The importance of vitamins
More and more nutritionists are emphasizing the spread of the "vitamin deficiency" problem in the population. The main cause of these deficiencies is, for a change, the modern lifestyle, which often leads to monotonous and not very varied diets. It must also be considered that, by "level playing field", even foods from the twenty-first century are increasingly poor in vitamins.
Therefore, human food cannot prescind from abundant and regular consumption of fresh fruit and vegetables, as well as products derived from them (minestrone, fruit juices, etc.). Equally important is the consumption of meat, eggs, fats and condiments (oil and butter), necessary to provide the body with all those vitamins and minerals that are absent or lacking in other food groups.
For runners and walkers, also due to the increased needs, it is therefore essential to include a lot of fruit and vegetables in one's diet. The consumption of whole foods of biological origin, in addition to being a source of favorable carbohydrates, contributes to enriching the diet of minerals and vitamins.
Vitamin supplements should therefore be understood as an aid to be used in case of increased need or if the diet is lacking in certain foods. It is however important to consider these products as supplements and not substitutes, both because they have a lower bioavailability, and because they are free of fibers and other important substances contained in their natural counterpart.
Fish and omega-three supplements
For several years now, the researchers' spotlights have been constantly focused on essential fatty acids: linoleic acid (founder of ω6) and α-linolenic acid (founder of ω3). Although both are very important for our health, we generally prefer to increase the intake of omega-three, often lacking due to limited consumption of fish and fish products. Only this food and a few others (flaxseed and the oil from which it is extracted) are able to rebalance the omega-3 / omega-6 ratio (which in the diet of our ancient predecessors was 1: 1, while currently it is around 1:10, when it should be brought back, according to the most modern views, between 1: 2 and 1: 4).
Thanks to the achievement of this balance, there would be an optimal production of "good" eicosanoids, a series of endogenous mediators that essentially owe their adjective to the capacity to reduce inflammatory states. Good, therefore, because they prevent many diseases, cardiovascular diseases in particular, but also because they ensure the health of the entire body. And the runners? The reduction of inflammatory states is an excellent aid in the prevention of injuries and those very annoying repeated microtrauma pathologies (tendinitis, muscle contractures, strains, etc.). The omega-three fats are also important for their vasodilatory and immunostimulant properties; they also appear to promote the release of growth hormone.
Hydration, salt supplements and rehydration
When sporting activity is carried out in particular climatic conditions, hydrosaline supplementation is one of the few practices to be recognized as a necessity by the vast majority of doctors. Suffice it to say that a liquid loss of 2% of body weight (1.5 kg for a man who weighs 70) reduces the organic yield by about 20%
The correct use of these supplements effectively prevents dehydration and electrolyte imbalance; however, it is essential to always keep in mind that the ideal drink must be little concentrated. Often, at an amateur level, athletes abound with the doses of mineral salts and maltodextrins, starting from the naive assumption that "more is better". In reality, an over-concentrated drink is likely to create serious intestinal disorders and thus accentuate what it tried to prevent.
To be rapidly absorbed, the water must be slightly chilled (about 10 ° C), it must not be hyperosmolar (so be careful not to overdo it with the addition of salts), but isotonic (ie similar to the plasma concentration (280 -300 mOsm / l) or slightly hypotonic, it must also contain minimal amounts of carbohydrates (5-8%, but less than 10%).
