Blood Sugar Concerns? Choose This Snack:

Whether you have trouble with high blood sugar or not, you might want to make this one of your mainstay snacks: a handful of walnuts.

Walnuts are already in a heart-healthy league of their own because of their cholesterol-improving powers. And now a small new study suggests that eating walnuts every day may help give blood vessels a much needed tune-up in people with diabetes.

Thy Daily Nut:
In the study, people with type 2 diabetes were asked to eat about 2 ounces of walnuts every day. After 8 weeks, endothelial function improved significantly in the walnut eaters. Why is this good news? Because endothelial cells -- that thin layer of cells that lines the inside of blood vessels -- may be one of the first places to go bad when people with diabetes start developing vascular disease.

Walnut Wonders:
Compared to other nuts, walnuts have higher amounts of alpha-linolenic acid, which may help protect against plaque formation in arteries. Walnuts also are a great source of an amino acid called L-arginine, which helps relax blood vessels and control blood pressure. And surprisingly, the nut eaters in the study didn't suffer any deleterious effects to their weight and waist sizes. Why? Because even though the walnut is fairly high in calories, it has a lot of protein and fiber that helped the study participants eat less overall.

Drink This to Help Undo a Heavy Meal

When you overdo it and down a day's calories in one sitting, your body's inflammatory processes go into overdrive. But here's a way you might counter it: Drink Orange Juice.

In a recent study, people who had eaten a supersized fast-food breakfast experienced a much milder inflammatory response in their bodies when they drank OJ with the meal.

High-Calorie Catastrophe
Whatever you do, don't pair that overindulgence with a soda. When researchers compared the effects that three different beverages had on the way bodies process big, fatty, inflammation-triggering foods, sugar water was the worst of the bunch. It seemed to exacerbate the inflammatory response. Plain water faired somewhere in between orange juice and sugar water. But it has the added benefit of being calorie-free.

The Flavonoid Fix
What makes orange juice so good at helping clamp down on the inflammation and oxidation that big, fatty meals cause? The heroes are likely two important flavonoids found in oranges -- naringenin and hesperidin. These powerful antioxidants help tamp down body processes that can damage blood vessels and lay the groundwork for big health problems, like atheroslerosis and heart disease.

Two Great Health Tips!

Written by Bob Peltier

Wednesday, 26 May 2010 12:36

3 Nutrition Tip for Arthritis!!!

If your mornings begin with stiffness, pain and swelling of your joints you may be experiencing symptoms of osteoarthritis. In addition to getting regular exercise (low-impact is the best) and maintaining a healthy weight, consider the following nutritional strategies to help prevent or lessens symptoms.

Eat foods rich in antioxidants. Fresh fruits and vegetables are good sources, and may help reduce tissue damage from inflammation.
Get enough omega-3s. The omega 3 fatty acids provided in Oily fish such as wild Alaskan salmon, walnuts, and freshly ground flaxseed may help reduce the inflammation and pain of arthritis.
Regularly use ginger and turmeric for their natural anti-inflammatory properties.

May is American Stroke Month

Unfortunately not everyone is aware of the signs and symptoms of stroke, and the need to seek immediate medical treatment. Stroke is the third leading cause of death in the United States, and a leading cause of disability, and it's important we work together to spread the word that up to 80% of strokes are preventable.

Although some risk factors like age and genetics are uncontrollable, managing certain risk factors like smoking, weight and blood pressure will help reduce the risk of stroke.
By eating better, not only will you significantly help your chances of not getting a stroke, but you will find yourself with more energy throughout each and every day!

How To Be 10 Years Younger!!!

Written by Bob Peltier

Tuesday, 18 May 2010 13:56

Nope, it's not a time machine you need if you want to be a decade younger. It's a treadmill. Or a bike. Or just a good pair of sneakers.

That's right. The most physically active folks in a recent study showed signs of being as much as 10 years younger on a cellular level.

Go Long on Protection:
How does exercise do that? By keeping your telomeres long and healthy. What on earth are those, you ask? Simple. They're like the plastic tips on shoelaces. But in your body, they cap the ends of the DNA strands (chromosomes) in all your cells. Over time, your telomeres can shorten to the point where cells stop regenerating, and even die (think accelerated aging). Shortened telomeres also leave your chromosomes vulnerable to the kind of damage that may trigger diseases such as cancer.

The Dirty Dozen: Foods to Eat Only When Grown Organically

Written by Bob Peltier

Monday, 10 May 2010 07:52

Eating fresh produce is the best way to obtain the nutrients that support optimum health, but the pesticides used on many crops remain a major health concern. By choosing organic foods, you can reap the health benefits of fruits and vegetables without exposing yourself and your family to potentially harmful chemicals. Pesticides present real health risks, particularly to children and those with health concerns. The toxicity most commonly associated with pesticides in animal studies include disruptions in the normal functioning of the nervous and endocrine system, and increased risks of cancer.

As part of my support of the Environmental Working Group (EWG) and their recently updated Shopper's Guide, I am presenting the newest "Dirty Dozen" list – produce you should only buy in organically grown varieties. According to EWG, common growing practices make the crops listed below the most likely to contain pesticide residues:

Celery
Peaches
Strawberries
Apples
Blueberries (Domestic)
Nectarines
Sweet Bell Peppers
Spinach
Collard Greens/Kale
Cherries
Potatoes
Grapes (Imported)

Keep in mind that the benefits of eating fruits and vegetables often outweigh the risk of pesticides. That means most people should eat more fruits and vegetables, even if they have no access to organic versions. If organic produce is cost prohibitive or unavailable to you, simply avoid or minimize consumption of the fruits and vegetables listed above,or you can thoroughly wash the fruit in vinegar which will remove some of the pesticides and residue.

Sugar - The Cause of a Lot of Problems!!!

Written by Bob Peltier

Thursday, 06 May 2010 14:09

This Addictive Commonly Used Food Feeds Cancer Cells, Triggers Weight Gain, and Promotes Premature Aging:

Is sugar a sweet old friend that is secretly plotting your demise?

There is a vast sea of research suggesting that it is. Science has now shown us, beyond any shadow of a doubt, that sugar in your food, in all its myriad of forms, is taking a devastating toll on your health.

The single largest source of calories for Americans comes from sugar—specifically high fructose corn syrup. Just take a look at the sugar consumption trends of the past 300 years:

In 1700, the average person consumed about 4 pounds of sugar per year.
In 1800, the average person consumed about 18 pounds of sugar per year.
In 1900, individual consumption had risen to 90 pounds of sugar per year.
In 2009, more than 50 percent of all Americans consume one-half pound of sugar PER DAY—translating to a whopping 180 pounds of sugar per year!

Sugar is loaded into your soft drinks, fruit juices, sports drinks, and hidden in almost all processed foods—from bologna to pretzels to Worcestershire sauce to cheese spread. And now most infant formula has the sugar equivalent of one can of Coca-Cola, so babies are being metabolically poisoned from day one if taking formula.

No wonder there is an obesity epidemic in this country!

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