Great Food Facts

[theblackalchemist]

Here is a new bunch of info that was in my comp

 

weight loss foods

 

Citrus fruits like, oranges and limes contain high concentrations of Vitamin C (ascorbic acid). This Vitamin C has a fat burning quality. Vitamin C reduces the effectiveness of fat. It reduces its content and can liquefy or dilute fat. By diluting the fat, it makes it less effective, and easier to flush out of your system. Vitamin C also works on cholesterol deposits. By adding Citrus Fruits to your daily diet, you will greatly increase your metabolism, increase your ability to get rid of fat, and also control your cholesterol levels

Add applesauce (it's loaded with pectin), apples, fresh fruit and berries, to your diet and let the power of pectin pulverize the fat that accumulates on your cells. An apple a day can help keep the fat away

Cucumbers are usually used in many salads, besides tasting great their high water content adds to your bulk hence making you feel full. They can be consumed before every meal which will greatly help you from over-eating!

Berries contain a chemical call pectin. Pectin limits the amount of fat your cells can absorb. This will put a natural limitation on the amount of fat your cells can absorb. Pectin, once in your system, has a water binding property, it absorbs watery substances, and these watery substances in turn bombards the cells and makes it release fat deposits

Garlic oil or the juice of garlic has a significant protective quality to cells which help to reduce fatty deposits. When taken, it brings down the levels of fat. Garlic, garlic oil, or anything with garlic, also has an antibiotic property to it and can be used to cure many ailments!

Breakfast cereals are typically heavily processed foods, and most of their original micronutrients, like vitamins or minerals, are removed during the food-processing. However, most breakfast cereals are fortified with added vitamins and minerals, making them a convenient source of most B-vitamins, vitamin D and several minerals including iron. Wholegrain breakfast cereals (eg. granola, muesli, oats) are typically rich in natural B-vitamins, soluble fiber (which helps to lower cholesterol) and have a lower GI-value than regular refined cereals

 

nutritional and medical uses of bananas

 

Because of their impressive potassium content, bananas are highly recommended by doctors for patients whose potassium is low. One large banana, about 9 inches in length, packs 602 mg of potassium and only carries 140 calories. That same large banana even has 2 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber. No wonder the banana was considered an important food to boost the health of malnourished children! Those reducing sodium in their diets can't go wrong with a banana with its mere 2 mgs of sodium. For the carbohydrate counters there are 36 grams of carbs in a large banana.

Vitamins and minerals are abundant in the banana, offering 123 I.U. of vitamin A for the large size. A full range of B vitamins are present with .07 mg of Thiamine, .15 mg of Riboflavin, .82 mg Niacin, .88 mg vitamin B6, and 29 mcg of Folic Acid. There are even 13.8 mg of vitamin C. On the mineral scale Calcium counts in at 9.2 mg, Magnesium 44.1 mg, with trace amounts of iron and zinc.

Putting all of the nutritional figures together clearly shows the banana is among the healthiest of fruits. The plantain, when cooked, rates slightly higher on the nutritional scale in vitamins and minerals but similar to the banana in protein and fiber content.

Medicinal Uses of Bananas

Anaemia: High in iron, bananas can stimulate the production of haemoglobin in the blood and so helps in cases of anaemia.

Blood Pressure: This unique tropical fruit is extremely high in potassium yet low in salt, making it the perfect food for helping to beat blood pressure. So much so, the US Food and Drug Administration has just allowed the banana industry to make official claims for the fruit's ability to reduce the risk of blood pressure and stroke.

Brain Power: 200 students at an English school were helped through their exams this year by eating bananas at breakfast, break and lunch in a bid to boost their brain power. Research has shown that the potassium-packed fruit can assist learning by making pupils more alert.

Constipation: High in fibre, including bananas in the diet can help restore normal bowel action, helping to overcome the problem without resorting to laxatives.

Depression: According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin ? known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

Hangovers: One of the quickest ways of curing a hangover is to make a banana milkshake, sweetened with honey. The banana calms the stomach and, with the help of the honey, builds up depleted blood sugar levels, while the milk soothes and re-hydrates your system.

