Archive for the 'Nutrition' Category

Jan 05, 2013 Posted Under: Nutrition

A List of Foods for Reducing Cholesterol

Dealing with high cholesterol can be a difficult process. There are many things that you can do to lower you cholesterol and get your numbers back into a healthy or normal range. Did you know, that one of the best (and easiest) things that you can do for your high cholesterol is to incorporate foods for reducing cholesterol into your daily diet? It doesn’t take much more than that to totally change your cholesterol for the better.

Typically when high cholesterol numbers come in, your doctor will first tell you to change your diet. This means cutting out all the yummy, but bad for you foods; like French fries, pizza, burgers, and steak. It’s sad to cut out favorite foods. But it doesn’t have to be all bad.

Often you can make small changes to the foods you love and add in foods for reducing cholesterol and often just those two things together will be enough for a serious decrease in your high cholesterol levels.

When it comes to your favorite dishes the best thing to do is the look at them in a new way. First, look at your favorite meals and see if there is a way to switch out some of the ingredient for healthier options. For example; change any meats into leaner cuts or into chicken, turkey or tofu choices. With dairy, opt for the low fat or non fat options. If you use canned goods or broth in your cooking pick the low sodium or non fat varieties. Add in vegetables whenever possible.

On top of making small changes to the foods you already love, try to add in a few healthier foods for reducing cholesterol into your daily routine. Here are a few ideas on how to add in foods for reducing cholesterol into your meal plans.

Breakfast – try to have a breakfast of oatmeal every morning. Oats are high in soluble fiber; which helps to move cholesterol through your body and prevents it from absorbing into your blood stream. Oats have been proven to help lower cholesterol levels when regularly added to the diet. But watch out for sugar and syrup additives. These foods are often high in saturated fats and sugars which are counter-productive to your cholesterol health. Instead add blueberries or sliced strawberries to your morning oatmeal and get the added benefits of antioxidants.

Snack – add a handful of walnuts or almonds into your daily snack. Nuts are high in fats that are good for you and your cholesterol. But they are also high in calories, so keep your snack to just a handful.

Lunch or Dinner – try for a salmon salad with an olive oil vinaigrette for your large daily meal. Salmon is one of the best foods for reducing cholesterol. Not only will it help to lower high bad cholesterol, but it will help to increase the good cholesterol. Adding the olive oil will also help to keep your arteries running clear and clean.

Drinks – add in a couple cups of orange juice into your day. Orange juice is high in antioxidants and other minerals that are good for lowering cholesterol. Green tea is another of the foods for reducing cholesterol, just make sure you drink enough cups of it to make a difference to your health.

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May 27, 2011 Posted Under: Nutrition

Why Chocolate Is Good For Us

If there’s one thing all women seem to love, it’s chocolate. Unfortunately, if it’s one thing most diets seem to prevent us from eating, it’s chocolate, but why? Chocolate, more specifically dark chocolate is good for you. So diets that prevent us from eating chocolate in moderation are actually making us more prone to cheat, and are limiting us from food sources that have been shown to be good for our health.

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Chocolate is derived from the cacao plant, which naturally grow in areas 20 degrees above and below the equator. Most of the world’s chocolate comes from West Africa, the most along the Ivory Coast. Chocolate is typically classified into three different types, dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and white chocolate, all of which are made from cacao butter, but have varying degrees of cacao solids (white chocolate in fact has no cacao solid, which is why it maintains a white appearance).

Because dark chocolate has the highest concentration of cacao solids, and is considered to be the lease processed version of chocolate, it is considered to be the healthiest form of chocolate available. Dark chocolate is good for us in moderation, as it has the most antioxidants, and has been linked to reducing the possibility of having a heart attack when consumed regularly in small quantities. This might have something to do with the fact that chocolate has also been shown to make those who eat it happier. This is due to the presence of alkaloids or nitrogen rich compounds that have been linked to the production of serotonin. Serotonin is one of the neurotransmitters in our bodies that allow us to feel good. Serotonin also readily interacts with our blood, where it has been shown to work as a vasoconstrictor and helps regulate blood flow and blood clotting.

