Woman Power at Betsy’s

As I see it, every day you do one of two things: build health or produce disease in yourself. Adelle Davis

Adelle Davis, one of the forerunners in writing about different ways to think about nutrition, became famous for her stances for unprocessed foods and supplementation, among other things. Her legacy can still be felt in the health foods industry today.

And these articles on a variety of issues concerning women’s health just may be important to the women in your life:

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Feeling Better

Nutrients cut symptoms of PMS in a new study

Omega-3s, soy isoflavones, rosemary, and B vitamins

Several earlier individual studies found that omega-3s, soy isoflavones, rosemary extract, and B-complex vitamins helped reduce symptoms of PMS. Doctors wanted to combine the most helpful nutrients in a three-month test to see if results improved.

In this study, 29 women, average age 27, took a combination of nutrients and reported changes in levels of 10 common PMS symptoms after three months.

The supplement included the omega-3s EPA and DHA, with 84 mg and 39 mg, respectively, 40 mg of soy isoflavones, 100 mg of rosemary extract, 2.8 mg of vitamin B1, 3.2 mg of vitamin B2, and 4 mg of vitamin B6, which participants took twice per day with meals.

On average overall after three months, women reported symptoms declined by more than half for anxiety, bloating, breast tenderness, cravings, fatigue, forgetfulness, headache, insomnia, and skin outbreaks.

Reference: Nutrition and Dietary Supplements; Dovepress, 2013:5

Betsy’s Note: The supplements mentioned in this article may also thin blood. Also, soy and rosemary may have phyto-estrogenic effects for those with hormonal issues or concerns. This article is meant for educational purposes only. It is not meant to treat, cure, prevent or diagnose any disease. Consult your healthcare provider.

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Iron Women

Iron aids women and their children

Iron boosts physical performance

Women of reproductive age are more likely to be deficient in iron and anemic, which impairs physical exercise performance. Researchers analyzed 22 iron and exercise studies and found that overall compared to placebo, women who took iron had greater aerobic and exercise capacity. Also, compared to placebo, women who took an iron supplement had lower heart rates measured at the same level of physical exertion.

Reference: Journal of Nutrition; April, 2014, Published Online

Iron improves birth weight

Women who are pregnant are more likely to have iron-deficiency anemia, raising chances for their newborns to be low birth weight and premature. Researchers analyzed 48 studies covering 17,793 women who took from 10 mg to 240 mg of iron per day or a placebo, and another 44 studies that measured iron in the diets of 1.8 million women.

Overall, women who took iron supplements had higher levels of hemoglobin—iron-containing protein —than those who did not, and were half as likely to be anemic. For every 10 mg increase in iron per day, chances of anemia declined by 12 percent.

Looking at births, women taking iron were 19 percent less likely to give birth to a low-weight baby, and their babies weighed 41.2 grams more on average than those of women who did not take iron. Doctors also found for each 10 mg increase in iron per day, birth weight increased by 15 percent and chances for low birth weight declined by 3 percent.

Reference: BMJ; June, 2013, Published Online

Note to vegetarians: Vegetarians need to take 1.8 times their U.S. RDA for iron.

Betsy’s Note: Iron is one of those things that one can get too much of, and also only certain people and age-groups actually need supplemental iron. This article is meant for educational purposes only. It is not meant to treat, cure, prevent or diagnose any disease. Consult your healthcare provider.

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Healthy Weight with Pistachios

Doctors in this study compared 48 healthy women, average age 21, who either consumed up to 20 percent of daily calories from pistachios, or who did not eat pistachios, for 10 weeks. While there were no changes in the non-pistachio group, women who ate pistachios saw mild decreases in total and LDL cholesterol, triglycerides, blood pressure, and waist circumference compared to the start of the study.

Presenting their findings at the 2014 Experimental Biology Conference, researchers concluded that consuming up to 20 percent of daily calories by eating pistachios tended to maintain or improve lipid profiles and did not cause weight gain.

Reference: FASEB Journal; 2014, Vol. 28, No. 1, 640.6

Betsy’s Note: If you follow the Eat Right for Your Blood Type book, you may or may not have pistachios in your “do” category. This article is meant for educational purposes only. It is not meant to treat, cure, prevent or diagnose any disease. Consult your healthcare provider.

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May these nuggets of information give you something great to ponder and share today with someone you love.

In health,
Ramona