Well, it is actually almost 1 a .m., and this
is Thoughts If It Were You, Food for Thought,
and I'm your host, Neogentrics. Now, we've been
going over dietary facts for the last couple
of days, trying to get as much information as
we could out there about nutrition and how you
can be a healthier you by controlling what you're
eating and knowing what you're actually putting
in your mouth. Okay. And I'm not just giving
this advice. Over my podcast, I'm actually using
it myself. And within the last couple of weeks,
I've managed to lose about 10, 15 pounds. So
I'd say it's a win -win for me. So if I can do
it, I know you can too. Select modifications
need to be made for each individual person. But
the overall satisfaction and the overall point
of what we're doing is still there. So we're
going to go on and finish with the last of the
food, diet, and nutrition ideas that I have.
um and that would be the dietary minerals okay
now the first thing that must come to mind is
uh why why dietary minerals what's the point
of knowing what this is what good does it do
for me well let's start with this okay what are
minerals that is a question um a lot of people
should first ask anyway i'll keep it simple Minerals,
they're naturally occurring elements and are
therefore found on the periodical table of the
elements. The body uses minerals for some important
functions, and like I mentioned before, some
are necessary for a healthy body and mind. And
I have brought up a couple of these minerals
already by talking about a couple of other stuff
as well. Vitamins are made of minerals. I'm going
to give you a couple of foods that are going
to be high in certain minerals. However, it's
not going to be as accurate as some other lists
out there, but I'm going to give my best from
what I have. Plants and animals get the majority
of minerals from the soil on which they are grown
or raised. So if the soil in a particular region
is rich in one type of mineral, then this is
likely to be found in a higher concentration
in plants and animals of that region. Most minerals
require in tiny quantities, but they can still
have a significant effect on health and well
-being, even if it's just a little bit. So, now
that I've got my intro out of the way, let's
get started, shall we? disclaimer okay if you
think you may be deficient in a certain mineral
then you should be properly diagnosed by a health
care professional self -diagnosis can be dangerous
most people get their daily minerals from eating
a well -balanced varied diet including lots of
fruits fresh fruits and vegetables okay now they
got that out of the way let's go ahead and go
through the list of mineral nutrients that i
have here I'm going to try my best to keep them
in alphabetical order, but no guarantee. First
up is boron. It can be found in many fruits,
vegetables, and even a couple of nuts. That could
have been worded better. It is needed by the
body in tiny quantities. It helps the body to
use both calcium and magnesium effectively, and
is thought to be useful in bone development and
maintenance. muscle development, and even your
strength, and can help alleviate problems associated
with vitamin D deficiency. It's also been known
to prevent arthritis, though I have yet to see
this. Next is the all -in -well -known calcium.
Yes, it is a mineral, and it's found mostly in
milk and other dairy products. This, including
cheese, yogurt, low -fat dairy products, contain
more calcium, as less of their volume is taken
up by fat. Nuts, seeds, oily fish, dark green
vegetables can also be rich in calcium. Notice
I said dark green vegetables. It is required
for the production and upkeep of your bones and
your teeth. So calcium plays a key role in nerve
signaling, your muscle contractions, as well
as controlling levels of your hormones. So chances
are, if your hormones aren't where they're supposed
to be, it's probably because you have a lack
of calcium. However, too much calcium is dangerous
and it can lead to serious problems like stroke
and heart attack, whereas little can cause muscle
cramps, numbness in the extremities. Even abnormal
heartbeats can be caused from this. Next would
be chromium, this mineral. It helps your body
break down fat, carbohydrates, some hormones
like insulin. It is also fundamental in the body's
production of some fatty acids and cholesterol
essential for brain function. It's needed in
small quantities and it's common in many, many
foods. So we get most of our chromium through
meat, fish, whole grains, fruit, vegetables,
so on and so forth. One is cobalt. I covered
it in vitamins. It is found in vitamin B12. It
helps with the production of red blood cells,
and it's only needed in small quantities in our
diet. So with that, we're going to take a short
break, and I'll be right back. Okay, so it's
still a consolation that most of those are well
-known. But let's cover one that you may not
realize is a mineral that your body actually
ingests. Copper. It is needed by the body to
help make healthy hemoglobin. That is your red
blood cells and the bones, believe it or not.
It's also necessary for effective healing of
wounds as it helps the blood to clot. For coloring
and pigmentation of hair and even fertility for
women who want to know why they can't be fertile.
There is a correlation between copper and levels
of certain fats in the blood, especially cholesterol.
