Vitamin B6 - an essential vitamin

Thursday 22nd April 2010 9:54am

studyVitamin B6 - an essential vitaminVitamin B6 is essential for the metabolism of carbohydrates, amino acids, and fats (lipids), as well as for normal nerve function and for the formation of red blood cells.

Vitamin B6 is a water-soluble vitamin that exists in three major chemical forms of which Pyridoxine Hydrochloride is the main form found in vitamins and supplements.

It performs a wide variety of functions in your body and is essential for your good health. For example, vitamin B6

Whilst Vitamin B6 has been suggested for treatment of a number of conditions there is only solid evidence for:

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The right amount of sleep

Thursday 8th April 2010 1:34pm

sleeping peopleHave you ever thought about how much sleep you really need and the impact this might have on your health?

Sleep is a naturally recurring state of relatively suspended sensory and motor activity, characterized by total or partial unconsciousness and the inactivity of nearly all voluntary muscles. Sleep is a heightened anabolic state, accentuating the growth and rejuvenation of the immune, nervous, skeletal and muscular systems.

Most of us probably have a routine that includes our ideal sleep and rest levels but don’t consider changing that to see what effect it might have on our overall health. That might just because you can’t! Your lifestyle might not permit that change. If it does consider some simple things to change that might really help your health.

It is often stated that and adult needs between 7 to 8 hours of sleep per day.

Older adults need a similar amount, but the sleep may be lighter and may include a brief nap during the day.

If you are consistently waking up

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Juniper Berries "I'll drink to that!"

Thursday 8th April 2010 12:54pm

juniper berryOfficially juniper is a herb with the botanical name Juniperus communis from the Cypress (Cupressaceae) family. Informally though we all have grown to know the juniper berry not by this name but because it is the plant that gives that long cool gin and tonic on a hot afternoon its distinctive flavour.

In supplements though the part used is the volatile oil extracted from the berries and not the fermented whole berry.

Records show the use of juniper berries back to biblical times and its principal use is in inflammatory disorders and fluid retention.

Juniper berries have particular nutrition qualities that also assist in maintaining good joint health. Vitamin C, sulphur and copper are found in useable quantities in the berries all of which play important roles.

The primary chemical constituents of this herb include essential oil (camphene, cineole, myrcene, pinene, terpinene), sesquiterpenes (cadinene, elemene), flavonoids, glycosides, tannins, podophyllotoxin and vitamin C.

Vitamin C a

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Celery Seed Oil

Monday 29th March 2010 9:57am

celeryEveryone knows and loves this classic vegetable. Its stalks have added flavour to soups and salads for years but did you know that the seeds of the celery plant have an even longer history as a medicinal herb?

Celery seed is rich in organic sodium which is very useful in rebalancing the minerals in and around arthritic joints, promoting recovery. Compounds in the seed also act as a very good mild diuretic which helps reduce the inflammation associated with most types of arthritis.

This diuretic action has been used for centuries in herbal remedies by the Chinese who also find it a useful treatment for headaches.

Of course it’s not just arthritic conditions that result in inflammation and fluid retention. Things like localised sporting injuries can lead to painful swelling which can be alleviated through the use of celery seed. Swelling of the ankles and calves is also common in people who spend the working day on their feet and also in long haul travellers because of the restrict

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High or Low Blood Pressure?

Thursday 18th March 2010 9:21am

blood pressureBlood pressure (BP) is a force exerted by circulating blood on the walls of blood vessels, and is one of the principal vital signs.

Your blood pressure rises and falls during the day but when it stays either elevated or low your health may be at risk.

Low blood pressure

If it is lower than normal then it is called low blood pressure or hypotension.

When arterial pressure and blood flow decrease beyond a certain point, the perfusion of the brain becomes critically decreased (i.e., the blood supply is not sufficient), causing light headedness, dizziness, weakness or fainting.

