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August 24, 2005
Contacts: Susan Nielsen, WSU
Intercollegiate College of Nursing News Bureau,
509/991-9151, susann@wsu.edu Editor’s note: These events feature excellent visual opportunities to tour the Ronald McDonald Care Mobile and visit with students, parents and health care professionals. Helpful Hints for Healthy Vitamin IntakeCalcium and Folic Acid—In a culture replete with highly processed foods and fad diets, vitamins seem harder to acquire than ever. While there are many vitamins and minerals that we should be consuming on a daily basis, Ruth Bindler, associate professor at the Washington State University Intercollegiate College of Nursing, is concerned that Americans often are not getting as much calcium and folate as they need to have for healthy lifestyles. Many people are not aware of how important calcium and folic acid are to one’s overall health, says Bindler, a nutrition and nurse researcher, and author of several academic books and articles related to nutrition. Calcium—Everyone needs calcium throughout their lifetime to compensate for the continual formation and breakdown of bones. A higher intake of calcium for children is associated with higher peak bone mass in adulthood. This directly lowers the rate of osteoporosis. However, most adolescents do not get the recommended amount of calcium. According to Bindler, the following daily averages apply:
However, to ensure healthy bones as an adult, the adequate amount of daily calcium should be 1300 mg. Many people are under the impression that calcium has to come from dairy products. Not exclusively, says Bindler. Besides dairy products, foods with high amounts of calcium include cereals, soy in the form of tofu or beverages, fish, spinach and dark green vegetables, oatmeal, and a variety of beans. At least two servings of dairy products or other sources of calcium each day is recommended. Folate--Americans need to be more aware of another nutrient, folate or folic acid, says Bindler. Folate is a B-vitamin that is active in many metabolic activities in the body. Folic acid is the form of folate that is produced synthetically and available in vitamin preparations, and is the term most read on food and vitamin labels. Low levels of folate in the body are associated with a decrease in red blood cells, increased rates of certain birth defects, and an increase in a substance called homocysteine, which is linked to heart disease. Unfortunately, says Bindler, with the popularity of low-carb diets, many people are not getting nearly as much folic acid as they need to maintain healthy blood cells. In 1998, the Food and Drug Administration required folic acid be added to enriched breads, cereals, flours, pastas, rice and other grain products in order to increase the amount of synthetic folic acid in the diet of the general population. Due to the decreased intake of these foods by those on low-carb diets, it is essential to consider taking daily supplements. In order to lower the incidence of birth defects, researchers recommend that women of childbearing age be targeted for special attention. According to the Institute of Medicine, all pregnant women should take a vitamin supplement of 600 micrograms of folic acid daily in addition to the folate they eat in foods; women who might become pregnant should have a 400 microgram supplement of folic acid daily in addition to their food sources. Established in 1968, the WSU Intercollegiate College of Nursing is fully-accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education and is the largest college of nursing in Washington state. The college is the nation’s oldest and most comprehensive nursing education consortium. Celebrating 37 years of world class nursing education, the college offers baccalaureate, graduate and professional development course work to nursing students enrolled through its four consortium partners: Eastern Washington University, Gonzaga University, WSU and Whitworth College. Each year the college educates more than 780 graduate and upper-division undergraduate students and prepares more entry-level nurses than any other Washington state educational institution. For more information about the College of Nursing visit the Web site at nursing.wsu.edu •0517• |