musings of a gluten free runner » supplements

Birth Control Pill Not Good for Lean Muscle Mass

Dana — Sat, 18 Apr 2009 04:19:00 +0000

Birth control pills have always been a subject of much debate for female athletes. It seems like it is the modern-day doctor’s answer to any irregularity in the menstrual cycle. They want you to go on the pill for everything, you bleed too much, your cycle is too short, too long, non-existent… or hey, you have acne? No problem… take this pill. It only gives you a constant supply of synthetic hormones. (!)

Popping a pill is a much easier solution than trying to look into the root cause of the hormonal problem in the first place. What really upsets me is the lack of studies that have been done on the long term side effects of being on the pill and the real lack of studies actually done on athletes.

This latest study finds that women on the pill are “less likely to build muscle” than those not taking it. “You can still gain muscle on the pill, you just have to work harder.” The reason for this is because the pill drops levels of circulating testosterone. For the collegiate athlete, or the competitive athlete this is a serious issue.

My favorite part is at the end of the video:

Q: Should you reconsider taking the pill in light of this study?
A: Probably not unless you are a competitive athlete or body builder.

Healthy Soda

Dana — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 06:01:00 +0000

I was so excited to find this stuff last week… all I kept thinking was: it’s about time! Zevia is a “natural” soda made very simply: water, stevia and flavoring ingredient. I haven’t bought any kind of soda in ages, but I just had to try this stuff because it had stevia in it. Hopefully this is a good sign that more foods will start using the delicious calorie-free herbal sweetener instead of all the chemical sh*t that’s been out there since the days of women drinking Diet Rite. (For some reason those cans always conjure pictures of feather-haired women donning leg warmers, sweatbands, and full body leotards.)

More to the point, stevia is still considered a supplement. The sugar industry, and especially the established big boys of the artificial sweetener realm have been pressuring the FDA for years to keep this thing under-wraps.

What a shame. And if, like me, you tried using stevia 10 years ago and shied away because of the aftertaste… you will be pleasantly surprised by all the new “non-bitter” formulas out there. Basically a little of this “sweet leaf” goes a long way. Many of the new stevia powders (especially the packets) are cut with small amounts of other sweeteners (like sugar alcohols) and this mellows the flavor and makes it less potent. The straight stuff is SUPER easy to overdo!

It’s just a matter of time before this one hits huge… and we start seeing it appearing in more processed foods and drinks. Even with all the recent fan-fare stores like Whole Foods still can’t keep stevia next to the other sweeteners, because technically the FDA still classifies it as a “supplement.” So sometimes you have to go hunting for the herbal nectar. Most Whole Foods keep the packets by their tea selection. Trader Joes and Whole Foods both have really reasonably priced boxes of 100 packets under their own labels… both are around $5.00.

Sweetness.

For more information on Stevia and articles on artificial supplements check out the Zevia website links page. (Obviously they are going to be a little biased, but it has some good links).
http://www.zevia.com/products_stevia.html

Ribs, Cafes, & the Brown Bag

Dana — Sun, 02 Dec 2007 23:10:00 +0000

Wow, do I feel like such a slug. What are you supposed to do with a hairline fracture in your rib. I can’t run…right? My M-O this week has been to try to heal it as fast as possible. So common sense tells me that I shouldn’t allow myself to do anything that hurts it…. Uggg. but everything seems to hurt it! I have managed to get to the gym twice this week… once I spent 70 minutes on bikes. The sit back kind (recumbent) and the sit up kind (regular exercise bike). This was only mildly uncomfortable…. but I needed to sweat on Thursday. Unfortunately afterwards I was more sore, and felt like I had taken a step backwards. So I waited until Saturday and went to the gym where I pretty much walked on the elliptical (no arms!) for 65 minutes. I frankly got bored and if I went any harder, my rib hurt more.

