Showing posts with label Nutrition. Show all posts
OKRA - The All Around Medicine
Here are some facts on okra (from the research of Ms. Sylvia Zook, PH.D (nutrition), University of Illinois.
Okra
is a powerhouse of valuable nutrients, nearly half of which is soluble
fiber in the form of gums and pectins. Soluble fiber helps to lower
serum cholesterol, reducing the risk of heart disease. The other half is
insoluble fiber which helps to keep the intestinal tract healthy,
decreasing the risk of some forms of cancer, especially colo-rectal
cancer. Nearly 10% of the recommended levels of vitamin B6 and folic
acid is also present in a half cup of cooked okra. Okra is a rich source
of many nutrients, including fiber, vitamin B6 and folic acid. I got
the following numbers from the University of Illinois Extension Okra
Page. Please check there for more details.
Okra Nutrition (half-cup cooked okra))
- Calories = 25
- Dietary Fiber = 2 grams
- Protein = 1.5 grams
- Carbohydrates = 5.8 grams
- Vitamin A = 460 IU
- Vitamin C = 13 mg
- Folic acid = 36.5 micrograms
- Calcium = 50 mg
- Iron = 0.4 mg
- Potassium = 256 mg
- Magnesium = 46 mg
These
numbers should be used as a guideline only, and if you are on a
medically-restricted diet please consult your physician and/or
dietician. Ms Sylvia W. Zook, Ph.D. (nutritionist) has very kindly
provided the following thought-provoking comments on the many benefits
of this versatile vegetable. They are well worth reading.
1.
The superior fiber found in okra helps to stabilize blood sugar as it
curbs the rate at which sugar is absorbed from the intestinal tract.
2.
Okra's mucilage not only binds cholesterol but bile acid carrying
toxins dumped into it by the filtering liver. But it doesn't stop
there...
3.
Many alternative health practitioners believe all disease begins in the
colon. The okra fiber, absorbing water and ensuring bulk in stools,
helps prevent constipation. Fiber in general is helpful for this but
okra is one of the best, along with ground flax seed and psyllium.
Unlike harsh wheat bran, which can irritate or injure the intestinal
tract, okra's mucilage soothes, and okra facilitates elimination more
comfortably by its slippery characteristic many people abhor. In other
words, this incredibly valuable vegetable not only binds excess
cholesterol and toxins (in bile acids) which cause numerous health
problems, if not evacuated, but also assures their easy passage from the
the body. The veggie is completely non-toxic, non-habit forming (except
for the many who greatly enjoy eating it), has no adverse side effects,
is full of nutrients, and is economically within reach of most.
4.
Further contributing to the health of the intestinal tract, okra fiber
(as well as flax and psyllium) has no equal among fibers for feeding the
good bacteria (probiotics).
5.To
retain most of okra's nutrients and self-digesting enzymes, it should
be cooked as little as possible, e.g. with low heat or lightly steamed.
Some eat it raw (Some People had eaten they say).
What Dwindling Camel Herds Mean for The World
Posted by Unknown in Africa, Camel, Cattle and Livestock, Herding, Meat Animal, Middle East, Milk, Nutrition
Stephanie Findlay
Staff Reporter
Our
insatiable appetite for camels is taking its toll. The population of
the humpy beast in the Middle East is rapidly declining, threatening
herds around the world.
The Problem: According
to the UN Food and Agriculture Organization, the stock of
meat-producing camels in Saudi Arabia, slaughtered yearly for the hajj
pilgrimage, has decreased 39 per cent, from 426,000 in 1997 to 260,000
today.
The
story is the same in Pakistan, where numbers are dropping because of
camel racing, a popular pastime. It’s believed the camel population
dropped 20 per cent between 1994 and 2004 in Asia.
Consider
the camel in Somalia, where it is a source of food (both meat and
milk), trade and transportation. Millions of them — an estimated 50 per
cent of the country’s total population — have died from the famine; yet
another reason for their declining numbers.
Meanwhile,
Australia has for years been culling its camels — a cruel consequence
of globalization. They were introduced to the arid outback in the 18th
century by British settlers but without any natural predators or
diseases, they have become an invasive species. Today, there are an
estimated 1.2 million feral camels living Down Under and the population
is expected to reach 2 million next year.
In
fact, Australia’s parliamentary secretary proposed a plan this summer
that would see accredited marksmen shoot the camels for carbon credits.
Apparently, the animals emit an infernal amount of methane and have been
identified a contributor of climate change.
