That's Fit

Think the food-mood connection is a real one? I do. A handful of nuts always makes me feel happier than a bag full of chips. Maybe it's because I know nuts are better for me than chips and by eating them, I'm preventing a trail of guilt that would follow my chip indulgence. Or maybe it's something else altogether.

Seems certain vitamins and compounds can actually change brain chemistry in happy ways, like these.

• Omega-3 fatty acids: Eat them and combat depression.
• Folic acid: Higher levels of folic acid lead to lower levels of depression.
• Low-quality carbs (candy, cookies, cakes): Watch out -- they can boost the blues.
  
• High-quality carbs (oats, barley, lentils, beans, sweet potatoes): The can stabilize mood swings.
• Vitamin D: It alleviates seasonal affective disorder (SAD).
  
  

Ready for some feel-good starter foods? Try these: Beans, wild salmon, skim milk, and blackberries. And don't forget to eat every four to five hours -- it will keep you feeling satisfied and happy all day long.

It's easy to get stuck in a rut, eating the same foods day in and day out. But variety, as they say, is the spice of life.

Since I rarely eat meat, getting my RDI of iron is difficult for me, but I know firsthand how important it is -- if I'm not getting enough I get lightheaded and lethargic. The same can happen to you!

According to our friends at Fitsugar, we need 18 mg of Iron per day, and without this, we may be considered anemic. Get your share from the following sources:

• Iron-fortified cereal (1 oz) - 4.5-7 mg
• Soybeans (1/2 cup) - 9 mg
• Sun-dried tomatoes (1/2 cup) - 9 mg
• Pine Nuts (1/2 cup) - 9 mg
• Pumpkin seeds (1/2 cup) - 9 mg
• Oysters (3 oz) - 7 mg
• Spinach (1/2 cup) - 3 mg

Want to know more iron-rich foods? Head over to Fitsugar for the scoop on iron.

When you were little, your mom probably made sure you got your vitamin C to help fend off those nasty bugs that float around classrooms. But recent research shows that adults have good reason to get their vitamin C as well.

At their Conference of the Council for High Blood Pressure Research, the American Heart Association revealed that vitamin C has a positive effect on blood pressure. The practical applications aren't yet known but in the study, high doses of vitamin C resulted in an average seven percent drop in blood pressure.

While it's not reasonable for you to take high doses of vitamin C like those administered in the study, you can be sure to incorporate lots of healthful foods that are rich in vitamin C. Choices include citrus fruits, broccoli, greens, and melon.

There's no denying it -- some people seem to be prone to every kind of illness out there, while some are healthy as a horse. I tend to fall into the latter category -- besides one doozy of a cold I had last January, I haven't been sick in ages. But trust me, I'm exposed to just as many germs as anyone else, be it at the office, at the gym, at school and just about any public place I frequent.

AOL Health recently listed the healthy habits of women who never get sick, including these:

• Get regular massages (I really like this one!)
• Wash your hands
• Sip ginger and honey for stomach and bowel issues
• Take cold showers
• Get your fill of garlic, vitamin c and zinc

As for me, I find that the old adage an apple a day keeps the doctor away really works! How do you stay healthy?

But here's the kicker. In order to avoid a multi-vitamin and still get enough nutrition, you need to eat the right foods. For instance, iron should rarely be taken in pill form (especially by men), but iron is an important nutrient for kids and teens. You can make sure they get enough by feeding them foods like fortified breakfast cereals or black beans, but serve them with foods that are high in vitamin C (such as orange juice) to boost absorption.

Prevention has the scoop on other important nutrients, who needs them, and the best way to get them, whether in supplement form or through the foods you eat.

Alternative medicine may not always works as effectively as traditional western medicine, but they can't harm you, right? Not true. Recent studies recently found that one in five Ayruvedic medicines contains poisonous metallics like lead, arsenic and mercury.

Of hundreds of Ayurvedic remedies purchased from 25 different websites in the USA and India, 21% contained detectable levels of at least one of these metals, and of that 21%, half had higher levels than would be considered healthy.

Ayurvedic medicine is an ancient practice that promotes overall health using a balance of medicine, meditation, exercise and diet, and while it can be part of a healthy lifestyle, it's always a good idea to talk to your doctor first before taking any kind of remedy, natural or not.

Nearly every time my son and I go grocery shopping, he begs me to buy children's vitamins. I know parents tend to disagree when it comes to children's vitamins. Personally, while I don't think they're harmful, I don't think they're necessary. My son eats plenty of fruits and vegetables, he gets sufficient calcium from milk, yogurt, and fortified orange juice, and he eats a broad range of other healthy foods as well.

