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Old 06-30-2009, 08:37 AM   #5 (permalink)
snowy
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Location: Oregon
Halanna had some good information. What I'll add is that you can get all your nutrition from your diet if you eat a diet based around plants and whole grains. The mistake most Americans make is to eat too much protein; only about 10-35% of your caloric intake daily should be protein (preferably lean or plant-based), 20-35% should be fat (healthy fats), and 45-65% should be carbohydrate (in the form of whole grains, fruits, and vegetables). Clearly there is a lot of wiggle room in those percentages, and that is because everyone is different.

Back to supplementation--the latest research suggests that supplements aren't all that helpful, and that eating whole foods (another of Halanna's great suggestions) is more beneficial than popping a vitamin because the foods themselves contain multiple compounds that benefit health. One supplement I would recommend, though, is the calcium/vitamin D combo. Most people don't get enough calcium or vitamin D in their diet. Yes, your body can make vitamin D, but most people don't get sufficient sun exposure, especially at northern latitudes, for that to work. Vitamin D is used in a variety of body processes. When choosing a supplement, don't go for the cod liver oil; it contains vitamin A as well as D, and can lead to toxicity from the vitamin A. Look for D3 synthesized from lanolin/wool oil; the body uses D3 more effectively than D in its other forms.

A great healthy whole-food oriented cookbook with simple recipes is Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything Vegetarian. His How to Cook Everything is also great, but with the meat.

When in doubt, I remember Michael Pollan's diet advice: "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants." Above all else, enjoy what you eat.
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