Top Food Nutrient Combinations
Learn about the important food combinations for optimum nutrient absorption.
Getting the most nutrition out of your kitchen fridge or backyard garden can be as easy as applying a few main principles. While some nutrients taken together improve the absorption of others, some nutrients can inhibit absorption all together.
Foods that Complement Absorption
Vitamin C and Iron
Iron comes in two forms, heme and non-heme. Non-heme iron is the found in plants and is not as well absorbed as heme iron found in animal products. Vitamin C helps switch iron to the ferrous state, which is easier absorbed.
Examples:
- Add beets to a shake or meal
- Squeeze a fresh orange or lemon on top of a spinach salad
- Add sliced strawberries to any breakfast cereal; hot or cold
- Add green peas to your kidney bean salad
Calcium, Magnesium and Vitamin D
Vitamin D acts like a traffic controller guiding calcium into your bone to make them strong. Since Vitamin D is hard to obtain in sufficient quantities from the sun a supplement is best recommended to take alongside Calcium.
Fat soluble Vitamins and Fat
Fat soluble vitamins include Vitamins A, D, E and K which require fat to be present to be ideally absorbed in the body.
Examples:
- Olive oil drizzled on baked sweet potatoes
- Unsalted almonds or walnuts as a great afternoon snack
- Mashed avocado spread on whole grain toast
- Pine nuts sprinkled on asparagus or broccoli
Foods that Inhibit Absorption
Calcium and Iron
These minerals bind together preventing absorption in the body. A study published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition revealed a dose of 165 mg of Calcium (in Milk form) reduced iron absorption as much as 50-60%. It is recommended for Calcium to be taken at bedtime for not only improved absorption but a better sleep too for its muscle relaxing properties.
Example items to not combine:
- Broccoli with Kidney Beans
- Kale with Lentils
Oxalic Acid and Calcium or Magnesium
Oxalic acid binds to calcium to form insoluble salts that cannot be absorbed. It too hampers the absorption of Magnesium.
Example items to not combine:
- Almonds or cashews with Sesame seeds
- Spinach and fortified soy/rice milk
Phosphoric Acid and Calcium
Phosphoric acid binds to calcium in the intestine forming calcium phosphates which are not absorbed.
Example:
- Limit pop consumption which is extremely high in phosphoric acid and only drink away from Calcium rich beverages like fortified soy milk.
About the Author
17 Ways to Use Apple Cider Vinegar for Your Health and Wellness
Apple cider vinegar, commonly denoted as ACV, has received a lot of hype as a miracle home remedy for all kinds of ailments, from allergies to arthritis. While a lot of conclusive research needs to be done, there are all kinds of ACV tricks you can try for your home and wellness.
What is Apple Cider Vinegar?
Apple cider vinegar is the product of fermentation—the process in which sugars in food are broken down by bacteria and yeast. In stage one of fermentation, the sugars are turned into alcohol. Stage two, if the alcohol ferments further, you get vinegar. While vinegar can be made from all sorts of things—fruits, vegetables, and grains –ACV, is, unsurprisingly, made from pulverized apples. The main ingredient of apple cider vinegar, or any vinegar, is acetic acid. It also has other acids, vitamins, mineral salts, and amino acids.
It sounds like a relatively innocuous substance more likely to be found in a salad dressing or used as a preservative, but because of its unique properties, ACV has a huge range of uses.
15 Health Benefits to Apple Cider Vinegar
Adding apple cider vinegar as a supplement to your diet can result in a number of benefits to your health. Apple cider vinegar may help with everything from heart disease to weight loss. Below is a list of 17 proven benefits.
1. Help with Heart Disease
If you’re looking for an alternative modality to improve heart health and ameliorate high blood pressure, ACV could be exactly what you’re looking for. Though clinical trials haven’t been conducted yet on humans, trials on animals have shown ACV to reduce triglyceride and cholesterol levels, two of the major contributing factors to heart disease.
2. Lower Blood Sugar
Do you experience high blood sugar levels from type 1 or type 2 diabetes? Are your insulin levels low and your glucose levels too high? Try taking ACV after meals to lower your blood sugar levels. According to research conducted from a small study in 2004, subjects taking 20mL of ACV diluted in 40mL of water with a teaspoon of saccharine, lowered their blood sugar levels after a meal. This reduction was significant, though small, and only lasted about 30 minutes.
While this method needs more research conducted before it could be considered a viable treatment, some researchers have described it as a potential adjuvant to other treatments for diabetes.
3. Leg Cramp Relief
Ever had a crazy sudden pain in your leg in the middle of the night? It’s the worst! Stop the attacks with an ACV tonic. Taken diluted in water twice daily, it will dissolve acid crystals in the blood and provide potassium, calcium, and other essential minerals to the body needed to ease the leg cramps.
