Are You Nutritionally Fit?

Your healthy lifestyle depends on a lot more than just your physical fitness -- you need to consider your nutritional fitness as well. You already know the importance of the three pillars of health: healthy diet + supplements + physical activity -- but here are three questions you can ask yourself to further help assess your nutritional fitness.

Do you shun the sun?

Do you find yourself staring longingly out the window as rays of sunlight skip across your room? Well, besides the fact that you might yearn for a breath of fresh air outside, your skin actually needs some sun exposure to help achieve optimal levels of vitamin D. Vitamin D helps the body absorb calcium for bone health and may also help the immune system, reduce the risk of diabetes, and promote ovarian, breast, prostate, heart and colon health.

People who wear sunscreen (and it's highly recommended for virtually everyone) live in northern climates during the winter months or have darker skin may not achieve optimal levels of vitamin D. Vitamin D food sources include fortified milk and fatty types of fish. However, it is hard to achieve optimal intake through food alone, and vitamin D is also available in supplement form.  This represents a convenient and affordable way to obtain the optimal amount of vitamin D when diet and sun exposure fall short.

Do your meals lack color?

Does your dinner typically consist of meat, starch and the same green vegetable? For starters, kudos to you for including green vegetables in your diet. But for optimal health you should try adding more color to your meals. Remember the expression variety is the spice of life? When it comes to food, make it your mantra.

Let us paint a picture for you -- vegetables, such as steamed carrots, peppers and red cabbage add vibrant hues to the dinner plate, while citrus wedges can illuminate the standard bed of greens.  Bottom line:  the more color, the better.

Brighter and more colorful foods are often rich in vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Antioxidants help your body defend against free radicals that may cause premature aging. Try adding a multivitamin to your daily regimen to compensate for dietary deficits.

Is fish a regular dish? 

The American Heart Association recommends you eat at least two servings of fish per week. Fish such as salmon and tuna are high in protein and rich in long chain omega-3 fatty acids, which support cognitive function, a healthy immune system and promote heart health. While the body can make these fatty acids from other fats you consumer in your diet, it does so very slowly, so it is important that you include them in your diet-whether from food or from fish oil (omega-3 fatty acid) supplements. 

As part of your self-assessment, you can also check out My Wellness Scorecard.