You Really Are What You Eat

Beans (legumes), berries (especially blueberries), broccoli, green tea, nuts (especially walnuts), oranges, pumpkin, salmon. soy, spinach, tomatoes, turkey, whole grains and oats, and yogurt can all help stop and even reverse diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, Alzheimer’s, and some forms of cancer. And where one might have an effect on a certain part of the body, it can also affect the health of other body functions and performance, since the whole body is connected.  With these 14 foods as the base of a balanced, solid diet, weight loss gimmicks and other fly-by-night programs can become a thing of the past in your life.

Conversely, the ill-effects of an unbalanced diet are several and varied. Low energy levels, mood swings, tired all the time, weight change, uncomfortable with body are just a few signs that your diet is unbalanced.  An unbalanced diet can cause problems with maintenance of body tissues, growth and development, brain and nervous system function, as well as problems with bone and muscle systems.

Symptoms of malnutrition include lack of energy, irritability, a weakened immune system leading to frequent colds or allergies, and mineral depletion that can trigger a variety of health concerns including anemia.

And since the body is connected, realizing that an unhealthy body will result in an unhealthy spirit only makes sense.  When we nourish our body with these superfoods and complement them with other nutrient-dense and healthy fresh foods, our spirit will be vitalized and healthy as a direct result.

Many modern diets based on prepackaged convenience foods are sorely lacking in many vitamins and minerals, which can affect our mental capacities as well, and cause irritability, confusion, and the feeling of ‘being in a fog’ all the time.

Superfoods can be the basis of a sound, healthy, nutritious solution to curing many of these ailments and more.

Ancient Nutrition Myths and Modern Medicine

Recently, modern medicine had ignored the healing power of everyday foods, considering it a popular belief no proven scientific validity. But mainstream scientists have begun to study the principles of folk medicine and dietary practices of the past, seeking remedies and antidotes for modern diseases. The investigation of natural medicine is advancing at a rapid pace.

Why this sudden interest in the medicinal aspects of food? Why such prestigious institutions as Johns Hopkins and Harvard begin to announce with great fanfare that broccoli or broccoli is full of very powerful agents against cancer and that eating too much carrot seems to reduce drastically the risk of heart disease and stroke?

The reason: for the first time in history, science begins to validate the hard fact ‘that diet in the first instance determines the events that occur in cells where the real tragedies occur and mysteries, which are lost and permanently wins battle to build the health and longevity, or, conversely, to condemn us to disease and death.

That is where life begins and ends: in the seas of liquid cellular and structural genetic material where fate may depend on the presence of a particular enzyme or a fatty acid metabolized from one molecule of food. I recommend reading the article (the great miracle of food)

If you know what is happening in their cells, know what is happening to their health. The body consists of about 60 trillion cells. Each cell is an amazing and complex miniature universe in which occur billions of chemical reactions every second of life. And what those dependent intracellular chemical reactions?.

The only source of energy is in the food you provide them. For the first time, science can now study how foods promote health or disease since the cell itself, validating the assertion of the ancient wisdom that foods have medicinal powers.

Certainly the first physicians to use food as a pillar of the fight against disease. In a medical journal, Dr. John Potter of the University of Minnesota, recently spoke count of the first medical uses of food: “In ancient Egypt, Pliny said the cabbage. Cured to eighty-seven diseases and onion, twenty.

Garlic was considered sacred. Cruciferous (cabbage and broccoli were grown primarily as medicinal plants and used to cure headaches, deafness, diarrhea, gout and stomach problems … The Romans believed that lentils cure diarrhea and balanced temperament . The fresh and dried grapes had many medicinal uses and are used in various oral preparations, enemas, inhalation and topical applications.

Since the dawn of civilization we have sought remedies for diseases in forests, fields and orchards.

About 75% of the world’s population still does. Such a knowledge cluster do not be ignorant, says James Duke, Ph.D., a physician and expert on medicinal plants of the agriculture department of the United States. He said that the popular belief attributed to food is the ability to heal, proof of its validity.

After all, he notes, is precisely the popular usage that has led scientists to discover powerful elements in medicinal plants.

