Friday, October 15, 2010

Reverse Aging with Pomegranates

The status of the pomegranate goes back 10,000 years, as far as the history of agriculture itself.

Allusions to the pomegranate are readily found in the oldest cultures of the Indus Valley, ancient China and classical Greece, as well as in the Old Testament. It has a long history of medicinal use.

The antioxidants present in the fruit repair damaged cells and by this action rejuvenate the bodies cell structure. Pomegranate health benefits also include slowing down the aging process, preventing cancers, and benefiting the heart, and many more.

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Thursday, October 14, 2010

A Powerful Anti-Ager That's Lacking in Our Lives


According to experts, touching eases pain, lessens anxiety, softens the blows of life, generates hope and has the power to heal.

Aside from being your gateway to touch and a great place to hang your clothes, your skin is also your largest organ. In a grown man, it covers about 19 square feet and weighs about 8 pounds. A piece of skin the size of a quarter contains more than 3 million cells, 100 to 340 sweat glands, 50 nerve endings and 3 feet of blood vessels. No one is exempt from needing to be touched. Humans need to touch and be touched, just like we need food and water. The connection between touch and well being is far more than skin deep. From the moment of birth our tactile sense is being stimulated. Pushed out, picked up, we are placed at our mother's breast, and a bonding process begins.

The need for bonding, or close physical contact with another human being, remains with us throughout our lifetime. It generally feels good to have another human being's skin come into contact with our own. Some of us repress our craving for warmth and affection, while others go to extremes to obtain it. Much of how we function as adults, depends on how we were nurtured during infancy. We have all experienced moments when the touch of a hand on our shoulder or a reassuring hug was all that was needed to reduce our fear, anxiety, or loneliness. Touching is an act of love, a way of communicating without words.

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Wednesday, October 13, 2010

Nature's Most Nearly Perfect Fruit, The Fig

One of the oldest fruits known to humans, the fig is described as "nature's most nearly perfect fruit" by the California Fig Advisory Board.

The fig is believed to be as old as human kind. The fig tree is native to the Middle East and the Mediterranean. Fig fruit has been a typical component in the health-benefiting Mediterranean diet for millennia. The legend of Cleopatra, mentioned figs as her most desired and chesired fruit and Spartan athletes in ancient Greece were said to eat figs in order to improve their performance. Read on to learn about of the figs health and nutrition benefits.

WHAT'S IN A FIG?

Health benefits of figs can be attributed to the presence of minerals and vitamins in them. Figs have the highest overall mineral content of all common fruits. Figs contain vitamin A, vitamin B1, vitamin B2, calcium, iron, phosphorus, manganese, sodium, potassium, chlorine, flavonoids and a digestive enzyme called ficin. A 100 gram serving of dried figs supplies sixteen percent of the recommended daily iron requirement – a mineral that’s important for building healthy red blood cells to carry oxygen throughout the body. Forty grams of figs contains 244 mg of potassium (7% of the daily requirement), 53 mg of calcium (6% of the daily requirement) and 1.2 mg of iron (6% of the daily requirement). The calcium level in figs is very high: A crate of dried figs provides the same level of calcium as a crate of milk.

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Nutritious & Versatile Hemp oil

One of nature’s greatest gifts to humankind, hemp oil is a bountiful source of high quality nutrition and provides many wonderful medicinal uses as well.

Research has shown that this nutritional oil was once a part of worldwide dietary intake, as hemp is one of the very first plants ever cultivated by humans. The use of the hemp plant for its medicinal and nutritional properties dates back as far as 4,000 B.C. in China and as far back as the Ming dynasty. Indeed, whole populations have survived off hemp seed in times of famine. In China, at the cinema, you can still buy roasted hemp seeds in the same way as you can buy popcorn in the West. Not only is it an edible plant, but it was also made into a fiber for rope and clothing.

Over time, hemp has faded in and out of obscurity. Recently, researchers have been studying the profound benefits of hemp seed oil, giving both hemp seeds and hemp seed oil recognition as some of the world's healthiest foods.

