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PS - Again, the $15 off Prograde Protein savings ends TONIGHT, February 19th at 11:59pm EST. You need to stop reading this and order yours right NOW: http://rialtowellness.getprograde.com/protein-recipe-3.html
Showing posts with label calcium. Show all posts
Showing posts with label calcium. Show all posts
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Monday, September 21, 2009
Bars?!
When walking around the health food section of a grocery store these days, you may find that there are many different types of bars. And with so many options and fancy marketing, it is good to arm yourself with a little bit of knowledge about what type of bars you should be eating.
Since we are not scientists or a medical professional of any sort, we asked some of our nutrition experts for a little help on this topic.
Alisa, who doubles as a Registered Dietitian in her every day life, holds a Masters in Allied Health with an emphasis in Nutrition from Georgia State University. We also asked Justin, who is some sort of fancy scientist and just really smart when it comes to nutrition.
Alisa and Justin give us these helpful hints when it comes to which snack bars to choose:
- A bar is a good “in a pinch” snack, but should NEVER replace a meal.
- The bars should be all natural, organic and if possible should not have any high fructose corn syrup.
- When choosing a bar look for:
200 calories or less
8-10 grams of protein
30 grams of carbs or less
2-3 grams of fiber
3 grams of saturated fat or less
- The less saturated fat, the better. The saturated fat is usually due to the milk chocolate or any yogurt coating added to the bars. Saturated fat is the bad animal fats that we do not need a lot of, and most people eat too much. Dark chocolate is the best.
With these guidelines in mind, Alisa and Justin recommend the following:
-Prograde Bars - Packed with healthy fats your body needs and zero trans fats
No preservatives, Less than 200 calories so it’s THE perfect snack - Satisfies your chocolate craving with 100% Organic Dark Chocolate - Perfect (and safe) for kids and young athletes.
Three great flavors: Peanut Butter, Almond Butter and Spirulina
-Zone Perfect Fruitified bars (because they don’t have a chocolate/yogurt coating) – 190 calories, 14 grams of protein, 24 grams of carb (3 grams of fiber), 2.5 grams saturated fat
-Luna Toasted Nuts ‘n Cranberry bar (also no coating) – 180 calories, 10 grams of protein, 26 grams of carb (3 grams of fiber), 0.5 grams saturated fat
-Kashi Go Lean Crunchy! Bars – the Chocolate Almond flavor (some coating) – 170 calories, 27 grams of carb (5 grams of fiber), 8 grams of protein, 2.5 grams saturated fat
So remember, if you are “in a pinch” and need to eat a bar for one of your snacks, make sure you are following Alisa and Justin's suggestions to choose the best possible bar. This is especially important if weight loss is one of your goals, as some of the bars pack a lot of calories into very little space- there is a reason some of them taste like candy bars! Pay attention to the labels and find one you like that is also healthful.
Anytime you have any nutrition questions, feel free to post them to the blog where one of our nutrition experts can answer them for you. You can also check out the nutrition blog on a daily basis for recipes and tips.
Since we are not scientists or a medical professional of any sort, we asked some of our nutrition experts for a little help on this topic.
Alisa, who doubles as a Registered Dietitian in her every day life, holds a Masters in Allied Health with an emphasis in Nutrition from Georgia State University. We also asked Justin, who is some sort of fancy scientist and just really smart when it comes to nutrition.
Alisa and Justin give us these helpful hints when it comes to which snack bars to choose:
- A bar is a good “in a pinch” snack, but should NEVER replace a meal.
- The bars should be all natural, organic and if possible should not have any high fructose corn syrup.
- When choosing a bar look for:
200 calories or less
8-10 grams of protein
30 grams of carbs or less
2-3 grams of fiber
3 grams of saturated fat or less
- The less saturated fat, the better. The saturated fat is usually due to the milk chocolate or any yogurt coating added to the bars. Saturated fat is the bad animal fats that we do not need a lot of, and most people eat too much. Dark chocolate is the best.
With these guidelines in mind, Alisa and Justin recommend the following:
-Prograde Bars - Packed with healthy fats your body needs and zero trans fats
No preservatives, Less than 200 calories so it’s THE perfect snack - Satisfies your chocolate craving with 100% Organic Dark Chocolate - Perfect (and safe) for kids and young athletes.
Three great flavors: Peanut Butter, Almond Butter and Spirulina
-Zone Perfect Fruitified bars (because they don’t have a chocolate/yogurt coating) – 190 calories, 14 grams of protein, 24 grams of carb (3 grams of fiber), 2.5 grams saturated fat
-Luna Toasted Nuts ‘n Cranberry bar (also no coating) – 180 calories, 10 grams of protein, 26 grams of carb (3 grams of fiber), 0.5 grams saturated fat
-Kashi Go Lean Crunchy! Bars – the Chocolate Almond flavor (some coating) – 170 calories, 27 grams of carb (5 grams of fiber), 8 grams of protein, 2.5 grams saturated fat
So remember, if you are “in a pinch” and need to eat a bar for one of your snacks, make sure you are following Alisa and Justin's suggestions to choose the best possible bar. This is especially important if weight loss is one of your goals, as some of the bars pack a lot of calories into very little space- there is a reason some of them taste like candy bars! Pay attention to the labels and find one you like that is also healthful.
Anytime you have any nutrition questions, feel free to post them to the blog where one of our nutrition experts can answer them for you. You can also check out the nutrition blog on a daily basis for recipes and tips.
Monday, July 13, 2009
How Much Calcium Is Too Much?
