B Vitamins Linked to Reduction in Stroke, Heart Disease…. There’s more!
Japanese researchers recently released findings from a study suggesting:
- Folate and B-6 may reduce the risk of heart failure in men;
- The same vitamins seem to reduce the risk of death from stroke and heart disease in women.
But wait, there’s more.
B vitamins represent a very large, complex and powerful group of vitamins that can provide enormous benefit to overall health. The body uses B vitamins for many functions including:
- Energy production from carbohydrates;
- Learning and memory function through it’s role in the release of acetylcholine;
- Improving immune function and as an antioxidant;
- Better function of the nervous system and its repair;
- Production of hydrochloric acid and digestion;
- Cellular replication.
Even better the effects of B vitamins can be felt almost instantly. If you’re feeling stressed, angry or depressed just pop some extra B vitamins and watch the results. Same applies to carbohydrate metabolism, this is why the latest “healthy” energy drinks are nothing more than grape juice with a slug of B vitamins. The B vitamins help in the release of energy from the grape juice and hey presto… instant energy boost.
So considering how vital these are to optimum health, how do we go about improving our level of B vitamins? We’re really glad you asked!
Consume whole grains rather than processed grains. Whole grains are a very good source of B vitamins, however in most cases the B vitamins are predominantly in the hull of the grain. When these are refined to form white flour, white bread, most pasta’s and pastry goods the B vitamins are removed. In some cases refined products are “fortified” with additional vitamins and nutrients, however even with this fortification they are still no match for the original whole grain product.
Replace refined sugar with sweeteners such as stevia, maple syrup or agave syrup. Refined table sugar is considered an anti-nutrient and takes B vitamins from our bodies own store to assist in the digestion and energy release. Unprocessed products such as stevia, maple and agave syrup do not have this effect on the body.
Reduce coffee and tea intake, if you needed yet another reason. Coffee and tea work in two methods; firstly, they are potent diuretics that lead to excessive excretion of valuable nutrients including B vitamins. Secondly, it has been suggested that the tannins in coffee may interfere with the absorption and uptake of B vitamins from food.
Ensuring suitable B12 intake can require a little extra attention, especially for vegetarians. Most readily available sources of Vitamin B12 are meat based. Nutritional yeast and fortified products all contain vitamin B12 and a number of vitamin B12 supplements are available produced using the bacteria that form on plum and grape skins.
With a little thought increasing and maintaining B vitamin levels is a relatively easy matter. A little extra time may be required in preparation of food rather than a reliance on the processed variety. Your stomach and your health however, will thank you.
Passion4Health is a wellness clinic located in Browns Plains, Brisbane. At Passion4Health we focus on management and maintenance of optimum health through an integrated lifestyle approach.
Passion4Health provide diet and nutritional advice, massage, lymphatic drainage, iridology and live blood analysis.
Find out how you can reduce chronic disease and maintain optimum health by calling us now on 07 3800 1993.