At least 25% of laboratory medicine come from plants, including taxol, a new cancer drug.

Doctors and healers ancient herbal medicine used to treat the diseases were based on their own experience and that of their ancestors and relatives. Obviously, they knew nothing about invisible germs, hormones and cholesterol, or the way they act analgesics and anticoagulants, let alone how to determine the pharmacological properties of food.

How to improve child nutrition

A date almost coincides with the presentation, a few days ago, the draft Law on Food Security and Nutrition, a standard that focuses specifically on issues related to child nutrition. The draft of the new rule on Food Safety and Nutrition has been prepared jointly by the Ministry of Health and Social Policy and the Ministry of Environment, Rural and Marine.

This law aims to comprehensively address food security in our country and fight the bad eating habits and obesity, poor increasingly widespread (according to national health survey, one in four Spanish children is overweight) .
Improve the nutrition of schoolchildren

The new draft Law on Food Security and Nutrition emphasis on promoting the adoption of good nutritional habits and infant feeding, especially in schools.

In this line:

* It is intended to restrict the sale of foods high in sugar, saturated fat and salt in vending machines, bars or canteens of schools (in this way is intended to industrial products such as pastries, crisps and soft drinks will disappear from the school environment).
* It is anticipated that there will always be a check on school menus from a professional with adequate training and accredited university in nutrition and dietetics.
* You want to promote nutrition education and nutrition.

With measures like these, the law seeks to address some of the most common problems in infant nutrition, failures and shortcomings that the OCU has complained on several occasions, as the imbalance in school menus.
Less advertising

In addition, the bill also focuses on limiting advertising to children, within hours of 6 to 22 hours. The novelty is that for the first time spoken of minors (under 18): so far only provided PAOS code restrictions on advertising aimed at children under 12 years.

Also want to limit the gift, prizes and giveaways associated with food, a practice which has denounced the OCU abuse in an article on marketing in fast food. Our studies have helped us to check out are precisely those foods high in fats and sugars more newsworthy by the big brands targeting children and adolescents.
Better nourished, healthier

Since the OCU welcome this new standard. It is a comprehensive blueprint that is certainly regulate some of the gaps that we have reported our articles: from the deficiencies in vegetables, fish, eggs and dairy products from school menus, abuse of foods high in fat or low quality excesses of advertising directed at children. We hope that you approve the draft and put into practice.

How to increase the nutritional value of foods

The sprouts have a higher nutritional value than those from seed. To increase the nutritional value of foods, vegetarians have a very interesting series of tricks, as their diets may lack essential nutrients.

Seeds germinate, develop new basic food and other energy-rich soy (milk, cheese) or mix food to encourage the assimilation of nutrients are some of the tricks that vegetarians have to take into account a complete diet.

One of the chemical processes used to add value nutricial is fermentation of foods, which improves its digestibility and nutritional value, because the microorganisms responsible for this process (yeast, mold, bacteria) transform complex food compounds into more easily to assimilate. In addition, microbes synthesize vitamins.

In this way, a real bread made with yeast, it has the demineralizing effect of yeast bread made with industrial.

On the other hand, germination increases the essential amino acid content between 10% and 30%, and does the same with the assimilable iron content. Furthermore, there is the predigestion of carbohydrates and vitamins are synthesized.

You can also substitute commonly used foods for that diet more complete and healthy while enriching culinary: food refined by integrals; wine vinegar for cider vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil refined virgin salt sea salt and other seasonings from algae conventional sauces soy sauce or algae, brown sugar white sugar, fructose or honey, coffee in grain (malt …) Amasake cocoa (fermented sour rice …) or candy for dessert cereal and fresh or dried fruit, or jams.

Health Benefits of Green Tea

Whole world is aware of the health benefits of green tea. If you are not, then I am telling you no other food in this world is as beneficial for health as the green tea. Chinese knows its beneficial effects from as long as 4,000 years and they have been using it for treating various disorders of human body.

The researches all over the world have shown that green tea has vast application in treating various diseases of humans.

