Celebrate this International Women’s Day with health and nutrition

Women are multi taskers and often overlook their health. International Women’s Day is a reminder to take care of their health with the right nutrition and active lifestyle. This will help them keep moving and enjoy the simple everyday life.

Dr. Irfan Shaikh, Head, Medical & Scientific Affairs at Abbott’s Nutrition Business shares the list of essential nutrients that should be present in every woman’s plate like  Calcium, iron, and vitamin D are essential micronutrients for maintaining strong, healthy bones and better immune system regulation. Calcium helps to strengthen bones at every stage of life, while iron is essential for the transport of oxygen to tissues throughout the body. Foods like nuts, dried fruit, legumes, dark leafy green vegetables, fish, red meat, etc can be good sources of iron. Vitamin D is most commonly obtained through sunlight, but other sources include foods like mushrooms, soy milk, eggs, shrimp, and fatty fish.

Fibre is essential to reduce cholesterol and sugar levels in the blood, and vitamin B12 helps in the functioning and development of red blood cells, the nervous system, and the brain. Protein is essential to maintain a positive nitrogen balance and offset lower energy intake, impaired insulin function, and decrease in protein synthesis. Foods such as eggs, meat, fish, pulses, and legumes provide the required amount of protein for the body.