Reasons Why Chromium Helps Your Weight Loss
Chromium is a mineral, also described as an essential trace element. It comes in two main forms, hexavalent and trivalent. Hexavalent is the form that is used in pigments, dyes, plastics, and ink.
It is not safe to handle directly and can cause skin irritations. Hexavalent chromium is one of the strongest minerals on earth. It is toxic and cannot be safely absorbed. It is to be avoided unless in industrial use.
Trivalent is the form that is found in healthy foods. It is the form that our bodies need. Our bodies are not able to produce chromium and must consume an outside source.
It is a trace element because we do not need much of it to perform that tasks it is designed to do. The lack of chromium can affect the ability to lose weight.
Who May Be At Risk For A Nutrient Deficiency
For those who eat a healthful diet, a multivitamin may have little or no benefit. A diet that includes plenty of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, good protein sources, and healthful fats should provide most of the nutrients needed for good health. But not everyone manages to eat a healthful diet. When it comes to specific vitamins and minerals, some Americans get less than adequate amounts, according to criteria set by the National Academy of Medicine. For example, more than 90% of Americans get less than the Estimated Average Requirement for vitamin D and vitamin E from food sources alone.
Certain groups are at higher risk for a nutrient deficiency:
A note on vitamin D
Top 10 Best Natural Supplements For Weight Loss
Most people have lived with extra body weight at one point in life, and know how difficult it is to sustain healthy weight loss. Ready to explore natural supplements for weight loss?
Of course, healthy,natural weight loss comes from a well-rounded diet and exercise routine, not commercial weight loss pills. Although, principles of integrative medicine can help support different hormones, neurotransmitters, and metabolic reactions that work with your individual physiology.This will help you burn fat more efficiently.
Experts at CentreSpringMD, the Atlanta areas leading integrative medicine center are here to provide medical advice on healthy weight loss.
Check out these superfoods, amino acids, and special botanicals that help people lose weight naturally.
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What Vitamins Do I Need To Lose Weight
If youve been thinking about taking vitamins to lose weight, we have some great news for you: There are a few vitamins out there that may help you reach your weight-loss goals. As you probably know already, no one vitamin will be a magic pill for weight loss, but ingesting the vitamins in whole foods can be especially beneficial, according to dietitian Keri Glassman of Nutritious Life. A diet rich in whole foods will be loaded with vitamins that naturally act as antioxidants in the body helping to reduce inflammation, she says, adding that supplementing vitamins cant hurt.
Keep in mind that a healthy vitamin intake is just one piece of the weight-loss puzzle. Shedding extra pounds can cut your risk of diabetes, heart disease, stroke, and joint pain by 50 percent, so its no wonder more than half of us say losing weight is our top health goal. The great news: You can pare those pounds and keep them off without going hungry by using the latest research-backed steps to weight-loss success.
Important: Always check with your doctor before starting a new supplement.
Dietary Supplements For Older Adults
Dietary supplements can be beneficial at any age, but they can also have unwanted side effects, such as unsafe prescription drug interactions. They could also not work at all.
Its important to understand the supplements you are taking and why you are taking them. Talk with your doctor if you are considering taking a supplement.
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Focus On Healthy Foods
Gaining weight isn’t just about calories. You can eat pizza all day and get a lot of extra calories, but you’re also going to get a lot of saturated fat and simple carbs, both of which can wreak havoc on your health. If you are working on fixing a nutrient deficiency, it is especially important to eat foods rich in that nutrient. For example:
If you are low in vitamin C, eat red and green bell peppers, citrus fruits, kiwi, strawberries, Brussels sprouts, cantaloupe and cauliflower.
If you are low in vitamin B12, eat clams, liver, trout, salmon, milk, cheese and fortified cereals.
If you are low in folate, eat beef liver, spinach, asparagus, Brussels sprouts, lettuce, avocado, broccoli and fortified cereals.
In general, a healthy weight gain diet should include whole foods, including: carbohydrates from fruits, vegetables and whole grains protein from fish, chicken, beans and dairy and healthy fats from avocados, olive oil, nuts and seeds. The latter category should definitely be high on your weight gain foods list because fats are higher in calories than carbs and protein. Adding these to your meals can help you increase the calorie content.
If you are having trouble getting enough calories through solid foods, you can try adding some nutrient-rich smoothies, including ingredients such as full-fat yogurt, nuts and seeds, avocado and coconut oil. You can also try eating several smaller meals per day instead of three large meals.
What Vitamins Best Support Weight Loss Goals
If you are considering a weight-loss program you should also be taking vitamins to supplement what your restrictive diet might be missing. These are some of the most important vitamins that your body needs when it is going through the process of shedding weight. In fact, specific vitamin deficiencies can slow down or prevent weight loss. Check your multi-vitamin to make sure you are getting all of these key components:
Vitamin A: This vitamin helps to support the genes that keep food from storing up as fat, thereby reducing the size of fat cells.
