Iron Deficiency Anemia

Iron is considered a ‘trace mineral’ due to its presence in body tissues in very small amounts.  Deficiency in iron is also the most common form of deficiency observed throughout the world.  In this post we will discuss the various functions of iron in the body and how you can avoid developing a deficiency.

Hemoglobin (Hb) is a protein in the blood that carries oxygen throughout the body via blood vessels.  Low amounts of Hb in the blood can result in insufficient distribution of oxygen to the muscles and organs.  Iron is a heme protein that is necessary for the production of hemoglobin.

Anemia is defined as below normal levels of red blood cells.  There are several causes symptoms that go along with iron deficiency anemia.  They go as follows: Reduced athletic performance, increased level of fatigue during aerobic exercise, impaired immunity, impaired ability to maintain a regular body temperature, and poor intellectual and behavioral development.  Iron is recycled very well in the body, so a deficiency is usually a result of losing blood, either through injury, an ulcer, or menstruation.  Menstruation is the cause of iron deficiency in most women.  Excess amounts of iron in the body can create free radicals in the body, which are known to contribute to the formation of cancer and heart disease.  Those who are at higher risk for iron deficiency are women and endurance athletes.  Running long distances can cause hemolysis through repetitive impact on the feet and legs.  Hemolysis is the destruction of blood cells.  Women who are endurance athletes are at the highest risk for iron deficiency and it is imperative that they consume adequate amounts in their diet.  The recommended intake of iron for women 19-50 years of age is 18 mg a day.  Men are recommended to consume only 8 mg per day.  Good sources of iron include clams, beef, poultry, and spinach.

Pre-Game Meals, Professional Athlete Style

Here are a handful of examples of professional athletes’ pre-game nutritional strategies:

Peyton Manning: This Super Bowl champion quarterback always eats two grilled chicken breasts, a bowl of pasta with spaghetti sauce, broccoli, a baked potato and Gatorade before every game.  This is an excellent pre-game meal because it is rich in starches with small amounts of protein.  The baked potato, pasta, and gatorade provide his muscles with the carbohydrates that are necessary to fuel his body.  The protein from the chicken promotes muscle recovery and the broccoli provides essential vitamins and minerals.

Michael Jordan:  This basketball superstar, considered by many to be the greatest to ever play the game, never played a game without having his usual meal of steak and potatoes beforehand.  Again, this meal consists of good carbohydrates from the potato and protein from the steak.  The steak also provides essential vitamins beneficial to athletes like iron and zinc.

 

 

Derek Jeter:  This Yankee great always ate pancakes and an omelet before stepping onto the diamond.

 

 

 

 

Ray Allen:  Undeniably the greatest shooter to ever play the game of basketball, this Boston Celtic never plays a game before having his pre-game meal of baked chicken, steamed brown rice, asparagus, and a bottle of water with a slice of lemon.  This meal does several things to prepare him for competition.  It hydrates him and provides him with carbohydrates, protein, vitamins, and minerals.

 

 

Claude Giroux:  This Philadelphia Flyers right wing and 2011 all-star always eats grilled cheese sandwiches before he laces up his skates and steps on the ice.  One would be skeptical of this choice because of the fat content in cheese, but fat can actually provide long lasting energy as long as it is not eaten in large quantities, which could slow an athlete down.  But the bread and the cheese provide the carbohydrates and protein that are necessary to perform at a high level of intensity for a prolonged period of time.

Professional Sports Nutrition

Nutrition is becoming a growing concern among professional athletes.  More and more professional sports teams are hiring team dietitians to help their athletes gain an extra competitive edge.  In a time when almost all variations of training and supplementation have been discovered and tested, athletes and coaches are turning to another natural method of training: eating.   Michelle Macedonio is the team nutrition consultant for the Cincinnati Bengals.  Her most frequent daily activities as a nutritionist include providing advice for athletes, planning meals, and clearing up any diet myths that players may have been practicing.  According to an article by USA Today, Macedonio reported accompanying two of the Bengals players to the local market in order to help them alter their shopping strategies.  One of the players was not accustomed to shopping for fresh, low fat foods while the other player had already committed to a healthier lifestyle.  Macedonio asked the first player to try a slice of fresh red bell pepper.  The player admitted that it was not bad, but would rather have it with dip.  His teammate laughed at him and decided to share some of his own recipes for healthy alternatives to traditional dishes such as grilled turkey legs and spinach-crab burgers.  This is just one example of the various things that team dietitians do for their players.  It is things like changing the way an athlete approaches feeding himself that will help athletes become even slightly more competitive.  Teams are realizing this and hiring more and more dietitians like Michelle Macedonio.  For more about the role of an NFL team dietitian, follow this link.

