What is calcium and vitamin D?
Calcium is one of the many minerals that you need to be healthy. Calcium is very important to ensure strong, healthy bones and teeth. It also helps muscles and nerves to work properly. In addition, calcium may help you to manage your weight and blood pressure, and play a role in preventing colon cancer. Vitamin D helps you to absorb and use calcium and has other health benefits.
How much calcium and vitamin D do I need?
Recommended Calcium Intake
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Age (Male and Female)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
0-6 months 210 mg/day
7-12 months 270 mg/day
1-3 years 500 mg/day
4-8 years 800 mg/day
9-18 years 1300 mg/day
19-50 years 1000 mg/day
Over 50 years 1200 mg/day
Recommended Vitamin D Intake
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Age (Male and Female)
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
0-1 year 400 IU/day
1-50 years 200 IU/day
51-70 years 400 IU/day
Over 70 years 600 IU/day
Note:
People with osteoporosis may need more calcium and vitamin D. Check with your doctor.
What foods contain calcium?
Breastfeeding is the best way to meet your baby's calcium needs. Infant formula provides calcium for babies who cannot be breastfed.
Dairy foods are very high in calcium, especially milk, yogurt and cheese. Other good sources include calcium-enriched orange juice, rice beverages, and soy beverages. For more information, see Food Sources of Calcium below.
What foods contain vitamin D?
There are only a few food sources of vitamin D. Good sources of vitamin D are fortified foods and beverages like milk, soy drinks, and margarine. Check the labels on these foods. Fish, liver, and egg yolk are the only foods that naturally contain vitamin D.
If you do not eat vitamin D rich foods often, you may want to consider taking a vitamin D supplement. Most multiple vitamin supplements contain vitamin D. Breastfed babies under 1 year of age need 400 IU of vitamin D from a supplement each day. People over 50 need extra vitamin D and should take 400 IU from a supplement each day.
Food Sources of Vitamin D
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Food Serving Vitamin D (IU)
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Milk 1 cup 100
Fortified rice or soy beverage 1 cup 80
Fortified orange juice 1/2 cup 45
Fortified margarine 2 tsp 51
Egg yolk 1 25
Herring or trout, cooked 75 g 156
Mackerel, cooked 75 g 80
Salmon, Atlantic, cooked 75 g 225
Salmon, canned or cooked* 75 g 608
Sardines, Atlantic, canned 75 g 70
Sardines, Pacific, canned 75 g 360
Tuna, canned, light or white 75 g 41
Tuna, canned, yellowfin (albacore, ahi) 75 g 105
Tuna, skipjack, cooked 75 g 381
Tuna, bluefin, cooked 75 g 690
*includes Chinook, Coho, Humpback (pink), Sockeye
What if I do not eat dairy foods?
Every day, choose a variety of foods from the Food Sources of Calcium list below. Plan your food choices carefully. If you find it difficult to get the recommended amounts of calcium and vitamin D from foods, a combination of food sources and supplements is recommended.
Food Sources of Calcium
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Dairy Foods Serving calcium (mg)
Milk, with added calcium 1 cup 430
Milk, whole, 2%, 1% skim 1 cup 300
Milk, evaporated 1/2 cup 367
Cheese, hard 50 gm 360 (average)*
Processed cheese spread 4 Tbsp 348
Cheese, processed slices 50 gm 276
Cottage cheese, 1 or 2% 2 cups 310
Cottage cheese, <0.1% 2 cups 156
Yogurt, plain 3/4 cup 290 (average)*
Yogurt, fruit bottom 3/4 cup 233 (average)*
Frozen yogurt, soft serve 1 cup 218
Ice cream 1 cup 194
*calcium content varies, check label
Beans and Bean Products Serving calcium (mg)
Tofu, medium firm or firm, made with calcium sulphate 150 gm 347
Tofu, firm, made with calcium sulphate and magnesium chloride 150 gm 234
White beans 3/4 cup 119
Navy beans 3/4 cup 93
Black turtle beans 3/4 cup 75
Pinto beans, chickpeas 3/4 cup 58
Nuts and Seeds Portion calcium (mg)
Tahini (sesame seed butter) 2 Tbsp 130
Almonds, dry roast 1/4 cup 93
Almond butter 2 Tbsp 88
Sesame seed kernels, dried 1/4 cup 50
Meats, Fish, and Poultry Serving calcium (mg)
Sardines, Atlantic, canned with bones 75 gm 286
Sardines, Pacific, canned with bones 75 gm 180
Salmon, canned with bones 75 gm 208
Grains Serving calcium (mg)
Bannock 1 med 84
Oats, instant, regular, no sugar added 1 pouch 165
Non Dairy Drinks Serving calcium (mg)
Fortified rice or soy beverage 1 cup 319**
Orange juice fortified with calcium and vitamin D 1/2 cup 165
Regular soy beverage 1 cup 110
**added calcium sometimes settles at the bottom of the container; shake well before drinking
Vegetables (all measures for cooked vegetables) Serving calcium (mg)
Turnip greens 1/2 cup 104
Chinese cabbage/bok choy 1/2 cup 84
Okra, frozen 1/2 cup 65
Mustard greens 1/2 cup 55
Kale 1/2 cup 49
Chinese broccoli (gai lan) 1/2 cup 46
Rutabaga 1/2 cup 43
Broccoli 1/2 cup 33
Fruit Serving calcium (mg)
Orange 1 med 52
Other Serving calcium (mg)
Brown sugar 1 cup 198
Blackstrap molasses 1 Tbsp 179
Regular molasses 1 Tbsp 44
Asian Foods Serving calcium (mg)
Dried fish, smelt 35 gm 560
Soy bean curd slab, semisoft 100 gm 308
Daylily flower 100 gm 303
Sea cucumber, fresh 100 gm 285
Soy bean milk film, stick shape 100 gm 77
Seaweed, Wakame, raw 1/2 cup 63
Seaweed, dry (agar) 1/2 cup 50
Fat-choy, dried 1/4 cup 50
Soy bean milk film, dried 100 gm 48
Boiled bone soup 1/2 cup negligible
November 23, 2008
November 10, 2008
Sunburn
If you have ever sunbathed, swum in tropical waters, had a summers picnic, or any one of a million ther activities, it is quite likely you have had sunburn - that itchy, painful, smarting ugly redness that tells us we have overdone it in the sun.
