Two out of every three deaths can be traced to nutrition related causes, dietary deficiencies and overweight conditions. The most prominent causes of death in Western society are heart attack, stroke and cancer.

Other health problems are diabetes, osteoporosis, fatigue, digestive problems, stress, headaches, and obesity. All of these are based around nutrition.

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Nutritional supplements are the hot topic of most conversations in every gym and fitness center. And for every weight loss, bodybuilding, aerobics and physical fitness program, you can find several dietary supplements to support each.

Dieters trying to watch weight often eliminate one or meals to help their weight loss program. Unfortunately, that is not a healthy alternative. It is best to just eat smaller portions and modify the content of their meals. Instead, instead of skipping a breakfast consisting of ham, eggs and buttered biscuits, a breakfast of grain cereal plus juice (non concentrated) and a mid-morning snack with a nutrition bar and green tea would be healthy alternatives.

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Do you have any idea if you have what you need even though you hear a lot about vitamins and minerals? You probably are, for the most part. However, there are times when we don’t, and this direct us to a very interesting theory. My mom gave me a book she read a long time ago, and it said that people who do not get enough vitamins and minerals each day not only get sick much easier, they also walk around with abnormal cravings.

After I read the book, it made me think about a teacher I had in sixth grade. This guy was your classic teacher, though he was not very animated. Quite often he would eat the chalk he had in the class room. I never believed there had to be a reason why he did it even though we thought it was funny at the time. Could it have something to do with the quantity of vitamins and minerals in his diet? I have no idea, but this book told me it was. It’s an interesting theory. But would it makes us eat chalk if our body craves for vitamins and minerals it is not getting?

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Here are a few truths and myths about metabolism:

MYTH: AGING SLOWS YOUR METABOLISM.
Truth: People do tend to put on weight as they get older, but it isn’t inevitable. People have a tendency to exercise less, or less vigorously, as they age–and that means fewer calories burned per day. As activity levels and intensity go down, loss of muscle mass can occur. This then shrinks the body’s fat-free compartment and leads to a lower metabolic rate. Cardiovascular exercise will burn calories, and resistance training to preserve or build up muscle are great defenses against age-related weight gain.

MYTH: YOU’RE STUCK WITH THE METABOLISM YOU HAVE, AND YOU CAN’T CHANGE IT.
Truth: We all seem to know people who can “eat whatever they want and never gain weight” or those who “just look at food and put on 10 pounds.” But lifestyle plays a big part in determining the calories you burn per day. While it may appear that there are people who eat all the time and never seem to gain, chances are they make healthy, relatively low-calorie selections naturally. And many of these people burn more calories through what is called Non-Exercise Activity Thermogenesis (NEAT)–basically, they move around a lot during the day. They might fidget more, get up from their desks frequently during the day to stretch,
or walk down the hall to talk to a colleague instead of emailing. Next time you’re in a public place–say a coffeehouse–become an observer. You may notice that heavier people sit very still and hardly move. Leaner people may use more hand gestures, or wiggle a foot or a crossed leg. The point is, build more muscle and then use it by moving around more throughout the day.

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