Vitamin D Levels Can Improve Cardio respiratory Fitness

Vitamin D or the sunshine vitamin is a vital nutrient for the body. It performs several important functions like giving a boost to the immune system, maintaining nervous system and regulating insulin levels. Now, a new study says that Vitamin D is important for maintaining your fitness levels as well. Participants of the study with high levels of Vitamin D were found to have better cardiorespiratory fitness. Cardiorespiratory fitness is referred to a measure of how well your body is able to transport oxygen to your muscles while exercising. A person's level of cardiovascular fitness tells how capable your muscles are in terms of absorbing oxygen.

The study, published in European Journal of Preventive Cardiology, found that higher the levels of Vitamin D, better the cardiorespiratory fitness. However, this association was found only between a person's cardiorespiratory fitness and Vitamin D levels. It wasn't proved if high levels of Vitamin D improved overall fitness.

Also read: Low Vitamin D Levels Strongly Linked To Greater Risk Of Diabetes

Vitamin D is naturally produced in the body when exposed to sunlight. This is the reason why it is also known as sunshine vitamin. When the sun shines on your bare skin, the body makes its own Vitamin D. But the body needs more Vitamin D than it can get from exposure to the sun.

Fatty fish like salmon and tuna are rich sources of Vitamin DPhoto Credit: iStock

Food sources of Vitamin D

Common food sources of Vitamin D include salmon, mackerel, tuna and sardines. Small amounts of the vitamin can be found in egg yolks, milk and other dairy products.

Newborn babies get their required Vitamin D intake from breastmilk. However, it has to be noted that newborns do not get excessive Vitamin D as it may lead to loss of appetite, nausea, vomiting, excessive thirst and muscle aches.

Also read: Want To Reduce Cancer Risk? Make Sure Your Vitamin D Levels Are Optimal

Vitamin D deficiency

Common symptoms of Vitamin D deficiency include muscle weakness and fragile bones. Severe deficiency of Vitamin D in children can lead to rickets in children. Low levels of Vitamin D or Vitamin D deficiency has also been linked to heart disease. However, it is unclear if sufficient levels of Vitamin D will lower heart disease risk. Very high levels of Vitamin D can pose harm to blood vessels and increase amount of calcium in blood stream.

Vitamin D levels are likely to be low in older adults. Older adults with Vitamin D deficiency are likely to have poor memory. Also, deficiency of the vitamin can increase risks of dementia or mental decline.

Also read: 6 Serious Signs That Your Vitamin D Levels Are Too High

You can test your levels of Vitamin D with the help of a blood test. The blood test is known as 25-hydroxyvitamin D test. Healthy levels of Vitamin D, for good bone and overall health, is 20 ng/ml. Some doctors recommend that higher levels, around 30 ng/ml is required to get full benefits from Vitamin D.

Disclaimer: This content including advice provides generic information only. It is in no way a substitute for qualified medical opinion. Always consult a specialist or your own doctor for more information. NDTV does not claim responsibility for this information

Does Eating Organic Food Prevent Cancer?

People who frequently eat organic food are less likely to develop cancer, according to a new study observing thousands of French adults.(Photo: fcafotodigital, Getty Images)

People who regularly eat organic food are less likely to develop cancer than those who don't, according to a new study out of France. 

A team of researchers studied 68,946 adult volunteers from France who provided information on how often they ate organic food, drinks and even dietary supplements. Participants were given a score, based on how often they eat organic food ranging from "most of the time" to "never" or "I don't know."

During two follow-up appointments, one in 2009 and another in 2016, the researchers then tracked cancer diagnoses, the most prevalent being breast cancer. Other cancers observed included prostate cancer, skin cancer, colorectal cancer, non-Hodgkin lymphomas and lymphomas.

People who reported higher organic food scores were less likely to be diagnosed with cancer than the rest of the group. For example, those who consumed the most organic food were 25 percent less likely to have cancer, according to the research. That number grew to more than half when looking at cases of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

This research published Monday in JAMA Internal Medicine doesn't necessarily mean that organic food is reason people are less likely to develop cancer. The reason for the results might be because of other lifestyle or environmental factors. The research also contradicts some data reported in a previous study, the Million Women Study, which linked organic food consumption to a slight increase in the risk of breast cancer. 

