Billions aren’t eating enough

An article by Kristen Rogers published on CNN, highlights how billions of people around the globe are missing out on essential nutrients. You can read the article here.

Nutrients such as iron and calcium are critical for blood and bone health, respectively. But more than half the global population isn’t eating enough of these and five other nutrients also crucial for human health, according to a new study.

More than 5 billion people don’t consume enough iodine, vitamin E or calcium, according to the study published August 29 in the journal The Lancet Global Health. And more than 4 billion people have insufficient intake of iron, riboflavin, folate and vitamin C.

“Our study is a big step forward,” said co-lead study author Dr. Christopher Free, assistant researcher at the Marine Science Institute and the Bren School of Environmental Science and Management at the University of California, Santa Barbara, in a news release. Free also specializes in human nutrition.

Dietitians and physicians can help you determine whether you’re getting enough of certain vitamins or minerals or if you have deficiencies proven by a blood test.

“Micronutrients have critical roles in cellular function, immunity (and) metabolism,” Sastre said. “However, we are not consuming fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, whole grains — where they are found. We need to follow the American Heart Association’s recommendation to ‘eat the rainbow.’”