The more copper, the less cholesterol, and vice
versa, so on and so forth. However, you should
only increase your copper intake if you are told
to by a healthcare professional, again, like
I mentioned before, that you're deficient. It
is stored in tiny amounts in the body and therefore
does not need to be replenished every single
day. as well as from natural sources such as
lamb, liver, oysters, nuts, cherries, whole grains,
seeds, and many fruits, and vegetable traces
of copper may be found in water supplies using
copper pipes or transferred to the body via copper
cooking implements and pans. So, while you may
not know it or not, you are actually eating it,
even though it's a metal used in a lot of other
things, and it's also well known for conducting
electricity. Next is fluoride. I'm going to go
ahead and say this right now. It is good for
the teeth and it does help prevent and even reverse
tooth decay. And it's found in many toothpastes
and mouthwash products. However, it is not healthy
for your body. At all. It's only good for your
teeth and only your teeth in small amounts. And
I mean literally small amounts. You can get fluoride
-free toothpaste if you're unsure if your toothpaste
has too much of it. Okay? It has been added sometimes
controversially to water supplies, mainly in
the United States, Canada, Brazil, Australia,
New Zealand, Philippines, and even parts of Europe,
including the UK. Ireland, and Spain. It can
be naturally present in water supplies in various
levels. Sometimes water is treated to remove
excess fluoride, but again, the fact of the matter
is that it's in your water. People have speculated
that adding fluorine to water would help cause
health problems, cancer being a particular concern.
However, apart from the discoloration of your
teeth at high levels, there's been no evidence
that fluoride is toxic. At least that's what
they wanted to believe. Um, it is found naturally
in edible fresh water and it's present in many
foods. The only downside is that, like I said
before, too much of it is toxic. Okay? In small
doses, it's harmless. But over time, it does
build up. Yeah, it's not exactly a good one.
Next, let's talk about iodine. It helps in the
production of your thyroid hormones. It helps
your body to keep a healthy metabolism. Digesting
food thoroughly and at the right speed. It may
also help prevent certain cancers. Good sources
of iodine include sea fish, other sea food, select
cereals, grains, depending on the amount of natural
occurring iodine in the soil where they were
grown. After that would be iron. It's an important
nutrient helping to make your red blood cells,
well, red, and allow them to carry oxygen around
your body. Now, keep this in mind. A lack of
iron can lead to iron deficiency anemia. It's
a potentially serious condition. It may include
some of the following symptoms. Tiredness, feeling
faint, being easily made breathless, heart palpitations,
fragile nails, hair loss. In extreme cases, even
heart failure. Iron deficiency anemia occurs
most commonly in women, especially during heavy
menstruation, like your menstrual cycles. And
in pregnancy, it can usually be easily corrected
with iron supplements, so this is why you have
to be very, very careful. Next is manganese,
not to be confused with magnesium. Okay. Manganese
is an essential element. It's useful in the formation
of bones and performing functions in the pituitary
gland. Also, your liver, your pancreas, and your
kidneys. So, it helps with your bowel movement.
It also aids in the breaking down of carbohydrates,
your cholesterol, and amino acids in the body.
It's found mostly in whole grains and many fruits
and vegetables. And get this. It's also found
in tea. Believe it or not, it's found in tea.
Okay. Next would be the molybdenum. It's pronounced
molybdenum, but point in case being that it is
found in many, many foods, okay? Let's put it
simply. It's found in liver, eggs, green beans,
sunflower seeds, lentils, cucumbers, and whole
grains. However, the amount of it found in foods
is usually dependent on the area where they grow,
okay? As for its key roles in the body, well,
it... including enabling enzymes to function,
which enzymes are large molecules that increase
the speed of chemical reactions from your body,
you know, without being changed themselves in
the process. This can help protect against certain
cancers, but in high doses can also interfere
with the body's ability to process copper. So,
molybdenum is good and bad. Okay? So, moving
forward here, nickel. Yes, your body does ingest
nickel. It is needed in very small quantities
in your body, and its exact purpose, well, how
do I put this? It's not exactly clear. Having
too much or too little can cause problems in
your body, so that is a known fact. Deficiency
can lead to depression, hypertension, liver disease,
and anemia. That's known. People with nickel
deficiency can also have high blood sugar. By
the way, having too much of it, on the other
hand, can mean low blood sugar levels and increased
risk of chest pains, which is agnea, and asthma
can be caused from too much nickel found in your
body. It's found in nuts, seeds, whole grains,
cocoa powder, dark chocolate, as well as other
foods. Next is selenium. It's needed a very small
amount as part of our daily diet. It protects
your body's cells from damage caused by oxidation.
