Is your fast food coming with a "side" of kidney disease?
Dr. Alan Inglis
Editor of House Calls

With all the links to heart disease, obesity and depression, you really don't need another reason to stop eating processed foods, whether they come from fast food outlets or your local supermarket.

But here's another reason anyway. A new study has found that these foods are often loaded with phosphorous, which can be deadly if you have advanced kidney disease.

We've all known for years that fast food and processed food companies are using phosphate salts to help improve the taste and shelf life of their products. What we didn't know is just how widespread this practice has become.

That's because there is no requirement to print phosphorous content on food labels, which leaves an awful lot of people in the dark.

Researchers found that by giving kidney patients with elevated phosphorous levels a list of foods they shouldn't eat, and by the patients avoiding these foods,  within a short period of time they were able to significantly reduce phosphorous levels in the subjects' blood.

This is critical, because high phosphorous levels in kidney patients can result in heart disease, bone disease and even death.

These researchers recommended stricter labeling guidelines, which makes sense. If people truly understood what was in their fast food or microwaveable TV dinners, I believe most of them would make different food choices.

So even if you don't have kidney disease, there's plenty of junk in these products worth avoiding.

Timing is everything
Dr Wright
Editor of Nutrition and Healing

Q: I have always been puzzled about when to take supplements -- on an empty stomach, or a full stomach? Should I do what my system tolerates best, or is there some rule of thumb depending on what I'm taking?

Dr. Wright: The most important part of taking supplements is absorption. Anything that is not properly absorbed into your system is ultimately of no use to you.

It is generally considered best to take vitamins with a meal since the digestive juices you produce at mealtime enable you to absorb the maximum amount of the nutrient. Fat-soluble vitamins such as vitamins A, D, E, and K require either animal or vegetable fat to be present in the stomach to be optimally absorbed. It is also a good practice to space your vitamins and supplements throughout the day, especially those that are water-soluble, such as the B-complex and vitamin C. If you are taking 3,000 milligrams a day of vitamin C, for example, you should take 1,000 at each of your three meals that day.

A few things to take note of: If you are taking both mineral supplements and a fibre supplement, consider taking them at different times of the day. The fibre makes it difficult for the minerals to be absorbed. Taking too much zinc at once can cause stomach cramps, so you might want to split your dose up, depending on how much you take. And if you are taking any essential fatty acid supplements, you should take your vitamin E at the same time.

Herbal remedies and probiotics, on the other hand, usually require an empty stomach for maximum effectiveness. This means 20-30 minutes before meals, or two hours after.

Of course, no one wants to spend all of their time worrying about when to take their supplements. Perhaps the best strategy is to consult your nutritionally oriented physician about the particular mixture of supplements you take and get his or her help planning out your day according to your specific combination. Then stick with the same routine every day.

After all, the best plan is one that you can easily follow consistently.