How many times have you heard people say that they can’t stop eating cookies, or bread, or pasta, or candy? They may even laugh and say they are addicted to chocolate, as they pop the 10th truffle in their mouth. Well it’s time we faced the facts. We are addicted to many of the foods we eat. And when you really look at it, it’s not so very funny. You might even say, food addiction is a debilitating phenomenon.
‘Debilitating,’ you might say. ‘That’s a bit extreme, isn’t it?’ Well maybe not.
It is often said that society favors thin people, and that the model for beauty is skin-and-bones. Now this is probably true and I don’t deny it. But you may be a size 14, and you want to be a size 8, and you know this is your ideal size, as well as very achievable. And yet you can’t get there because of all the cookies, pasta, and bread you eat, even as you say you don’t want to. Then you have a problem. And the problem is that you are fighting food cravings.
Now you’re in a pickle, and your self esteem plummets. You ask yourself, ‘Do I have no will power? Am I a weak-willed glutton?’ Now you go on crash diets. You begin to starve yourself. Your blood sugar becomes sporadic. You begin to snap at the kids and growl at your husband. Perhaps you spend 2 weeks doing this before finally giving it up. Now you go out and eat. For two weeks you eat whatever you want, whenever you want. On come the pounds you lost, plus a few more. And your self-esteem plummets even more.
All of this is what I would call a low-level food addiction, or the onset of more serious problems. Later down the line the cycles often get worse and worse. Your relatively harmless binging may turn life-threatening and bulimic. If not, your binges may become so extreme as to cause obesity. This in turn has you lethargic all day long, as well as lackluster and prone to sleeping. Your disposition is grouchy because your blood sugar is constantly shooting up and shooting down. And after a while your metabolism is destroyed, along with your self-esteem, and no diets will work any more.
People who take another path in food addiction often become anorexic. They decide it is better not to eat at all, than to fight the cravings, or be fat. This of course is life threatening. Now if you don’t become anorexic or bulimic, but you do continue in your addiction, by the age 60 you will be a diabetic. Your body will have used up its supply of insulin over the many years of carb abuse, and it will begin to deteriorate rapidly. In this case you will lessen the very years of your life, and those last years will be painful in myriad ways.
And this is the thing about which we joke at parties as we eat our 10th cookie.
Well it may be time to stop laughing and start listening to our own jokes. I want you to know you can stop the roller coaster of fighting food cravings. Where I got off my own whirligig of was through a 12-step program for food addicts called Overeater’s Anonymous. There is also a program called Food Addicts Anonymous. Since this is a true and bona fide addiction that masses of our society live unhappily with, these programs are good places to start. You’ll also need a good Food plan, and a lot of other tools to help you on your way. But for information on this, you can look out for my subsequent articles.
Ever wondered how you get all those wrinkles? Those annoying crow’s feet at the corners of your eyes? Or those laugh lines around your mouth? Sure, these things are but part of the normal aging process. But what causes aging anyway? And is there anyway to retard it?
In biological systems, the normal processes of oxidation are what lead to aging. Oxidation causes the production of substances called free radicals which are highly reactive. These free radicals can readily react with and damage other molecules. Note that it says “molecules” so that means free radicals don’t make the distinction between foreign bodies and healthy cells. And when free radicals start attacking the body’s own cells, you can guess what the results are - Aging.
If only there was a way to get rid of those harmful free radicals…
Well, have we got good news for you? Free radicals are natural enemies of antioxidants. The function of antioxidants is to destroy harmful free radicals, counteracting the damaging of tissues and in effect, treating aging or causing its retardation.
Antioxidants are commonplace in nature. In fact, antioxidants are abundant in more common vitamins such as retinol or Vitamin A, ascorbic acid or Vitamin C, tocopherol or Vitamin E, and selenium. They can be nutrients (vitamins and minerals) as well as enzymes (proteins in your body that assist in chemical reactions). Antioxidants are believed to play an important role in preventing the development of such chronic illnesses as heart disease, stroke, cancer, Alzheimer’s disease, Rheumatoid arthritis, and cataracts.
Although antioxidants cannot completely rid our bodies of free radicals, they can however work to retard or minimize the damage caused. Antioxidants block the process of oxidation by neutralizing free radicals. By neutralizing, they themselves become oxidized. For this reason, our bodies are always in need of a constant source of antioxidants.