Australia has also become a supplier of camels, selling them Saudi Arabia for meat.
The Impact: For
some, disappearing camels are a desert version of the canary in the
coal mine. As one Somali herder said to the BBC: “When they start to
die, then what chance have sheep, goats and cattle?” He might have added
humans. To date, some 80,000 Somalis have died from hunger and thirst
because of the famine.
The Hope:
Some parts of Somalia continue to enjoy high camel stocks. After a
livestock ban was lifted, Somali herders supplied some $250 million
worth of animals to Saudi Arabia for the hajj pilgrimage last month.
Provided
Somalis can work around burdensome rules imposed by the Al Qaeda-linked
Shabab militia, an organization that controls large parts of the
country, Saudi Arabia plans to double its imports of livestock from the
country by 2013.
Somalia
could also invest more money into its burgeoning camel dairy industry.
Currently, the country has a competitive advantage — it’s the world’s
largest distributor, supplying 850,000 tons of camel milk a year — and a
bigger market could be developed. (Camel’s milk is reportedly saltier
than that of a cow and much richer in vitamin C and B, iron, and
unsaturated fatty acids.)
Coconut Oil Touted as Alzheimer's Remedy
Posted by Unknown in Biofuel, Coconut Oil, Health Issues, News, Nutrition, USA
An
estimated 5.4 million people in the U.S. have been diagnosed with
Alzheimer's disease and that number is expected to increase
exponentially as baby boomer generation enters their golden years.
But for some people, coconut oil has proven to slow the progression of Alzheimer's and may have even prevented it.
One
of those people is Steve Newport, whose Alzheimer's has slowed
considerably. Some of his symptoms even reversed, thanks to the unlikely
treatment prescribed by his wife, Dr. Mary Newport, a physician who
runs a neonatology ward at a Tampa, Fla., hospital.
Dr.
Newport became determined to help her husband after the severity of his
disease was discovered through an Alzheimer's test in which the person
being tested is asked to draw a picture of a clock.
"He drew circles and several numbers just in a very random pattern, didn't really look anything like a clock," she said.
"And
the doctor pulled me over to the side and said, 'You know, he's
actually on the verge of severe Alzheimer's at this point, he's beyond
moderate," Dr. Newport recalled.
"So that was very, very devastating news," she said.
Dr. Newport began learning everything she could about her husband's disease.
"It
appears to be a type of diabetes of the brain and it's a process that
starts happening at least 10 or 20 years before you start having
symptoms and it's very similar to type 1 or type 2 diabetes in that you
develop a problem with insulin," she explained.
Alternative Brain Fuel
In this case, insulin problems prevent brain cells from accepting glucose, their primary fuel. Without it, they eventually die.
But
there is an alternative fuel -- ketones, which cells easily accept.
Ketones are metabolized in the liver after you eat medium chain
triglicerides, found in coconut oil.
Dr.
Newport added coconut oil to her husband Steve's diet. Just two weeks
later, he took the clock test again and demonstrated stunning
improvement.
"I
thought at the time, was it just good luck? Was it a lot of prayer? Was
it the coconut oil?" she said. "And I thought, well, we're going to
keep the coconut oil going."
Three weeks later, Steve took the clock test a third time and continued to perform better on it.
And it wasn't just intellectually, he also improved emotionally and physically.
"He
was not able to run. He was able to run again," she recalled. "He could
not read for about a year and a half, but after two or three months he
was able to read."
"Instead
of being very sluggish, not talking very much in the morning, he would
come out in the morning with energy, talkative, and joking, and he could
find his water and his utensils," Dr. Newport said.
She
documented Steve's success in a book titled, Alzheimer's Disease: What
If There Was A Cure? Dr. Newport received many "thank you" letters from
people whose loved ones were suffering from Alzheimer's. Each of the
letters claimed their family member was helped after they followed
Steve's diet.
Expensive Power Punch
And while coconut oil is encouraging, there's something much more powerful.
A
team of biochemists, led by Professor Kieran Clarke at England's Oxford
University, have developed a ketone ester that packs a punch ten times
greater than coconut oil.
"It
reaches quite considerably higher levels," Clarke said. "And you can
get whatever levels you want depending on how much you drink."
The problem is, they need millions of dollars to mass produce it.
"It's
very expensive. And so we can't make very much of it ourselves," Clarke
said. "And what we would like is funding so we could actually scale up
and make it."
