NATURAL FOODS FOR GOOD HEALTH

We must try to cultivate a habit for taking these natural food for good health. May be due to busy lifestyle and changed food habits, we seldom keep these in our daily diet chart. Try few common ones, if not full.

Broccoli : 294 mg of potassium in just three spears. Potassium counteracts the effects of sodium by dilating blood vessels and increasing the amount sodium excreted in your urine, thus lowering blood pressure and protecting against stroke.

Almonds : One tablespoonful of almonds providees 2.2 gms of alpha- tocopherol, a type of vitamin E, which reduces the risk of Alzheimer's. Vitamin E fights free radical damage.

Cashew Nuts : High in iron, cashew nuts are great for lifting you out of blues. Taking 20 cashew medium cashew nuts three times a week is ideal. However if you are extremely calorie conscious, avoid.

Orange : A vitamin C enriched orange is what you need to face the audience. Studies proved that who take 1000mg of Vitamin C before a speech are much more relaxed than those who don’t.

Avocado : Loaded with Vitamin C & E. Avocados are excellent for keeping skin soft supple and healthy and for maintaining glossy hair. High in Omega-3 fatty acids, they help prevent wrinkles, enhance brain power and treat arthritic pain. They contain the antioxidant lutein, which has been shown to protect against eye problems and cardiovascular disease.

Walnuts : Walnuts contain melatonin, a hormone that regulates sleep and also acts as a powerful antioxidant. Consuming walnut in the evening leads to sound sleep.

Sunflower seeds : One tablespoon of sunflower seeds provides 8.35 mcg of selenium. Men with high level of selenium have a 49 % lower incedence of advanced prostate cancerthan thoswe with the lowest levels.

Cucumber : It helps to maintain a youthful appearance, thanks to its hydrating and anti inflammatory properties. When ingested, the high water and balanced mineral content makes it one the best diuretics.Cucumber is rich source of silica, a mineral needed for healthy skin, bone and connective tissue. Silica also plays a major role in preventing cardiovascular disease and osteoporosis.

Flaxseeds : One tablespoon of flaxseeds will give you 2.3 grams of OMEGA-3 fatty acids (read in details about Omega-3, in "Facts about Fats" below), which are linked to reduced risk of heart disease, Alzheimer's and depression. It also inhibits cancer cell growth. (Picture of flaxseeds shown at left ).

Ginseng : Consuming Ginseng counters mental fatigue and nervous disorders. The main health benefits are derived from its roots, which are chewed to recover form bad health.

Oatmeal : A magical food. It strengthens the nervous system and has tranquilizing and relaxing effects. It can be cooked with milk or water.

Cardamom : Regular intake of cardamom sharpens and stimulates the mind. It also counters premenstrual tension and attendant irritation.

Facts about Fats

In the recent years we have been hearing about OMEGA-3 fatty acids. The reason being a growing body of scientific research indicates that these healthy fats help prevent a wide range of health problems including cardiovascular diseases.

Essential Fatty Acids (EFAs) :
All fats are not bad fats. The different types of dietary fat fall into three main groups: saturated; mono-unsaturated; and polyunsaturated. Polyunsaturated fatty acids are further divided into two sub-groups called omega-6 and omega-3 . Both of these groups are essential for good health and normal growth. Human body can not manufacture Omega-6 & Omega-3, we must get these from our diet. For this reason, they are often referred to as 'essential fatty acids' (EFAs). They cannot be inter-converted and both must be present in the diet in a proper balance for good health. Today’s diet provides an over-abundance of the Omega-6s - mainly from sunflower oil, margarines and other vegetable cooking oils. At the same time intake of the omega-3s has dropped by more than half.

Balancing Omega-3 & Omega-6
Both omega-6 and omega-3 fatty acids are essential but the body requires them in a ratio that is not normally achieved by the typical food habits of today. Experts think that man evolved on a diet which would have had roughly 1-2 times more omega-6 than omega-3, though there is a school of thought which argues for a 1:1 ratio.
There is no doubt that the omega-3 fatty acids are essential to health. The omega-3s have potentially life-saving benefits. Benefits are summarized below :

Heart Disease :
Omega-3 fatty acids, EPA particularly, have for some time been associated with heart health maintenance and protection against a fatal heart attack. The findings suggest that the omega-3s work in several ways to reduce heart attack risk:

Anti-thrombotic. It prevent blood clotting in a coronary arteries); and help keep blood vessels dilated (vasodilation).
Triglyceride reduction. High triglyceride ( blood fat) levels are a heart attack risk factor.
Arrhythmia prevention. Help protect against heartbeat abnormalities (like ventricular tachycardia and fibrillation) that appear to be the lethal part of a heart attack.
Anti-plaque property : Plaque is the term for the deposits on the inside of artery walls, which can rupture and trigger off a blood clot. The anti-inflammatory properties of omega-3s have been shown to stabilise arterial plaques so they are less likely to rupture and lead to a heart attack.
Arterial elasticity. Arteries of patients on omega-3 supplements were appreciably more elastic than the arteries of patients on dummy medication. This indicates that their risk of a heart attack was reduced.
Blood pressure is lowered slightly by omega-3, which reduces risk of a heart attack.
Blood viscosity is lowered when omega-3 is in the diet- this means that the heart does not have to work so hard to pump blood around the body, and the risk of an attack is lowered.

Stoke Around 85% of strokes are thrombotic, that is they are caused by a blood clot forming and blocking the flow of blood through in a blood vessel supplying the brain. The anti-thrombotic properties of the omega-3s can help reduce the risk of this type of stroke.


Disclaimer : Information on researches on fish oil worldwide, compiled and summarized on this page is provided for information and awareness purposes only and is not meant to substitute the advise by your physician or other medical practitioner. You must not use the information for diagnosing or treating a disease.

For in depth study visit : www.omega-3info.com