Here is a video created by the Houston Texans Dietitian:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kiDd9YXAek

Nutrition at the Olympic Games

With the 2012 Summer Olympics approaching, I thought that it would be interesting to take a look at how the athletes eat while training and competing.  The Olympic Games changed dramatically over the past 100 plus years.  Before 1936, all athletes had to find their own accommodations and provide their own food.  Little was known about the specific functions of certain foods, either.  Many athletes have been reported to eat foods high in fat and protein before an event, as we now know to be wrong.  The 1932 Olympic Games in Los Angeles was a turning point in the history of the games.  With more and more athletes competing every year, it became increasingly difficult for athletes to find places to stay.  The Olympic Committee decided to construct a village in which all athletes would live before and during the games.  The village consisted of a catering facility that provided athletes with three meals a day.  This idea was elaborated upon for the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games.  A three story catering facility was built that consisted of 40 kitchens and 40 dining halls.  Here is the menu outline of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games:

Breakfast: Oatmeal or rice with milk, U.S. cereals, coffee, tea, milk, cocoa, butter, honey, marmalade, bread, rolls, toast, eggs.

Lunch:  Soup or bouillon, meat, fresh vegetables, potato, green salad, fruit, cheese, dessert.

Dinner: Warm or cold bouillon, fish, steak, cold cuts, fresh vegetables, potato, salad, fowl twice weekly, fruit, tea, cold or warm milk.

Until the 1956 Melbourne OG, women were unable to stay in the Olympic Villages.  Kitchens at the Melbourne village were grouped according to countries, in order to accommodate varying cuisines.  Also, chefs were brought in from several different countries due to the shortage of available chefs in Australia.  Athletes in Melbourne, along with all previous OGs, still believed that protein was the most important nutrient.  Athletes consumed diets that were high in protein by eating large amounts of meat.  By the time of the Rome OG in 1960, research was being conducted that showed the athletic benefits of a carbohydrate rich diet.  Despite the ongoing research supporting carbohydrates, athletes still consumed diets consisting predominantly of protein.  It wasn’t until the 2000 Sydney OG that low-fat carbohydrate-rich foods were served at the dining halls.  This was a direct result of the increasingly intensive research being done on sports nutrition.  The mean consumption of carbohydrates compared to protein for athletes at the Sydney OG is as follows:

Breakfast: 189 g carbohydrates, 225 g protein

Lunch: 180 g carbohydrates, 159 g protein

Dinner: 190 g carbohydrates, 130 g protein

Supper: 103 g carbohydrates, 68 g protein

As you can see, breakfast was the only meal that athletes consumed more protein than carbohydrates.  Before the 2000 OG, many athletes still believed that protein was more effective than carbohydrates.  The adaptation of the Olympic Games over the years to accommodate athletes and their dietary needs is a direct reflection of the ever changing knowledge of nutrition.  We now have the knowledge to assist athletes in constructing specific diet plans that will most effectively prepare themselves for competition at their highest potential.

For further information on the evolution of dietary accommodations for athletes at the Olympic Games, read this article.

Nutrition for Hiking

Summer is just around the corner, meaning that many of you will soon be taking advantage of the nice weather and be hitting the White Mountains for some serious hiking.  Depending on the mountain and your fitness level, hiking can be an extremely exhausting activity.  It is important to stay well hydrated and well nourished throughout your hike.  This blog post will suggest several foods and nutrition strategies that will be useful when scaling mountains.

The view from the Summit of Mt. Liberty (4460 ft.). To the left is a view of Cannon Mt. and Franconia Notch. To the right (just out of view) is a breathtaking view of the Pemigewasset Wilderness. A must-hike for NH hikers.

The most important thing to remember while hiking during the hot summer months is to stay hydrated.  Hydrating yourself begins the night before a hike.  It is important to consume plenty of water throughout the day leading up to an hour or two before you go to bed.  Consume plenty of water with breakfast, and pack several bottles of water to bring with you on the hike.