"But
of course there's no real profit in manufacturing stuff like that, and
so people really don't want to fund that sort of thing," he said.
Coconut Oil Myths
So until a high potency ketone ester is available to the general public, coconut oil is still a good ketone source.
Just
make sure it's pure, in other words, non-hydrogenated. Avoid any
hydrogenated oil, including coconut oil, because hydrogenated oils are
the same thing as dangerous trans fats. Check the list of ingredients
for the word, "hydrogenated."
Some people are afraid to eat coconut oil because they think it's bad for your heart. But it's actually very healthy.
Dr. Beverly Teter is a lipid biochemist researcher at the University of Maryland and an expert in the area of dietary fat.
She
said that years ago, coconut oil was criticized for raising
cholesterol. But scientists have since learned there are two kinds of
cholesterol -- LDL, the bad kind, and HDL, which is very good for you.
HDL, the good cholesterol, is the kind that coconut oil raises.
"So
they put out the message that it increased serum cholesterol," Teter
explained. "But the truth of the matter is, it was helping the profile
of the serum cholesterol."
"That
never has been corrected in the public press, and I think that's the
reason people have misconceptions about it," she said.
Defense against Disease
Not
only does coconut oil improve cholesterol levels, Teter said the way it
helps the brains of some Alzheimer's patients can even be extended to
people with Parkinson's disease, ALS , epilepsy, dementia, even
schizophrenia and autism.
Coconut
oil also kills bacteria, making it a natural antibiotic without the
negative side effects. Teter said because of that, it also helps defend
against viruses like HIV and herpes.
"The
coconut oil tends to keep the bacteria down so that if you're assaulted
with a virus, your immune system can concentrate on the virus. It
doesn't have to concentrate on 27 other bacteria that day," she
explained.
As always, consult your doctor before making any dietary changes and ask about the addition of coconut oil to your diet.
Soy May Not Protect Against Stomach Cancer
Posted by Unknown in Health Issues, Nutrition, Soybean on Saturday, 26 January 2013
Estrogen-like
compounds that come with a soy-rich diet are sometimes linked to a
reduced risk of cancer, but new research from Japan suggests that
protection doesn’t extend to stomach cancer.
Azusa
Hara and her colleagues from the National Cancer Center in Tokyo
examined data on about 85,000 people in an existing Japanese study.
The
researchers estimated how much isoflavone the study’s participants ate
from a list of questions they had answered in the 1990s, then followed
the subjects until the end of 2006 to see how many developed stomach
cancer.
During
the follow-up period, approximately 1,250 of the study’s participants
got stomach cancer, but the researchers saw no difference in risk
between those who ate the most isoflavone and those who ate the least.
According
to Dr. Richard Peek, director of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and
Nutrition at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville,
Tennessee, estrogen is thought to protect against stomach cancer because
the disease is much more common in men, at least until women are
post-menopausal — hinting that younger women’s higher estrogen levels
might be protecting them.
Peek told Reuters Health there are also studies on mice that suggest estrogen protects against stomach cancer.
The
Japanese team, however, found an increase in stomach cancer risk among
women taking hormone therapy who ate the most isoflavone-laden food,
compared to those who ate the least.
The
women in the study on hormone therapy were more likely to smoke, drink
and have a family history of stomach cancer, the researchers note, which
could explain the link.
Hara
and her colleagues wrote in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
that their results are limited by the use of their questionnaire and the
fact that they could not account for whether the subjects were also
infected with the bacterium Helicobacter pylori, which is also linked to
increased stomach cancer risk.
Still another well-known risk factor for gastric cancers is high salt intake.
According
to the American Cancer Society, a person in the United States has a one
in 114 chance of developing stomach cancer. An estimated 21,500
Americans were diagnosed with it in 2011 and an estimated 10,500 died
from it.
Stomach cancers were once the leading cause of cancer deaths in the U.S. until 1930.
“One
of the reasons for decline is that people have fridges now, and they
use less salt preservatives,” said Khaldoun Almhanna, a medical
oncologist at the Moffitt Cancer Center in Tampa, Florida.