So now it is Sunday morning and I am exhausted. Not because I didn’t go to bed at a decent hour…. 10:30? But because for some reason I kept rolling onto my side to sleep last night, the hurt side! Why on earth did my body keep wanting to do this strange thing. The pain was waking me up every time. I feel like I can sympathize with my friends who are very pregnant right now and can’t sleep anymore….

So maybe I’ll wait to try something again until tomorrow. This is right up there with the most limiting injuries I’ve had, like the back thing. I don’t like torso injuries. I think I’m through with them.

After leaving the gym yesterday I walked to Whole Foods and bought a HUGE bottle of Cal-Mag-Zinc: Orange and Vanilla Flavor, like I used to take. (not that I usually like anything flavored with Orange, but there is really no choice in the matter).

But the amusing part of the whole situation was that they gave me a small, unmarked paper bag to carry it in. So, here I am walking through the Pearl in the middle of the day carrying nothing but a bottle in a brown sack. After I got the Daily Cafe, I chose a table in far corner to wait for my friend. And figuring I would get a head start on bone-building, I took the bottle out of the sack, poured two cap fulls and swigged them consecutively. All the while I am being eyed by a disbelieving member of the waitstaff who is clearing tables from the lunch rush. Boy, did she give me some strange looks. It was really only after her reaction that I realized the hilarity of the situation- like some kind of hidden camera show or something…

New Iron Pills…. hmmm

Dana — Thu, 20 Sep 2007 04:46:00 +0000

OK- started another iron pill this weekend…. and I think this one will be relegated to the “Ian” pile once again. Although he has his own digestive issues, he seems to have a much easier time with the iron varieties than I do and he’s not gluten intolerant…. (or so he insists).

This one was from Wild Oats- their brand- and it said gluten free on the label. It is seriously the craziest capsule I’ve seen. The outside is clear and it is filled with different brightly colored beads. The nice thing is that it said slow-release, and the capsule contains vitamin C, folic acid and b12 to aid absorption… so I was thinking it would cut down on the amount of pills I take at night. (Although I do enjoy my chewable vitamin Cs!)

I might give these the benefit of the doubt… since it is almost that time of the month and my stomach might be ultra sensitive. I even had to stop doing the mile repeats in the workout yesterday because my tummy was making so much noise… PAINFUL!
So, I’ll give them to till the end of the week…maybe I won’t take any Friday night since I’ve got a tempo Saturday morning. Then it is back to the Gentle Iron for me.

uggh.

Pill Popping… a sample daily intake

Dana — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 06:04:00 +0000

Morning:
Levoxyl- on empty stomach of course… sometimes I’ll set my alarm and go back to sleep.

Midday or later morning:
Vitamin D
Zinc
Omega 3
L-Tyrosine (Thyroid support)
Kelp (Thyroid support)

Before Bed at Night:
Iron
B-Complex
Vitamin C
Rhinocort Aqua Nasal Spray (for my allergies)

I don’t take a multi because I don’t like having everything in one pill. It is convenient though! I just want to make sure that I give myself a fighting chance at absorbing everything… especially since my intestines are in a rough shape.

Any to add?

You Are My Sunshine…. Vit D

Dana — Sat, 08 Sep 2007 03:49:00 +0000

Ahhh…. the sun just came out! It’s streaming through the window behind me warming my legs. Hopefully there’s no UV coating on this glass… I need my daily dose.

This morning felt so cold, I couldn’t believe it. And all day has been cloudy so far. Just another reminder to swallow those Vitamin D pills when I get home tonight from my long day up on the hill.

Up until about a year ago, I never paid Vitamin D much attention. All I really knew was the basics:

it works along with calcium and magnesium for bone health

your body makes it from sunshine

it’s added to pasteurized milk in this country

it’s fat soluble like Vitamin A- which means you can overdose because your body stores it instead of excreting it through sweat/urine.

Pretty much all common knowledge. It wasn’t until I went down to see the Endo in Houston that I learned that I had a severe vitamin D deficiency. (I found this very ironic, since until I moved to the Pacific Northwest, I felt like I spent my life baking in the sun.) That news meant, of course, that I had to find out more. And much to my surprise, this is one fascinating nutrient.