How antioxidants work is a two-way process. First is the chain-breaking. This is where the antioxidant comes in to break the chain reaction of free radicals turning other molecules into free radicals like them. Chain-breaking is also called Stabilization.
The other aspect is more on the preventive side. Antioxidant enzymes like superoxide dismutase, catalase, and glutathione peroxidase prevent oxidation by reducing the rate of chain initiation. This time, instead of waiting for the free radicals to make a long chain of free radicals, antioxidants scavenge initiating radicals and destroy them before oxidation is set in motion.
Thus, aging is delayed and not only that, diseases and other illnesses caused by harmful free radicals are avoided.
Amino acids are the basic structural units of all proteins and they play a very important role in manufacturing proteins. There are twenty known amino acids that are both essential and nonessential amino acids. The essential amino acids are those amino acids that the body cannot produce or synthesize and daily intake of it is needed in the daily food diet. Nonessential amino acids on the other hand, are those amino acids that can be manufactured by the body but are also very important in the proper bodily functions.
There are two amino acids which contain a sulphur atom and are called sulphur containing amino acids; they are amino acids Cysteine and Methionine. Cysteine is a sulfur containing amino acids and is closely related to cystine. Cystine consists of two Cysteine molecules that are joined together. This amino acid is an unstable nutrient and easily converts to cystine however it does not cause a problem, since both can convert into the other as required by the body.
Cysteine contains a sulphydryl group; this is tremendously reactive and can form hydrogen bonds. This sulphur containing amino acids is very important because it can also form disulphide bridges. Cysteine can be found in many proteins throughout the body. The skin, as well as the body requires Cysteine for detoxification. It is found in the protein called beta-keratin which is the main protein in nails, skin, as well as hair. Not only is it important to collagen production but also helps in the skins’ elasticity and texture.
Sulphur containing amino acids like Cysteine, is required in the manufacture of amino acid taurine and a component of gluthione antioxidant. It detoxifies the body from harmful toxins and aids in the protection of the brain and lover from the damaging effects of alcohol, drugs, and others. It has also been found to help in the strengthening of the stomach as well as the intestines. The body manufactures Cysteine from the essential amino acid methionine, and can also be found in most high-protein foods such as cottage cheese, yogurt, pork, ricotta, sausage meat, turkey, chicken, duck, granola, luncheon meat, and oat flakes.
Methionine is another sulphur containing amino acids and is a very special amino acid because it is the “start” amino acid in the process of protein synthesis, and is therefore the beginning of every single protein made. Its sulphur atom is in a thioether linkage and is relatively unreactive.
The sulphur containing amino acids of Methionine assists in the breakdown of fats and thus prevents the buildup of fat in the arteries. It also assists with the digestive system and removes heavy metals from the body since this sulphur containing amino acid can be converted to Cysteine which is very important nutrient in detoxifying the liver. Methionine is also a great antioxidant because the sulphur it supplies to the body, inactivates free radicals. It is also one of the three amino acids that is needed by the body to manufacture a compound called monohydrate, which is very essential for energy production and muscle building.
Methionine food sources can be found in good quantities of meat, beans, garlic, lentils, fish, eggs, yogurt, onions, and seeds.
Every heard of the anti-aging pill known as vitamins? If not, read this article.
Vitamin Supplements as Anti-Aging Pills
Some health experts believe that vitamins may be the single most effective way to lengthen life. In the largest biological study of human life and death, health organizations today reviewed the habits and histories of more than a million people over 40 years and found that death rates were significantly higher among those who did not take vitamins or health supplements.
Mortality rates dropped as vitamin intake was increased, and researchers concluded that vitamins warded off heart disease and stroke and helped prolong life. With this, experts say that vitamins are the closest thing to an anti-aging pill.
Vitamins Applicable for Seniors
Vitamins are powerful as a drug and should be prescribed and used as carefully as any other drug. However, dangers may come when excessive intake is manifested. Especially for seniors, high doses of certain vitamins may cause serious health problems such as kidney damage, liver destruction, heart problems, etc.
Keep in mind that as people get older, the signs of aging can hamper the growth of new cells, hence, the body is vulnerable to diseases. That is why certain vitamins are prescribed or advised to seniors for proper nourishment.
