment phase can either promote recovery or sometimes delay healing.

The nutrition can not only affect injury rehabilitation positively or negatively, but also aid or hinder the recovery of general and / or chronic muscle or joint soreness following intense exercise workouts, practices, and games. Anti-inflammatory foods and beverages can contribute to the healing of sports injuries are also excellent for post workout / post practice / post game muscle and joint recovery.

The following foods and beverages that have anti-inflammatory qualities and may even accelerate recovery from sports-related or non-athletic injuries:

Grapes, blueberries, strawberries, oranges, kiwis, olive oil, celery, ginger, garlic, curry powder, eggplant, nuts, tuna, salmon, mackerel, black and green tea, and red wine and beer (only when consumed in moderation with food and no more than two alcoholic drinks per day).
Foods rich in vitamin C (citrus fruits, strawberries, kiwis, peppers) and vitamin E (nuts, olive oil) have anti-inflammatory effects. Omega-3 rich fish oil and fatty salt-water fish (salmon, tuna, mackerel) also fight inflammation, besides the wide-spread publicity in recent years of such fish benefiting both heart and brain health.

Another food that has been shown to reduce inflammation is the herb turmeric which is an even better anti-inflammatory than cortisone, one of the most powerful of the steroids.”

Curcumin is found in curry powder, another anti-inflammatory source. Athletes and non-athletes alike who experience chronic shoulder, back and knee pain, for example, may take note of curcumin’s powerful role in easing inflammation.

Another wonderful anti-inflammatory food is eggplant which “contains the important mineral potassium, as well as phytochemicals that have antihistaminic, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant qualities.”

To reduce inflammation, athletes and non-athletes must focus on the #1 beverage: drink ample amounts of plain water in practices and games, both in solid form (when ice packs are applied immediately following an injury to prevent inflammation such as swelling) and in liquid form to hasten recovery during injury rehabilitation as well as help heal chronic joint and back pain.

While water might be king beverage on and off the athletic field, athletes and non-athletes should take advantage of the possible anti-inflammatory capacity of another bodybuilding beverage: milk.
Athletes and non-athletes should also monitor their protein intake and note that high-protein diets boost inflammation.

Another area in which nutrition affects inflammation is overeating or consuming excess calories contributing to either obesity or simply becoming overweight with more body fat than lean muscle.
In general, what an athlete consumes in the hours, days and weeks following an injury may indeed determine how fast he or she returns to action. Some foods and beverages can prevent or reduce inflammation, thus speeding the healing process.

To help the athlete on a quicker road to recovery, some simple anti-inflammatory meals may be just what the doctor ordered.

We support Prevention vs Prescriptions:
GoTo: Prevention not Prescriptions

Importance of Magnesium – Prevents Health Risks

nutrition, performance | Posted by admin November 6th, 2009

Most people are aware of the importance of getting enough calcium, which remains a widespread problem. Most people don’t know there are other common micronutrient deficiencies that need to be addressed. Magnesium is one of those important micronutrients that doesn’t seem to get much attention, but plays a huge role in the body promoting health & performance.

Unfortunately the diets of all Americans are likely to be deficient and they don’t even know it. Sources estimate that nearly 70 percent of Americans get inadequate doses of magnesium every day and do not consume the daily recommended amounts of Magnesium. Studies have also shown food alone can’t meet the minimal Recommended Daily Allowances (RDA) micronutrient requirements for preventing nutrient-deficiency diseases. For several years experts have suggested that the availability of magnesium in the soil has significantly decreased and it is difficult to get the amount of magnesium needed to function at an optimal level. This, in combination with diets low in whole grains and fresh fruits and vegetables, has led to a general deficiency in the population.

Magnesium is used for more than 300 bodily functions and assists in energy production, maintains healthy bone density and aids the electrical conduction of the heart. Magnesium belongs in a category of minerals called electrolytes because they conduct electrical signals in the body. It is needed in energy metabolism, glucose utilization, protein synthesis, fatty acid synthesis and breakdown, muscle contraction, all ATPase functions, for almost all hormonal reactions, and in the maintenance of cellular ionic balance. It is found in all of the body’s cells, although it is mostly concentrated in the bones, muscles, and soft tissues. Magnesium also affects calcium’s role in homeostasis through two mechanisms.

Magnesium deficiency results in altered cardiovascular function, including electrocardiographic abnormalities, impaired carbohydrate metabolism, with insulin resistance and decreased insulin secretion, and high blood pressure. Even a mild deficiency causes sensitiveness to noise, nervousness, irritability, mental depression, confusion, twitching, trembling, apprehension, insomnia, muscle weakness and cramps in the toes, feet, legs, or fingers.

