Mineral deficiencies can be fatal to athletes

Saturday, July 07, 2012 by: Duran Rivera
Tags: mineral deficiencies, athletes, death

(NaturalNews) In the growing market of nutrition and health, where being a vegetarian, vegan, raw vegan, or fruitarian has been integrated into the mainstream diet of millions of Americans, one thing that is not being mentioned enough is the importance of minerals.

A quick rundown of the importance of minerals and their function shows us that minerals are critical to our entire physiology such as the teeth, bones, blood, muscle, tissue and nerve cells. They are integral to transporting oxygen to the blood, or the pressure of body fluids to pass through the body. For example, potassium, calcium and sodium help maintain the rhythmic beating of the heart. Minerals are the bedrock of hormones such as thyroxin and insulin, and of proteins such as hemoglobin.

Many people today, who work out on a daily basis, running miles on end are not getting the sufficient mineral consumption to replace all they have lost. Most athletes today depend on sports drinks, which are mostly based of water, sugar, salt, food coloring and potassium. They drink their shakes that tend to be stacked with rice or whey protein but not much else.

According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, 100,000 young men and women, as well as professional athletes die annually from cardio-vascular disorders as a result of sports. That's twice the amount of fatalities on American highways. Almost half of the 100,000 athletes play basketball, not boxing nor football. Something is wrong with this picture when athletes aren't fairing much better than couch potatoes. One of various reasons is the amount of sweat excreted compared to non-athletes. They sweat more in five years than a couch potato would in 75 years. If 60 essential minerals aren't consistently being put back in the body, then the body will be at risk.

There are many symptoms to mineral deficiencies, some are more difficult to find than others. One must be aware and cognizant of the behaviors or blemishes on ones body. Being focused on consuming foods which are dense in minerals are among one of the many answers. Maintaining a mineral rich diet should be a conscious focus. Understanding that as an athlete, you need an abnormal intake of minerals and shouldn't settle for the diets, which are normally consumed.

Sources:

http://www.wallachonline.com/athletes.aspx
http://www.wallachonline.com/dead_doctors.aspx
http://www.preservearticles.com
http://www.mgwater.com/import.shtml
http://www.health-science-spirit.com/deficiency.html

About the author:
Duran Rivera is a freelance writer and artist. He received a bachelors in illustration from Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City. He's also an avid health student and researcher working toward mental, physical and spiritual empowerment. You can contact him at [email protected].