Nutrition

If you want to score an A plus for good health, you need to make sure that your body gets a daily dose of Vitamin A. Vitamin A is vital for healthy growth and development and does amazing things in the body to make sure it stays healthy.

Vitamin A

Vitamin A helps to protect the body from diseases and infections by boosting the immune system. It is important for maintaining healthy bones, teeth and membranes. Vitamin A also aids in good vision, particularly in poor light, and helps to protect the skin and body from infections.

Remember when our mothers told us to eat our carrots to give us ‘good eyes’? Vegetables like carrots, sweet potato, spinach and pumpkin are packed with the protective properties of Vitamin A. These great sources of good health can even be grown in your own garden!

Other food sources, such as liver, kidneys, egg yolks, peanuts, oranges and milk are also rich sources of Vitamin A. Foods that have been enriched with Vitamin A, like Promasidor’s milk powders and vitamin enriched bread, score extra points in the test of good health. A glass of milk is a delicious way to get a head start on our daily nutritional needs.

Our bodies cannot function properly without an adequate amount of Vitamin A. Children who do not get enough Vitamin A in their diets may also take longer to recover from diseases such as measles and may complain of not being able to see clearly at night as their eyes will adapt poorly to the dark. Other signs of Vitamin A deficiency are slower growth in children and dry skin or ‘goose flesh’ looking skin. .

There are many ways to provide proper nutrition for our families without too much fuss and at a limited cost. So what are you waiting for? Start planting some valuable vegetables in your garden today!

Vitamin C – nature's immune booster

Vitamin C packs a real punch in the body in the war against infection, and the prevention and cure of the common cold and flu. It also aids in wound healing, gives strength to your blood vessels and is essential for healthy teeth, gums and bones.

A lack of vitamin C can lead to dry hair and skin, inflamed or bleeding gums, weakened tooth enamel, painful joints and a weakened ability to fight infections. In the most extreme cases, it can lead to the scurvy – a disease of the skin and gums.

Vitamin C, like most vitamins, can be found in all most fruits and vegetables, though some have higher concentrations than others. These include the citrus fruits and juices, guava, watermelon, green peppers, tomatoes, broccoli, brussels sprouts, most berry varieties, leafy greens and potatoes. Vitamin C is also a powerful anti-oxidant, which helps prevent cancer, heart disease and arthritis. Most animals have the ability to manufacture their own vitamin C. Humans are the noticeable exception.

Because of this it is vital that we include foods and drinks either naturally containing vitamin C or fortified with it, like Cowbell milk powder with Vitarich to build strong, health bodies.

Vitamin D – the sunshine vitamin

Eating saltwater fish like herring, salmon and sardines will ensure that your body gets the Vitamin D it needs to help maintain healthy bones. Our bodies are also able to manufacture a form of Vitamin D when exposed to the sun.

Other common food sources in our diet, such as eggs and butter contribute to our intake of Vitamin D. Certain foods, such as Cowbell powdered milk and some breakfast cereals, are fortified with Vitamin D. (Fortified foods are generally staple foods such as bread, maize and milk to which vitamins and minerals are added to increase their nutritional value.)

The main function of Vitamin D is to maintain normal blood levels of calcium and phosphorus. Vitamin D helps the body to absorb calcium, helping to form and maintain strong bones. It does this by telling the body to absorb more calcium from food or removing calcium from the bones if the blood supply of calcium is too low. We need Vitamin D to distribute the right amount of calcium in the blood to help our bones grow and to help our bodies stay healthy.

Drinking a glass of fortified milk like Cowbell, Miksi or Loya provides the body with a variety of vitamins and minerals needed by the body. Vitamin D, when combined with the calcium and phosphorus found in milk, promotes healthy teeth and bones.

A lack of Vitamin D in children and infants can result in a bone disease known as rickets. Adults who suffer from a lack of Vitamin D are also at greater risk of developing osteoporosis, which causes a softening or thinning of the bones.

Vitamin D is therefore important throughout our lifetimes. So we should make sure that we get our daily dose of Vitamin D – the sunshine vitamin!

Vitamin E - the body's protector

Vitamin E is an anti-oxidant that protects body tissue from damage caused by free radicals, by-products of the body converting foods to energy. When these free radicals build up in your system that can lead to a host of health complaints, including heart and liver disease and cancer. How much of a role Vitamin E plays in their prevention is still unknown, but we do know that vitamin E is essential in every good diet. Vitamin E is also important in the formation of red blood cells and helps the body to use Vitamin K.

Vitamin E can be found in nuts, corn, wheat germ, seeds, leafy green vegetables like spinach, asparagus and vegetable oils. It can also be found in fortified food and drinks like Cowbell milk powder with Vitarich.

Vitamin K - your blood's partner

Without Vitamin K, the body would lose the ability to make blood clot. It is found in cereals, green leafy vegetables like spinach, soybeans, cabbage and cauliflower. It is also made by bacteria in the gastro-intestinal tract. Cowbell milk powder with Vitarich has also been fortified with this important nutrient.

Calcium helps to build healthy bodies

Mothers all over the world try to provide nutritious meals for their families to help them grow strong and healthy. One of the nutrients needed every day by our bodies in order to stay healthy is calcium.

Our bones are made up of the mineral called calcium. Calcium helps to keep bones strong, particularly in terms of bone formation (in terms of length and density).

In addition to strong bones, calcium plays an important role in building healthy bodies, by promoting healthy blood formation and a healthy nervous system. Calcium also helps your muscles contract, helps your blood to clot and helps your nerves carry messages throughout the body.

The richest source of calcium in our food supply is found in milk and milk products, like Promasidor’s milk powders, yoghurt and cheese. The calcium in milk is absorbed easily by the body and is a delicious way to provide the important nutrients needed by the whole family.

Calcium is also found in foods such as dark green vegetables (like green beans and spinach), nuts, grains, beans and sardines. However, it is important to make sure that milk and milk products are consumed on a daily basis.

Regular intake of calcium is vital for good health because the body requires a constant supply of calcium to carry out its functions. It is needed by the whole family and is particularly important to babies and children during their development stages.

If our bodies do not get enough calcium from our daily diet, they use the calcium from the bones as an emergency supply. When this happens over a long period, our bones can become weak. Unhealthy teeth, slower growth in children and weak bones are usually physical warning signs that the body is lacking sufficient amounts of calcium.

Mothers should remember that they need calcium just as much as the rest of the family. As women get older, the lack of calcium makes bones weak and brittle, causing them to break easily. This bone disease is known as osteoporosis.

When mothers make sure that their families have enough calcium in their every day diets, they make an important investment in the health of their families for the future.

 

Protein - the building blocks

Proteins in milk are called caseins, all of which are grouped as whey protein. They are essential for nursing young, as they are the building blocks of life. Though vital for the young, we can all benefit from milk proteins throughout our lives.