The Word on Weightloss

Digestion, or the digestive process is the mechanical and chemical breaking down of food into smaller components that can be absorbed into the blood stream. Improving your digestive health is one of the most important keys to meeting your weight loss goal. We heard the same thing from Tosca Reno’s 10, 10, 80 formula. You are what you eat!

With this stone cold philosophy in mind, it’s critical to make sure that the process that enables a healthy lifestyle is operating at its optimum level. Vitamins are essential to digestive health and you can get these vitamins in a variety of ways. Many of you may already take a multivitamin, which is added insurance for better nutrition, (as I like to say) but it’s also important to incorporate vitamin packed fruits, vegetables and whole grains into your diet. No matter where you get them from there are several essential vitamins needed for digestive health. These vitamins are not optional; they are absolutely critical to supporting a healthy digestive track.

Don’t get me wrong – you probably already get all the vitamins you need from the healthy foods you’ve been eating on your weight loss plan, but it doesn’t hurt to understand what vitamins are critical to decide which multivitamin is right for your weight loss lifestyle.

Let’s start with the B Vitamins and their superior qualities. Generally, B vitamins are water-soluble vitamins that play a key role in cell metabolism. B vitamins are found regularly in whole grains, beans, eggs, seafood and leafy green vegetables.

• High amounts of folic acid have been shown to reduce colon caner.
• Vitamin B1 helps your body change carbohydrates into energy for your cells.
• Vitamin B3 is several functions, but most importantly it helps to breakdown carbohydrates, fats and alcohol.
• Vitamin B6 is one of my favorites because it helps to break down all the protein you eat.
• Similar to B6, Biotin helps digestive health by getting rid of the waste products produced after protein is broken down.

Ladies listen up:

Vitamin C is an important vitamin for female digestion because it helps you absorb iron. Since many women suffer from iron deficiency, so incorporating extra vitamin C into your diet may help. More often than not, you shouldn’t need a vitamin C supplement because it’s found so commonly in the foods you already eat:

• Citrus fruits
• Broccoli
• Peppers
• Tomatoes
• Select fortified cereals

Bonus round: Flaxseed

Although flaxseed is not a vitamin, it is high in fiber, omega-3 fatty acids and phytochemicals called lignans. Flaxseed is commonly used as a laxative to improve digestive health or relieve constipation. Most nutrition experts recommend ground flaxseed because your body is better able to digest it. Whole flaxseed may pass through your intestine undigested, which means you won't get all the health benefits.

Incorporate flaxseed into your weekend treat – try these brownies!