Excessively low blood pressure may result from a number of different causes. It may be due to reduced cardiac output resulting from a faulty heart valve, abnormal heart rhythms, pulmonary embolism, the weakening of the heart muscle following a heart attack (myocardial infarction), or generalised weakness of the heart muscle due to cardiomyopathy.

It may also result from reduced blood volume (such as might occur thro

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Body Mass Index (BMI) Explained

Monday 15th March 2010 10:39am

bmiThe Body Mass Index (BMI) is a statistical measure that calculates the ratio of a person’s weight and height.

Beware of statements like” Body Mass Index is used to estimate your total amount of fat”. As you can see below that is simply not true.

BMI is defined as the individual's body weight divided by the square of his or her height. The formulae universally used to produce a unit of measure of kilograms per height in metres squared. You can calculate it or read it from a number of readily available charts.

BMI = Mass (kg) / Height (m)2

The resulting BMI is then used to determine statistically where you are at:

Because of its simplicity the BMI has become a common tool to determine whether someone is underweight or overweight. Within this simplicity there are also some limitations:

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Zinc - often overlooked

Thursday 11th March 2010 9:09am

zinc

When most people think of Zinc they think of old fashioned fences and old gutters in need of a paint but did you know that  Zinc is one of those humble trace elements that we should never be without.

Zinc is found in every cell of the body and is essential for health and well being.

The Australian RDI for Zinc is:

A wide variety of foods contain zinc. Oysters contain more zinc per serving than any other food, but red meat and poultry provide the majority of zinc in the diet. Other good food sources include beans, nuts, certain types of seafood (such as crab and lobster), whole grains, fortified breakfast cereals, and dairy products.

Phytates—which are present in whole-grain breads, cereals, legumes, and other foods—bind zinc and inhibit its absorption. Thus, the bioavailability of zinc from grains and plant foods is lower than that from animal foods, although many grain- and plant-based foods are still good sources of zinc

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Regularly irregular?

Monday 1st March 2010 9:14am

fibreThere are many reasons why people may find that their bowel motions become irregular, some temporary and some not. It is important to realise too that what is regular for one person may not be for another.

As a rule the transit time between eating something and the waste products from that meal being excreted is roughly 24 hours so it stands to reason that the “average” person will have one to two motions every day.

This assumes that the “average” person eats a balanced diet complete with adequate fibre. Many people, typically the elderly, eat diets that are very low in fibre consequently there isn’t much left over from their diet that isn’t absorbed. This means that their motions are often smaller, less well formed and often irregular.

Apart from the effect of advancing years and changing diet on regularity there are a variety of temporary causes of constipation including :

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Magnesium - an often overlooked mineral!

Thursday 18th February 2010 2:33pm

magnesiumMagnesium is the fourth most abundant mineral in the body and is essential to good health yet, we often pay it very little attention.

Every organ in the body - especially the heart, muscles, and kidneys - needs the mineral magnesium. It also contributes to the makeup of teeth and bones. Most important, it activates enzymes, contributes to energy production, and helps regulate calcium levels as well as copper, zinc, potassium, vitamin D, and other important nutrients in the body.

Magnesium is needed for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body. It helps:

The Australian RDI for adults is:

Men

Women

Food sources of magnesium include:

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Pass the salt please?

Thursday 28th January 2010 2:46pm

saltIt used to be the conventional wisdom that salt was ‘bad’ for you and for some people excess salt should certainly be avoided but not for everyone.

People with unstable blood pressure problems usually are asked by their doctors to try and reduce salt intake because it tends to make people retain fluid and hence puts upward stress on your blood pressure.

Still others with poor renal function are advised to limit salt intake for the same reason because the kidneys are the body’s main organ for regulating fluid balance so if they are already struggling to cope reducing salt can give them a bit of a break.

What about the rest of us?

Well like most things in life ‘all things in moderation’.

It is generally agreed that salt in cooking, for example when boiling rice or pasta, is acceptable but we should try and avoid adding extra salt when at the dinner table. For most people this is an acceptable compromise where they get the flavour enhancement of some salt wit

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