Chefs with Issues: Making Seafood Sustainability Palatable
Posted by Unknown in Fast Food, Fishing, Nutrition, Seafood, Sustainable Agriculture on Friday, 25 January 2013
Chefs
with Issues is a platform for chefs and farmers we love, fired up for
causes about which they're passionate. Chef John Ash serves on the Board
of Advisors of Seafood Watch, an educational initiative for sustainable
seafood by the Monterey Bay Aquarium. He recently hosted a panel
discussion about seafood sustainability as a practice. Among the
participants were Chef Bun Lai, the Monterey Bay Aquarium Sustainability
Leader of the Year, and Yousef Ghalaini, executive chef of New York’s
sustainable seafood restaurant Imperial No. Nine.
Recently,
nearly 30 thought leaders in the seafood, restaurant and sustainability
worlds came together to have a conversation about how chefs can embrace
seafood sustainability in a greater, more mainstream way.
“Thought
for Food: A Discussion on Sustainable Seafood” was facilitated by James
Beard award-winning chef and author John Ash, widely respected as a
sustainability pioneer. Participants came from a variety of backgrounds:
chefs, NGO leaders, journalists and other members of the food industry
vanguard.
Each
brought a different perspective to the buzz-worthy subject of
"conscious cuisine," an idea brought to the forefront by New York Times
journalist and author Mark Bittman. In his book, "Food Matters, Guide to
Conscious Eating," he explains conscious cuisine as the idea that one
deliberately chooses deliciously prepared food that is not just good for
you but is also produced with a keen appreciation for the health of and
respect for the planet.
Today,
consumers are more naturally curious about the provenance of their food
and its method of production, and retailers have found a way to make
these types of conversations part of the every day. More and more people
want to know where their tomatoes were grown and who picked them. They
also genuinely care about the quality of life of the cow that yielded
that T-bone. But fewer customers think about the sustainability and
origin of the seafood on the menu, other than perhaps where the fish
were raised.
While
some chefs are leading the charge and embracing sustainability at every
level, others have been slower to come around on the subject.
As
Scott Nichols, PhD of aquaculture innovator, Verlasso, said, “We can’t
keep depleting our oceans. To continue to eat fish, we need to raise
them in an ecologically responsible manner, benefitting both the
consumer and the species - not just capture them. With a current
worldwide population exceeding seven billion people - estimates for 2050
push that number to nine billion - effectively sourcing quality fish
has come to the forefront of the international discussion on
sustainability.”
As
the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
reported in 2008, “Fish provided more than 2.9 billion people with at
least 15 percent of their average per capita animal protein intake.”
That is a small percentage of people, consuming a whole lot of fish.
Coupled with the fact that the USDA 2010 Dietary Guidelines recommend
doubling the consumption of seafood from 3.5 ounces to eight ounces per
week, it is easy to conclude that aquaculture will play a key part in
helping to feed a hungry world.
Salmon,
that nutritional powerhouse that consumers go to for brain and heart
health, was the species that opened the discussion on the importance of
sustainable seafood. Until recently, chefs only had two sources of
salmon they could put on their menus: wild-caught and farm-raised.
Salmon,
like tuna, is just one type of large fish that depends on several
levels of the food chain for survival. In essence, each fish needs to
consume many smaller fish to thrive. As Daniel Pauly of the University
of British Columbia states, “A pound of tuna represents roughly a
hundred times the footprint of a pound of sardines.” And given our
growing population, this is just not a reliable method for increased
seafood demand.
Yousef
Ghalaini, executive chef of New York’s Imperial No. Nine adds, “Those
chefs who do opt to put wild salmon on their menus say that it is harder
to prepare - being lower in fat - and some diners find the flavor too
intense.”
Most
farm-raised salmon, on the other hand, is raised in an environment
where every life stage is controlled: quantity of eggs fertilized,
number of fish per pen, diet and harvest.
The detractors to this method, however, are clear: Farm-raised salmon also demand high levels of feeder fish for their diet.
Nichols
notes, “This ratio is termed ‘fish-in, fish-out’ and typically
translates to four pounds of fish needed to produce just one pound of
farm-raised salmon.” Adding to the sustainability conundrum, many of
these feeder fish are considered consumable on their own, as opposed to
being used as feed for salmon.
In
recent years, environmental groups like Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood
Watch and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA)
FishWatch have brought increasing attention to both wild fisheries and
traditional aquaculture, which has led to improvement in the industry.
But, much remains to be done to make aquaculture healthy and
sustainable. These are facts that every "Thought for Food" participant
could agree upon, which led to the discussion of the third solution:
harmoniously raised salmon, a new category that has emerged just this
past year.