I’ve read that Vitamin D deficiency has been linked to iron deficiency. The reason may be that individuals who are iron deficient have trouble metabolizing Vitamin D…. but I think that it is likely more of a correlation than causal relationship. Persons with fat malabsorption often have Vitamin D deficiencies, meaning that it requires some dietary fat for absorption. Symptoms of fat malabsorption include diarrhea and oily stools… (sorry again to be graphic). Fat malabsorption is associated with a variety of medical conditions including… drum roll please: CELIAC DISEASE. And, like I mentioned before, people with celiac or other malabsorption problems (like Crohns, etc.) are also very likely to have iron deficiency.

On another point high caffeine intake (300mg/day, which is equivalent to 18 oz of regular coffee) inhibits both vitamin d and iron absorption from the diet. Just another reason for me to cut back… (it is just sooo hard! Starting tomorrow!)

BUT… diet is not the best way to get vitamin D anyways. Our bodies prefer to make it from the sun. 10 to 15 minutes of sun exposure at least two times per week to the face, arms, hands, or back without sunscreen is usually sufficient to provide adequate vitamin D. Of course, this news flies in the face of the recommendations of your dermatologist- all of whom push the sunscreen. Unfortunately, if you are slathering on the sunscreen (spf 8 and higher) you’re blocking the UV rays that your skin needs to produce the required amounts of Vitamin D.
Hmmmm…. skin cancer or rickets?

Just kidding.

What makes the sunlight issue more difficult is that many of us live in Northern latitudes where the angle of the sun and weather patterns hamper our best efforts to tan. Also playing a role are season, time of day, cloud cover, and smog, affect UV ray exposure and vitamin D synthesis. For example, sunlight exposure from November through February in Boston is insufficient to produce significant vitamin D synthesis in the skin. Complete cloud cover halves the energy of UV rays, and shade reduces it by 60%.

According to the National Weather Service’s data for the period between 1951-1995. There was an average of 67 clear days per year. That’s it. 71 days were partly cloudy and a whopping 227 days were ENTIRELY CLOUDY!!!!

I am severely deficient in Vitamin D and I get outside to run every day, and I’m fair-skinned (the more pigment in your skin, the more sun it takes to make adequate amounts of vit D). It is hard to imagine how anyone here could be high without a supplement.

So, why does any of this matter?

There have been hosts of more recent studies that have linked high levels of vitamin D in the body to much decreased incidences of cancer, autoimmune diseases, and Alzheimer’s, among others. What is very interesting is that the levels needed for this kind of disease prevention are far above those needed merely for optimal bone health. These findings have led to an increased awareness of the nutrient and talks to increase the federal government’s RDA, which is currently a pathetic 200 IUs for adults under 50.

One of the most interesting tidbits for me is that Vitamin D functions more like a hormone in your body than it does like an actual vitamin. It affects your calcium absorption, thyroid, and immune system.

There are two types of Vitamin D commonly available in pill form: D2 and D3. D3, or cholecalciferol, has been found to be up to 10 times more potent that equal amounts of D2. The problem for vegans is that D3 is made from an animal source (Lanolin, which is derived from sheep’s wool). D2, on the other hand, is made from yeast and perfectly suited to vegans.

The upper limit for consumption of Vitamin D (D3) is about 2,000 IUs per day for adults. If you are deficient, your doctor will probably tell you to take more, or prescribe a 25,000 IU tablet that you take once per week.

In order to achieve the full benefit of the nutrient, many experts are recommending supplementing with 1,000 IUs of D3 per day.

Just please don’t use it as an excuse to drink more gross cow’s milk. The benefits of your increased vitamin D intake would come no where near to outweighing the health risks…. not to mention the acne and phlegmy mucus… but that is another post entirely.