Heartburn: Bananas have a natural antacid effect in the body so if you suffer from heart-burn, try eating a banana for soothing relief.

Morning Sickness: Snacking on bananas between meals helps to keep blood sugar levels up and avoid morning sickness.

Mosquito bites: Before reaching for the insect bite cream, try rubbing the affected area with the inside of a banana skin. Many people find it amazingly successful at reducing swelling and irritation.

Nerves: Bananas are high in B vitamins that help calm the nervous system.

Overweight and at work: Studies at the Institute of Psychology in Austria found pressure at work leads to gorging on comfort food like chocolate and crisps. Looking at 5,000 hospital patients, researchers found the most obese were more likely to be in high-pressure jobs. The report concluded that, to avoid panic-induced food cravings, we need to control our blood sugar levels by snacking on high carbohydrate foods such as bananas every two hours to keep levels steady.

Post Menstrual Syndrome: Forget the pills eat a banana. The vitamin B6 it contains regulates blood glucose levels, which can affect your mood.

Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): Bananas can help SAD sufferers because they contain the natural mood enhancer, trypotophan.

Smoking: Bananas can also help people trying to give up smoking, as the high levels of Vitamin C, A1, B6, B12 they contain, as well as the potassium and magnesium found in them, help the body recover from the effects of nicotine withdrawal.

Stress: Potassium is a vital mineral, which helps normalise the heartbeat, sends oxygen to the brain and regulates your body's water-balance. When we are stressed, our metabolic rate rises, thereby reducing our potassium levels. These can be re-balanced with the help of a high-potassium banana snack.

Strokes: According to research in "The New England Journal of Medicine", eating bananas as part of a regular diet can cut the risk of death by strokes by as much as 40%!

Temperature control: Many other cultures see bananas as a "cooling" fruit that can lower both the physical and emotional temperature of expectant mothers. In Thailand, for example, pregnant women eat bananas to ensure their baby is born with a cool temperature .

Ulcers: The banana is used as the dietary food against intestinal disorders because of its soft texture and smoothness. It is the only raw fruit that can be eaten without distress in over-chronic ulcer cases. It also neutralises over-acidity and reduces irritation by coating the lining of the stomach.

Warts: Those keen on natural alternatives swear that, if you want to kill off a wart, take a piece of banana skin and place it on the wart, with the yellow side out. Carefully hold the skin in place with a plaster or surgical tap

food as medicines

see attachment

benifits of eating rice

Rice is an excellent food to help keep your body healthy. Rice has the following nutritional benefits:

Excellent source of carbohydrates

Good energy source

Low fat

Low salt

No cholesterol

Low sugar

No gluten

No additives

No preservatives

Rice is low in fat, salt and has no cholesterol:

Being low in fat, rice is suitable to include in a diet for those watching their weight. Rice is also cholesterol free, therefore being an excellent food to include in a cholesterol lowering diet. Brown rice contains a small amount of rice bran oil.

Rice is gluten free:

Some people are unable to tolerate the proteins found in wheat, barley, rye, oats. These people choose foods that are gluten free. All rice is gluten free, making rice the essential choice for people with gluten free dietary requirements.

Rice contains no additives or preservatives:

Rice contains no additives or preservatives, making it an excellent inclusion in a healthy and balanced diet. Rice also contains resistant starch, which is the starch that reaches the bowel undigested. This encourages the growth of beneficial bacteria, keeping the bowel healthy.

watermelons

Watermelon has always been a good source of vitamins A and C, and provides potassium and fiber. But now consumers have even more reasons to enjoy a sweet fruit.

Scientists indicate that watermelon contains high levels of lycopene-an antioxidant that may help the body fight cancer and prevent disease. Found only in select fruits and vegetables, lycopene is very effective at trapping cancer-promoting agents called free-oxygen radicals.

A study conducted by Harvard University found that men who ate lycopene-rich diets of tomatoes and tomato products had a much lower risk of developing certain cancers, especially prostrate cancer.

Lycopene is found only in red watermelon varieties. In fact, it gives watermelon its red colour,thus, the redder the watermelon, the more lycopene it contains.

We have always known that watermelon offers a number of benefits .But as lycopene continues to emerge as a possible important, effective agent in disease prevention.