For instance, as you get old, you will loose the abundant production of elastin and collagen in the skin, hence, wrinkles appear. But with the help of vitamin C, an antioxidant, your body will be able to produce collagen and elastin, which maintains skin elasticity and strength.
Generally, vitamin supplements that are fit for seniors are those that help in maintaining normal cell growth and repair. This is because one of the major signs of aging is the weakening production of cell growth. That is why older people acquire white hair, wrinkled skin, and memory lapses.
Vitamins C and E, which are antioxidants, counteract the destructive matters known as free radicals’ Health experts say that the damages caused by these elements may promote cancer and cardiovascular diseases.
Vitamin D is vital for healthy bones. As people grow older, they lose the bone density in their bodies. And when people lack calcium, bones tend to consume their mass faster than before. Hence, bones become fragile and weak. This is when osteoporosis sets in.
So what can these fitness concepts tell you? Why should older people take vitamins?
Think about the years of your future. A man or woman of 50 can look forward to a quarter-century of life. And the longer you live, the longer you can expect to live. Consider some statistics: The life expectancy for the average American male is 73 years; for the average female, 79 years. Yet a man who reaches 65 can expect to live another 16 years. If he makes it to 85, he can look forward to another 6 years. A 65-year-old woman has a life expectancy of 19 years; an 85-year-old woman, seven years.
Most senior of citizens are increasing in numbers even more rapidly than the youngsters between 50 and 75. And as the world heads for another century, youth may still be served.
But quality of life may be far more crucial than quantity. Living well, not simply surviving longer, is our ultimate goal. Today’s men and women over 50 can actually get healthier as they grow older. With the help of vitamins, people can easily combat the signs of aging. Health experts say that they have seen men and women in their seventies become more fit and vigorous than ever been before.
However, this doesn’t necessarily mean that vitamins can cure all that ails you. Experts have not yet discovered the fabled Fountain of Youth, nor did health practitioners ever set out to do so. There isn’t any vitamin supplement made to stretch your way to eternal youth.
But these vitamin supplements have helped many older people look and feel better than before. The kind of vigor that vitamins bring to people are totally unmatched by any forms of anti-aging items. And even though health experts can’t guarantee that regular intake of vitamin supplements will add years to your life, it does hold the rich promise of adding life to your years.
Asparagus root is indigenous to Europe, Western Siberia, the Middle East and Northern Africa and it has grown rapidly to some other places and has become well-known as an elegant vegetable that it is recently cultivated in almost every part of the world.
The asparagus root is known by the names Sparrowgrass, Shatavari, and Tien Men Tong. It is particularly a grand perennial plant that has a sweet edible stalks or shoots that are green with either a white or a reddish-blue tinge. This plant has a short, horizontal rootstock having long, thick roots, and it sends up its young shoots that are commonly taken as vegetables.
The most common parts of the asparagus plant that are used medicinally are specifically the roots, shoots, as well as the seeds. The asparagus root, which is the most commonly used part for medical purposes, is largely consist of the plant’s fresh underground shoots along with the roots and rhizome. These sources are dug up and air dried in autumn. And it is highly considered that the asparagus root and seeds are sometimes applied as flavorings in some alcoholic beverages.
The asparagus root just like the other herbs, has several crucial functions. Historically, the asparagus root has been applied to heal some ailments like toothaches, cancer, parasites and rheumatism. It is in fact noted that some of the traditional Chinese healers used the asparagus root to treat cough, dry mouth and throat, and constipation.
As it is widely known, the asparagus root is a mild diuretic, which largely draws amounts of water from the system and increases the urination. As such, the asparagus root is then believed to give relief to urinary tract infection and kidney malfunctions. In fact, some reports and researches conducted to study the number of health benefits of asparagus root have supported such claim, and found out that it really functions as mild diuretic. With such findings, the Commission E monographs, Germany’s extensive catalog of herbal medicines are greatly noted to have specifically recommended the use of asparagus root for such purposes.
Aside from such facts, the asparagus root is also composed of substances that known as saponins, which are thought to have antibiotic properties. And there are some test tube studies which demonstrate that asparagus root may even contain cancer-fighting properties. Particularly, the asparagus root is thought to aid in easing the urinary tract inflammation, and preventing painful kidney stones, due to its being diuretic.
