Basics of good nutrition: Eating in Your 20's

Eating at My Age
The basics of good nutrition are the same for any age. But, particular nutritional issues can crop up at certain times in your life, such as when you're pregnant, when you are tackling PMS or managing your way through menopause.

Check out your age. We have highlighted a few key concerns for each decade. See what you can do to live well by eating well.

Eating in Your 20's

Take on your 20's in top form. Here are a few things to think about nutritionally and tips for ensuring you shine.


PMS
Certain habits, foods, vitamins and minerals can help minimize symptoms.

Eat small frequent meals and try to eat at a similar time each day.
Both measures will help stabilize your blood sugar, which in turn can reduce the incidence of headaches and mood swings. Together, they also help keep you energized.

Eat plenty of plants
That means fruits, vegetables, legumes and whole grains. Diets filled with these foods tend to be lower in fat and higher in vitamins and minerals. Less fat in the diet may reduce estrogen levels in the blood, which in turn eases symptoms. Whole grains and legumes are also rich in vitamin B6, which studies show - in moderate amounts - can relieve some symptoms of PMS, such as depression. These foods are also filled with fiber and phytoestrogens (plant estrogens that mimic the estrogen circulating in your body). Together these two substances may improve hormonal balance thereby minimizing PMS problems.

Cut down on caffeine and alcohol
Beverages containing them can add to moodiness, headaches, tension and breast tenderness. Turn your attention to water, instead. Drinking 6 to 8 glasses a day (and eating less salty foods) actually decreases fluid retention and bloating and can minimize the above symptoms.

Cash in on calcium and magnesium
Research shows that getting 1,200 to 1,600 milligrams of calcium daily can reduce the physical and psychological symptoms of PMS by as much as 50 percent. Three to four servings of dairy foods or calcium-fortified foods can provide 1,200 milligrams of calcium.

Too little magnesium is associated with water retention, cramping and headaches. Eating foods such as nuts, whole grains and yogurt, which are good sources of this mineral, helps alleviate these problems.


The Pill
Birth control pills may leave some women more susceptible to high blood pressure. Birth control pills may also increase a woman's need for vitamin B6, folic acid, vitamin C and zinc.

Choose at least 5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day, 3 servings of dairy foods and 3 or more servings of whole grains such as whole-grain cereal, whole-wheat bread or brown rice to help overcome all of the above.

These foods are good sources of the vitamins and minerals that birth control pills may affect, and new studies show a diet rich in produce and low-fat dairy products has lasting effects on lowering blood pressure.


Pregnancy
During a woman's nine months of pregnancy, she eats an extra 85,000 calories to feed her baby. Capitalize on these calories.

Choose foods with folic acid
Folic acid is one of the most important nutrients to have in your diet if you are thinking about getting pregnant or are in the early months of your pregnancy. A diet rich in this vitamin reduces the risk of having a baby with a neural tube birth defect, such as spina bifida, by as much as 70 percent. More recent research suggests too little folic acid, for some women, may also be associated with a greater risk of having a baby with Down's syndrome.

Other recommendations:

• Drink 6 to 8 cups of water a day.
• Get 25 to 30 grams of fiber (to relieve constipation)
• Choose four or more servings of low-fat dairy foods. The calcium found in these foods strengthens your bones and your baby's.
• Eat lean meats, poultry or fish for their iron and zinc. These minerals are necessary for forming the red blood cells that carry oxygen to your baby and for the cell growth and brain development of your child.

The nutrition advice for breastfeeding is nearly the same as it is for pregnancy.

Eat a variety of different foods: particularly produce, dairy products, water and whole grains.

What you eat is what your baby eats. Choose wisely.


Bone Health
Getting enough calcium in your diet reduces your risk for osteoporosis, a disease that results in porous or weak bones that break easily. It affects one out of every two women after the age of 50.

Now is the perfect time to do something for your bones. From birth until the age of 35 to 40, the calcium you get from food, such as dairy foods, dark green vegetables and fortified products, goes primarily towards building bone density and strength. After age 40, bones can no longer be strengthened, their density can only be maintained. You are in the home stretch for strengthening your bones. The calcium deposits you make now are those that will last you a lifetime.

Choose four or more servings of calcium-rich foods a day

And, beware. Excessive amounts of caffeine, soda pop, salt (sodium) and alcohol reduces bone strength.


Caffeine
A double mocha latte or soda pop is fine as an early morning wake-up call, but beyond that, keep caffeine in check. Caffeinated beverages tend to be low on the nutrition scale, they can reduce the absorption of some minerals in your body and they take the place of more healthful beverages, such as water, milk, fruit juices and even green or black tea.

Keep servings at two or three cups a day.

Too much caffeine (the equivalent of four or more cups of coffee a day) may leach calcium out of bones thereby weakening them. Large amounts of caffeine may be linked to fertility problems and miscarriages and too much can, at least temporarily, raise your blood pressure.


Diets and Supplements
Buyer beware. There are thousands of weight loss diets and nutritional or herbal supplements available. Many promise quick-fixes - few actually deliver.

Diets -- Let common sense prevail. Long-term weight loss requires lifestyle changes and a lifetime commitment to eating a variety of foods (including the ones you enjoy). If a plan sounds too good to be true, more often than not, it is.

Supplements -- A growing number of studies show foods beat pills. The health-promoting, energy-boosting substances in foods, including vitamins and minerals, work as a team in your body.

Too much of one vitamin throws off or diminishes the affects of another and some nutrients or healthful substances may only be effective in the presence of others. Research suggests whole foods are a better approach to better health.

Important note: Use caution when selecting herbal and phytochemical supplements. There is no watchdog or regulatory group making sure these products contain effective, safe ingredients. Some don't.