Getting to the heart of claims about calcium supplements
By Harvard Health
We seem to get more mail about calcium than any other nutrient. The questions and comments vary, but many reflect the same exasperation. On the one hand, we've been told to take calcium pills to keep bones strong, prevent osteoporosis and reduce the risk of fracture.
On the other, information seems to keep popping up that calls into question the value of calcium — and even suggests that large amounts might be counterproductive. Throw in the occasional query about calcium absorption and which calcium pills to take, and the mailbag — or, more literally, the e-mail inbox — gets full.
Here are some of the questions we get most often:
Q:How much calcium should I be getting?
A: The official recommendation is 1,000 milligrams (mg) a day for adults ages 19 to 50 and 1,200 mg for those past the half- century mark. Those amounts include calcium from all sources: dairy products, other food and drinks, and calcium supplements. But there's a dissenting point of view that 600 mg to 1,000 mg a day is sufficient, perhaps even more healthful. Dr. Walter C. Willett, chair of the Harvard School of Public Health and a member of the Health Letter's editorial board, is a leading voice among the dissidents.
Q: How much calcium am I getting if I don't take a supplement?
A: A reasonably good diet that includes some fruit and vegetables provides about 200 mg to 300 mg daily — and that's without any dairy products. A cup of milk adds another 300 mg, and the typical serving of many dairy products provides 150 mg or more (cheese lovers should go for the hard stuff — it has more calcium). So a well-rounded diet with some servings of milk and dairy products puts you well into the neighborhood of 600 mg to 800 mg a day.
Q: And what about the supplements — which type should I take?
A: This presupposes you should be taking a calcium supplement, but we'll deal with that question below.
Most calcium supplements are made with either calcium carbonate or calcium citrate. Calcium carbonate needs stomach acid to be absorbed, so if it is the source of calcium in your supplement (you may need to read the fine print) it's best to take it just after a meal. Calcium citrate isn't as dependent on stomach acid, so it can be taken any time. People taking medications that reduce stomach acid — such as the proton-pump inhibitors (Prevacid, Prilosec) or the H2 blockers (Tagamet, Zantac) — should take a calcium citrate supplement because lower amounts of stomach acid mean they won't absorb calcium carbonate properly.
The big advantage of calcium carbonate over calcium citrate is that it contains twice as much calcium. The labels on the bottles sometimes make it seem like both kinds of tablets provide the same amount of calcium, usually 500 mg to 600 mg. But that's the amount of calcium per "serving" and if you read the label you'll see that the serving size for the calcium citrate supplements is usually two tablets, but for the calcium carbonate supplements, it's just one.
It's a waste to double the serving size. The body can absorb a 500- or 600-mg dose, but more than that and absorption becomes inefficient. You'll get about the same amount of calcium by taking 1,000 mg as you would if you stuck with the 500 mg or 600 mg.
Harvard Health Letter: mailto:healthletter@hms.harvard.edu.
By Harvard Health
We seem to get more mail about calcium than any other nutrient. The questions and comments vary, but many reflect the same exasperation. On the one hand, we've been told to take calcium pills to keep bones strong, prevent osteoporosis and reduce the risk of fracture.
On the other, information seems to keep popping up that calls into question the value of calcium — and even suggests that large amounts might be counterproductive. Throw in the occasional query about calcium absorption and which calcium pills to take, and the mailbag — or, more literally, the e-mail inbox — gets full.
Here are some of the questions we get most often:
Q:How much calcium should I be getting?
A: The official recommendation is 1,000 milligrams (mg) a day for adults ages 19 to 50 and 1,200 mg for those past the half- century mark. Those amounts include calcium from all sources: dairy products, other food and drinks, and calcium supplements. But there's a dissenting point of view that 600 mg to 1,000 mg a day is sufficient, perhaps even more healthful. Dr. Walter C. Willett, chair of the Harvard School of Public Health and a member of the Health Letter's editorial board, is a leading voice among the dissidents.
Q: How much calcium am I getting if I don't take a supplement?
A: A reasonably good diet that includes some fruit and vegetables provides about 200 mg to 300 mg daily — and that's without any dairy products. A cup of milk adds another 300 mg, and the typical serving of many dairy products provides 150 mg or more (cheese lovers should go for the hard stuff — it has more calcium). So a well-rounded diet with some servings of milk and dairy products puts you well into the neighborhood of 600 mg to 800 mg a day.
Q: And what about the supplements — which type should I take?
A: This presupposes you should be taking a calcium supplement, but we'll deal with that question below.
Most calcium supplements are made with either calcium carbonate or calcium citrate. Calcium carbonate needs stomach acid to be absorbed, so if it is the source of calcium in your supplement (you may need to read the fine print) it's best to take it just after a meal. Calcium citrate isn't as dependent on stomach acid, so it can be taken any time. People taking medications that reduce stomach acid — such as the proton-pump inhibitors (Prevacid, Prilosec) or the H2 blockers (Tagamet, Zantac) — should take a calcium citrate supplement because lower amounts of stomach acid mean they won't absorb calcium carbonate properly.
The big advantage of calcium carbonate over calcium citrate is that it contains twice as much calcium. The labels on the bottles sometimes make it seem like both kinds of tablets provide the same amount of calcium, usually 500 mg to 600 mg. But that's the amount of calcium per "serving" and if you read the label you'll see that the serving size for the calcium citrate supplements is usually two tablets, but for the calcium carbonate supplements, it's just one.
It's a waste to double the serving size. The body can absorb a 500- or 600-mg dose, but more than that and absorption becomes inefficient. You'll get about the same amount of calcium by taking 1,000 mg as you would if you stuck with the 500 mg or 600 mg.
Harvard Health Letter: mailto:healthletter@hms.harvard.edu.
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