Look And Feel Younger And Healthier With These Foods

Look and Feel Younger and Healthier With These Foods

Cindy Papp

Benjamin Franklin once said "We dig our graves with our teeth." It may sound funny but it's true. We are taught at an early age that food gives us calories and energy. But this does not tell even part of the truth. The right food nutrition can make you feel younger and healthier or they can kill you.

Eating healthy is important. The right foods can prevent heart disease or promote it. They will help you lose weight or get fat. Certain foods also keep your hair and skin beautiful well into your golden years, or allow them to fall out before their time causing you to look older than your years. And if you think it's genetics consider this; the nutrition (or lack of) that you eat will determine which genes are dormant and which ones are activated.

By making easy changes to your diet, you can feel and look better while drastically reducing the risk for disease. In the long run, these dietary changes can cut your health care costs and reduce your chances of having to be dependent on medications later in life.

Knowing which foods to avoid can be easy. We all know what junk food is. The more processed the food, the less nutritious it may be. But, what should we eat? Here is a partial list of food that are high in nutrition to help you feel young and stay healthy.

Bananas contain vitamin c, magnesium and potassium and are a good source of fiber. They can strengthen the stomach lining against ulcers and since they are very high in potassium, they can help regulate high blood pressure.

Barley has long been well known in the Middle East as a heart medicine. It can help reduce cholesterol levels and is full of antioxidants can help your body fight cancer. Dried barley grass is a healthy, green super-food used by many for it's high content of vitamins, minerals and proteins.

Beans are a great source of fiber which also helps to reduce cholesterol levels by up to 10%. In addition, these high protein sources may also help regulate blood sugar levels.

Blueberries can work as a powerful antibiotic. They help keep infectious bacteria from attaching itself to the lining of your urinary tract, helping to prevent bladder infections.

Cinnamon is a strong stimulator of insulin activity therefore it is potentially helpful for those with adult-onset diabetes. In addition, it has been shown to help prevent blood clots.

Chili Peppers help your blood flow freely through your circulatory system helping to lower the risk of stroke and heart attack. They contain capsaicin, a substance that fights inflammation. Capsaicin is currently used for pain relief from arthritis and even psoriasis. Fitness enthusiasts have long used chili peppers to help fight fat by speeding up metabolism.

Dates are full of fiber and minerals including calcium, magnesium, copper, iron, potassium, phosphorous and manganese. Dates also contain a natural aspirin.

Garlic has long been used to stimulate the immune system and kill off dangerous parasites. It is antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral, and helps your body eliminate toxic buildup including zinc and lead. The National Cancer Institute is studying garlic for it's anti-tumor properties.

Ginger is a proven to relieve nausea. It also helps to relieve inflammatory pain and swelling caused from rheumatoid arthritis and osteoarthritis. In Denmark, researchers found that ginger can block the effect of substances that cause inflammation of the brain leading to migraines. Research has also discovered that it has a similar effect as aspirin does on thinning blood clots.

Parsley is rich in antioxidants and can help detoxify carcinogens, including those in tobacco smoke. It is a known to absorb toxins to assist their removal.

Teas, especially green, are a great source of polyphenols. This antioxidant protect from free-radical damage which many believe to start the premature aging skin and hair. Drink it for health reasons as just 2 cups daily can help lower the risk of ovarian cancer by 46% and help you shed belly fat at the same time.

Adding many of these foods to your daily program is easy. Research is showing how powerful foods can be. Remember Hippocrates, the father of medicine, called on all physicians to let food be your medicine.