Verlasso,
located in the cold waters of Patagonia, is the only company producing
harmoniously raised salmon. With standards guided by the World Wildlife
Fund’s sustainability goals, the company aims to change the way the
world gets their salmon. Situated away from the threat of pollutants,
industrial waste or other contaminants, Verlasso raises its salmon with a
very low pen density of four fish per ton of water. This environment
allows each fish to be identified and monitored carefully to ensure a
healthy life.
The
harmoniously raised salmon also have a unique diet that reduces the
fish-in fish-out ratio by 75 percent. This innovative process replaces
fish oil with yeast, rich in Omega-3s, making Verlasso salmon markedly
more sustainable. The pens are also allowed to rest for months between
production cycles, a process akin to farmers letting fields go fallow
and ameliorate themselves from the rigors of production. The results
have been significant.
“The
quality is exceptional,” notes Chef Ghalaini, who recently started
serving harmoniously raised fish. “This salmon is like nothing I’ve ever
had access to before. The scales are tight, the gills are beautiful,
the eyes are glassy – all indicators of a fish that has led a great
life.”
At
Imperial No. Nine, he serves Verlasso salmon two ways: raw, in a salmon
and tuna tartare with Sriracha and Hawaiian-style poi, garnished with
chives. Chef Ghalaini makes this from the belly of the salmon, which has
both a flavor and texture that “really pops with a clean bite.” The
salmon he serves hot is seared with a horseradish crust, plated on a bed
of celery root purée and Brussels sprouts. “The bite of the horseradish
is totally balanced by the unique sweetness of the salmon.”
The
"Thought for Food" participants discussed another important point: it
is one thing for the chef to advocate sustainability, but how do we
convey this message to our customers?
As
Chef Ash remarks, “That’s the $64,000 question. You have to do it so
carefully and thoughtfully. Diners are really coming to restaurants to
enjoy themselves. They do not want to be preached at...because you can
turn people off. Chefs need to set the stage for it, but the waitstaff
are the real touch point to the diners.”
Chef
Ghalaini concurs, “We take the time to educate our servers about this
fish. They have tasted it raw, and they have tasted it cooked. They have
seen for themselves how different it is. And it is my responsibility,
as a chef, to make sure that happens so they can tell the customers.”
Chef
Bun Lai of Miya’s Sushi in New Haven, Connecticut, was another "Thought
for Food" participant. The recipient of the 2011 Seafood Ambassador
Award from Monterey Bay Aquarium for his leadership in the Sustainable
Seafood movement, his restaurant has been named one the country’s ten
most sustainable restaurants.
Chef
Lai echoes Chef Ghalaini’s sentiment that the entire restaurant team
must be on board with the tenets of sustainability if that is an issue
the chef cares about and strives to uphold.
He
adds, “The food we chefs choose to use ultimately affects the health
and happiness of not only our dining guests, but that of the producer,
everyone involved in getting that product to us, the environment and the
planet as a whole. As a food artist, that is how I base every decision
in my restaurant. I only hire staff who are ideological and
philosophical in what they do. They must realize that everything we do
is connected in a larger way.”
With
such a commitment to sustainability, Chef Lai is continuously looking
for producers, partners and models to further the ideal all the way down
to the customer. Among the several perspectives discussed, Chef Lai
says, “I came out of the 'Thought for Food' discussion reconsidering
farmed salmon. I have admired Chef Ash for a really long time, not just
for the food he prepares, but for his philosophy and his principles.
...There is great progress happening in the world of sustainability so I
think it’s important to keep one’s mind open to improvements in science
and technology.”
As
a chef who teaches at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone
and serves on the board of the Chefs Collaborative, Chef Ash has
sustainability advice for those chefs just coming up through the ranks:
“It’s the old saw about getting to know your purveyors. Get to know your
farmer. As the great Kentucky poet and farmer Wendell Berry once said,
'You gotta know where your food comes from and know the person behind
where your food comes from.'”
Chef
Lai takes it one step further and encourages those same chefs to
embrace sustainability because he has seen how it makes him a better
chef: “In ‘confining’ myself to the tenets of sustainability – in
everything I do – I find I am more creative. I like how this passion
inspires me to be better.”
The Healthy Benefits Of Yogurt
Posted by Unknown in Dairy Products, Health Issues, Nutrition, Yogurt
Yogurt
Eating
yogurt everday is very healthy for the body. For those looking to
supplement their protein, calcium and dairy, yogart is a healthy choice.
