Medical Assistant Topics: Top Five Nutrients Women Need

Some days are easier than others for women to squeeze good nutrition into a full day of work and family time at home.

According to Prevention magazine, even women who stick to the healthiest choices on the menu could be lacking in five essential nutrients based on recent USDA research.

Keeping up a good diet is crucial to maintaining health and preventing disease. And it is not as hard as it might sound. For most women, all it takes is a few small changes in their diets—rather than relying on supplements—to incorporate foods that provide critical nutrients.

So what five essential nutrients do many women lack, and how much do they need to stay in good health?

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• Vitamin E (15 mg/day) – helps cells communicate and protects skin against UV damage. Get a vitamin E boost from sunflower seeds, wheat germ, red bell pepper and canned white beans.
• Potassium (4,700 mg/day) – keeps your muscles toned, your nervous system running and regulates blood pressure. Enjoy it in bananas, baked potatoes, edamame and lentils.
• Calcium (1,000 to 1,200 mg/day) – builds strong bones, which reduces a woman's risk of osteoporosis. Find it in low-fat yogurt or cheese, tofu and canned sardines.
• Vitamin A (700 mcg/day) – boosts your immune system and keeps your eyesight strong, to name just a few of its benefits. Get your daily dose from sweet potatoes, carrots, cantaloupe or dried apricots.
• Magnesium (320 mg/day) – essential to chemical activities in the body, including energy storage, and helps with blood circulation, bone strength and muscle tone. Eat your fill in black beans, Brazil nuts, okra and almonds.

As a medical assistant, sharing nutritional nutrition information like this will get your female patients on the road to better health. But nutrition is only one of the health care issues you'll study in your medical assistant training. You'll also learn about anatomy, physiology, pharmacology and more.

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Related Reading:

• Learn how to become a nutritionist or registered dietitian.

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