Here are 3 easy ways to reduce your risk of serious illness. 5 of the biggest nasties in the UK and USA are Coronary Heart Disease, cancers, stroke, obesity and Alzheimer’s disease, but research suggests that all of these terrible diseases can be helped or avoided to a certain extent by upping our intake of antioxidants. Source your antioxidants from brightly coloured fresh fruit and vegetables. Here are 3 to try this week;
Lower your blood pressure by drinking pomegranate juice; an Israeli study by Dr Aviram showed a 20% decrease in blood pressure by a group drinking pomegranate juice daily. The group also experienced lowering of their unhealthy blood cholesterol and an improvement in the arteries of their heart. Healthy blood pressure reduces the risk of heart attack, stroke and other heart complaints. Team drinking and eating pomegranate with healthy activity and you will protect your heart and circulation. Pomegranates with dark skins and flesh are richer in fruit-chemicals. Make your own juice by rolling the fruit along your chopping board before slicing in two and using an orange juicer. Tesco now sell Pomegreat which also comes with added blueberries for an extra potent punch of antioxidants (see below).
Eating citrus fruits can lower your chances of stroke, cardiovascular disease, cataracts and cancers. Eat Oranges as a snack, drink freshly squeezed juice, keep some tangerines in your bag, juice pink grapefruit or add them to a salad, and squeeze lime and lemon juice over salads and into sparkling water. These fruits contain vitamin C, Folates, fiber, antioxidants, and other chemical goodies. Make sure you eat some citrus every day to reap their health benefits, but don’t be too fussy about the white bits and the rind; these are also packed with goodness. Try not to pick all of the white stuff off your tangerine, or buy some Kumquats which you eat with the skin on. Cook fish with grated lemon and lime rind, or add grated rinds to cakes, salad dressings and marinades.
Blueberries may fight Alzheimer’s disease; lab tests on rats at Tufts University Boston, showed that eating blueberries improved age-related brain degeneration, with aging ‘blueberry rats’ outperforming their younger counterparts who didn’t eat blueberries. Further research suggests that rats with a genetic predisposition to Alzheimer’s, maintained memory function despite developing the disease; it seemed that the blueberries prevented expected memory loss. Many other tests on humans show many beneficial effects of eating blueberries and other dark coloured foods; maintain healthy youthful skin, and guard against heart disease, cancers, cataracts and macular degeneration (age-related sight loss). Buy fresh, frozen and dried blueberries and add them to juices, pies, crumbles, breakfast cereal, fruit puree to eat with yoghurt, and blueberry jam on whole meal toast, snack on a punnet for an ultra-low calorie mega-healthy. Buy a blueberry bush on-line at http://www.dorset-blueberry.com (in the UK) and grow them yourself!
So these are 3 fruity ways to a long and healthy life. Make sure that you try one of these wonder fruits this week, even the most reluctant fruit-eater must be able to force some blueberry jam down!
Happy eating,
Vikki
Do you have any friends and family who could benefit from getting fitter and feeling better? E-mail getfitter@yahoo.co.uk subject: newsletter request.
Vikki Scovell BA(hons) PG DIP is a fully qualified Personal Trainer and Fitness Coach. She is a qualified Nutrition Adviser and runs successful Community Exercise classes. Vikki is a consultant in Healthy Eating and Exercise initiatives to schools in the independent sector and publishes School and General Healthy Living newsletters.