In active adults and athletes low magnesium levels can acutely contribute to early fatigue, nausea, muscle cramps & an irregular heartbeat during exercise. Magnesium as well as zinc, chromium and selenium are excreted in the sweat or as part of the process of metabolic acceleration. Heavy sweat loss can interfere with the important functions for which magnesium and other electrolytes are responsible. Also, the rate of magnesium loss is increased in conditions of high humidity and high temperature. An important consideration for athletes is the rate of magnesium loss that occurs during heavy physical activity. Heavy exercise makes you lose magnesium in the urine and scientific evidence suggests this is why long distance runners may suddenly drop dead with heart arrhythmias.

In a very tightly controlled three-month US study carried out last year, the effects of magnesium depletion on exercise performance in 10 women were observed. In the first month, the women received a magnesium-deficient diet (112mgs per day), which was supplemented with 200mgs per day of magnesium to bring the total magnesium content up to the RDA of 310mgs per day. In the second month, the supplement was withdrawn to make the diet magnesium-deficient, but in the third month it was reintroduced to replenish magnesium levels.

At the end of each month, the women were asked to cycle at increasing intensities until they reached 80% of their maximum heart rate, at which time a large number of measurements were taken, including blood tests, ECG and respiratory gas analysis.

The researchers found that, for a given workload, peak oxygen uptake, total and cumulative net oxygen utilization and heart rate all increased significantly during the period of magnesium restriction, with the amount of the increase directly related to the extent of magnesium depletion. In plain English, a magnesium deficiency reduced metabolic efficiency, increasing the oxygen consumption and heart rate required to perform work – exactly what an athlete doesn’t want!

No serious athlete or trainer can afford to overlook the benefits that magnesium brings to athletic performance and the recovery process. Research suggests that even a small shortfall in magnesium can lead to greatly reduced performance and stamina. Many athletic medical specialists believe that magnesium is the single most important mineral to sports nutrition. Not only does it help optimize an athlete’s performance, but it speeds up recovery from fatigue and injuries.

Optimal muscle contraction and relaxation is the foundation of an athlete’s performance. Proper magnesium levels are required for muscles to relax fully following a contraction. Some doctors believe that injuries to hamstring muscles can be partially avoided through intake of magnesium and stated that a shortened hamstring is a result of lack of available magnesium.

The first step is to eat more magnesium rich foods, especially beans, nuts and vegetables. The more active a person is the greater the need to make sure there is a variety of balanced micronutrient-enriched foods into their diet. The challenge is to eat large amounts of magnesium-rich foods on a consistent basis. Often this proves difficult and unrealistic, as an athlete’s requirement of magnesium intake far surpasses that of an average person. Micronutrient supplementation still may be needed to be incorporated into their wellness program as a preventative protocol for preventing these observed deficiencies.

Another important step is to have your levels checked. The residual level of magnesium in the cells is what’s important. The body does all it can to keep the blood levels normal, so if there is a body deficit, it will be found within the cells. Work with a practitioner that will check your RBC-magnesium level (the level of magnesium in red blood cells) or provide an FIA (functional intracellular analysis) for your body’s residual nutrient levels that will benchmark your cell level status to find the amount of supplements needed to achieve normal levels. Recommended intake for endurance athletes is 500 to 800 mg daily.

There is virtually no one that cannot benefit greatly from increasing daily magnesium intake. In terms of health and longevity magnesium is essential. For the professional athlete it means the difference between winning and losing, and in some cases, living and dying.

GoTo: Prevention not Prescriptions

Manipulating The Glycemic Index Diet – The Winning Edge ???

Fitness, nutrition, performance, Recovery - Repair, strength | Posted by admin November 4th, 2009

A high-carbohydrate training diet is a must for optimum sports performance because it produces the biggest stores of muscle glycogen. Unlike the fat stores in the body, which can release almost unlimited amounts of fatty acids, the carbohydrate stores are small. They are fully depleted after two or three hours of strenuous exercise. This depletion of carbohydrate stores is called “hitting the wall.” The blood glucose concentration begins to decline at this point. If exercise continues as the same rate, blood glucose may drop to levels that interfere with brain function and cause disorientation and unconsciousness.

All else being equal, the eventual winner is the person with the largest stores of muscle glycogen. It is important to maximize your muscle glycogen stores by ingesting a high-carbohydrate training diet and by carb loading in the days prior to the competition.

