~BeNeFiCiAl Fo0dS~

[Wafa]

How we look, how we feel, how healthy we are, how we perform our
daily tasks -- it all narrows down to what we eat. How easy it would be
if we knew which foods could be beneficial to us -- to help us feel energetic,
to help us improve our health, to help us in our battle against body fat.
Doctors gives you a guide -- in two parts -- as to what we consider the
ten most beneficial foods. These foods are rated on the basis of the health
benefits they provide, the fibre content, their vitamin and mineral content
as well as low fat and caloric content.

Note: These foods work best when combined with an all round healthy
diet and regular exercise regimen.







1. Oatmeal :


Touted as the breakfast of athletes all around the world, this mushy,
gushy delicious grain can be the first
addition you could make to your new and healthy diet and lifestyle change.
Unlike other breakfast cereals that are loaded with sugar and stripped of all fibre,
which give you a sugar-loaded burst of energy and then drop drastically, allowing
it to drop. Oats are slow to digest and thus provide you a steady sustained flow of
energy to take you through the first few hours of the day. Oatmeal is also loaded with
fibre, especially the soluble kind, and has thus been proven to be invaluable in the
battle against high cholesterol and riglyceride levels. Mix it with milk, fruit, yoghurt or
nuts; have it hot or cold; use it in cooking -- just make sure to make this heart healthy
food a part of your daily diet.


2. Tomatoes:



Our tiny little red friends are a lot more powerful and beneficial to us
than we could ever imagine. Tomatoes contain a carotenoid (a class of highly
unsaturated yellow to red pigments occurring in plants), called lycopene. Not
only has this powerful carotenoid been proven to improve immunity as well as
reduce the risk of developing heart attacks, it has also been proven, believe it
or not, to reduce the risk of cancers of the prostate, breast, lung, stomach,
pancreas, colon, esophagus, mouth and cervix! While we realise that there are
just so many raw tomatoes that we can stomach, here is where it gets more
interesting. Research shows that lycopene in tomatoes can be absorbed more
efficiently by the body if processed into sauce, paste and ketchup, thus making
the tomato one of the few vegetables that is actually more beneficial in its processed
or cooked form than when its raw.



3. Almonds





Nuts have always managed to get a bad rap due to their high caloric content.
Thus, they are often overlooked for their fibre and protein content as well as being
an important source of healthy unsaturated fats and numerous beneficial minerals and
vitamins. While all nuts do have their benefits, if I had to name just one as the
most beneficial, it would have to be almonds. These tasty, crunchy treats are
sprinkled into cereals, salads, ice cream as well as being a calming cooling airline
snack we rely on to curb our hunger during those long flights. Little do we realise
that not only do almonds provide taste and texture to foods, they also provide
more complete nutrition in one handful than you can imagine. Just 28 grams (around 23 almonds)
provide us with 9 grams of mono-unsaturated fatty acid, 6 grams of muscle building
protein, 3 grams of fiber, 200 mg of potassium, 65 mg of bone strengthening calcium
as well as a hearty dose of vitamin E, magnesium, phosphorous, copper, zinc and riboflavin.
As with most other foods, moderation is important. Nuts do have a high caloric
content and it is so very easy to inhale an entire box of these tasty crunchy
characters without a thought!

4. Fish:




Who would have thought that our smelly friends from the sea could prove to be one
of the most beneficial foods in the world? When we were younger,
fish was inexplicably considered 'brain food'. Studies in later years concluded
that the omega 3 fatty acids were what actually made fish brain food, as well
as making it one of the most beneficial foods as far as heart health, lowering
cholesterol and triglyceride levels and treating psychiatric illnesses, like depression,
bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, were considered. Recent studies have also
shown benefits of omega 3 fatty acids for people suffering from arthritis and other
joint conditions. Let us not forget the protein punch that fish provides us with, as
well as delicious taste whether we decide to order it soaked in butter and garlic or
whether we decide to go healthy and have it steamed or grilled. As every fish has
its own unique taste and beneficial characteristics, mackerel and salmon lead as
far as omega 3 fatty acid content goes.