Another important aspect of hiking is having a supply of foods that are packed with energy and can supplement your increased energy needs while hiking.  The best foods to bring with you should be light and non perishable, that way you do not have to carry the unwanted weight of bulky foods.  Also, it would be foolish to have to lug a cooler to the top of a mountain just to keep certain foods from spoiling.  Here is a list of compact, non-perishable foods that are hiker-friendly and will supply you with sufficient energy to get you through the day:

• Bagels, pita bread, whole grain breads, crackers (can combine with cheese, peanut butter, nutella, etc.)
• granola bars
• candy bars
• dried fruit
• trail mix
• Wheat Thins
• Cheeses
• Tuna (either an easy-open can or individual pouches)

The one thing that all of these foods have in common is that they are small and light weight and they are energy-dense.  This list of foods combine both fast acting energy and slow acting energy so you can get immediate energy when needed and also sustained energy to last you throughout long stretches of the hike.  The fats in the cheeses, peanut butter, nutella, nuts,and seeds will provide sustained energy while the carbohydrates in the crackers, breads, fruit, and granola bars will provide immediate energy.  Now that you know what foods will get you through strenuous hikes, go out and pack a bag full of these nutritious snacks and hit the trails.  Also, observe how these foods affect your level of energy throughout your hikes.

Gaining Muscle

First of all, I think that it would be important to address why gaining muscle can be advantageous to both athletes and people looking to stay fit.  Here are the advantages of increasing muscle:

1) More muscle means more strength and power which improves both health and athletic performance.

2) More lean muscle can actually increase your metabolism meaning you’ll burn calories more rapidly.

When strength training, it is important to eat a well balanced diet.  A deficiency in any nutrient will take away from the ultimate potential of your training.  When strength training, you want to aim for the most amount of weight you can lift for six to twelve repetitions and most repetitions you can do for two to five sets.  Also, it is important to allow at least 48 hours between training of the same muscles.  So if you do bench press on Monday, you should wait until Wednesday around the same time to even think about doing bench press again.  The time of day has somewhat of an affect on the results of your workouts.  The most effective time of the day to work out is early afternoon.  This is because you will have digested the nutrients from lunch and will be able to eat dinner shortly after you finish your workout.

There are certain nutrients that are most effective when implementing a strength training program in your daily life.  The two nutrients that are needed in the largest amounts are carbohydrates and protein (energy and amino acids).  Fat and cholesterol are needed in small amounts, and vitamins and minerals are also needed for optimal muscle growth.  Zinc, iron, vitamin c, and vitamin B6 are among the most important vitamins and minerals.  Zinc can be found in red meat, several seeds, peanuts, and wheat germ.  Iron can also be found in red meat, vitamin C can be found in many green leafy vegetables and also citrus fruits, and vitamin B6 can be found in whole grains, nuts, seeds, and beans.

Sufficiently supplying your energy needs while on a strength training program is likely to be the deciding factor in whether or not you continue to gain muscle.  It is easy to consume enough protein, and many consume more than enough, but consuming enough calories to supply your body with the extra energy that your body needs is the main challenge.  First, it is important to determine the amount of energy you will need just for energy balance.  Here is a link to a daily caloric calculator that will help you determine how many calories are necessary for maintaining a steady weight.  Once you’ve determined the amount of daily calories that are needed, add the amount of calories that are necessary for the amount of extra muscle that is desired.  You’ll need about 500 extra calories a day in order to gain one pound of muscle a week. Once you’ve gained more weight in muscle, your daily maintenance energy needs will have changed and you will need to continually consume more calories as you gain muscle.  It is important to note that simply consuming more calories and not exercising to compensate for the added calories will result in fat storage.  Also, insufficient energy is usually the cause of plateaus in muscle and strength gains.

Hydration and Sports Drinks

Above any other nutrient, water is by far the most important.  Without water, most of the nutrients that you consume before working out will not make any difference.  Water is necessary for nutrient mobilization, meaning that without enough water to carry nutrients through the blood, then much of the nutrients consumed will go to waste.  This is why water is necessary in order to get every ounce of energy out of the food that you consume.  Some disadvantages to dehydration include:

1. Reduced delivery of nutrients to muscles and waste removal.
2. Muscles cannot be cooled properly.
3. Mental fatigue.

An effective hydration strategy before exercising includes drinking plenty of water in the 24 hours leading up to exercising, consuming 16 ounces of water with pre-event meal roughly four hours before, and drink 8-12 ounces of water 2 hours before.  This will ensure proper hydration going into a workout.  

Even further, when exercising, having electrolytes and carbohydrates in addition to water is necessary for optimal performance.  The solution is consuming plenty of water before exercising and sipping a sports drink during exercise.  During exercise, your body needs roughly 60 grams of carbohydrates per hour and 1 liter of water per hour.  So over the course of an hour, it is wise to consume a drink that contains 60 grams of carbohydrates in one liter of water.  Here is a good example of how to determine how much to consume based on a sports drink’s nutrition label.  Consider this Gatorade label:

With 14 grams of carbs per serving and 2.5 servings in this bottle, there are 35 grams of carbs in this entire bottle.  So in order to continually replenish carbohydrates during exercise, you must drink this entire bottle every 35 minutes or so.

