In this post we are continuing our discussion of the Elements of Nutrition… Last time we talked about Water, Protein and Fats so today we are going to look at Carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals and why they matter and the best sources.
Ready? Lets go!
Carbohydrates
If you’re anything like me, you love carbs. Give me all the (gluten free) bread, pretzels and cake please.
Carbs aren’t something that make up a large portion of our physical body like water, protein or fats. If you remember the chart from the “Elements of Nutrition – Part 1”, they make up about 2% of our body. They do have important jobs and are a source of energy for many functions within the body.
Carbs are necessary for brain fuel, they provide quick energy for muscles, and regulate the absorption of fats and proteins (we need all three, but different ratios work for different people). They work together with the fat and protein to fight infections, promote tissue growth, and lubricate our joints. Oh and they are a source of fiber to help with elimination (don’t worry we will talk all about poop at some point).
There are “good” and “bad” carbs.
Now a quick note that I should have mentioned before – I don’t subscribe to morality around food. But there are foods that support health and vitality and foods that don’t. This looks different for everyone. For example – I don’t do well with gluten (sadly) but that doesn’t mean I think everyone should go gluten free. A lot of people tolerate it just fine. So when I say a food is “good” or “bad” I’m referring to whether it generally supports our health or doesn’t. Also, eating one way or another doesn’t make a person better or worse than someone else.
Ok that’s out of the way…Carbs. Most carbs that we consume should be unrefined and complex. They can mostly be found in nature and come with a lot of other nutrients that support life and health. We want to eat lots of veggies, fruit, grains and legumes. So put simply, plants!
Now for the “bad” carbs, these are the refined carbs that are overly processed and stripped of the nutrients that support the body. They actually deplete the body’s reserves of vital nutrients. So instead of providing nutrients to the body through our diet, we are taking nutrients away when we eat these foods.
So…what should we be avoiding?
- Refined sugar such as high fructose corn syrup, agave, white sugar.
- Refined grains (e.g. white bread and pasta)
- Packaged foods – these usually have added sugars and highly refined ingredients.
Here is a quick (simplified) example: White Sugar vs Sugar cane. Our bodies need nutrients like magnesium, calcium and others to digest sugar. Sugar cane has all those nutrients in it so if we were to eat sugar cane we would have the resources necessary to digest it without dipping into the stores within the body. When we eat processed white sugar, those nutrients are stripped away and we have to use the stores within our body to digest it. You can see why it could be a problem if we are pulling calcium from our bones to digest sugar.
Now we can move on to VITAMINS!
This is more than just your multi-vitamin. Although they can play a role. It really is best to get your nutrients from your diet, but that is not always possible. Let’s take a look at some vitamin basics.
Vitamins are an important support system for the body. But the good news is, if you already eat a varied nutritions diet of healthy fats, proteins and carbs, you’re probably getting a lot of the vitamins (and minerals) you need from your diet. They work in tandem with other nutrients to best support your health.
Things they support:
- metabolic processes
- immune function
- digestion
- tissue growth
- overall health and vitality
There are two types, fat soluble and water soluble. If a vitamin is fat soluble, you need fat to absorb it so it’s important to take any supplements along with a fat source.
- Fat Soluble Vitamins include Vitamin A, D, E & K
- Water Soluble Vitamins include B vitamins, Vitamin C, Inositol and choline
Minerals
Whoop whoop! This is the last nutrient we are gonna talk about today.
They are super important and all that remains when plant or animal tissue is burned. We must get them from our diet, our body cannot synthesize them. There are 103 known minerals and 18 of them are necessary for health. We can get minerals from different sources, our diet (if you are eating a nutritious whole food diet – there is little evidence that our bodies can absorb the vitamins and minerals used to “fortify” our processed food), bone broth, unrefined sea salt, and mineral rich water.
Now again there are two types of minerals, Macro Minerals and Micro Minerals.
- Macro Minerals are the ones you may actually think of as vitamins because they are often in supplements, Calcium, Magnesium, Sodium, Potassium, etc.
- Micro Minerals are usually less well known but you have probably heard of them, iodine, zinc, silicone, etc. And if you’re a woman, you’ve probably had your iron tested.
So what do minerals do?
Well probably the most obvious role is providing structure for our bodies. They play a huge role in our bones. They also make sure other nutrients are where they are supposed to be, facilitate communication between cells, help muscles contract and relax and regulate serum PH among other things.
That brings us to the end of our discussion of Nutrition. Many of the topics we went over will have their own in depth discussion as we continue to go through the foundations that I use with my clients. I’m excited… and I hope you are too.