5. Milk:




Something our mothers always told us to drink before we left our home,
when we were kids. Think she had any idea that milk is one of the highest
quality sources of whole food protein, with a biological value second only to
eggs? And let's not forget the calcium content that milk provides us with,
preventing our bones from becoming weak and hollow and developing
osteoporosis later in life. Recent studies have also proved that calcium could
be beneficial in our battle against body fat. Just make sure to have low fat or fat
free milk, which provides us with the same important nutrients minus the fat and
the cholesterol. So let's thank our mommies for nagging us all those years and
drink away to a lean muscular physique! PS: Please check that you are not
lactose intolerant before you drink milk.

6. Apple




Every fruit has its benefits to the human body. Bananas are rich in heart-healthy
potassium, strawberries rich in disease-fighting antioxidants, watermelon is rich in
heart-healthy and cancer-preventing lycopene, etc. But we have decided to name
the apple as the fruit of our choice due its high antioxidant and fibre content, its
taste, its ability to fill a person as well as its extremely low caloric content. Apples are
often overlooked due to the lack of vitamin C when compared to fruits like oranges.
But recent research has indicated that apples have more antioxidant activity than
would be expected from their vitamin C content. This antioxidant activity is thought
to come from other natural substances in apples, collectively called phytochemicals.
The nutritious content of the apple is very favourable: a medium sized apple contains
a mere 80 calories, with no fat or cholesterol content as well as a whopping 5
grams of fibre. Apples are especially rich in pectin fibre, associated with helping
keep blood cholesterol levels in balance as well as helping to control appetite
levels, thus aiding us in our battle against overeating.



7. Tea:




Everyone has their choice of beverage they rely on to perk them up
when their energy levels run low, to relax them when the stress just gets too much,
or that they can simply enjoy because of its fine taste.Unfortunately, most
people go for sugary soft drinks or creamy café lattes. It's time to switch.
To tea! It is tasty, contains some caffeine to perk you, but not too much that
it leaves you jittery. It also provides a cupful of antioxidants called flavonoids,
that may help prevent cholesterol-damaging arteries. Recent research also
suggests that this popular beverage can help reduce the risk of cancer, heart
attack and Parkinson's disease.While most teas are good for you, green tea contains
the highest amount of flavonoids, making it an extremely potent antioxidant.
Epigallocatechin Gallate (ECGC), the green tea extract, is also known for its fat-burning
benefits. Another very interesting bit of information is that green tea is also known
to suppress foul breath caused by certain foods.

8. Garlic:




It was worshipped by the ancient Egyptians, chewed on by Greek Olympian athletes.
It aids in keeping the heart healthy, wards off coughs and colds, reduces cholesterol
and triglycerides, controls high blood pressure, and chases away vampires and
witches (as well as a couple of friends and family members)! Yep, this aptly
nicknamed'stinking rose' has a number of benefits, and not just to make Italian
dishes taste so good.



9. Kidney Beans:




We highly recommend you add beans to you meal plan.Beans are high
in fibre, both insoluble as well as the all-important, cholesterol-lowering
soluble kind Their high fibre content also slows down the digestion, thus providing
a steady flow of energy as well as keeps you feeling more satiated at the
end of the meal.They are also a good source of a host of vitamins and minerals.
Why kidney beans? Because of their delicious taste and the fact that they are
an excellent source of iron, folate as well as magnesium Red kidney beans lead
the way as far as antioxidant content in beans go. Add them to soups or salads,
use them in your curries, use them in your sabzis whatever you do, don't miss
out on this nutritional powerhouse. But make sure you add them gradually
to your meal plan.

10. Water:




Maybe it isn't the best choice to include in a list of 'foods', but it is so very,
very important to include water at all times of the day! Water is a fundamental
part of our lives. It is easy to forget how completely we depend on it Water has
been ranked by experts as second only to oxygen as essential for life. The average
adult body has 55 to 75 percent water.Two-thirds of our body weight is water.
A human embryo is more than 80 percent water. A newborn baby is 74
percent water. The water you drink literally Becomes you! The functions of
water go far beyond just hydration. They include aiding digestion, weight loss,
battling water retention, regulating body temperature, aiding the kidney in excretion,
lubricating our joints, the list goes on and on and on.

[aquari]

Re: ~BeNeFiCiAl Fo0dS~

v nice wafa infoo tu achi hia
main almost in main sey 08 chezain apni diet main shamil rakkhti hoo mager yeh oatmeal or tomatoes nahi khaye jateyy:blush: