March is Nutritional Month

National Nutritional Month was created and celebrated every March by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics to emphasis the importance of making informed food choices, and develop good eating and physical activity habits.

Nutrition is fuel for our bodies just like gasoline is fuel for our cars.  Without nutrition, we cannot survive just as a car cannot run without gasoline.

There are 7 types of nutrients that our body needs: carbohydrates, proteins, fats, vitamins, minerals, fiber, and water.  Each nutrient is essential and serve as building blocks for healthy pregnancy, support normal growth to development and aging, and reduce risk from diseases.

The best way to get nutrition is through healthy organic wholesome food.

Here are a few simple tips to keep in mind.

Eat the following:

• Eat a variety of food, keep it diverse: whole grains, fish, healthy fats from olive oil/avocado, nuts and seeds, legumes, etc.
• Fill your plate with rainbow colors of fruits and vegetables
• Drink plenty of water

Avoid or cut back on the following:

• Reduce refined sugar and when possible avoid sugary drinks
• Reduce alcohol
• Avoid processed food: If you can’t grow it, don’t eat it. Most likely, it doesn’t contain healthy nutrition.  You can’t grow a donut, candy bar, or soda from a tree or the soil.

Choosing healthy food is the first step to healthy nutrition for your body. Next is to make sure you can digest and absorb your nutrition.  If you experience any of the following gastrointestinal symptoms, then you may want to consider seeking alternative medicine to resolve any gastrointestinal issues in order to optimize digestion and absorption of your nutrients.

List of gastrointestinal symptoms:

• Indigestion /abdominal discomfort after eating
• excessive belching / burping, which may lead to acid reflux
• bloating / abdominal distension
• abdominal cramping
• passing gas
• irregular bowel movement (BM) such as diarrhea, constipation, skipping days, etc.