Eating health and nutritious foods to make up for the deficiencies in the diet can indeed avoid imbalances caused by long-term deficiency and help maintain health; but on the contrary, if you eat health foods that are not suitable for you, or even inferior products, , not only cannot achieve the purpose of health care, but may also cause harm to the body. There are many kinds of health foods available in the market. Nutritionist Donna recommends you how to choose health foods that are suitable for you and are of high quality and reasonable price.
Does everyone need to eat health foods?
The first step in eating health food is to think about "Do I need it?" If you really need to replenish it, you can really spend your money wisely and avoid excessive body burden. Here are three ways to self-assess whether you need to eat health foods:
1. Assess intake
First evaluate whether your daily diet is balanced. If you consume six major food categories every day and maintain a variety of food, you can generally get enough basic nutrients.
If the diet is not balanced, there is concern about the lack of nutrients. For example: not consuming dairy products every day may lead to a lack of calcium and vitamin B complex; insufficient intake of vegetables and fruits may lead to a lack of dietary fiber, vitamin C, magnesium, potassium... and other nutrients; vegetarianism People are prone to lack of vitamin B12 and iron.
2. Assess demand and consumption
Certain groups of people need more nutrients than the average person. For example, those who are preparing to become pregnant need to supplement inositol and folic acid. Pregnant and breastfeeding mothers need vitamin B complex, folic acid, DHA... and other nutrients, especially in the third trimester. Iron is recommended. The daily intake is 45 mg, which is three times that of ordinary women. It is difficult to get enough from the diet, so you can choose to supplement iron health foods.
People who are stressed and easily nervous will consume more vitamin B complex and vitamin C in their body; people who drink frequently will consume more B complex, so they can all consume health foods to help supplement their nutrition.
3. Assess your own physical condition
When the body is deficient in nutrients for a period of time, the physical condition will be affected. Appropriate supplements of nutritional and health products are needed. If the nutrients are deficient for a long time, the health status of the body will gradually turn on the red light. It is recommended that you can according to your personal needs, every day Appropriate supplements of different health foods
4 principles for choosing health food
Through the above assessment, you find that you may be deficient in nutrients. In addition to consuming more natural foods rich in these nutrients, you can also consider supplementing with health foods. The following are four principles for nutritionists to select health foods:
1. Choose the appropriate dosage of ingredients according to your needs
If you just need to make up for the deficient nutrients in your diet, you can choose products with low doses and a variety of nutrients. However, if there are special needs, you may need to consider a single-prescription, sufficient-added, higher-dose product.
It is recommended that you consult a doctor or nutritionist who specializes in health food before purchasing, or choose a health food brand with professional customer service consulting services, and then select the health food that suits you after evaluation.
2. Choose honest and reputable brands
A high-quality brand should honestly and clearly label its products, including content, ingredients, other ingredients, manufacturer, address, shelf life and method, origin, expiry date, etc., as well as whether there are relevant international inspections and certifications, such as: Plasticizer, pesticide inspection, heavy metal SGS inspection, ISO22000 food safety and hygiene certification, GMP certification...etc.
3. The source of raw materials is more important than the place of origin.
Because regulations stipulate that the outer box must be marked with the country of origin, which is defined as the country in which the final processing step was completed. Some manufacturers import the patented formulas of major international manufacturers from abroad and pack them into capsules or tablets in Taiwan, which will indicate the country of origin as Taiwan.
Some labels indicate that the country of origin is overseas, but the source of the raw materials is not clearly explained. In this way, it is impossible to know the quality of the raw materials. Moreover, it is also necessary to consider whether the country's formula is suitable for Taiwanese people to eat, and the differences in storage conditions.
4. Avoid long-term consumption of ingredients that are harmful to the body
Health food is food, not medicine, so it usually takes a period of supplementation for the body to improve. If health food is too effective, you should pay attention to whether there are bad ingredients added to it. Take products that promote defecation or slimming as an example. In order to make consumers feel comfortable after eating them, ingredients with laxative properties such as senna, aloin, abel, sausage tree fruit, Wangjiangnan, lactose, etc. may be added. , some Taiwanese regulations have banned the addition of it in food, and some ingredients have limited addition amounts. However, a few unscrupulous operators illegally add excessive amounts in order to achieve better effects. Long-term consumption may cause damage to the intestinal mucosa, and in severe cases, may cause black spots. Intestinal disease, and can also produce dependence.