Oxidization, sorry. It helps to strengthen the
immune system and support your thyroid's function
for a healthy metabolism. It can also help keep
your hair and nails looking fantastic, as they
say. It occurs naturally in many foods. The levels
of it in food are dependent on the natural occurring...
levels in the soil, therefore it varies by geographic
location. This being said, Brazilian nuts are
particularly high in selenium, but the element
can also be found in some cereals, fish, meat,
definitely shrimp, there's one for you, tuna,
salmon, mushrooms, and eggs. So eating one Brazilian
nut a day as part of a healthy balanced diet
will keep your selenium levels topped up. Believe
it or not, that's more than enough. Next would
be silicon, and something you wouldn't really
think you would eat, considering what it's used
for. It's rarely written about in essential mineral
lists, but it does have an important role that
it plays in your body. It helps to make bone,
blood vessels, cartilage, tendons, and strong
nails. It also helps the skin to remain flexible
and avoid premature aging. Being the most abundant
element in soil, it is present in many foods,
especially whole grains, sugar, fresh herbs,
salad greens, and cucumbers. of hard drinking
water may also be a good source so there's nothing
wrong with that but just please please please
be careful of the water that you're drinking
okay we're gonna take another short break here
and then we'll be back to finish up with the
last three minerals Now let's get on to one that
a lot of people know of. Sodium. Most modern
diet provides sodium in levels far higher than
what your body is actually needing. With that
being said, due to the amount of sodium chloride
contained in processed and manufactured foods,
you need to watch what you're eating. Salt is
made up of approximately 40 % sodium and 60 %
chloride. Keep that in mind. And according to
the U .S. Department of Health and Human Services,
the average daily American diet contains around
3 ,400 milligrams of sodium. Your body only needs
1 ,500 milligrams of sodium, less than a teaspoon
of salt a day. The sodium helps regulate the
amount of water in cells, controls the overall
fluid balances in your body, and helps keep nerves
and muscles working properly. On that note, sodium
chloride or salt intake has an effect on blood
pressure. High salt diets increase blood pressure,
whereas reduced salt intake can also lower blood
pressure. So high blood pressure can result in
serious health problems, including heart and
kidney disease, if not kidney failure. So please
keep that in mind. Next is vanadium. This one
I'm familiar with. It is needed only in small
amounts. Most people get enough of it from the
food they eat, and deficiency in this is very,
very rare. Supplements are usually not recommended
as high levels can be toxic. It's essential for
proper growth and development of your bones.
With the help of Popeye the Sailor Man, people
believe that spinach is a good source of iron.
It is, however, spinach also contains iron absorption
inhibition substances that render most iron in
spinach unusable by your body anyway. So tea
and coffee also contain substances that can make
it harder for your body to absorb iron. Good
sources of iron include liver, liver pate, fortified
breakfast cereals, kales, nuts, beans, and whole
grains. So keep this in mind. Vanadium helps
with your body's processing of iron. So if you
don't have enough of it in your body, that's
one of the reasons why you're not getting what
you need. Last but not least, zinc. Okay, it's
an essential mineral of paramount importance
to your health. Deficiency is a huge problem
in developing nations, and it is estimated that
zinc deficiency affects around over, well, it
used to be over 2 billion people, but we've already
exceeded past 5 as it is now. Okay, and in children,
lack of zinc can hinder natural growth and sexual
maturity, increase the likelihood of developing
infections, and cause diarrhea. In adults, zinc
deficiency is usually due to inadequate diets,
eating the wrong things. There are many symptoms
of zinc deficiency. These can include, just give
me a short list here, depressed growth, diarrhea,
impotence, hair loss, eye and skin... reduced
appetite, reduced concentration. Other brain
functions will be weaker. There will also be
a weaker immune system. You won't be able to
think as fast. You'll always feel sluggish. Yeah,
see, zinc has a very big role that it plays in
your body. It is present in many foods, including
meat, especially red meat, seeds, and nuts, seafood,
cocoa powder, and dark chocolate. Zinc supplements
are widely available and are sometimes recommended
for people on vegetarian and vegan diets. As
it doesn't matter if you don't want to eat these
other things that I listed here, keep in mind
if you don't have enough zinc in your diet, yes,
you may be fit, yes, you may be skinny, but your
sexual levels will drop like the wind during
a storm when you walk into the eye. I'm sorry
to say this, but your body does need a lot of
the things that you don't think you should be
eating. Okay? So with that being said, that brings
a close to diet and health for your body, as
well as the food and nutrition that you need
for your body. Okay? I thank you guys for sticking
around as I was completing these segments for
this topic. We'll be going back into personal
skills and picking up where I left off with the
next available skill. Until then, I wish you
the best and have a great rest of your day. Neogentrix
out.