I hope that the winter months are treating you fairly. I myself am not a fan of winter. I am continually struggling with the temptation of warm food and hot drinks.

This month's newsletter is about eating to boost one's energy. Energy, in scientific terms, is measured by calories or kilojoules (1 calorie= 4.2 kilojoules). We often see the words "high in energy" written on food packages. Be careful when you see this, as this product is most likely high in carbohydrates and/or fat. So, yes, if you need more calories in your diet, eat the "high energy" foods. If you want to boost your energy levels, refer to the article posted below.

I have had quite a bit of experience working in corporate wellness. The very common issues there include either eating too many fast foods and high fat snacks, or not eating enough throughout the day. Both of these scenarios lead to poor energy levels. We either get too busy and forget to eat or we tend to pick the quickest options laden with fat and salt. This is usually a means to fill our bellies and satisfy our cravings, because, you guessed it, our energy levels are low!

The article below has concise advice on how to eat to boost your energy levels:
Happy reading!

http://www.eatright.org/resource/food/nutrition/healthy-eating/eating-to-boost-energy

I feel compelled to share updates in the field of nutrition with you on an ongoing basis. I love learning and sharing knowledge with my clients, past and present. I hope that you find these mails interesting and can take something useful away from them.

The first edition will focus on an area which is quite new in the field, but incredibly multifaceted and interesting. It's about the human microbiome (i.e.the millions of bacteria, fungi, etc in and on our bodies). Apparently the number of bacterial cells in the human intestine outnumbers human cells by a factor of 10 to 1. These bacterial cells also contains about 150 times as many genes as the human genome.

Having a bacterial imbalance in one's gut could impact on one's health. Many studies done thus far have been on mice, but the discoveries have been remarkable. What I found especially interesting was the effect of recurrent usage of antibiotics on one's microbiome.

For more interesting reading, please see the article below:

http://ideas.ted.com/can-your-biome-make-you-fat/?utm_campaign=social&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=facebook.com&utm_content=ideas-blog&utm_term=science


Happy reading!