Vitamin B3: B3 is important during the weight-loss process as it increases the bodies rates of adiponectin, which is an important weight loss hormone secreted by fat cells.
Vitamin D: Vitamin D is a powerhouse when it comes to weight loss. An ample amount leads to better metabolism of carbohydrates.
Vitamin E: E is tasked with stopping pre-fat cells from transitioning into mature fat cells, which leads to lower levels of body fat.
Vitamin K: Low levels of vitamin K have been associated with increased fat tissue. The Stanford study showed that several of the most popular weight-loss programs left dieters with insufficient vitamin K levels.
Calcium: The mineral calcium works with vitamin D to help you shed fat. It is stored in fat cells, and studies have shown that the more calcium a fat cell has, the more fat that cell will release to be burned.
Also Check: How Much Vitamin C Per Day
What The Experts Do
Healthy Food Instead of Supplements
I dont take any supplements routinely, says Larry Appel, M.D., director of the Johns Hopkins Welch Center for Prevention, Epidemiology and Clinical Research. I try to eat three healthy meals a day to get the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients I need. How he does it:
- Plenty of produce. I aim for two or more servings of fruits or vegetables at every meal, he says. I enjoy salads and have one for lunch or dinner several times a week.
- Low-fat dairy and whole grains. Low-fat or fat-free milk and yogurt provide calcium, magnesium, potassium and other nutrients, he says. I have cereal with milk for breakfast a few times a week. And I have yogurt sometimes too.
- Protein. At home we usually have fish or chicken for dinner. I am not a vegetarian rather, I eat minimal meat, Appel says. Some fish, such as salmon, are a good source of healthful omega-3 fatty acids.
The Ups And Downs Of Weight Loss
If youve tried something like the grapefruit juice diet, cabbage soup diet, baby food diet, a cleanse, or a detox, you probably know that fad diets dont really work. The most effective strategy for losing weight is to eat less and move more. Do that and youll start seeing the pounds peel off consistently, says New York-based registered dietitian and health expert Joy Bauer, author of several books, including Joy Bauers Superfood!: 150 Recipes for Eternal Youth. As you do this, also consider adding a multivitamin/mineral supplement to ensure youre covered if you happen to have any nutritional gaps, particularly in any vitamin or mineral that may contribute to metabolism. Its like a nutritional insurance policy. Some potential vitamin or mineral shortfalls may be sabotaging your weight loss efforts may. We spoke with medical experts to identify vitamins and supplements that may help you achieve your weight loss goals.
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Calories To Gain Weight
Whether or not you have had a nutrient deficiency that has caused weight loss, your diet is the most important factor in gaining weight. Consistently not meeting your daily calorie needs can cause you to enter a calorie deficit, in which your body is burning more calories than you are consuming. This causes the breakdown of both fatty acids and lean muscle mass, resulting in weight loss.
If you are not sure how many calories you need to gain weight, it’s important to talk to your doctor. Calorie requirements are individual and depend on gender, age activity level and other factors such as genetics, medications and medical conditions.
You can get a rough idea of your calorie needs to maintain your weight using estimates from the Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2015-2020. For example, moderately active men between the ages of 26 and 45 need 2,600 calories per day, and moderately active women in the same age group need 2,000 calories per day. Being moderately active means you engage in physical activity equivalent to walking 1.5 to 3 miles per day at a pace of 3 to 4 miles per hour. This is in addition to your activities of daily living.
A good goal is to start with a modest increase of 250 to 500 calories per day, then increase it as necessary over a period of weeks or months. Gaining weight slowly will help you avoid putting on a lot of fat, especially if you are engaging in an exercise regimen including resistance training.
Should You Take Dietary Supplements
A Look at Vitamins, Minerals, Botanicals and More
When you reach for that bottle of vitamin C or fish oil pills, you might wonder how well theyll work and if theyre safe. The first thing to ask yourself is whether you need them in the first place.
More than half of all Americans take one or more dietary supplements daily or on occasion. Supplements are available without a prescription and usually come in pill, powder or liquid form. Common supplements include vitamins, minerals and herbal products, also known as botanicals.
People take these supplements to make sure they get enough essential nutrients and to maintain or improve their health. But not everyone needs to take supplements.
Its possible to get all of the nutrients you need by eating a variety of healthy foods, so you dont have to take one, says Carol Haggans, a registered dietitian and consultant to NIH. But supplements can be useful for filling in gaps in your diet.
Some supplements may have side effects, especially if taken before surgery or with other medicines. Supplements can also cause problems if you have certain health conditions. And the effects of many supplements havent been tested in children, pregnant women and other groups. So talk with your health care provider if youre thinking about taking dietary supplements.