There are times when low G.I. foods provide an advantage and times when high G.I. are better. For best performance a serious athlete needs to learn which foods have high and low G.I. factors and when to eat them. Understanding the glycemic index and making the best food choices can give you an advantage.

Low-GI Foods: Before the Event
Low-GI foods have been proven to extend endurance when eaten alone one or two hours before prolonged strenuous exercise. Low-GI foods are best eaten about two hours before the big event –so that the meal will have left the stomach but will remain in the small intestine, slowly releasing glucose energy, for hours afterwards. The slow rate and steady stream of glucose trickles into the bloodstream during the event. Most importantly, the extra glucose will still be available toward the end of the exercise, when muscle stores are running close to empty. In this way, low-GI foods increase endurance and prolong the time before exhaustion hits.

When a pre-event meal of lentils (low GI value) was compared with one of potatoes (high GI value), cyclists were able to continue cycling at high intensity (65 percent of their maximum capacity) for twenty minutes longer when the meal had a low G value. Their blood-glucose and insulin levels were still above fasting levels at the end of exercise, indicating that carbohydrates were continuing to be absorbed from the small intestine even after ninety minutes of strenuous exercise.

In any sport context, it’s critical to select low-GI foods that do not cause gastrointestinal discomfort (stomach cramps, etc.). Some low-GI foods, such as legumes that are high in fiber or ingestible sugars, may produce symptoms in people not use to eating large amounts of them. There are plenty of low-fiber, low-GI choices, including pasta, noodles, and Basmati rice.

High- GI Foods: During and After the Event
While the pre-event meal should have a low GI value, scientific evidence indicates that there are times when high-GI foods are preferable. This includes during the event, after the event, and after normal training sessions. This is because high-GI foods are absorbed faster and stimulate more insulin, the hormone responsible for getting glucose back into the muscles for either immediate or future use.

During the event
High-GI foods should be used during events lasting longer than ninety minutes. This form of carbohydrate is rapidly released into the bloodstream and ensures that glucose is available for oxidation in the muscle cells. Liquid foods are usually tolerated better than solid foods, for endurance racing for example, because they are emptied more quickly from the stomach. Sports drinks are ideal during the race because they replace water and electrolytes as well. If you feel hungry for something solid during a race, try jelly beans (GI value of 80) or another form of high-glucose candy. Consume 30 to 60 grams of carbohydrate per hour during the event.

After the event (recovery)
In some competitive sports, athletes compete on consecutive days, and glycogen stores need to be at their maximum each time. Here it is important to restock the glycogen store in the muscles as quickly as possible after each day’s events. High-GI foods are best in this situation. Muscles are more sensitive to glucose in the bloodstream in the first hour after exercise, so a concerted effort should be made to get as many high-GI foods in as soon as possible.

Suggested foods include most of the sports drinks which replace water and electrolyte losses, or high-GI rice (e.g., jasmine), breads, and breakfast cereals such as cornflakes or rice krispies. Potatoes cooked without fat are good choice too but their high satiety means it is hard to eat lots of them.

Carbohydrate Loading For Training & Understanding
Why This Is Important…

It’s not just your pre- and post-event meals that influence your performance. Very active people need to eat much larger amounts of carbohydrates than inactive people. Consuming a high-carbohydrate diet every day will help you reach peak performance. When athletes fail to consume adequate carbohydrates each day, muscle and liver glycogen stores eventually become depleted. Dr. Ted Costill at the University of Texas showed that the gradual and chronic depletion of stored glycogen may decrease endurance and exercise performance. Intense workouts two to three times a day draw heavily on the athlete’s muscle glycogen stores. Athletes on low-carbohydrate diet will not perform their best because muscle stores of fuel are low.
If the diet provides inadequate amounts of carbohydrate, the reduction in muscle glycogen will be critical. An athlete training heavily should consume about 500 to 800 grams of carbohydrate a day (about two to three times normal) to help prevent carbohydrate depletion. Typically, American adults consume between 200 to 250 grams of carbohydrates each day.

Could a High-GI Diet Be Harmful to Athletes?

By virtue of their high activity levels, athletes have optimal insulin sensitivity. When they eat high-carbohydrate, high-GI foods, blood glucose and insulin levels rise far less in them than in the average person. This also provides the athlete with a bonus by not exposing their bodies to dangerous levels of blood glucose which produce disease in sedentary, insulin resistant individuals.

