Avocados are quickly becoming one of the top “super foods” for promoting good health. They are packed with potassium, magnesium, and Vitamins C, E, K1, and B6. They are rich in monounsaturated fats, which are more commonly known as “good fats.” They have also a high amount of minerals and phytonutrients that promote a faster wound healing.
If you haven’t given avocados a chance yet, here are a few good reasons to add them to your regular diet.
When some people think of smoothies, they think, “YUCK!” They think it’s a bunch of gross, bland, mushed up veggies in a blender. Believe me, my first attempt at making my own smoothie was pretty horrible.
After learning not only about which foods should be going into smoothies, but also how to properly combine them for nutrients and taste, I found that I LOVE smoothies!!!! You can love smoothies, too! I have a ton of recipes I’d love to share with you that’ll turn your bad impression of smoothies into a love affair like no other.
You have probably heard or read that is highly important to include Fiber in your diet, right? But what is Fiber? In which foods can you find it? What are the benefits to include Dietary Fiber in your diet? In this article I want to help clarify these common questions.
Fiber is not a nutrient itself. It helps your body eliminate toxins, prevent diseases and even help you lose weight. It has very important functions, especially in the intestine.
Dietary fiber (DF) is included between the classification of carbohydrates. The definition of fiber is still not entirely clear yet. We can say that it is all the material from plants that escapes intestinal digestion by action of enzymes in the gastrointestinal tract. This does not mean that fiber is not degraded or metabolized, in fact much of it is fermented in the colon producing compounds that the body absorbs and uses.
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This article will continue the series of Vitamins and Minerals. This part will discuss the Essential Minerals in your Diet.
Minerals are originated in rocks and minerals stones. We get them in our diet in our food and also through water we consume. These are essential for good health.
This little substances help regulate metabolism (reactions that are constantly occurring in our body). For example, the bones are the stocks of calcium, phosphorus and magnesium, which in case of deficiency the body can make use of them. They are found in many molecules in the body and help in various chemical reactions. For example, the sulfur is part of Vitamin B1 (Thiamine), Calcium triggers the action of digestive enzymes that digest fats and copper is necessary for the incorporation of iron in hemoglobin (the molecule that carries oxygen in blood ).
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With this article, I begin a series on Vitamins and Minerals, which are a key factor in our diet. In the first two articles, I’ll talk about Vitamins in your Diet, how they help our health and where we can find them in the food. In the following articles, I’ll cover the most important minerals in our diet.
Vitamins are micronutrients not synthesized by the body, but required in small amounts, play a critical role in maintaining good health. They are very important not only because of its deficiency cause diseases but, if they are provided in their optimal amounts, they may help to prevent chronic diseases such as cardiovascular, cancer and aging.
5 servings of fruits and vegetables a day will give you lots of water (between 75% and 95% of its weight is water), vitamins, water-soluble like vitamin C, folic acid and small amounts of other B vitamins (B1, B2, B3 and B6) and soluble compounds such as carotenoids (mainly ß-carotene) with activity of pro-vitamin A and vitamins K and E.
Vegetables also provide minerals like potassium, magnesium and small amounts of calcium, iron, phosphorus and phytochemicals (organic compounds present in plant foods that are not nutrients but have beneficial effects on health) among which we can highlight carotenoids, phenolics, glucosinolates and phytosterols, and fiber.
There is a big debate about whether milk consumption is the best source of Calcium for your Bones and whether it helps prevent fractures and osteoporosis or not. On one side are those who think that high calcium intake in the form of three glasses of milk a day, would help prevent osteoporosis and fractures. Yet, each year osteoporosis causes about 1.5 million fractures in the U.S. alone.
On the other side are those who believe that consuming lots of milk does not affect the risk of fractures and could also contribute to other problems such as heart disease or prostate cancer.