Theres little evidence that any supplement can reverse the course of any chronic disease, says Hopp. Dont take supplements with that expectation.
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Tips On Use And Storage
Always check with your doctor first, especially about how much to take, Jones advises. Good rules to follow include:
- Dont go over your recommended Daily Value for vitamins and minerals unless your doctor says its OK.
- Multivitamins dont have 100% of your DV for calcium or magnesium. You may need a separate supplement.
- Buy brands with USP, NSF, or another third-party seal of approval.
It may be easier to remember to take your vitamins if you keep them in your bathroom. But light, moisture, and medicine can make a poor combo. Keep your supplements somewhere cool and dry, such as on your dresser.
What Is A Dietary Supplement
Dietary supplements are substances you might use to add nutrients to your diet or to lower your risk of health problems such as osteoporosis or arthritis. Dietary supplements come in the form of pills, capsules, powders, gel capsules and tablets, extracts, or liquids. They might contain vitamins, minerals, fiber, amino acids, herbs or other plants, or enzymes. Sometimes, the ingredients in dietary supplements are added to foods and drinks. A doctors prescription is not needed to buy dietary supplements.
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How Can Chromium Help With Weight Loss
There are people who workout and see little to no results. Your workout regimen may not be the cause. There may be a deeper cause at the cellular level.
One common problem is insulin resistance. Insulin resistance can lead to a prediabetic state and eventually type two diabetes. One of the major causes is the lack of chromium in the diet.
A healthy diet always accompanies an exercise regimen. It is great to be healthy. More importantly, it is essential to provide the nutrients your body needs.
When the body has the correct nutritional balance, it can perform at optimal levels. Good fuel helps to repair the muscles. It can also reduce hunger. Getting the correct nutrients may cause the body to stop seeking food to fill the void.
Chromium is one of the essential nutrients that the body needs. Eating healthy food is good. It is pointless if the body is unable to utilize it for energy. Chromium has a specific job to do with this process.
When we eat our digestive system turns the food into glucose. The glucose is the main fuel source of every cell in our bodies. Once it is broken down, it is then sent into the bloodstream to feed our cells.
Too much glucose in the blood can cause damage to the blood vessels. It causes oxidative stress. This type of damage may lead to atherosclerosis. It is the reason that persons with diabetes are at an increased risk of heart disease and stroke.
What Does Science Say About The Nutritional Value Of Weight Loss Programs
In a 2010 study researchers looked into the underlying health levels associated with commercial weight loss programs. They published their findings in an eye-opening article, Micronutrient quality of weight-loss diets that focus on macronutrients: results from the A TO Z study.
The study took an investigative look into the overall micronutrient quality of many weight-loss diets and programs. This means that they wanted to know if people adhering to these diets were getting all the vitamins and minerals they need to be healthy while losing weight. They compared overweight women randomly assigned to one of four popular commercial diets that varied primarily in macronutrient distribution . The diets evaluated were Atkins, Zone, LEARN , and the Ornish diet. Their nutrient levels were compared between the four groups at 8 weeks and within each group at 8 weeks to see if any of the groups were at risk of micronutrient inadequacy. While some diets had lower risk of inadequacy, all groups showed some sort of deficiency in things like vitamins A, B-12, C, E, and K, thiamine, folic acid, iron, magnesium and zinc.
What they are saying is that while these diets show good results with weight loss, they can potentially lead to inadequate levels of certain vitamins and minerals. The simple act of taking a high quality supplement can help support weight loss and keep your body healthy.
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Can Vitamin D Help You Lose Weight
The correlation between low vitamin D and weight gain is unquestionable. But can vitamin D help you shed some weight and perhaps keep it off? If evidence from a series of recent studies is something to go by, then yes â vitamin D supplementation can indeed improve your likelihood of losing weight and decreasing body/belly fat.
In one double-blinded study involving 218 obese and overweight female participants, all of whom were on an exercise program and calorie-limited diet, 114 were given a vitamin D supplement while the rest was the control group. At the end of the 12-month study, scientists discovered that participants who met their vitamin D requirements lost more weight than those who had lower-than-required blood levels.
The findings of the above study were backed by another 2018 clinical trial whose results were published in theInternational Journal of Preventive Medicine. In this study in which similarly obese and overweight women were put on a vitamin D supplement treatment for six weeks, researchers noted a significant reduction in the BMIs, waist circumference, and overall weight.
Scientific corroboration
Together, these studies reiterated an earlier assumption about low vitamin D and weight gain. In particular, they suggest that vitamin D supplementation may, as part of a weight loss regimen combined with exercise, improve the chances of weight loss success.
The role of hormones
The advantage of lowering blood cholesterol