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Heal Bronchitis the Natural Way

The inflammation of the mucous membranes of the bronchial tubes is called bronchitis. It occurs in both acute and chronic forms.

Acute bronchitis generally follows a viral respiratory infection. At first, it affects your nose, sinuses, and throat and then spreads to the lungs. Sometimes, you may get another (secondary) bacterial infection in the airways. This means that bacteria infect the airways, in addition to the virus. People at risk for acute bronchitis include the elderly, infants and young children; persons with heart or lung disease; and smokers.

Chronic bronchitis is a long-term condition. People will have a cough that produces excessive mucus. To be diagnosed with chronic bronchitis, you must have a cough with mucus most days of the month for at least 3 months.

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Apple: The Health Promoting Fruit


In the February 1866 issue of the publication "Notes and Queries." The publication printed this: "Eat an apple on going to bed, and you'll keep the doctor from earning his bread."

Nearly 150 years later, variations of this adage are still quoted. It's unlikely that the saying would have maintained such popularity if there wasn't some truth to it, right?

Apples commonly enjoyed by many cultures, are an excellent source of antioxidants. Studies show that raw apples benefit your health by carrying rich amounts of flavonoid and polyphenols, which are potent antioxidants. When compared to many other commonly consumed fruits in the United States, apples had the second highest level of antioxidant activity.

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Is it True That Asparagus Prevents and Cures Cancer?

Asparagus is rich in three cancer-blocking vitamins (A, D and C) as well as the mineral selenium and potent antioxidant, glutathione.

These five nutrients have been singled out in several studies as fierce cancer fighters. Researchers at the Institute for Cancer Prevention found in preliminary studies that asparagus, the food with the highest glutathione concentration, is a potentially effective means of enhancing the body's defense systems and preventing cancer development.

Tests conducted last year indicate that asparagus contain 70mg/100g of glutathione, a small protein composed of three amino acids: cysteine, glutamic acid and glycine which bind to fat-soluble toxins–more than twice the amount in any other common food. The ICP study, led by Dr. Despina Komninou, will provide the basis for a major grant underwriting to the National Institutes of Health. Clinical trials will determine if asparagus may be the ultimate disease prevention food.

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Would you Avoid These 3 Foods for Nicer Skin?

Three food products eaten every day, if avoided could quite possibly transform your skin.

Everywhere you turn these days, you find people eliminating wheat/gluten, dairy and sugar, and for good reason. As a result of these food changes, they are not only experiencing better health, but also healthy, clear skin. Skin problems may be called psoriasis, eczema, wrinkles, rosacea, acne, or just plain bad skin, but to your skin it is an inflammatory (or horomonal) reaction, caused by the foods that you are putting in your mouth, into your digestive system.

Food sensitivities are quite prevalent in the modern western world, but unfortunately many people suffering from them aren't even aware that they have a problem.

Sensitivities can cause subtle symptoms such as fatigue, headaches, digestive issues or skin conditions - symptoms you would never think are related to the foods that you're eating and so until you remove these foods from your diet, even temporarily, you may never know they're causing you any problems.

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Microfiber Cloth for Clear, Smooth Skin


Microfiber dermabrasion cloths consist of dense ultra fine micro fibers each no thicker than one hundredth the width of a human hair, fibers finer than silk.

In fact the threads of just 33 of these amazing cloths placed end to end would stretch around our entire planet.

For those unfamiliar with the wonderful world of microfiber, it is a revolutionary new fabric with quite unique properties and with proven lasting benefits to skin. It is used to exfoliate the skin with only water. Microfiber cloths have been successfully used by thousands of men and women all over the world in the treatment of acne, blackheads, acne scars, wrinkles, fine lines and many common skin complaints. Eliminating up to 99.9% of harmful bacteria from the skin surface, without the use of harsh chemicals.

These magical cloths not only remove dead cells and other debris, they also stimulate the growth of new skin cells, encouraging the increased production of collagen and elastin, reducing wrinkles, fine lines, sagging, improving overall skin texture and luster.

