Posts Tagged ‘vitamins’

After a crazy week and an extremely delayed flight last night, I finally made it back to Omaha, NE to visit my family for the holiday weekend. We started off the morning with a trip to the Benson Farmers Market, where I had my first shot of fresh wheatgrass juice and a taste of sunflower sprouts! The wheatgrass had a sweet honey after-taste, which was a pleasant surprise! Click here for more information about wheatgrass.

One vendor at the market was selling sunflower sprouts, which I’ll admit, I had never seen/heard of people selling before. Apparently they clip the sprouts of the sunflower after about 6 weeks of growth and sell them to mix in with salads or toss in a juicer. I had the opportunity to sample one – the little green leaves and stem had a slightly nutty flavor to them similar to sunflower seeds, it was delicious!

Sunflower greens or sprouts are considered to be a super food because they contain protein, vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin E, calcium, iron, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, and zinc. I will have to be on the lookout for these little guys at the farmers markets in Chicago! I eventually came home from the market with garlic, green onions, and Chinese spinach (more on this later) in hand; all to use tomorrow at the July 4th barbeque!

After the farmers market it was time to harvest some mulberries. Every summer wild mulberries grow in my neighborhood, and this year the crop was quite abundant! I ended up picking about a quart of them! In addition to using them on top of my breakfast cereal and in smoothies I think the plan is to either bake some into muffins or a pie this year!

Mulberries grow wild throughout the United States and are often overlooked when it comes to summertime berries. Like blackberries and raspberries, mulberries are packed with nutrients and provide numerous health benefits. Mulberries are a great source of vitamins and minerals including vitamin C, vitamin K, vitamin B, iron, fiber, phosphorus, magnesium, and potassium.

Mulberries contain antioxidants that help lower cholesterol, aid in treating digestive problems, and help to prevent cancer, blood clots, and diabetes. If you have a wild mulberry tree in your neighborhood, harvest the berries between May and July and reap the great benefits mother nature has to offer us!

sources: image 1, image 2

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Happy Derby Day! I hope everyone is planning to watch the 136th Kentucky Derby and cheer on their favorite horse! Last year I did my very first blog post on Derby Day (Eat Chic is officially 1 year old!)! Check out a great recipe for Mint Juleps here!

I recently bought some Spirulina powder at my Whole Foods to add to my morning fruit and vegetable smoothies! For those of you who may not be familiar with it, spirulina is a microscopic blue-green algae that lives in both sea water and fresh water environments.

Spirulina is commonly used as a human dietary supplement available in tablet, flake, and powder form. It has grown in popularity, especially among vegetarians, due to its numerous nutritional benefits.

Spirulina is a complete protein (meaning it contains all essential amino acids – those that your body cannot make on its own and must get from diet) and is rich in essential fatty acids such as omega-3’s. Spirulina is a great source of a vitamins including vitamin B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), B3, B6, B9, vitamin C, vitamin D, vitamin E, and vitamin B12 (found mostly in animal products such as meat). Spirulina is also high in minerals such as potassium, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium, and zinc.

Some of the health claims associated with spirulina that I came across in my research claimed that spirulina decreases stress, betters eyesight, reduces cholesterol, decreases food cravings, increases diabetic control, increases mental alertness, strengthens the immune system, and improves wound healing.

I was drawn to spirulina because of its superior vitamin and mineral content. I only bought a small amount to try at first; spirulina can get pricey! I paid about $2.50 for this small bag of spirulina (probably about 5-6 tablespoons). It has a dark green color, a slight fishy smell, but doesn’t really have much of a taste; so adding 1 tablespoon of it to a breakfast smoothie is the perfect way to start the morning!

sources: picture 1, picture 2, picture 3

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February is the month for vitamin C!

What is Vitamin C?

Vitamin C, also called ascorbic acid, is our very first vitamin of the month that is a water-soluble vitamin! Up until now, we have only discussed fat-soluble vitamins. Water-soluble vitamins are found in the watery compartments of foods and fat-soluble vitamins are found in the fats and oils of foods. Upon absorption, water-soluble vitamins move directly into the blood whereas fats must first enter the lymph (a clear yellowish fluid that circulates the body similar to blood that functions in fat transport) before reaching the blood. The body stores fat-soluble vitamins for your body to use over time as needed. Water-soluble vitamins on the other hand are not stored like fat-soluble vitamins and therefore we must consume foods containing them more regularly.

