I can’t believe how quickly this year is going! Only 3 months until christmas, I haven’t got anything prepared!

As most of you know I am going to be away during October because I am GETTING MARRIED! I will be honeymooning in the Clare Valley and Melbourne, doing very un-naturopathic things like drinking wine. Don’t worry, I will be bringing my liver herbs with me. 😉

Are you getting your 5 and 2 everyday?

Australians Fail to Meet Daily Nutritional Requirements

The National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) recommends that adults eat 5 serves of vegetables and 2 serves of fruit every day. Are you getting your 5 and 2 each day? If your answer is no, then you are not alone. Results from Australia’s largest nutrition survey of over 13,000 Australians found many people are falling short of their daily requirements of fruits, vegetables and essential nutrients. In fact, around half of the Australian population aren’t consuming the recommended daily servings of fruits and vegetables, and over 25% of males and 50% of females did not meet their daily requirements for calcium. Findings also suggested that many people are missing out on vital minerals including magnesium, zinc, and iron

Spoilt for Choice

Why are so many people from a nation of prosperity lacking so many critical nutrients? Most Australians and New Zealanders have access to healthy food and the means to buy it. When faced with such abundance of food at the supermarket, many people are filling their trolleys with pre-packaged and processed foods. Only a small portion, if any, contain fresh fruits and vegetables. A low intake of plant-based foods is, in part, contributing to the prevalence of nutritional deficiencies in Australia.

In addition to a low fruit and vegetable intake, the way in which foods are grown and processed may also be contributing to the prevalence of nutritional deficiencies. For example, the soil in which many fruits and vegetables are grown is often deficient in minerals. This is compounded by modern food processing and cooking techniques, which can leach valuable nutrients from food before it hits the dinner plate. Therefore, not only are people eating a lower quantity of plant-based food, but the fruits and vegetables they are eating may also be of a poorer quality.

Photo by Thomas Le on Unsplash

Bridging the Nutritional Gap

Along with lifestyle modifications, support with herbal and nutritional supplements may bridge the gap between the current intakes of vitamins and minerals and the optimal levels required daily. Men and women have different nutritional requirements and as such, multivitamin formulas should be tailored to suit each gender’s specific requirements. If you are interested in this, I can recommend high quality multivitamin formulas that are specific to your individual needs.

Nutrition – Your Body Deserves it!

Taking a daily multivitamin is the first step to complementing your diet as part of a targeted nutrition plan. There are, however, further steps you can take to implement a more comprehensive, optimal nutrition strategy.

Step 1: Optimising Mineral Status

For those with additional nutritional requirements, add a high quality mineral formula containing therapeutic levels of magnesium, calcium, iron, zinc, iodine, chromium and potassium as part of a premium nutrition plan.

The practicalities of creating a multivitamin tablet make it impossible to physically fit high levels of minerals into a single tablet as it would literally be the size of a golf ball! As such, taking a separate mineral formula can be an effective way to ensure you are receiving therapeutic levels of key minerals important for many aspects of health, including structural support, antioxidant action, and healthy immunity.

Step 2: Superfoods for a Super-You!

You can improve a diet lacking adequate fruit and vegetables with a high quality whole food powder containing an array of organic fruits and vegetables. Fruit and vegetables not only provide essential vitamins and minerals, they also contain a variety of beneficial plant chemicals known as phytochemicals. Plants produce phytochemicals as a part of their defence mechanism, when they are exposed to stressors within the environment, in order to protect themselves.

Research now shows that when consumed by humans, these unique phytochemicals may also play a significant role in the benefits offered from regular fruit and vegetable consumption, including reduced risk of chronic disease such as cardiovascular disease. Your Practitioner can recommend a great tasting, high quality super food powder that is made from phytochemical-rich organic fruits and vegetables.

Laying the Foundations for optimal Health

Australia and New Zealand are countries with an abundant food supply, yet many people have nutritional deficiencies.

A mineral formula and super food powder can be taken alongside a high quality multivitamin as part of an optimal nutrition plan, to ensure you are providing your body with the essential nutrients for good health.

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