In addition to lycopene, watermelon offers a host of other health benefits. It is fat-free, yet delivers 100 percent on the critical energy component found in functional foods.

tomatoes

see attachment

TBA

any valuable information will be welcomed witha n open heart

[Michaelangelica]

BBC - Science & Nature - The Truth About Food

This might be an interesting broadband link

[Ganoderma]

cool stuff! about oranges/citrus. when i used to go to the gym the big guys would say that oranges would "eat away" at your muscle too. i am not sure if its true or just an excuss to take more creatine. any idea?

[imaplanck.]

Maybe its because oranges are 99% water(or what ever the exact figure is)?

Basically youre not eating anything , and eating nothing for any length of time causes your body to convert muscle into fat reserves.

[Ganoderma]

i dont knw, it sounded like he was sayign that there was a chemical that "ate" away fat, it was the same thing that creatine is suppose to counter. ascorbic-acid? i don't know.

[InfiniteNow]

Don't take it too seriously until you understand the method of action they propose. Otherwise, it's just a random statement like masturbation causes hairy palms. :confused:

[Ganoderma]

:Guns:

 

so that means oranges do or dont deteriorate muscle? :)

 

one could compare the wrist to the pubic area, the shaft is as hairy as the palm, no?

[Monomer]

i dont knw, it sounded like he was sayign that there was a chemical that "ate" away fat, it was the same thing that creatine is suppose to counter. ascorbic-acid? i don't know.

 

Ascorbic acid is basically Vitamin C, and Vitamin C is important in the synthesis of an amino acid carnitine which is important in the oxidation of fats, which then allows fats to be used as an energy source, and therefore there is less fat deposited in the body.

 

Vitamin C could lower body fat levels

 

Vitamin and Supplements > Vitamin C Depletion Correlates with Lower Body Fat

 

 

As for oranges eating away at muscle, I really don't think that's true. Oranges are a source of potassium and can actually prevent muscle cramps.

[Michaelangelica]

Ascorbic acid is basically Vitamin C, and Vitamin C is important in the synthesis of an amino acid carnitine which is important in the oxidation of fats, which then allows fats to be used as an energy source, and therefore there is less fat deposited in the body.

 

Vitamin C could lower body fat levels

 

Vitamin and Supplements > Vitamin C Depletion Correlates with Lower Body Fat

 

 

As for oranges eating away at muscle, I really don't think that's true. Oranges are a source of potassium and can actually prevent muscle cramps.

Would you please post this on the "Why are we getting fat" thread It is very interesting

[Racoon]

Great food fact:

The Kiwi is the most nutrient dense fruit

 

;)

 

I want to visit New Zealand :bouquet:

[Ganoderma]

Washington doesn't have Kiwi? Even BC canada grows kiwi. I have always wondered why it seems all kiwi comes from new zealand when it grows so many other places.

 

is the fruit extra dense or the seeds? or both?

[imaplanck.]

 

so that means oranges do or dont deteriorate muscle? :Glasses:

 

one could compare the wrist to the pubic area, the shaft is as hairy as the palm, no?

 

As an X-iron pumper, I would say that the human body is an inherent muscle deteriorator. That is 'it will try anything to consum muscle rather than fat'(we owe this to our less opulent past, I guess). I also know from experience that you have to keep taking supplements( and it seldom stops at protein powder and creatine), this comes with the price of side effects aswell as a hugh credit card bill.

[CerebralEcstasy]

Two of my favorite fruits........and to add to the first post, pears are also good in promoting weight loss.

 

(Thanks Wikipedia!!!)

 

http://www.nal.usda.gov/fnic/foodcomp/cgi-bin/list_nut_edit.pl

 

Kiwifruit - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Kiwifruit is a rich source of vitamin C. Its potassium content by weight is slightly less than that of a banana. It also contains vitamins A and E. The skin is a good source of flavonoid antioxidants.

Raw kiwifruit is also rich in the protein-dissolving enzyme actinidin, (in the same family of thiol proteases as papain), which is commercially useful as a meat tenderizer but can be an allergen for some individuals. Specifically, people allergic to latex, papayas or pineapples are likely to be allergic to kiwifruit also.