More: Organic baby foods contain lead and arsenic, here's what parents can do to safeguard kids

A commentary by three nutrition experts also published in JAMA warns of some weaknesses in the French study, such as possible flaws in the questionnaire used to measure organic food consumption. The authors also stress data around the link between organic food and cancer remains unclear, and they urge the public to continue making dietary decisions based on current recommendations.

"Concerns over pesticide risks should not discourage intake of conventional fruits and vegetables, especially because organic produce is often expensive and inaccessible to many populations," the commentary states.

More: Is coffee healthy or not: How to know if medical studies are worth your time

Health’s contributing editor and registered dietician Cynthia Sass breaks down what clean eating is and how it’s different from other diets that restrict calories or eliminate certain foods. Watch the video for her tips for clean eating. Time

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Is Eating Avocado Seeds Safe?

f you’ve logged onto Facebook in the past few days, you may have seen a viral video demonstrating how you can prepare the seed of an avocado for consumption. The video claims the seed is the most nutrient-dense part of the fruit, and that by drying it, chopping it up into pieces, and blending it, you are left with a powder-like substance that you can mix into smoothies or use for baking, adding an extra nutritional boost to your diet. The video has gained more than 25 million views since it was published on March 13.

So what’s the deal? Have we been missing out on a highly nutritious part of one of our favorite super foods?

RELATED: 31 Super food Secrets for a Long and Healthy Life

Not so much, says Health‘s contributing nutrition editor, Cynthia Sass, MPH, RD.

“I’m a huge avocado fan. I eat them daily, and recommend them to my clients, but I have reservations about eating the seeds,” she said. “While there is some research about beneficial compounds in the seed, the safety of ingesting it hasn’t been established, so the risks versus benefits aren’t fully known.”

RELATED: How to Ripen an Avocado

The research on avocado seed consumption is very limited. In the studies that do exist, scientists conclude that additional research needs to be done to determine whether it’s safe or beneficial to eat them. Additionally, the existing studies have focused on the potential benefits of avocado seed extracts, rather than the consumption of the seed itself, and they provide information only on lab testing, not on clinical data.

RELATED: 8 Avocado Recipes (Besides Guacamole)

“There is a body of evidence exploring potential health benefits in extracts of the avocado seed, but these potential benefits versus risks of eating the avocado seed are not well fleshed out,” said Marisa Moore, MBA, RDN, LDN, an Atlanta-based nutritionist.

RELATED: 4 Ways to Make Avocado Toast

Even the California Avocado Commission writes on its website that it does not recommend the consumption of the avocado pit: “The seed of an avocado contains elements that are not intended for human consumption.”

The bottom line: Until more research is done to establish if the seeds are safe to eat, and how much and how often you should eat them, stick to eating the avocado’s creamy flesh. “It’s chock-full of good fat, vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber,” Sass said.

This article originally appeared on Health.com.

Common Herbicide Compound Could Save Millions: Aussie-led Research

SYDNEY, Oct. 4 (Xinhua) -- A chemical compound found in common herbicides could help fight human fungal pathogenic infections, which claim about 2 million lives a year, according to latest Australian-led research.

The chemical chlorimuron ethyl also targets a range of fungal infections that are potentially fatal to humans, particularly people undergoing treatments which place the immune system under stress, the University of Queensland, which led the international study, said in a statement on Thursday.

"There are more drug-resistant fungal diseases than ever -- posing a major threat to global human health -- and new drugs are urgently required to combat these diseases," said the university's Dr Luke Guddat.

"Through this research we wanted to see if a specific class of commercial herbicide has the ability to stop the growth of these infections.

"We thought this was a good idea, since plants and fungi have a similar enzyme that these chemicals inhibit, and it turns out we were correct."

The researchers tested five different families of compounds to see if they could inhibit a key enzyme from the fungal species, Candida albicans and Cryptococcus neoformans. Chlorimurion ethyl turned out to be "a standout candidate", they said.

"Humans don't have this enzyme -- we obtain these amino acids from our food -- so there's very little chance that these compounds will be toxic to humans, a factor which limits the use of many of the other currently prescribed antifungal drugs."

The development of compounds to treat the infections is promising but more research is necessary, added Guddat.

"We're only at the early stage of this journey, but we're excited to see the prospects for new treatments in the future," said Guddat.