Be wary of "meal replacements"
The program seems to be working -- the incidence of these types of birth defects is dropping. But scientists at Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging at Tufts University have uncovered a potential dark side to folic acid fortification -- there's been a slight increase in the risk of colon cancer since the fortification of flour began. This is even more of a concern since some food companies are now going beyond white flour and fortifying whole grain breads and pastas with folic acid.
"Healthy" cola drinks and meal replacements
Lately, companies have begun adding nutrients to low-nutritional-value foods and beverages; for example, a new diet cola contains added zinc and B vitamins, including niacin and B6. While it isn't much zinc, if you sip it with a few servings of other zinc-fortified foods, and then take a multivitamin and mineral supplement, you could be getting an excess of zinc. And while too little can lead to poor immune system function, too much zinc can do the same. Why not get it from foods naturally offering a bounty of other nutrients, such as legumes, whole grains, dairy products or nuts?
Be careful if you regularly consume food products labelled "meal replacements." They can be fortified at much higher levels, again possibly boosting certain nutrients to undesirable levels. One meal replacement cereal, for instance, contains almost 40 per cent of the daily value (DV) of folate and almost 50 per cent of the DV for zinc in just one serving. Pour yourself a heaping bowl and you could be beyond your daily quota of these nutrients.
A better calcium
It turns out that not all forms of added calcium are equally well absorbed. A study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association showed that calcium citrate malate was better absorbed than added tricalcium phosphate/calcium lactate.
Check the ingredients list to see which form your juice contains. Does
drinking a lot of fortified orange juice boost your risk of developing kidney stones? Before these juices hit store shelves, scientific research found that they do not.
Click to continue to learn how folic acid can offer a defence against cancer...
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