This enzyme makes raw kiwifruit unsuitable for use in desserts containing milk or any other dairy products which are not going to be served within hours, because it soon begins to dissolve milk proteins. This also applies to gelatin based desserts, as well, as the actinidin will dissolve the collagen proteins in gelatin very quickly, either liquifying the dessert, or preventing it from solidifying. However, the US Department of Agriculture suggests[1] that cooking the fruit for a few minutes before adding to the gelatin will overcome this effect.

 

Also very good - Pomegranates

Pomegranate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

One pomegranate delivers 40% of an adult's daily vitamin C requirement. It is also a rich source of folic acid and of antioxidants. Pomegranates are high in polyphenols. The most abundant polyphenols in pomegranate are hydrolysable tannins, particularly punicalagins, which have been shown in many peer-reviewed research publications to be the antioxidant responsible for the free-radical scavenging ability of pomegranate juice.

Many food and dietary supplement makers have found the advantages of using pomegranate extracts (which have no sugar, calories, or additives), instead of the juice, as healthy ingredients in their products. Many pomegranate extracts are essentially ellagic acid, which is largely a by-product of the juice extraction process. Ellagic acid has only been shown in published studies to absorb into the body when consumed as ellagitannins such as punicalagins.[7]

In several human clinical trials, the juice of the pomegranate has been found effective in reducing several heart risk factors, including LDL oxidation, macrophage oxidative status, and foam cell formation, all of which are steps in atherosclerosis and heart disease. Tannins have been identified as the primary components responsible for the reduction of oxidative states which lead to these risk factors.[2] Pomegranate has been shown to reduce systolic blood pressure by inhibiting serum angiotension converting enzyme (ACE).[8]

Research suggests that pomegranate juice may be effective against prostate cancer[9][10] and osteoarthritis[11]

[Michaelangelica]

Great food fact:

The Kiwi is the most nutrient dense fruit

 

:)

 

I want to visit New Zealand :)

My daughter comes out in hives even if she comes close to 'Chinese Gooseberries' AKA Kiwi Fruit

 

Great, pretty county NZ; for sheep.

[Michaelangelica]

Feed your bub mushrooms or sit a little in the sun?

 

Objective: Based on clues from epidemiology and animal experiments, low vitamin D during early life has been proposed as a risk factor for schizophrenia

 

Conclusion: Vitamin D supplementation during the first year of life is associated with a reduced risk of schizophrenia in males. Preventing hypovitaminosis D during early life may reduce the incidence of schizophrenia.

ScienceDirect - Schizophrenia Research : Vitamin D supplementation during the first year of life and risk of schizophrenia: a Finnish birth cohort study

[Michaelangelica]

A very long article on food journalism and marketing,science and food,

A few extracts:-

Michael Pollan Debunks Food Myths

 

By Onnesha Roychoudhuri, AlterNet. Posted February 20, 2008.

 

Pollan's new book, In Defense of Food, is a scathing indictment of the food industry and a call for a return to unprocessed food.

. . .

Michael Pollan: The way journalists report on science contributes to the confusion about nutrition.

We over-report the latest findings. Science is this process where hypotheses are advanced, and then they get knocked down.

But you lose track of that when they run the big story on page 1: "Study of Low-Fat Diets Finds They Don't Really Work." That makes it sound like a consensus has formed.

. . .

MP: The focus on single nutrients, which is to say single variables, is necessary to science.

This is part of the nature of reductive science and it's part of its power. But, it is not the way that the rest of us need to look at food.

. . .

As it turns out it's been very hard to do that and, often, when we isolate these nutrients, they don't seem to work the way they do in whole foods

. . .

As I see it, nutrition science is kind of where surgery was in the year 1650, which is to say very interesting and promising, but do you really want to get on the table yet?

. . .

It's the rest of us that have taken what are very partial, imperfect findings and tried to organize a food supply around them, such as when we took all the fat out of the foods.

. . .

There is a link between saturated fat and cholesterol in the blood.

There is a link between cholesterol in the blood and heart disease.

But the proof that saturated fat leads to heart disease in a causal way is very tenuous.

. . .

the American Heart Association is still bestowing its heart-healthy seal of approval to any products that get rid of fat no matter how many carbohydrates they contain.