But, what is sunburn, what does it mean and what can we do about it?
When the suns rays strike the skin, they penetrate through the uppermost layer (the epidermis), which sonsists largely of dead, old skin cells, to the dermis, the living, growing part of the skin that creates new skin cells.
These young, newly-formed cells are particularly sensitive to sunlight, which, when over-exposed, can dehydrate them, damage the cell walls, leading to disease and even cause severe damage to the DNA of the cell itself, which is one of the recognised starting points of skin cancer. As the heat persists in the skin, it causes further damage, literally "cooking" these new skin cells as they emerge.
These different forms of irritation all require a healing response, whose design is to stop us from causing further damage, whilst giving the skin time to repair itself. If we continue to gets lots of sun exposure, the skin will gradually darken, increasing its melanin content in the form of a suntan to filter out some of the harmful rays and protect us from chronic skin damage.
The image on the felt, shows some of the damaged cells in sunburnt skin.
In the short-term, however, the result is sunburn - probably the single most effective way of getting us to keep out of the sun (the body is VERY clever like that :-)
Like many other problems, children's skin heals more quickly from sunburn, but is also less likely to contain protective melanin. As we age, the components of our skin change in the same way that other parts of our body do, generaly making them less efficient at what they do.
So what can you do about sunburn?
The most obvious point is not to get burnt in the first place, either by not getting overexposed, or by using a high-quality, reflective suncreen (unlike most sunscreens, which can actually CAUSE skin cancer), but that isn't always possible.
The vast majority of aftersun products concentrate on remoisturising the skin, helping dissipate the heat at the same time as soothing the pain and itching. Some traditional remedies such as lavender or aloe vera oil can actually reduce the extent of the burn as they do for conventional burns (tip - ALWAYS keep lavender oil in the kitchen - you'll be amazed at how effective it is on burns!), but do little to help the healing process.
Recently, however, new preparations have appeared that actually stimulate the healing process and help repair the DNA damage that can be so dangerous if left unchecked.
This is a remarkable advance on previous treatments and can actually halt the damage in its tracks, not only reducing the pain, swelling, redness and itchiness of sunburn, but also helping resolve the dangerous DNA damage that can be the start of skin cancer.
The visual results are just as impressive. In the images below, the left-hand photo is of a man who has developed sunburn after overexposure. The right-hand image is of the same man the next day after applying DNA repair creme the night before. As you can see, the results were dramatic and enabled him to venture out the next day, which his friends who had been equally burnt could not.
But, what is sunburn, what does it mean and what can we do about it?
When the suns rays strike the skin, they penetrate through the uppermost layer (the epidermis), which sonsists largely of dead, old skin cells, to the dermis, the living, growing part of the skin that creates new skin cells.
These young, newly-formed cells are particularly sensitive to sunlight, which, when over-exposed, can dehydrate them, damage the cell walls, leading to disease and even cause severe damage to the DNA of the cell itself, which is one of the recognised starting points of skin cancer. As the heat persists in the skin, it causes further damage, literally "cooking" these new skin cells as they emerge.
These different forms of irritation all require a healing response, whose design is to stop us from causing further damage, whilst giving the skin time to repair itself. If we continue to gets lots of sun exposure, the skin will gradually darken, increasing its melanin content in the form of a suntan to filter out some of the harmful rays and protect us from chronic skin damage.
The image on the felt, shows some of the damaged cells in sunburnt skin.
In the short-term, however, the result is sunburn - probably the single most effective way of getting us to keep out of the sun (the body is VERY clever like that :-)
Like many other problems, children's skin heals more quickly from sunburn, but is also less likely to contain protective melanin. As we age, the components of our skin change in the same way that other parts of our body do, generaly making them less efficient at what they do.
So what can you do about sunburn?
