Ryoichi Nakaie writes:

        Mr.Tanaka has many problems about diet and exercise. But it is important to have a balanced diet and to do exercise for his health. So, I will give him some advice.

        Mr. Tanaka says he is "health conscious". In fact, he pays much attention to his health by reading many different magazines and Internet sites to stay current with the latest information about staying trim, energetic and healthy, but he is confused about what would be the recommended daily amounts (RDA) of vitamins and minerals for a man his age. A man who is 30 years old needs the following amounts a day.

        
            vitamin A           600micrograms
            vitamin D           2.5micrograms
            vitamin E           10mg
            vitamin K           65micrograms
            vitamin B1          1.1mg
            vitamin B2          1.2mg
            vitamin B6          1.6mg
            vitamin B12         2.4mg
            vitamin C           100mg
        
            calcium             600mg
            iron                10mg
            magnesium           320mg
            kalium              2000mg                                       
        
        
        And, he also doesn't understand carbohydrates, fats, and proteins correctly. Carbohydrates are the body's main source of energy. Carbohydrates include all starches and sugars. And Foods containing starches include beans, breads, cereals, pasta, and potatoes. Fat is a valuable energy source and carries fat-soluble vitamins needed for proper growth and development. Proteins are more important as the body's building materials. Muscle, skin, bone, and hair are made up largely of proteins. In addition, every cell contains proteins and the body uses proteins to make antibodies, or disease-fighting chemicals, and certain hormones. And vitamins help the body turn food into energy and tissues. Some vitamins are antioxidants chemicals that prevent damaging changes in cells and may help protect against cancer, heart disease, and aging. Minerals are needed for growth and maintenance of body structures. So we have to have enough nutrients like that.

        Second, since he is busy six and sometimes seven days a week, he doesn't have time to eat breakfast most mornings, and he also finds he needs to intake fastfood like hamburgers, cheeseburgers or udon at lunch and dinner. I think he should make his time for eating breakfast. It is necessary to have breakfast to live more actively, and the first thing is that eating only two meals often leads to over eating. Overeating is one cause of cholesterol rising in body. A high blood cholesterol level is a risk factor for heart disease.

        Third, Mr. Tanaka's LDL level is measured at 172. LDLs are often referred to as "bad cholesterol" because these lipoproteins carry most of the cholesterol in the blood. Certainly LDL cholesterol level is necessary for our body, but too much LDL cholesterol is risk factor of arteriosclerosis and heart disease. Although he is surprized by that measurement since he doesn't eat sweet foods. Not only sweet foods makes LDL level higher. Saturated fat also affects his cholesterol level. So I will recommend him to eat foods that are high in fiber. Eating foods that are high in fiber can help relieve some problems with constipation, hemorrhoids, diverticulosis and irritable bowel syndrome. Dietary fiber may help lower his cholesterol. It may also help prevent heart disease, diabetes and certain types of cancer. In addition, it is important for him to do exercise such as taking a walk, jogging, swimming. Using oxygen exercise stimulates blood circulation. And exercise rises HDL cholesterol levels. HDLs are believed to remove cholesterol from the lining of the arteries and help maintain good blood flow. Therefore higher levels of HDLs are also believed to be associated with lower rates of heart disease.

        Finally, Mr. Tanaka has been feeling lots of pressure at work lately, and most recently he finds it hard to relax even after work. Stress lead high blood pressure, coagulation and hyper glycemia. These high blood pressure and hyper glycemia cause diabetes, hyper tension and myocardial infarction. Therefore he had better reduce his work, do more exercise and enjoy his hobby in order to relax more.

         

        | Click the BACK button to return to the student index.|

        | Or Click HERE to return to the case study.|