Harmful Supplements

The other purpose of this blog is to expose certain ergogenic aids that can be potentially harmful to your body.  Many young athletes interested in maximizing their performance for sports and/or increasing their productivity in the gym turn to supplements that can supposedly help them achieve their goals.  An ergogenic aid is defined as a dietary supplement that is intended to improve performance in sports by improving physical strength, mental strength and mechanical edge.  Ergogenic aids that are legitimately successful generally do not make much of a profit.  The ones that do make large profits are usually the ones that make outrageous claims that promise quick and drastic results.  In fact, there are six tell tale signs of an unreliable product.  They go as follows:

• The product promises quick improvement in health or performance.
• It contains a secret or magical formula/ingredient.
• It is advertised mainly by the use of anecdotes, testimonials, or case histories.
• It questions the integrity of a medical or scientific establishment.
• It is advertised in a fitness magazine whose publishers also sell ergogenic aids.
• It is a recent discovery not available from any other source.

There are instances in which dietary supplements can be harmful.  For example, if creatine is taken in excessive amounts and marketed to endurance athletes, it can negatively affect your performance.  Also, due to excess protein converting to fat, excessive protein supplementation can be greatly harmful to an athletes training potential.  Another setback to supplements is that many ergogenic aids are contaminated with anabolic steroids.  In studies conducted in 2003, 2004, and 2007, 20-25% of random samples of supplements contained steroids.

At the FDA’s (Federal Drug Administration) website, you can learn how dietary supplements are regulated and how some supplements that you are considering taking adhere to their standards.  After visiting the FDA website, here are a few guidelines to consider when purchasing supplements:

1. Does the manufacturer claim to adhere to the General Manufacturing Practices?
2. Are the supplements routinely assayed for quality and quantity assurance (label verification)?
3. Is their manufacturing facility open to third-party inspection?

Glycogen

Carbohydrates are converted to glycogen and stored in the muscles in order to be used as an energy source during exercise.  Running out of glycogen is the primary cause of fatigue during athletic events and strenuous workouts, so maximizing your muscles’ stores of glycogen before, during, and after exercising is very important in order to get the most out of your workouts.  There are two things you must do before working out in order to maximize your glycogen stores.  First, you should consume a meal that is very high in carbohydrates two to five hours before working out.  Secondly, you should eat a snack that is composed of solely carbohydrates right before working out.  The meal should contain about 1/2 gram of carbohydrates for every pound of body weight for every hour before working out.  So a 150 pound person should be consuming 300 grams of carbohydrates four hours before working out (75 g x 4 hours= 300 grams).  Also, this general rule is applied to the pre-workout snack.  A good snack to consume before working out that is high in carbohydrates and low in fat is a bagel with jelly.  The idea behind the pre-workout snack is to top off your tank in order to assure maximized glycogen stores.

For more information on cabohydrate loading before an athletic event, click here.

Creatine: Is it Safe?

Why yes.  Yes it is.  Creatine, if used correctly, can positively affect your physical capacity when strength training.  For those who are interested in safely utilizing creatine in their daily routine, this blog post will be of particular interest to you.  Creatine, otherwise know by its technical term, phosphocreatine, is utilized for short bursts during exercise.  During exercise, three energy systems are used in order to fuel your muscles: the phosphocreatine, lactic acid, and oxygen (aerobic) system.  All three systems are used simultaneously during exercise, but depending on the type of exercise, one system may take priority over the other two.  For example, the phosphocreatine system is utilized during short bursts of energy that last one to two seconds each, with short breaks in between.  Creatine, which is stored in the muscles, is what fuels this system.  Creatine can be consumed in the diet by eating foods such as red meat, fish, and poultry.  But, in order to maximize creatine stores, a creatine supplement must be consumed daily.  Here is how to effectively supplement creatine into your diet.  In order to safely load up your muscles with creatine, you must consume small amounts of creatine every day for about a month.  Once your muscles are loaded, it is necessary to consume an even smaller amount daily in order to maintain a maximized creatine store in your muscles.  A reliable creatine product that is proven to be safe and effective is Jarrow Formulas Creatine Caps, 800 mg.

Here is how to effectively load your muscles with creatine: Consume about 5 grams of creatine daily for about 28 days.  This will effectively load your muscles.  Once you’ve loaded your muscles, consume about 2 grams of creatine daily in order to maintain your maximized load of creatine.  Creatine supplementation can increase your muscle creatine concentration by 20 to 30%.  The basic idea behind increasing your creatine stores is that you will be able to perform exercises with maximal effort for slightly longer.