Healthy World Digest, #32, October 2011

"Healthy nuggets of information to keep your motor humming."

Welcome to the 32nd issue of our newsletter.

In this issue:

* All purpose, terrific antiaging herb

* Fibromyalgia exercise

* Boosting metabolism with food

* Water intake = water loss, fat intake = fat loss

* One ingredient meals

* Memory boosting foods

* Fruits are great!

* Herb for bloating and gas

So let's get this over with so we could get to the track the gym or whatever. So on to our health tidbits.

* All purpose, terrific antiaging herb

There are many herbs, and lifestyle choices that qualify as antiaging. Hey, anything that is good for you is “antiaging.”

But there is one herb that excels as an antiaging product because it seems to work on the cellular level.

Astragalus appears to work by improving cell reproduction. You see, cells tire out by reproducing. They get “exhausted.”

Astragalus is credited with helping energize cells so that their reproductions, their “children,” become better copies of parent cells.

Go for the extract.

* Fibromyalgia exercise

If you or a loved one suffers from fibromyalgia, the approach to exercise is one of the keys to managing or overcoming the condition.

We are just about finished with our section on exercise for fibromyalgia. Essentially we elaborate on the idea of progression with respect to exercise.

That means you correct breathing and posture problems and then go into flexibility, aerobic training and, lastly, strength training.

For much more, visit our section on exercise & fibromyalgia

Also, please visit our page on fibromylagia herbs

There I riff on my particular take on the condition being debatable and a more useful way to deal with it.

* Boosting metabolism with food

Clearly some foods depress your metabolism and some food speed it up. The following 4 foodstuffs keep your metabolism pumping which helps avert fat gain.

- Button mushrooms: In fact, all mushrooms, which have high water content, fiber and very few calories

- Balsamic vinegar and other vinegars have few calories and seem to “burn“ fat

- Green tea contains caffeine which boosts metabolism. It also contains numerous micronutrients which contribute to good health

- Fiber keeps the body revved up while contributing no usable calories. Get your fiber from beans, whole grain pasta and bread and my new crush, chia seed.

Water intake = water loss, fat intake = fat loss

Just the wisdom of the body. The way it works is that it holds on to stuff that it needs and that you start to deprive it of.

So, when you consume good healthy fats, it will use the fat that is stored.

When you drink lots of water, it will use or release the uncirculated water that leads to bloating and weight gain.

* One ingredient meals

You know, the habit of having 4 course meals that feature numerous ingredients is not really natural. It is not what our bodies are geared to use.

Why? Because, for thousands of years, humans have essentially eaten what they got in bulk, depending on season and availability. So, when they found a berry bush, well it’s berries for days. Kill an antelope, it’s antelope meat for lunch and dinner.

I’m not suggesting that you not take advantage of the bounty of our food luck. Just, sometimes, think about just having a couple of eggs. No toast and bacon and butter and jam and etc etc Have an extra large serving of brussel sprouts as a meal.

Your body will have a much easier time processing the food and will thank you for making its life less complicated.

* Memory boosting foods

If you concerned about memory or just want to keep what you got, here are 3 convenient foods that help memory.

The choline in eggs, in the yolk, is a great memory booster.

MEMO: Eat whole eggs, preferably organic. Forget about those egg white omelletes.

The very smell of cinnamon helps alertness and memory. Hey, I love cinnamon. I sprinkle it in cereals, mashed yams and coffee.

Brussel sprouts also help memory. In fact, all veggies in the cabbage family do same.

* Fruits are great!

- Lychee may work against cancer because of its vitamin C and polyphenols

- Guava may stave off those dreaded wrinkles due to vitamin C

- Persimmon for heart disease mostly due to its strong antioxidant actions

Eat fruit not cookies.

* Herb for bloating and gas

If you suffer from gas and bloating, an easy remedy is to chew a tsp of fennel seeds after meals.

Comments? Ideas? Feedback? I'd love to hear from you. Just reply to Healthy World Digest and tell me what you think.

See you in a couple of weeks!

Sal

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