Many individuals don’t like dark chocolate stating that it has a “bitter” taste. The truth is that dark chocolate has such an intense flavor that our taste buds quantify it as being bitter if we take too big of a bite. However, this intense flavor is why dark chocolate is preferred when cooking, as it yields the best chocolate flavor. Try letting the chocolate slowly melt in your mouth the next time you take a bite. Not only will this increase your heart rate and brain activity more than a passionate kiss, it will last four times longer.

In the end, chocolate is good for us and we should enjoy it in small quantities, especially dark chocolate. Not only will you receive the benefit of increased serotonin levels, but you’ll get anti-oxidants, improve your cognitive abilities, and reduce your chances of having cardiovascular disease.

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Dec 24, 2010 Posted Under: Nutrition

Reasonable Food for Your Diet Plan

Everyone wants to eat fresh food. Healthy lifestyle and a nutritious balance food are needed by everyone. The nutritional requirements for your body have to be complete and you always should eat those kind of foods which satisfy your body. When you came home after getting tired from work and that time a more healthy diet is required for your body. If you don’t take healthy food on at the moment then your body will be getting down and also you can be subjected to diseases. To work properly by mentally or physically you will have to take nutritional food otherwise you can’t get enough energy for your work.
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If you don’t know more about healthy food, here I will give you some advice about how to eat healthy. Many of the green vegetables like the sprouts, asparagus and spinach are a great source of energy. These vegetables can be eaten in any recipe. Some of nuts are very much perfect for health, such as soy nuts, peanuts and almonds. The other source is yogurt. Yogurt is a great source of Vitamin B and C. It is very necessary for you to intake of yogurt everyday. Lacking of vitamins and much-needed minerals, human body can suffer with many kinds of health hazards like arthritis, bone diseases, anemia and asthma.

Besides, you can eat more organic food which has been produced by sustainable procedures and also added minimal man-made chemicals. Actually, Organic food are high quality food that are nutritious and easier to digest than cooked or processed food. Organic raw food which contains no free radicals is pure and unaltered.
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Today people are facing number of heath problems. The most common health problems are diabetes and heart problems. In the future, more and more people will realize that eating healthy is the head item everyone should do in one’s daily life.

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Dec 21, 2010 Posted Under: Nutrition

How to Make the Diet Changes

Healthy eating is not about being overly strict and not enjoying food. It’s not about being super thin, being a vegetarian or never eating desert. Healthy eating is about feeling really good with lots of energy, basically staying as healthy as possible. You can eat well and be healthy by educating yourself in basic nutrition principals and then applying them to fit and work for you.

Healthy eating is also about not only what you eat but how you eat. Making the right food choices can make all the difference in avoiding the risk of major illness and disease. Good food choices can keep you cancer free, diabetes free, keep your heart healthy and keep you from experiencing depression. The benefit side of healthy eating is more energy, better memory and a happier disposition. Increase your healthy food choices, do some planning so you have the correct food to maintain your healthy diet.

Don’t put too much pressure on your self to change too quickly, take it at a manageable pace. Take smaller steps rather than all at once. It’s better to be consistent and succeed than to overwhelm yourself and fail. Be committed and you will be eating healthy soon enough.

Go for simplicity, choose real food, fresh food. Avoid refined processed foods, limit packaged foods. This will make it easier to make good choices in the super market. Go with the foods you love, just make them with fresh ingredients, not canned, frozen or processed. Don’t over cook your vegetables, cook lightly and retain the nutrition and enzymes. Take it all at a reasonable pace so you can be honest with yourself and not cut corners. Small steps like using olive oil over butter, eating salads everyday, fruit rather than chips or crackers for a snack. All these changes to your diet matter and will combine to get you to new healthy eating habits. The benefits to your life will be profound.

Changing habits is often the hardest part of making these kinds of changes, so ask for support from family and friends. Encourage your partner or a friend to make these changes with you. Being healthy through diet, exercise and a healthy lifestyle is well worth the effort.

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