In terms of its application, many experts recommended some tips for the proper application of this herb. It is mainly suggested that when using the supplement as a diuretic, drinking plenty of water will help literally in flushing the urinary tract. It is just then necessary to understand the proper instructions for taking it in order to get the best result. And today, there is still no related supplement or nutrient interactions to that of the asparagus root.
Perhaps one of the interesting outcomes of taking the supplement could be a distinct smell in the urine, which turns out to be harmless. And most researchers have speculated that those who are able to smell it may have inherited a particular genetic trait. Finally, it is also necessary to know that if you have fluid retention from kidney disorder or heart disease, taking the medicinal strength of asparagus root is not applicable for it may only worsen the condition.
Full Spectrum nutrition is the concept of providing the body with all the essential nutrients it needs in the right potency, ratio and absorption factors to ensure maximum benefit. By using a liquid delivery system, we can increase absorption of nutrients many times since liquids supplements, with the proper pH, have two opportunities for absorption, the stomach and small intestine. Also…
Everyone that wants to live a healthy, all natural life uses herbs in some manner, and the traditional Chinese herbs have a lot to offer to someone wanting this lifestyle. Chinese herbs can be used in aromatherapy for relaxation, in teas for medical treatments or applied directly on the body, for example, as deodorant. The Chinese culture is well established as one of the most enduring for their knowledge of all natural treatments, and they have passed down their knowledge from father to child for thousands of years. Now you too can take advantage of the ancient Chinese wisdom of using herbs.
For the beginner who is new to the all natural lifestyle, finding and using traditional Chinese herbs may seem like too much. But with a little persistence, you can quickly and easily learn enough to change your life for the better. Start by using the power of the internet. You will be able to find a lot of information very quickly just from one search for Chinese herbs. You will probably want to spend some time looking for a forum that specializes in Chinese herbs, so you can ask your questions to those that have experience using them. If you aren’t able to use the internet, go to your local public library and see what kinds of books they offer. There is sure to be something on traditional Chinese herbs that can get you started.
Once you know which traditional Chinese herbs you will be using most often, you may find that it’s more practical, easier and cheaper to grow them yourself in your garden. If you have never grown anything before, don’t fret! Herb gardening is easy, and will take little of you time. In fact, in some hardware stores, you may be able to find a specially designed herbal pack filled with traditional Chinese herbs. This would be the easiest way to start your garden, and think of how much fun you’ll have growing and using herbs!
If you need professional assistance, seek out a dietician that has been educated and taught the value of an all natural lifestyle. They would be able to give you guidance about which traditional Chinese herbs are best for you and how they can best be applied to your life.
Did you know that Vitamin C is needed for over 350 different functions within the human body? In fact, there is very little that this handy vitamin does not do when it comes to your health. For example, the human skeleton is held together by connective tissue known as collagen, and this collagen cannot be made without vitamin C.
This may help you understand better why vitamin C is always recommended whenever you have an injury or you want to promote healing. The first thing my mother used to always say when I get sick was to take my vitamin C. This is because you need collagen and in order to repair any damages to the body and boost your immune system, vitamin C aids in this repair.
Of all the many antioxidants, vitamin C ranks #1 above them all. In addition to clearing out free radicals, vitamin C also teams up with other antioxidants and supports their functioning when needed. Much like how a car cannot run without gasoline, other vitamins and minerals (like iron for example), cannot properly function without vitamin C.
Your immune system is literally your bridge to feeling and looking your best, and without vitamin C it cannot run at top levels. You will become sick, fatigued, and open yourself up to attracting other viruses. If ever there is one antioxidant to take when a person is feeling rundown, vitamin C would be it.
That is not all…
Vitamin C is also linked to a reduction in major health disasters such as strokes, heart attacks, and cancer. The reason why vitamin C can help prevent strokes and heart attacks is because it helps prevent high blood pressure and high blood pressure is a direct link to these diseases. And as far as cancer is concerned, this terrible illness has less of a chance to grow if a person”s immune system is running at top speed, and as we stated earlier - vitamin C is responsible for this healthy state of the immune system.
It is important to supplement your diet with vitamin C because, unlike most of nature”s animals, the human body cannot manufacture this vitamin on its own. Vitamin C does not get stored in the human body for very long after it has been ingested, due to being water soluble. Therefore, anywhere between 10 and 200 mg is sufficient when taken in capsule form for most people. If you”re active in place vigorous sporting activities then you may need more. Consult your doctor or physician for exact requirements.