The most obvious point is not to get burnt in the first place, either by not getting overexposed, or by using a high-quality, reflective suncreen (unlike most sunscreens, which can actually CAUSE skin cancer), but that isn't always possible.
The vast majority of aftersun products concentrate on remoisturising the skin, helping dissipate the heat at the same time as soothing the pain and itching. Some traditional remedies such as lavender or aloe vera oil can actually reduce the extent of the burn as they do for conventional burns (tip - ALWAYS keep lavender oil in the kitchen - you'll be amazed at how effective it is on burns!), but do little to help the healing process.
Recently, however, new preparations have appeared that actually stimulate the healing process and help repair the DNA damage that can be so dangerous if left unchecked.
This is a remarkable advance on previous treatments and can actually halt the damage in its tracks, not only reducing the pain, swelling, redness and itchiness of sunburn, but also helping resolve the dangerous DNA damage that can be the start of skin cancer.
The visual results are just as impressive. In the images below, the left-hand photo is of a man who has developed sunburn after overexposure. The right-hand image is of the same man the next day after applying DNA repair creme the night before. As you can see, the results were dramatic and enabled him to venture out the next day, which his friends who had been equally burnt could not.
November 02, 2008
HIV AIDS
No-one can have escaped the controversy surrounding the recent decision by South Africa to provide anti-retroviral drugs to the massive number of HIV AIDS sufferers in that country. Many will consider this to be a victory for the HIV AIDS lobby in South Africa, but is it?
Or are we about to see a massive jump in AIDS deaths from the use of these dangerous, toxic drugs.
The following is a summary of what the public generally believes about AIDS today:
AIDS is a disease arising from an infection from the virus known as HIV.
The virus is spread in humans either through promiscuous, unprotected homosexual sex, through sexual contact with an HIV-infected member of the opposite sex, through the sharing of intravenous drug users' contaminated needles or through contaminated blood supplies.
Pregnant women who test positive can pass the virus on to their unborn child
HIV can also be transmitted to the baby outside of the womb through breast-feeding.
The AIDS test is a simple and accurate method of detecting HIV.
In the West, HIV infection is spreading among women and heterosexual men and is increasing exponentially every year.
Drugs are available to treat AIDS patients but they are very expensive. A new range of anti-HIV drugs, the 'protease inhibitors', are now believed to be more effective.
AIDS is devastating the Third World.
There is currently no cure for AIDS.
With the exception of AIDS drugs being expensive, everything you have just read in the above summary is ENTIRELY FALSE and has no scientific validity whatsoever.
In this astonishing new book, FIND OUT...
Why, in spite of the millions it has spent, medical science still cannot find and isolate a human immuno-deficiency virus (HIV)
Why AIDS is NOT a sexually transmitted syndrome
Why the HIV=AIDS=DEATH hypothesis is fraudulent
Why the 'AIDS test' routinely throws up 'false positives'
How a positive 'AIDS test' result is being used to traumatise patients and coerce them into taking highly toxic drugs
What REALLY is causing the immune suppression
How the man who 'popularised AIDS' was subsequently convicted of science fraud
Why Africa is NOT being devastated by HIV
The real story behind these African illnesses
The real story behind the Western-led AIDS 'agenda'
How 'AIDS sufferers' who learn the truth are curing themselves of HIV AIDS
Or are we about to see a massive jump in AIDS deaths from the use of these dangerous, toxic drugs.
The following is a summary of what the public generally believes about AIDS today:
AIDS is a disease arising from an infection from the virus known as HIV.
The virus is spread in humans either through promiscuous, unprotected homosexual sex, through sexual contact with an HIV-infected member of the opposite sex, through the sharing of intravenous drug users' contaminated needles or through contaminated blood supplies.
Pregnant women who test positive can pass the virus on to their unborn child
HIV can also be transmitted to the baby outside of the womb through breast-feeding.
The AIDS test is a simple and accurate method of detecting HIV.
In the West, HIV infection is spreading among women and heterosexual men and is increasing exponentially every year.
Drugs are available to treat AIDS patients but they are very expensive. A new range of anti-HIV drugs, the 'protease inhibitors', are now believed to be more effective.
AIDS is devastating the Third World.
There is currently no cure for AIDS.
With the exception of AIDS drugs being expensive, everything you have just read in the above summary is ENTIRELY FALSE and has no scientific validity whatsoever.
In this astonishing new book, FIND OUT...
Why, in spite of the millions it has spent, medical science still cannot find and isolate a human immuno-deficiency virus (HIV)
Why AIDS is NOT a sexually transmitted syndrome
Why the HIV=AIDS=DEATH hypothesis is fraudulent
Why the 'AIDS test' routinely throws up 'false positives'
How a positive 'AIDS test' result is being used to traumatise patients and coerce them into taking highly toxic drugs
What REALLY is causing the immune suppression
How the man who 'popularised AIDS' was subsequently convicted of science fraud
Why Africa is NOT being devastated by HIV
The real story behind these African illnesses
The real story behind the Western-led AIDS 'agenda'
How 'AIDS sufferers' who learn the truth are curing themselves of HIV AIDS
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