Beneficial effects of Green tea in various human diseases

Cancer: In an epidemiological study conducted by National Cancer Institute, it has been found that green tea reduce the risk of esophageal cancer as much as by 60% in Chinese men. It has also been found that Green tea reduce the proliferation of cancer cells.
Weight loss: All over the world green tea is being used as an alternative medicine for weight loss. Research show that they cause more burning of calories and hence help in loosing weight. Their effect is magnified when they are used with caffeine.
Anti-Aging properties: It has been found that has very powerful anti-oxidant, epigallocatechin gallate that helps in destroying the free radicals in the body and hence acts as anti-aging agent.
Cardiovascular disorders: Green tea has been widely researched for its beneficial effects on heart. And it not only prevents the heart attacks but also makes the heart powerful. It decreases LDL (Low density lipoproteins) hence are very helpful to the heart.
Other benefits: besides all the above benefits, it is also useful in dental decay as it kills the tooth bacteria. Green tea is useful in common cold and other body infection due to presence of vitamin C. If you eyes are itching then keep green tea bags in fridge for 15 minutes and then keep them on eyes, you will get an instant relief.
So all of you must be thinking why are these magical effects of green tea? This is due to the anti-oxidant epigallocatechin gallate (EGCG). EGCG not only prevents cancer cells from proliferation but decreases LDL, and all above effects of Green tea are due to EGCG.

French Paradox and Green Tea

French people eat a lot of fat and still have a low mortality due to cardiovascular diseases. This has been argued, that is due to Red wine, which French people drink. Red wine has Resveratrol, an anti-oxidant which prevents the cardiovascular diseases. And you will be amazed to know that EGCG is two times as strong as Resveratrol.

Why only green Tea, not the black tea?

Well black tea is prepared by fermentation and EGCG present in it is converted into other compounds so it’s ineffective.
So you must drink green tea and enjoy a healthy beautiful life.

Your Food & Heart Diseases

One of the biggest reasons for mortality in adults is cardiovascular diseases. We see around and read in news paper people suddenly dieing of heart attack or any other heart disease. This really terrifies everyone.

So a question arises here, who have the risk of cardiovascular diseases?

People having high blood pressure or hypertension have a high risk of heart attack and other heart diseases.
Eating a highly fatty diet, it may be tasty on your tongue but surely your heart cries when you eat such food.
Obesity, its being said “An obese person is a house of all diseases” and its right, if you are obese then you are on a high risk of cardiovascular diseases.

Lifespan of a person is decided by the food he eats so if you are eating a healthy food then you can reduce nearly all major risks of heart diseases.    Now hearing this line another question arises in your mind, how to decide what is a healthy food?
Well American Heart Association has recommended certain changes to your diet that you call, will be a healthy diet for you.

Grains: You should eat different variety of grains, and you should eat at least 6 servings of grains per day.
Fruits and vegetable: Any diet plan is incomplete without these two essential parts. You should eat a lot of fruits and vegetables.
Avoid fat: This is a must if you want a healthy heart. You can include low fat or free of fat milk products, lean meat and skinless poultry. If you cook oily food then choose less saturated oil like olive oil.
Avoid junk food: We all loves junk food. But you know what they are very unhealthy and give a lot of calories and you can put on weight from them.
A wise advice: Eat only the numbers of calories you require daily don’t eat too much. Also, avoid too much salt as salt increase your blood pressure. Avoid alcohol if you can, but if can’t don’t more than 1 drink/day.

If you follow above chart you can surely maintain your weight, keep a check on your cholesterol level and blood pressure. This food chart is also useful for other health problems like diabetes and some cancers.

Why fat so risky for heart?

I know you will be thinking on this, well fat increases the cholesterol level of the blood and also the LDL, low density lipoproteins. These fatty substances go into the blood and get deposited on the walls of blood vessels. And so chokes the normal flow of blood and you would have understood the risk now, if they block certain artery in the heart, you get a heart block and sometimes a sudden death. Also heart has to work under load to pump the blood into choked and narrowed blood vessels.
So, you must follow the guidelines given above to live a longer and risk free life.