Yogurt
is not just a delicious snack with fruits on the bottom, it has great
health benefits. It is an excellent source of protein, calcium,
riboflavin and vitamin B 12. When yogurt is compared to milk, yogurt
contains more calcium and protein because of the added cultures in the
yogurt.
Yogurt
must contain active and living cultures to be yogurt. Cultures are
composed of unique living microorganisms which are responsible for many
of the health and nutritional benefits of yogurt. Some of the health
benefits of yogurt are"
It
improves natural defense, it contains a good amount of phosphorus and
88% water. People with a risk of osteoporosis should eat at least one
serving of yogurt per day.
It has also been claimed that yogurt may protect against some types of cancer but more investigations have to be carried out.
There
are three types of yogurt: regular(whole milk), low-fat and skim.
Low-fat and skim yogurt are good for people who are on a cholesterol
lowering diet or just simply watching their weights. These types of
yogurt does not raise blood cholesterol levels.
Some
people have trouble digesting lactose, a carbohydrate in milk and milk
products, because of the deficiency of enzyme lactase in the body. Live
yogurt cultures produce lactase and break down the lactose. Yogurt is a
healthy way to get the calcium the body needs, for the people who can
not tolerate milk products.
Other
benefits of live and active cultures in the yogurt are, they may help
to boost the immune system. They encourage the right kind of bacteria to
multiply in the gut. These bacteria help to digest food and prevent
stomach infections. Also, they help to provide relief from vaginal
infections.
Yogurt
is fresh dairy product that must be stored in the refrigerator. The
heat treated yogurt has a longer shelf life but it does not give the
nutritional benefits like the yogurt with live cultures because heat
processing destroys the cultures. To get the most health benefit from
yogurt, there must be a live and active cultures seal on the label.
Yogurt
is known and consumed in almost all parts of the world. Mediterranean
Countries use a lot of yogurt in their cuisine. They usually eat yogurt,
plain with no sugar along with main dishes like stuffed cabbage and
spinach. They add yogurt to their salads or use it to make traditional
"meze" They also prepare yogurt drinks made with plain yogurt, salt and
water and serve it with shish kebabs. Fried vegetables such as eggplant
or zucchini are eaten with yogurt. Cucumber and yogurt salad is very
popular among the Mediterranean countries, it is prepared with yogurt,
cucumbers, fresh or dried mint, garlic and salt.
To add more yogurt to everyday diet, here are some healthier alternatives and tips:
- Replace mayonnaise and salad dressings with yogurt
- Replace ice cream and milkshake with frozen yogurt and mixed fruit yogurt smoothie
- Make dips with yogurt instead of sour-cream
- Try using yogurt cheese instead of cream cheese
- Use to marinate meat and poultry
- Yogurt can also be stove cooked, but it will curdle if heated to too high a temperature or boiled. Adding a tablespoon of cornstarch into each cup of yogurt before cooking it, can prevent this problem.
The Inside Track | Fruits & Vegetables
Your five a day doesn't have to be raw – cooking your fruit and veg may help you to get your vitamins and nutrients
Everybody
knows that fruit and vegetables contain antioxidants, and are good for
you, although we still don't know exactly why. Current research no
longer supports the use of antioxidant supplements, but high antioxidant
levels in the blood do seem to be associated with a reduced risk of
heart disease and some cancers.
However,
we're often told that if you cook vegetables you "remove the goodness".
This was always code for removing the vitamin C, which does oxidise
quickly and is sensitive to heat. But vitamin C is not something we tend
to be short of these days, because of all the juice we drink, and how
much fruit and veg is available all year round. In fact, plenty of other
vitamins are not affected by heat at all, while some, such as
beta-carotene, are actually absorbed better because of it.
Beta-carotene
is a form of vitamin A, which is valuable for immune function, healthy
skin and healthy eyes. It is found in the cell wall of carrots, among
other things, which means that if you eat raw carrot you would only be
able to absorb a certain amount because your gut cannot break down all
the cells. The rest will simply pass right through your digestive tract.
When you cook carrots, however, you are weakening some of those cell
walls and making the beta-carotene more available, so a greater
percentage is absorbed. This is something we can measurably demonstrate
in blood levels.
There
are antioxidant compounds too, which are also absorbed better from
cooked foods. Lycopene, for instance, which is a pigment in tomatoes. Or
a group of chemicals called polyphenols. These are not classed as
nutrients, meaning that there isn't a deficiency state, but they are
associated with healthy effects, and all of them benefit from heat
treatment.
