Nutrition Education

Sports Nutrition
The relationship between Vitamin K and Coumadin
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Sports Nutrition: Fueling Your Sport

Carbohydrates are the preferred fuel for exercise because they are metabolized quickly. To use this energy system properly, it is important for you to maintain a carbohydrate-rich diet during training and competition.

Where do I find Carbohydrates?

Grain products are excellent sources. Try bread, rice, noodles, bagels, cereal (hot or cold), popcorn, granola, pancakes, waffles, french toast, muffins, corn bread, banana bread, stuffing, tortillas, pretzels and crackers (animal crackers, graham crackers, saltines, wheat thins, triscuits, etc).

Fruits and vegetables will all provide carbohydrate as well as many other essential nutrients. Dense (heavy) varieties will provide more carbos for the amount that you eat. Ideas include potato (baked, boiled or mashed), sweet potato, tomato sauces, bananas, pineapple, raisins, dates, apricots or other dried fruit, canned fruit in it's own juice, all varieties of fruit juices.

Other sources: Chili with beans, baked beans, lima beans, lentils, and split pea soup offer protein in addition to carbos. Limit amounts to prevent digestive turmoil!

For carbo-rich desserts, try fig newtons, pudding made with skim milk, apple crisp, fruit cobblers, rice puddings, date bars, oatmeal raisin cookies, low fat ice cream or fudgesicles.

Some other foods offer carbos but little nutrition. Soda pop, sugar, honey, jam, jelly, syrup, marshmallows, hard candy, lemonade, Kool-aid are examples.

Let's make some meals!!

Breakfast ideas

Cereal, low-fat milk, banana
Cereal w/ milk, toast, juice or fruit
Bagel w/ lite cream cheese/jelly, canned peaches, milk
Muffin or bagel, yogurt
French toast or pancakes w/ syrup (no butter), milk, fruit or juice
Carnation Instant Breakfast, toast or crackers
Thick-crust cheese pizza slice, juice
Banana bread, milk or juice
Instant hot cereal cup, milk, juice
Fruit-flavored yogurt, granola, raisins

Lunch /Dinner ideas

Turkey or other lean meat sandwich (no mayo), baked chips, grapes, milk, fig newtons
Bean burritos or tostadas, fruit, low fat milk
Chili, baked potato, chocolate shake**
Tortilla/string cheese wrap, fruit smoothie made w/ yogurt, milk and fruit.
Roast beef sub w/ tomato and lettuce, cup of soup, juice or soda**
Thick crust pizza with veggie or cheese topping, salad, beverage
Spaghetti, sauce, bread, veggie and lean meat

**Some foods such as pop, ice cream, etc are not considered optimum in a sport performance enhancing diet but they help meet the calorie needs and food interests of teen athletes and therefore can be included time to time without significant nutritional problems. Cover the nutrition basics then add these food as extras.

Snacks ideas

Keep a bag of snacks available wherever you go. Crackers, muffins, fresh or dried fruit, granola bars, breakfast-type bars, trail mix, raisins, fruit juices, pretzels, small sandwiches, hot cocoa, pudding cups, banana bread, yogurt, etc.
are terrific snacks.

What about nutrition bars? Nutrition supplements like Power Bars, Tiger's Milk, etc. offer carbos with some other nutrients added for a high price. They are not a "fix-all" for a nutrition poor diet. If you just like the convenience or taste, try some of the breakfast bars for much less $$$ with comparable nutrition.

Note to Parents

You play an important role in the ability of your teen to be properly nourished for their school day as well as their athletic activities. Teens who are serious about their sport will recognize the benefits of nutrition and may want to improve their eating habits.

You can help by:

  • Stocking up on the above listed foods.
  • Pack a snack bag or supplemental lunch for your student.
  • Be positive and encouraging about food. (We can't force better eating on anyone and nagging doesn't work).
  • Ask them for requests/suggestions before you shop.
  • Offer evening meals that complement the sports nutrition guidelines

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The relationship between Vitamin K and Coumadin

Coumadin is an anticoagulant drug. Anticoagulant is a term, which means reducing the blood potential to clot or "thinning of the blood".

Coumadin works by interfering with the production of clotting factors that depend on vitamin K for their synthesis.

Vitamin K enhances blood clotting; it can counteract the effect of blood thinning medications.

It is important to know that you do not need to entirely avoid foods containing vitamin K if you use blood-thinning medications.

Individuals receiving blood-thinning medications are monitored with daily blood test at first and frequently afterward to see if the medication is doing its job of preventing clotting. If large doses of vitamin K prevent the anticlotting effects, the blood test should pick it up and the dose of the blood-thinning medications should be raised.

A normal diet produces only a mild effect on your blood-thinning medication. Your doctor can adjust for that when determining your medication dose.

Eat about the same amount of foods that contain vitamin K that you ordinarily do.

It is not advised to go from eating a large quantity of vitamin K foods to none at all because over the course of time the effectiveness of your medication may be altered. This could put you at increased risk for a blood clot or serious bleeding.

It is important to know that it is not necessary to restrict leafy green vegetables from your diet. Leafy green vegetables are loaded with pytochemicals that have been repeatedly shown to help prevent heart attacks and cancer. The key is to consume consistent intakes of foods rich in vitamin K on a daily basis.

In large amounts, the following foods can change the effectiveness of your medication:

Vegetables

Asparagus Kale Spinach
Broccoli Lettuce Turnip Greens
Brussels
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Endive
Kale
Lettuce
Mustard
Spinach
Turnip Greens
Watercress

Oils

Canola
Soybean
Fish Oil

Fruit

Avocados
Kiwi

Legumes and Nuts

Lentils
Pistachios
Soybeans

Beverages

Green Tea

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