Adapted from the Book: The New Glucose Revolution
Written by: Jennie Brand-Miller, PhD
Thomas M.S. Wolever, MD PhD
Stephen Colagiuri, MD
Kaye Foster-Powell, M Nutr & Diet

Nutrition – Athletic Performance – Injury Recovery Without Rx

Recovery - Repair | Posted by admin October 26th, 2009

Scholastic, professional, and recreational athletes may be surprised to learn that nutrition can play a major role in enhancing both performance and the healing of sports injuries.

While ice packs, bandages, rest, and physical therapy are significant in both the short and long-term treatment of injuries such as sprains, strains, cuts and bruises, swelling, and broken bones, researchers are discovering that what an athlete consumes after injury and during the treatment phase can either promote recovery or sometimes delay healing.

The nutrition can not only affect injury rehabilitation positively or negatively, but also aid or hinder the recovery of general and / or chronic muscle or joint soreness following intense exercise workouts, practices, and games. Anti-inflammatory foods and beverages can contribute to the healing of sports injuries are also excellent for post workout / post practice / post game muscle and joint recovery.

The following foods and beverages that have anti-inflammatory qualities and may even accelerate recovery from sports-related or non-athletic injuries:

Grapes, blueberries, strawberries, oranges, kiwis, olive oil, celery, ginger, garlic, curry powder, eggplant, nuts, tuna, salmon, mackerel, black and green tea, and red wine and beer (only when consumed in moderation with food and no more than two alcoholic drinks per day).
Foods rich in vitamin C (citrus fruits, strawberries, kiwis, peppers) and vitamin E (nuts, olive oil) have anti-inflammatory effects. Omega-3 rich fish oil and fatty salt-water fish (salmon, tuna, mackerel) also fight inflammation, besides the wide-spread publicity in recent years of such fish benefiting both heart and brain health.

Another food that has been shown to reduce inflammation is the herb turmeric which is an even better anti-inflammatory than cortisone, one of the most powerful of the steroids.”

Curcumin is found in curry powder, another anti-inflammatory source. Athletes and non-athletes alike who experience chronic shoulder, back and knee pain, for example, may take note of curcumin’s powerful role in easing inflammation.

Another wonderful anti-inflammatory food is eggplant which “contains the important mineral potassium, as well as phytochemicals that have antihistaminic, anti-inflammatory and antioxidant qualities.”

To reduce inflammation, athletes and non-athletes must focus on the #1 beverage: drink ample amounts of plain water in practices and games, both in solid form (when ice packs are applied immediately following an injury to prevent inflammation such as swelling) and in liquid form to hasten recovery during injury rehabilitation as well as help heal chronic joint and back pain.

While water might be king beverage on and off the athletic field, athletes and non-athletes should take advantage of the possible anti-inflammatory capacity of another bodybuilding beverage: milk.
Athletes and non-athletes should also monitor their protein intake and note that high-protein diets boost inflammation.

Another area in which nutrition affects inflammation is overeating or consuming excess calories contributing to either obesity or simply becoming overweight with more body fat than lean muscle.
In general, what an athlete consumes in the hours, days and weeks following an injury may indeed determine how fast he or she returns to action. Some foods and beverages can prevent or reduce inflammation, thus speeding the healing process.

To help the athlete on a quicker road to recovery, some simple anti-inflammatory meals may be just what the doctor ordered.

GoTo: Prevention not Prescriptions

Leptin: How Diabetes & Obesity Are Linked –

Fitness, nutrition | Posted by admin July 5th, 2009

Like two peas in a pod, the obesity and type 2 diabetes epidemics have joined forces in an attempt to ravage America’s health … and it’s working, as hundreds of millions of people have been significantly affected by this deadly pair.

But how are these two epidemics intertwined? Popular belief is that if one eats too much sugar, they’ll get fat and develop diabetes; and, if they don’t get diabetes it’s merely because their body is producing enough insulin to keep up with the sugar. However, researchers have discovered evidence that there’s more to the obesity-diabetes connection than this classic way of thinking: The missing link? Leptin.

Leptin is the way that your fat stores speak to your brain to let your brain know how much energy is available and, very importantly, what to do with it. Studies have shown that leptin plays significant if not primary roles in heart disease, obesity, diabetes, osteoporosis, autoimmune diseases, reproductive disorders, and perhaps the rate of aging itself. Many chronic diseases are now linked to excess inflammation such as heart disease and diabetes. High leptin levels are very pro-inflammatory, and leptin also helps to mediate the manufacture of other very potent inflammatory chemicals from fat cells that also play a significant role in the progression of heart disease and diabetes.

