For Women Only

[#1]

In case you didn’t already know, we women are special–and that’s true nutritionally-speaking, too!  Depending on a woman’s stage of life, her needs for certain nutrients vary.  Here are three that deserve special mention. 

Iron:  Women are especially prone to low iron levels during child-bearing years. Heme iron, the type found in beef, chicken and fish, is better absorbed than iron from plant foods.  If you don’t eat much meat, be sure to include iron-rich plant foods –such as beans, spinach and iron-fortified cereals and breads–in your diet.  To boost iron absorption, pair those plant foods with sources of vitamin C:  top cereal with strawberries, add oranges to spinach salad or simmer beans with diced red pepper. 

Daily Needs

• Ages 19-50:  18 mg
• Pregnancy:  27 mg
• Ages 51+:  8 mg

Folate:  Folate (or folic acid) is a B vitamin particularly important for women who may get pregnant. Not getting enough folate increases risk for neural tube defects in babies. Folate is found naturally in foods like spinach, oranges, and beans and lentils. Many grain products, such as bread, cereal, rice and pasta are fortified with folic acid.

Daily Needs

• Ages 19+:  400 mcg
• Pregnancy:  600 mcg
• Breastfeeding:  500 mcg

Calcium:  Calcium is critical for building and maintaining strong bones. Low-fat and fat-free milk, yogurt and cheese are excellent sources of calcium, as are calcium-fortified orange juice and cereal.  Look for our SimpleNutrition “Good Source of Calcium” tags to help you scout out options.

Daily Needs

• Ages 19-50:  1000 mg
• Pregnancy and breastfeeding:  1000 mg
• Ages 51+:  1200 mg

You can use the Percent Daily Value (% DV) amounts that are listed on packaged foods to help guide you towards foods that are good sources of these nutrients.  A “good source” contains at least 10% DV per serving; an “excellent source” provides at least 20% DV.  Your goal is to get 100% of the Daily Value for these (and all) vitamins and minerals throughout the day.  It’s important to note that the Daily Value for iron, folate and calcium is based on the needs of those in the 19-50 age range, so if you require more (or less), you need to factor that in. 

Are you meeting your needs for these nutrients?

[#2]

"For women only?"  After reading this gem that shows exactly what top Safeway execs think of women, I'm not shopping you anymore if I can help it...

repost: Everyone knows that opening a meeting with a joke is a great icebreaker. And at the annual meeting of Safeway Inc.'s shareholders, Senior Vice President and General Counsel Robert Gordon opened with a real knee-slapper:

You know, this is the season when companies and other institutions are interested in enhancing their reputation and their image for the general public, and one of the institutions that's doing this is the Secret Service, particularly after the calamity in Colombia. And among the instructions given to the Secret Service agents was to try to agree with the president more and support his decisions. And that led to this exchange that took place last week, when the president flew into the White House lawn and an agent greeted him at the helicopter.

The president was carrying two pigs under his arms and the Secret Service agents said, "Nice pigs, sir."

And the president said, "These are not ordinary pigs, these are genuine Arkansas razorback hogs. I got one for former Speaker Nancy Pelosi and one for Secretary of State Hillary Clinton."

And the Secret Service agent said, "Excellent trade, sir."

(Laughter)

[#3]

Eltear, thank you for your concern. Your comments are important to us and have been directed to our Public Affairs department for further review.

[#4]

Thank you, Altear, for starting the discussion.  I read an article yesterday on Gordon's aggregious comments, and I'm still amazed.  I'd love to know what the women working at Safeway think of his comments - which clearly represent the true mindset of the C-Suite at Safeway (or he wouldn't have even considered the joke) - but they are likely afraid to post their reaction in public on their own company website.

I'm a single mom (who does all the shopping in my houselhold), and also an attorney.  It's not only what Gordon said, nor the fact he thought it was funny - it's that it clearly never even occurred to him that it was in poor taste.  By the way - I'm not a Democrat either - my reaction to his lack of sense has nothing to do with the individuals he chose to target.  His behavior is a discredit to my profession.  I worked hard putting myself through law school when my kids were little, and now work as in-house counsel at a company I love.  I'm sure I make a very small fraction of what Mr. Gordon makes - but I respect every one of our employees and customers, and strive to do the best I can every day.  Our customers (including internal customers) are the reason I have the privilege of going to work every day - and I never forget that.

Mr. Gordon has done me a favor, by revealing the mindset of Safeway's top management.  I invite all of you (including the women who work at Safeway) to read Gordon's apology - even now, he doesn't own his actions, nor truly apologize ("I'm sorry if my words offended" is so more mealy-mouthed and insincere than something like: "Boy, did I mess up - it was in poor taste, bad judgment, and I truly apologize for my total lack of common sense.").  Here's Gordon's "apology":  

"We don’t know how that went, but Safeway responded to CorpCounsel.com's request for comment with a statement from Gordon: "I sincerely apologize if the opening comments I made at the recent annual stockholders meeting offended anyone. As these comments have been interpreted, they are not a reflection of my personal beliefs or that of my employer. I understand how my comments have impacted others and I hope they will accept my apology."

Sounds like your corporate communications/PR/damage control point person is in the same club as Gordon.  Clearly, Safeway doesn't want my business, and I, for one, shall happily oblige.  

Who would like to join me?  Please, consumers of any gender: go shop where the management actually respects it customers.  Thanks for listening. As long as Gordon keeps his job - you know Safeway, isn't.

[#5]

"For Women?"   Safeway Worker Stops Man From Beating Pregnant Woman, Gets Suspended

Guess what is more important than getting enough iron? Not getting beat----apparently an employee at Safeway stepped between a man that was beating his pregnant girlfriend.  Instead of being thanked for living the values Safeway should be striving for, this man has been suspended!

[#6]

Concerned Woman, we’d like to let you know that after carefully reviewing all available information with Mr. Young and his union rep, Safeway has agreed to return Mr. Young to work with back pay.  Our investigation ensured that we understood the entire incident as fully as possible while allowing us to learn if there was an opportunity to resolve the conflict differently. Mr. Young's decision to intervene on behalf of one of our customers was commendable.  But whatever the circumstances, a physical confrontation between an employee and a customer is something we must take very seriously. Thank you to everyone who took the time to share their thoughts about this incident. We appreciate your patience as we completed this process.