The
bottom line is: eat a lot of fruit and vegetables, but eat them however
you like. Salad, soup, casseroles, boiled, frozen, tinned, stir-fried,
whatever. And by all means add garlic, olive oil, cheese sauce or
anything else that will help you to eat more of them. Until you're
deep-frying peas in batter, I think the balance will always be in your
favour.
The writer Ursula Arens is a registered dietitian
The Guardian
Bitter Melon (Bitter Gourd)
Posted by Unknown in Bitter Gourd or Bitter Melon (Karela), Nutrition, Vegetable on Monday, 10 September 2012
Nutrition Information And Facts
Bitter melon is one of the best vegetable-fruit that helps improve diabetic and toxemia conditions.
Bitter melon is one of the best vegetable-fruit that helps improve diabetic and toxemia conditions.
(Juicing for Health) The bitter melon (also known as bitter gourd or Karela (کریلا) in urdu) looks like a cucumber but with ugly gourd-like bumps all over it.
As the name implies, this vegetable is a melon that is bitter. There are two varieties of this vegetable: One grows to about 20 cm long, is oblong and pale green in color. The other is the smaller variety, less than 10 cm long, oval and has a darker green color.
Both varieties have seeds that are white when unripe and that turn red when they are ripe. The vegetable-fruit turn reddish-orange when ripe and becomes even more bitter.
Bitter gourd thrives in hot and humid climates, so are commonly found in Asian countries and South America.
Westerners may not be so used to bitter melons, so may find them more difficult to consume. But if you can generally take bitter taste, you may be able to take this too. Try it, at least for all its healthful virtues
Nutritional Benefits
Bitter gourds are very low in calories but dense with precious nutrients. It is an excellent source of vitamins B1, B2, and B3, C, magnesium, folic acid, zinc, phosphorus, manganese, and has high dietary fiber. It is rich in iron, contains twice the beta-carotene of broccoli, twice the calcium of spinach, and twice the potassium of a banana.
Bitter melon contains a unique phyto-constituent that has been confirmed to have a hypoglycemic effect called charantin. There is also another insulin-like compound known as polypeptide P which have been suggested as insulin replacement in some diabetic patients.
Health Benefits
Few other fruits/vegetables offer medicinal properties for these ailments like bitter melon does.
Blood disorders: Bitter gourd juice is highly beneficial for treating blood disorders like blood boils and itching due to toxemia. Mix 2 ounces of fresh bitter gourd juice with some lime juice. Sip it slowly on an empty stomach daily for between four and six months and see improvement in your condition.
Cholera: In early stages of cholera, take two teaspoonfuls juice of bitter gourd leaves, mix with two teaspoonfuls white onion juice and one teaspoonful lime juice. Sip this concoction daily till you get well.
Diabetes mellitus: Bitter melon contains a hypoglycemic compound
(a plant insulin) that is highly beneficial in lowering sugar levels in blood and urine. Bitter melon juice has been shown to significantly improve glucose tolerance without increasing blood insulin levels.
Energy: Regular consumption of bitter gourd juice has been proven to improve energy and stamina level. Even sleeping patterns have been shown to be improved/stabilized.
Eye problems: The high beta-carotene and other properties in bitter gourd makes it one of the finest vegetable-fruit that help alleviate eye problems and improving eyesight.
Hangover: Bitter melon juice may be beneficial in the treatment of a hangover for its alcohol intoxication properties. It also help cleanse and repair and nourish liver problems due to alcohol consumption.
Immune booster: This bitter juice can also help to build your immune system and increase your body's resistance against infection.
Piles: Mix three teaspoonfuls of juice from bitter melon leaves with a glassful of buttermilk. Take this every morning on empty stomach for about a month and see an improvement to your condition. To hasten the healing, use the paste of the roots of bitter melon plant and apply over the piles.
Psoriasis: Regular consumption of this bitter juice has also been known to improve psoriasis condition and other fungal infections like ring-worm and athletes feet.
Respiratory disorders: Take two ounces of fresh bitter melon juice and mix with a cup of honey diluted in water. Drink daily to improve asthma, bronchitis and pharyngitis.
Toxemia: Bitter gourd contains beneficial properties that cleanses the blood from toxins. Sip two teaspoonfuls of the juice daily to help cleanse the liver. Also helpful in ridding jaundice for the same reasons.
Consumption Tips
Choose unripe bitter melons that are firm, like how you would a cucumber. Avoid those that have turned orange or have soft spots. Ripe bitter melons can be excessively bitter.
