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Paula Gallagher
Paula is a highly qualified and experienced nutritionist on the staff at Village Green Apothecary.
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Margo Gladding
Margo's impressive knowledge base is the result of a unique blend of educational
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Ellen Kittredge
Ellen’s knowledge base has given her the tools to be an effective
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Naz Amini
Naz is a nutrition counselor and lifestyle educator for Village Green Apothecary. read more..
Carmen Ugas
Carmen is a therapeutic lifestyle educator for Village Green Apothecary. read more..
Debi Silber
Debi is a registered dietitian with a master’s degree in nutrition, a personal trainer, and whole health coach.
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Steve Stillwater
Steve is committed to greener living and offers to easy-to-implement green living tips and ideas.
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Farzin Farid, Pharm.D
Farzin is a licensed pharmacist with a strong background in herbal, mineral, and vitamin therapy.
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Joe Ailts
Joe, Director of Medical Education at NeuroScience, Inc., provides scientific and clinical education on neuro-endo-immunology.
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Posts Tagged ‘vitamin D3’
Avoiding Nutritional Deficiencies in a Lactose-Free Diet
by Paula Gallagher | September 20, 2011
Lactose is a sugar found in dairy products and for many people it causes gas, bloating, diarrhea, and other gastrointestinal problems. This is because they lack the enzyme lactase, which helps break down and digest lactose.
Although it is possible to get all nutrients found in dairy products from other foods, calcium and vitamin D deficiencies can be a concern, since many people do rely on dairy for these two nutrients.
Calcium: Signs of deficiency include bone density loss and muscle spasms. Green leafy veggies, almonds, tofu, tahini and sardines with the bones are all good sources of dietary calcium. If you aren’t getting enough of these, then supplement with additional calcium. On average most people should aim for about 1000mg of calcium intake per day. (more…)
5 Tips for Your Diet While Breastfeeding
by Paula Gallagher | June 8, 2011
Nursing is a personal and often controversial decision to make. Many factors affect a woman’s choice to breastfeed, but if you do choose to do it, keep in mind that what you put in your mouth can impact your baby’s health as well. Here are some tips to help you eat well, stay hydrated and produce quality milk for your little one.
1. Drink plenty of fluids. Most women should be aiming for 10 cups of water per day. This is especially important for milk production.
2. In The Breastfeeding Book: Everything You Need to Know About Nursing Your Child from Birth Through Weaning, Martha and William Sears, M.D. recommend the following 12 foods as part of a healthy breastfeeding diet: avocado, chickpeas, eggs, fish, flax seeds and flax oil, kidney beans, lentils, sweet potatoes, tofu, tomatoes, whole grains and yogurt. Each of these foods contains important nutrients such as protein, folic acid, fiber and other essential vitamins. (more…)
Vitamin D Deficiency Linked to Gestational Diabetes
by Paula Gallagher | April 12, 2011
It has been a while since we have had some information on one of our most popular topics, vitamin D, the “sunshine vitamin.” A new study out of Australia has shown that there is a connection between low vitamin D levels and gestational diabetes. Vitamin D is one of the important vitamins during pregnancy; researchers recommend that a pregnant woman should regularly get tested for vitamin D deficiency.
The study involved 147 women at Westmead Hospital’s gestational diabetes clinic. More than 40% of the women had lower than average vitamin D levels at the start of the study. The research was led by Dr. Sue Lynn Lau and Dr. Jenny Gunton from Sydney’s Garvan Institute of Medical Research, with Dr. Neil Athayde and Professor Wah Cheung from Westmead Hospital. The researchers noticed that the women with the worst blood sugar control were also those with the lowest vitamin D levels. The findings are published in the latest issue of the Medical Journal of Australia.
Gestational diabetes carries a whole list of complications including premature labor and birth, blindness, increased risk of both mother and baby developing type 1 or 2 diabetes within 10 years, and a very large birth weight baby (over 12 pounds). Low vitamin D levels can also cause the newborn to have weak bones, which can be broken more easily by a fall during childhood and adulthood.
If you are pregnant or are thinking of becoming pregnant, talk to your doctor about supplementing with vitamin D3. I am 32 weeks pregnant and I take 2000IU per day. It is also something you would want to continue after your baby is born. If you choose to nurse, you will also need to give your infant vitamin D, as well.
New Guideline for Vitamin D Intake: Is It Enough?
by Paula Gallagher | January 7, 2011
An increase in the recommended dietary allowance of vitamin D has been called for in new guidelines issued by the Institute of Medicine.
The new recommendations call for 600 international units (IU) daily, with 800 IU recommended for the elderly. The researchers note, however, that most Americans receive the necessary amount of vitamin D already and that taking more is not necessarily better. These researchers believe that taking more than this has no extra benefit on bones. However, there have been countless studies showing the benefits of vitamin D for decreasing cancer risk and improving the immune system.
Here is Dr. Jerry Teplitz’s view on the new guidelines. While a committee of the National Institute of Standards and Technology reviewed the research on vitamin D and recommended increasing the amount of vitamin D from 400 IU per day to 600 IU per day, there are still questions about how they reached that decision and whether the dose increase is high enough.
Well, it turns out the members of this committee did not include any of the top researchers on vitamin D. This means that those with the most expertise on the subject were not involved in the decision-making process. (more…)
S.A.D. (Seasonal Affective Disorder)
by Paula Gallagher | December 6, 2010
If you typically feel the winter blahs or the February blues, then you might be experiencing SAD, or seasonal affective disorder. SAD is a type of depression that affects people in the winter months because of the darkness from shorter days and grayer skies. It is more common in women than men and in the north than the south.
Symptoms of SAD can be low energy, anxiety attacks, weight gain, sleeping too much, and decreased libido, all of which typically begin in the late fall and alleviate in the spring. But here is the good news. People with SAD often respond very well to light therapy (phototherapy) and vitamin D supplementation as well as other forms of natural medicine. Be sure to talk to your doctor about symptoms you are experiencing, for a proper diagnosis.
Start taking a vitamin D supplement now. Even better, have your levels assessed at your doctor’s office using a simple blood test known as serum 25OHD. Vitamin D3 is now known to be useful for not only bone health, but also immune system health, inflammation, against all forms of cancer, and of course mood.
People with SAD have higher levels of melatonin, the brain chemical that induces sleep. Light therapy is helpful for SAD because full spectrum lighting regulates the production of melatonin. Melatonin regulates daily patterns. Full spectrum light bulbs and light boxes are available. (more…)