Six Foods That Could Make You Live Longer

Everyone knows that a balanced diet full of fresh vegetables and fruits, complex carbohydrates, low-fat proteins, and low-fat dairy foods will ensure a healthy, long life. But did you know there are several foods that have proven to provide many health benefits including longevity in life?

Spinach

Most foods that help to improve life expectancy are high in antioxidants. Antioxidants fight against free radicals (harmful elements in the environment form the sun, wind, and pollution) that destroy cells and essentially wear down the body. Think of antioxidants as internal filters that protect cells from breaking down.

Green leafy vegetables such as spinach are high in vitamins A and C, which are both considered antioxidants. Raw, uncooked vegetables will always give you more nutritional bang, but steamed broccoli is still a powerful food. Find a way to incorporate spinach into your salads, sandwiches, and side dishes regularly.

Flax seeds

Flax seeds contain the essential fatty acid, Omega 3, which is a critical component to cellular health. Additionally, Omega 3 reduces risk of stroke, heart disease, certain cancers, arthritis, and some brain illnesses. Fish and eggs are high in Omega 3, but flax seed oil has up to six times more Omega 3 than other sources. Flax seeds can be added to a home made trail mix or flax seed oil can be purchased for a tasty salad dressing.

Nuts

Almonds and walnuts are particularly good for your health because they are packed full of omega 3, antioxidants, folic acid, selenium, and copper. Nuts are an excellent source of protein and healthy fat too. Studies show that nuts work to maintain cardiovascular health and help control weight. Toss a few nuts on your salad or take a handful as an afternoon snack, and you can’t go wrong.

Blueberries

A blueberry is often coined a superfood, or a food that has health benefits beyond just nutritional value. Blueberries contain many antioxidants and are low on the glycemic index (less sugar). A small serving of blueberries contains high levels of vitamins C and K, B3, manganese, and fiber. Other superfoods include the acai berry, broccoli, and oats.

Green Tea

Studies show that green tea not only acts as a powerful antioxidant, but also increases metabolism. With a single cup of green tea every day, you will work to keep your waist line in check. By controlling weight, the risks of heart disease and diabetes are decreased. Other benefits of green tea include cholesterol control and cancer prevention.

Kidney Beans

High in protein, kidney beans help to detoxify your body of sulfites and also provide a healthy source of fiber. Fiber leaves you feeling full, which will help control weight, and helps maintain digestive and overall health. Other low-fat, high-protein beans include black beans, pinto beans, and navy beans.

Bonus Treats

Other excellent foods that are proven to provide health benefits include dark chocolate, red wine, and coffee. While all of these foods should be eaten or drank in moderation, they serve as good food options when it is time to indulge.

This article is presented by Le Cordon Bleu North America. Le Cordon Bleu North America offers Le Cordon Bleu culinary education classes and culinary training programs across the United States. To learn more about the class offerings, please visit Chefs.edu for more information.

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Weight Loss – Good Food Good Health

Weight Loss – It’s Not What You Eat It’s How You Eat It!

Well ladies if you are like me, weight loss is one of the things that is always at the forefront of my mind.

Well at least the bikini season is over now – phew – but alas with good old Christmas just round the corner and all its rich food and trimmings, alarm bells are ringing that weight loss will be the New Years resolution – again.

I always eat a varied diet of good nutritional food, as you may know our family motto is ‘good food good health’ and Christmas is no exception, but this is the time of year that little lapses occur.

Well scientists have found that our modern way of eating is adding to our waistlines and that it is not what we eat but the way we eat it that is making us fatter.

I can remember by Grandma saying to me so many times – chew your food ten times before you swallow if you want to stay slim and slender – if only I had listened!

Apparently scientists have proven wolfing down your dinner can in fact treble the risk of being overweight, this factor is probably very significant in the current obesity epidemic here in the UK and America alike.

It was found that fast eating habits pile on the pounds at an accelerated rate, even when taken into account the type – either healthy good food or ‘junk foods’ – and amount of calories that were consumed, making weight loss difficult.

Well, I know for a fact my bad habits started at school, when the quicker you ate your dinner the more play time you had, but ok I am not that bad any more, but the pressure of having enough time to fit everything in of an evening after work means I am probably still eating faster than I should.

Our brains signals are impeded with the constant impact of fast eating until feeling full, overriding the brains normal signals which usually encourage self control.

Most of us are either trying to maintain or lose weight and are hopping from one weight loss programme to another with little success.

The stomach takes about 20 minutes for it to register being full, so by eating slower and slightly smaller portions can really help with weight loss.

Experts are saying chewing each mouthful up to 20 times really does work as the longer you chew your food for, the fuller you feel.

So just by eating slower you may not always need the dessert you normally have straight away, and it is generally much better to eat smaller meals more often anyway. You will still get the great feeling of having enjoyed a full meal but your stomach will be used to eating less, and will give you that full signal much earlier which aids weight loss.

Complete proper chewing of your food breaks down food molecules, making them more easily exposed to saliva that starts the process of digestion.

Other factors that also contribute to weight gain when eating is the couch potato effect, watching TV at the same time as eating stops the brain getting the signals about the food.

Talking and eating at the same time is definitely not only bad manners, but also makes digestion more difficult because of the air swallowed, again not helping with your weight loss

People who eat until full and eat quickly generally have a higher BMI – body mass index, this is the scoring system that measures levels of obesity, also they have a higher total energy intake than people who do not eat quickly and until full.

Eating slowly allows feedback from the brain saying ‘this is enough’ which helps us to stop eating before we are ‘literally full’. This is the same for men and women alike.

So all we need to do is to re-programme our brains and stomachs and then we should be able to attain some weight loss whilst being able to actually taste and savour the food we eat, instead of just shovelling food down our necks for the sake of it and still not getting the feel good factor that should come with all our meals.

What more I like about this is the fact that we do not need to go out and buy any new special cooking equipment or join any weight loss group, although using this in conjunction with a diet programme can only add benefits.

I admit meals that I eat out are often smaller portions and no better good food than ones I cook at home and yet I feel more satisfied after. This must be down to the more relaxed we are at eating with not having to rush as nobody pays a fortune for a meal to wolf it down and bolt out the door, we take our time and the feel good factor really does kick in, so that is another health benefit as well as the weight loss

This really is common sense that everybody seems to have lost since probably the 1960 / 70s. Family meals are the way to go with chatting in between eating, making it a pleasurable time.

As always a diet of good food for good health is best, as with a varied diet of good food enables your body to receive all the vitamins, minerals and nutrients needed for your good health of body and mind alike.

So the good advantages of a trained stomach not needing so much food to feel full not only make us lighter with the weight loss but should also make the weekly shop lighter on the bank balance.

So it’s thumbs up to slow eating of good food for good health.
Go and try these easy tips and I bet you will achieve some weight loss

Sandra & Ted

http://www.thetalkingbooksite.com