Leptin: A Key Player in Your Health

Leptin plays a far more important role in your health than, for instance, cholesterol, however few doctors are taught to pay attention to it, or even know much about it. Leptin’s critical importance is largely unknown to the medical community because there are no known drugs that regulate its activities and therefore there is no incentive to spend money to educate doctors about leptin’s crucial role in health and disease. The only known way to reestablish proper leptin (and insulin) signaling is via diet and, as such, these can have a more profound effect on your health than any other
known modality of medical treatment. New studies support prior studies that have shown the brain and liver to be of paramount importance in regulating your blood sugar levels especially in type 2 or insulin resistant diabetes. It had been previously believed that the insulin sensitivity of muscle and fat tissues were the most important factor in determining whether one would become diabetic or not. It should be noted that leptin plays a vital role in regulating your brain’s hypothalamic activity which in turn regulates much of our “autonomic” functions; those functions that you don’t necessarily think about but which determines much of your life (and health) such as:

•Body temperature
•Heart rate
•Hunger
•Stress response
•Fat burning or storage
•Reproductive behavior and
•Newly discovered roles in bone growth and blood sugar levels

These studies also illustrate the complexity of hormonal orchestration. Especially with very important hormones like insulin and leptin with far ranging effects, a particular cell can be resistant to one effect while the other stays intact. For instance, it had been shown previously that cells may become resistant to the effects of insulin on glucose influx (which may be protective in limiting the amount of glucose entering cells and thus intracellular glycation), while that same cell may not become resistant to the effects of insulin on cellular proliferation that tell cells to multiply, as these are mediated by two separate pathways. Thus a person with high insulin levels, being insulin resistant in regards to glucose, would still be at a much higher risk of cancer, and this indeed is what happens; high insulin levels are associated with many common forms of cancer. Also, different organ systems become resistant at different rates. Therefore, just taking or artificially raising (by drugs) insulin, and/or leptin, will not correct the problems in the orchestration of the signals, any more than playing the tuba louder will fix mistakes in the written music. However a strategic diet that emphasizes good fats and avoids blood sugar spikes coupled with targeted supplements to enhance insulin and leptin sensitivity by resensitizing your cell’s ability to hear hormonal messages correctly, will allow your life to be the symphony it was meant to be.

REf: Dr.Ron Rosedale

Cell Metabolism March 2005; Vol 1, 169-178 (Free Full-Text Article)

Sports Nutrition: Critical to Athletic Success

nutrition | Posted by admin May 18th, 2009

All athletes strive to compete at the top of their game but, unbeknownst to many of them, their performance relies on their nutritional status. Young athletes with inadequate diets may have insufficient fuel for workouts, nutrient deficiencies that can lead to illness or fatigue, a decrement in bone growth and maintenance, and may not reach their potential for muscle growth. All of these will be reflected in their performance, regardless of their determination.

Despite the recognition that young athletes need to pay greater attention to their fuel consumption, recent research suggests that many youths struggle with energy balance, experiencing an energy deficit or surplus. We are all too familiar with this energy surplus, known as overweight or obesity, but that crisis is not the focus of this article. The concern is that many young athletes require greater amounts of nutrients but remain uninformed or unconcerned about their nutrition needs or simply feel powerless to improve their nutritional status. Young athletes need help to overcome these problems.

The number of young athletes in the United States is increasing and estimates are that approximately 30 to 45 million youths aged 6 to 18 participate in some form of athletics. These young athletes turn to coaches, parents, teammates, and health professionals for nutrition guidance. They can guide athletes to be leaner, stronger, and able to withstand the rigors of training and competition. They can offer superior advice because they are more cognizant of research findings and are equipped with clinical and counseling skills to aid in a young athlete’s quest for improvement. By helping athletes improve their diet, they can eliminate obstacles to better health and nutrition and thereby help athletes push their limits and reach their full potential.

Nutrition professionals can aid young athletes in their quest for victory by recognizing that children and adolescents generally need more calories and protein per pound of body weight than many adults. It is a well-known fact that children need this extra energy to grow, fully develop, and thrive. Nutrient needs further elevate and reach their peak during adolescence. Potential differences in nutrition needs between a typical child or adolescent and an athletic child or adolescent likely exist but are not entirely clear. Limited studies of energy balance in young athletes have been published, and conservative recommendations have been made. But self-reported diet records of young athletes often indicate that intake of energy, carbohydrate, and select micronutrients may be below recommended levels. They must be aware that these deficiencies exist and are especially apparent in athletes involved in sports that focus on body composition and appearance.

Residual nutritional levels of micronutrients can now be baseline measured by new scientific based technology.