Ins & Outs of Iron Supplements

Dana — Tue, 04 Sep 2007 03:36:00 +0000

Over the years I have tried countless different types of iron supplements in multiple forms. There are liquids, capsules, tablets, and soft gels. Iron is available over the counter, by Rx, in natural food stores, and at your local big box grocer. They are not, however, all created equal.

As a general rule, I avoid tablets whenever possible. They are the hardest of the forms to digest and often leave me with stomach pain. I also figure that the less my body has to work to break the product down, the more potent it will be. I’m not saying that the liquids won’t give you a stomachache! Many of them surely will, but depending on the type of iron it contains- you are probably absorbing more of it.
(For me, liquid ferrous sulphate is like taking a black enema in a bottle- sorry to be graphic.)

Here are the best Iron Supps I’ve taken (and I still have a cabinet full of others!):

1) Floradix- This stuff is expensive, especially when you consider how much elemental iron you are getting per serving. However, it works great if you are not terribly low and don’t mind the cost. They even have a version gluten and yeast free version called Floravital. Gentle enough to be taken after meals, this was my old standby in college.

2) SSS Iron Tonic- Another liquid. I ordered a few bottles along with the liquid B-complex. I was attracted by the claims that it works better than injections. It surely did work for me, right away I felt my iron come up and noticed a difference on runs within a week and a half. It did, however, give me a very constant stomachache for the month that I took it. Although there are no gluten containing ingredients on the label, the manufacturer cannot confirm that it is GF…. which was enough for me to stop taking it.

3) Hema-plex- I know, this is a tablet… but it is a good one. There are tons of beneficial ingredients packed into this little pill. It includes other blood builders such as beets and greens, as well as vitamins that enhance iron’s absorption. Another plus is that one tablet has 85 mg of iron as an amino acid chelate! Hemaplex is also wheat and yeast free, but they do not say gluten free. The ingredient in question for me is the barley grass juice, while I know that it shouldn’t contain gluten… if the grass had sprouted before it was juiced…. then there is a small chance. Uggh. Click here for a link to purchase.

4) Gentle Iron- This bottle was actually the first iron supplement that I ever purchased. I was in college and severely anemic… I couldn’t keep my eyes open in class and thought I had mono. Looking back, I’m sure it was the celiac disease, because I went through six-week stretch of everything running straight through me. Ironically, I started to cut out anything with fiber, fruit, then veggies, then nuts, and finally I was down to plain bagels. And nothing helped! I even had to go to the doctor for stool samples! (they told me I must have had a food born bacteria, but that it had worked its way out). Needless to say my track season was literally in the toilet that year. Anyways- As much as I’ve strayed, I keep coming back to this old standby. It is even Gluten-Free. Unfortunately each pill is only 25 mg…. but true to its name, it is truly the most gentle.

If you don’t have a sensitive stomach, then you can go the cheap route and get a ferrous sulfate liquid or the super cheap route and get ferrous sulfate tablets. Again, you should see faster results with the liquid, but it might also be harsher on your stomach. If the cheap iron tablets are a bit much for you, there’s always the extended release option too.

How to take Iron:

My stomach is so sensitive that I only take mine at night before bed. I left my dinner digest a little first, just because I think the less you have in your stomach the better it is absorbed.

Take the iron with Vitamin C. Try it with OJ or an Emergen-C. If you take a liquid iron, you can even make a little cocktail.

Take your iron with a B-complex vitamin and make sure it contains plenty of B12.

Do not take other minerals with your iron! Minerals, especially calcium and zinc can block iron absorption. You’ll also probably hinder the absorption of the other minerals as well. Make sure your OJ isn’t fortified with calcium. Save that one for breakfast only.

Do not take iron with coffee, tea or soy milk. Caffeine is another substance that seems to hinder iron absorption. The same has been found with the tannins in tea (black and green, not herbal), and soy protein. Try not to consume any of these substances within 2-3 hours of taking your iron pill. This is also true with absorbing the iron from food- try not to drink caffeinated beverages or teas (herbals are OK) with meals.

Better get to the afternoon run. Cheers!