But my kid LOVES his candy. And I'm quite certain that is why he wants those gummy vitamins he sees in the store so badly.

Angie over at ParentDish recently wrote about a study regarding children's vitamins. The study reviewed 14 types of vitamins and found that only five of the reviewed brands had the 12 essential vitamins you would expect. Some brands had as little as four vitamins. The researchers state that the vitamins are little better than candy.

Jessica Simpson says she works out and takes good care of herself. But that doesn't mean the girl doesn't like a cold beer once in a while. Makes sense, then, that the singer, actress, and designer has signed on as spokeswoman for a new beer that apparently contains not only alcohol, but vitamins.

Stampede Light Plus, made by the Dallas's Stampede Brewing Co., is the product Simpson will endorse. Why exactly this beer? Because she is always interested in diversifying her portfolio, she says. And she likes good ideas and good people. Oh, and a little money too -- Simpson will take a 15-percent stake in the brewer.

Want to know more about this vitamin thing? Check out the Stampede Plus website here.

We have a pile of toothbrushes sitting on our bathroom counter. We seem to alternate among them and as they pile up, I realize it's time to toss the whole lot and start fresh. It's healthy to do this every once in a while. But how often? Every three to four months. Why? Because frayed bristles -- we've got plenty of these -- don't clean well and leave teeth ripe for tooth decay.

Got an old toothbrush? Toss it now. Toss these things too.

Vitamins. After two years, give your vitamins the boot. Experts say they can technically sit for three years but since you have no idea how long they sat on store shelves, two years is a good time frame. They won't hurt you if you take them years and years later. They just won't work.

We know that colorful foods are best; color provides a variety of nutrients our body needs. And let's face it -- it's much more fun for our taste buds that plain old potatoes and other white foods.

How about some refreshing summer cooler drinks that will give us a fair amount of nutrition, too? Whole Foods Market has some creative recipes that will enhance your seasonal fun.

Let's start with the green Minted Lime Freeze. If you love mojitos, this is a fabulous, frozen, non-alcoholic version of that fun drink. Fresh-squeezed lime juice provides vitamin C and the mint leaves are your leafy greens.

The perfect food to fuel your body is just a shopping trip away. It's sweet, crisp, and full of important nutrients. Can you guess what it is?

Some of us have trouble coughing up the dough for a gym membership or a session with a personal trainer, but that's not a problem for the rich and famous. Britney Spears reportedly spent an exorbitant amount to get her body back in shape. But, it seems to have worked ...

Ugly Betty's Becki Newton always looks flawless on the red carpet, favoring sleeveless gowns (doesn't everybody?). We've got her favorite trick for getting her arms red carpet-ready right here.

Eva Mendes was the star of a too-hot-for-TV ad for Calvin Klein's latest fragrance, Secret Obsession, and she shows a lot of skin. She made some changes to get her body ready to bare, and they're changes we could all make even if we don't have any plans to get naked.

In an ideal world, we'd all eat perfectly and we'd always get all the vitamins we need. However, that's not always possible, especially for the super-busy Heidi Klum. Still, she makes sure she gets her vitamins. Or, rather, her trainer makes sure she does.

Klum works out with David Kirsch, who also trains celebs like Naomi Campbell and Anne Hathaway, and he ships her cases of his Super Juice packets, which, when added to water, add just 30 calories but provide your daily vitamins. He also provides his clients with Thermo Bubbles, which is supposed to boost energy and metabolism.

How about you? Do you rely on supplements to get what your body needs, or do you get it all through your food?

A study in the peer-reviewed journal Internal Medicine states that regularly consuming the RDA of vitamins can help you live seven percent longer. Add that to the discovery that good nutrition can help reduce your likelihood of catching a cold by 20 percent, and that bottle of Centrum probably doesn't seem so overpriced anymore, does it?

But if choking down horse pills really isn't your thing, there are still plenty of vitamins and minerals to be had from -- get this -- actual food (surely no!! It can't be!!).

Among the best sources for your daily dose of health are leafy green vegetables, the kind that could be growing right now in your outdoor garden. Kale and spinach are great options, but so are more of the less thought of choices, such as parsley and mint. The former serves up 70 percent of your RDA of vitamin C, 50 percent of vitamin A, and 10 percent of your iron in a single handful. And the latter also has a great deal of vitamin A, in addition to pepping-up the taste of bland foods.