What are the health benefits of Vitamin C?

Vitamin C works as an antioxidant in the body to defend against free radicals. Still unsure about what antioxidants are? Click here to learn more. As an antioxidant, vitamin C protects the body from oxidative stress and thus may play a role in preventing disease. Vitamin C also helps to form collagen in the body. Collagen is what makes up your tendons, ligaments, scar tissue, and the foundation for your bones and teeth.

While many people believe that vitamin C is the cure for the common cold, research reveals only a modest benefit. It has been found that a daily dose of vitamin C can reduce the duration of a cold by only about a day. However, vitamin C does act as an antihistamine to relieve nasal congestion. So whether or not one day without a cold warrants routine daily supplementation is a matter of personal opinion.

How much Vitamin C is recommended?

It is recommended that women consume 75 mg/day and men consume 90 mg/day of vitamin C. To put this into perspective, 1 cup of orange juice provides greater than 100 mg of vitamin C. It is easier than you might think to get an adequate daily dose of vitamin C! As mentioned above (and contrary to popular belief), research shows that hyper-dosing on vitamin C will not prevent you from getting sick; the body will excrete excess vitamin C in the urine. Large doses of vitamin C (more than 2000 mg/day) can cause nausea, abdominal cramps, and diarrhea.

What foods are good sources of Vitamin C?

Any type of citrus fruit is high in vitamin C (oranges, lemons, limes, etc.) Broccoli, strawberries, red bell pepper, kiwi, Brussels sprouts, and potatoes are also excellent sources of vitamin C. Drink a glass of orange juice for breakfast, have a salad for lunch, or some broccoli for dinner and you will easily meet the daily recommendations for vitamin C!

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Can you believe it is already September! Summer has sadly come to and end. But, look on the bright side, Eat Chic gets to share a new vitamin of the month with you! September is the month for Vitamin E!

Like vitamin A and D, vitamin E is a fat soluble vitamin. It also acts as an antioxidant to defend against free radicals! Check out the Importance of Antioxidants post to learn more about why this is important for your body. Vitamin E reduces the risk of heart disease because it protects LDL cholesterol against oxidation (limiting plaque build-up in arteries) and reduces inflammation.

It is extremely rare that you would see a vitamin E deficiency in humans unless disease or fat malabsorption (such as in those with cystic fibrosis) are present. However, when talking about fat soluable vitamins we always want to be aware of toxicity. Vitamin E supplements are extremely common today and consumers take them to protect thmselves against chronic disease like heart disease. The recommended intake of vitamin E for adults is 15 miligrams (30 IU) a day, but most people (especially smokers) fall short. So, even with the presence of supplements on today’s market,  vitamin E toxicity is rare. While toxicity is rare it is important to not that extremely high dosages of vitamin E will interfere with blood-clotting and may lead to hemorrhaging.

Studies have shown that people who regularly consume foods rich in vitamin E have less plaque build up in their arteries and are thererfore at a decreased risk for cardiovascular disease. So where can you get your daily dose of vitamin E? Vitamin E is present in food items high in polyunsaturated plant oils:

• Oils (vegetable, olive, canola, sunflower, safflower oil) 
• Wheat Germ
• Seeds
• Nuts
• Margarine and Shortening
• Salad dressings
• Liver
• Fatty Meats
• Egg Yolks
• Leafy green vegetables
• Whole grains

So cook your meals with vegetable oils and snack on some nuts to reap the benefits of vitamin E and protect your heart from disease today!Enjoy this post? Share it with your Facebook friends!

Early mornings call for Amazing Grass GREEN Superfood! 

It is the perfect addition to a morning smoothie to give you that extra boost and get you going!

Eat Chic has tried all of the Amazing Grass Meal and Superfood flavors and is pleased to report back that Amazing Grass is now a staple in my cupboard (with the original and chocolate flavors being my favorites!). Try Amazing Grass products for yourself and let Eat Chic know what you think!Enjoy this post? Share it with your Facebook friends!