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30 Ways To Slow & Prevent Aging


I came accross a great list by Darya Pino at Summer Tomato that I just had to share. Thorough, yet simple information. I took the liberty of customizing it by changing two of the thirty to ones that resonated more with me.
"Here I’ve compiled my favorite 30 habits to slow aging and keep young in more than just your heart.

Be happy The physical damage caused to your body by stress has only recently become appreciated by the scientific community. Fill your life with things you love and get rid of almost everything else. Practice stress relieving activities like meditation and exercise, and learn to appreciate joy when you find it. Happiness does a body good.

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Tuesday, October 5, 2010

Warm Lemon Water for Skin & Health Benefits

Warm water with lemon in the morning is the perfect start to the day. By drinking it you'll feel energized, hydrated, experience clear skin, lose weight, and be more likely to avoid colds.

Lemon juice is extensively known for its medicinal properties. It contains large amounts of nutrients such as Vitamin C, magnesium, potassium and calcium. Warm lemon water acts as a tonic to the liver and stimulates the bowel to eliminate accumulated waste if it is taken before anything in the morning. It helps to lower blood sugar and can lower the glycemic impact of any meal. The problems like heartburn, indigestion or bloating are solved by drinking warm lemon water. It is a natural antihistamine and will reduce congestion. By drinking warm lemon juice the body can be shifted in to a better state of health and prevent many future illness.

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Monday, October 4, 2010

Silica: The Secret To Shiny Hair

Many people are unaware that beautiful hair is due largely to their intake of silica. Silica is a form of silicon, one of the most common elements in the earth.

Most forms of stones and rock contain silicon in one form or another. Silica is also a very common component of your body, and is contained in all of your connective tissues such as cartilage and tendons, nails, hair, muscle tissue and bone. Your complexion and shiny hair all depend upon silica, which apart from its other properties help your skin and hair to retain moisture and keep looking young.

Not only that, however, but it also strengthens your hair, and renders it less likely to become brittle and suffer from split ends and that dull look that so many women spend a fortune on trying to overcome with various types of hair conditioner. Conditioners are designed to keep the moisture in your hair; that is also one of the main properties of the form of silicon that we call silica. The term is often wrongly used for other forms of silicon such as silicates and silicones, although these do not take part in human biochemistry in the same way as silica does.

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Saturday, October 2, 2010

Plant Foods Rich In Calcium AND Why Milk Is No Good

The American Heart Association states that vegetarians absorb and retain more calcium from foods than nonvegetarians do.


Bones need calcium. Doctors, dietitians and researchers agree on this point.

Conventional wisdom holds that dairy foods are the best source of calcium, and that American adults need to increase their dairy intake to get the large amount of calcium their bodies need every day. Not everyone, however, believes the conventional wisdom.
Lately a small but highly respected band of scientists has been speaking out. They say Americans need less calcium than dietary guidelines recommend, and that drinking cup after cup of milk is not the best way to get it.

The Harvard Nurses’ Health Study, which followed more than 72,000 women for 18 years, showed no protective effect of increased milk consumption on fracture risk. While calcium is important for bone health, studies show that increasing consumption beyond approximately 600 mg per day—amounts that are easily achieved without dairy products or calcium supplements—does not improve bone integrity.

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Friday, October 1, 2010

Shiitake Mushrooms for Beauty & Skin


Used in Asian cultures for thousands of years, shiitake mushrooms can be eaten or used topically for beautiful skin and to prevent premature aging.

Shiitake mushrooms are packed full of nutrition for skin health. They are rich in protein (18%), fats, polysaccharides, lignans, vitamins, minerals, and soluble fiber. Shiitake contains all eight essential amino acids in well-balanced proportions as well as a good blend of vitamins and minerals including vitamins A, B, B12, C, D potasium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, zinc and niacin. Lentinan (LTN), an immunostimulant found in shiitakes, is responsible for many of it's legendary health benefits.

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