Store bitter melons in the vegetable bin in the refrigerator which has the right temperature. It should keep for three to four days.
Keeping bitter melons at room temperature or with other fruits and vegetables will hasten the melon to ripen and become more bitter, due to the emission of ethylene gas.
Clean your bitter melon under cold running water and brush with a soft vegetable brush. To prepare, slice the melon length-wise and scoop out the seeds. To lessen the bitter flavor, soak it in salt water for about half an hour before juicing/cooking.
The smaller variety is more bitter than the bigger one. To help make bitter gourd juice more palatable, take it with honey, or add carrot or apple juice. For diabetics, drink the juice with green apple juice.
Caution
Do not consume more than two ounces of bitter melon, or more than two melons a day. Excessive consumption may cause mild abdominal pain or diarrhea. Diabetics taking hypoglycemic drugs will need to alter the dosage of their drugs if they consume bitter melon on a regular basis. Please consult your doctor.
Pregnant women should avoid taking too much bitter gourd or its juice as it may stimulate the uterus that may lead to preterm labor.
The Benefits of Ajwah Dates (Khajoor) (Urdu)
Posted by Unknown in Date Palm, Health Issues, Nutrition, Urdu
Mangoes - The New Super Fruit?
Posted by Unknown in Mango, Nutrition, Vegetable Fruit Benefits on Saturday, 8 September 2012
WRITTEN BY MARCIA THOMAS
Garden Directions
The mango is a fleshy stone fruit belonging to the genus Mangifera, consisting of numerous species of tropical fruiting trees in the flowering plant family Anacardiacea
Mango trees (Mangifera indica L.) grow up to 35–40 m (115–130 ft) tall, with a crown radius of 10 m (33 ft). The mango tree is long-lived, as some specimens still fruit after 300 years.
Growing up in Jamaica Mango season was one of my favorite time of the Year. There were so many mangoes that we did not eat any that were on the ground we only ate the ones we picked or watched as they fall.
Mangoes are great nutritious breakfast,snack or dessert. and makes a nice change from everyday fruits like apples, oranges, and bananas.. The mango is a brightly colored fruit that offers a totally different taste than what you’ve experienced before. It has a taste similar to a ripe apricot and it is excellent by itself or mixed with other fruits such as strawberries or pineapple in a smoothie with natural yoghurt, honey, orange or cranberry juice
Mangoes are an excellent source of Potassium and are low in calories.
Mangoes are also rich in a large number of nutrients and hold great nutritional value. In fact, they have been known to have positive effects in case of a number of ailments. In the following lines, we have listed numerous health and nutrition benefits of eating mangoes.
Nutritional Value of Mango
One medium sized mango comprises of:
- Calories - 107
- Protein - 0.84 g
- Carbohydrate - 28 g
- Total Fat - 0.45 g
- Fiber - 3 g
- Vitamin A - 6425 IU
- Vitamin C - 45.7mg
- Magnesium - 18 mg
- Potassium - 300 mg
- Calcium - 20 g
- Cholesterol - 0 g
- Saturated fat - 0 g
- Traces of manganese, selenium, iron, sodium and phosphorus
Health & Nutrition Benefits of Eating Mangoes
The phenolic compound found in mangoes has been found to have powerful antioxidant and anticancer properties.
Being high in iron, mango is said to be very good for pregnant women as well as for people suffering from anemia.
Mango is believed to be effective in relieving clogged pores of the skin.
The vitamin A (beta-carotene), vitamin E and selenium present in mangoes provide protection against heart disease.
Mangoes have been found to be quite helpful in treating acidity and poor digestion.
It is being said that the Vitamin E present in mango helps hormonal system function more efficiently and thus, boosts sex life.
The anti-inflammatory properties of mango might help alleviate asthma symptom.
Mango is not only a delicious fruit, but also holds a great degree of nutritional value. In this article, we acquaint you with the health and nutrition benefits of eating mangoes.
The ripe fruit varies in size and color. Cultivars are variously yellow, orange, red or green, and carry a single flat, oblong pit that can be fibrous or hairy on the surface, and which does not separate easily from the pulp. Ripe, unpeeled mangoes give off a distinctive resinous, sweet smell. The taste of mango fruit could be described as combination of a nectarine, a pineapple and an orange.
In several cultures, its fruit and leaves are ritually used as floral decorations at weddings, public celebrations and religious ceremonies.