The science has moved on.

The science now is much more curious about things like inflammation as a cause of heart disease and the fact that refined carbohydrates appear to increase inflammation and metabolic syndrome. These assaults on the insulin metabolism from refined carbohydrates are perhaps a culprit.

. . .

like no-fat sour cream, you will find all sorts of things that have nothing to do with sour cream. You will find carrageenan and guar gum.

These are parts of seaweed and beans.

These are all substitutes for the fat in sour cream. It is not sour cream, and the law used to require you to say as much, but in 1973, the FDA -- without going to Congress -- simply repealed the imitation rule.

. . .

Throwing out the imitation rule essentially allowed the food companies to do what they wanted with things like yogurt or sour cream -- fundamentally change the identities of food without having to disclose it.

. . .

MP: Over time the nutritional quality of many of our foodstuffs has gone down for a couple different reasons.

One is we have been breeding for qualities other than nutrition. We've been breeding for yield, looks and ship-ability.

Also, over time, our soils have been simplified by the use of chemical fertilizers. For plants to create all these interesting phytochemicals that nourish us, they need a complex soil.

. . .

That's what a lot of those phytochemicals are.

They're plant pesticides, in effect.

They happen to be very useful to us and our bodies. One theory is that since organic plants have to defend themselves, they produce more of those compounds.

. . .

You make money in the food industry by processing food as much as possible. It's very hard to make money selling whole foods as they grow.

They're too cheap and common; farmers are too productive.

The price of commodities is always falling.

. . .

So that's the capitalist imperative behind food.

. . .

MP: It's funny to think of something as domestic as cooking and gardening as subversive, but it is. It is the beginning of taking back control from a system that would much rather do everything for you.

The food industry wants to cook for you, shop for you, they want to do everything but digest for you

. . .

MP: We moralize our food choices. This as an example of how science is more influenced by ideology than perhaps we realize.

. . .

"you are what what you eat eats, too."

. . .

Over time, we have moved from a diet with lots of leaves to a diet that's based on seeds. Seeds are very nutritious: they're plant storage devices, so they're very rich and contain lots of stable fats that have a long shelf life. That's the omega-6 fatty acids.

We need to correct the balance and get more leaves in our diets and less seeds.

. . .

 

MP: I have a couple basic principles about food, and one is to diversify our diet. We are omnivores. We need to eat a great many different nutrients -- between 50 and a hundred are the estimates that I've seen.

Yet, we're really getting most of our calories from four plants, and soy is one of them. Twenty percent of the American diet comes from soy or soy oil. I think that that's putting all your eggs in one basket.

. . .

See more stories tagged with: michael pollan, food, in defense of food

 

Onnesha Roychoudhuri is a San Francisco-based writer and editor. She has written for AlterNet, The American Prospect, Salon, Mother Jones, Truthdig, In These Times, Huffington Post and Women's eNews.

 

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AlterNet: Health and Wellness: Michael Pollan Debunks Food Myths

[Michaelangelica]

Depression: According to a recent survey undertaken by MIND amongst people suffering from depression, many felt much better after eating a banana. This is because bananas contain tryptophan, a type of protein that the body converts into serotonin ? known to make you relax, improve your mood and generally make you feel happier.

 

Would it be the potassium in bananas that help?

For example Borage is supossed to be good for depression and is high in potassium

Constituents: Leaves and flowers: saponins, up to 12% mucilage, tannin, vitamin C, malic acid, choline, potassium, calcium, essential oil, pyrrolizidine alkaloids (including lycopsamine, intermedine and their acetyl derivatives) Allantoin is reported to be absent. Seeds: essential fatty acids (gammalinolenic and linoleic)

 

Other links on bananas, and depression

BANANAS, fibre,energy,depression,blood pressure,fructose,sucrose,glucose

Foods to lift Depression

Indirect evidence reveals that a potassium deficiency can contribute to rheumatoid arthritis. Heart irregularities (arrhythmias) can also be traced to insufficient dietary potassium and/or magnesium. What's more, a person can be low in potassium even though blood serum levels do not indicate a deficiency

. . .

Other medical conditions which can be caused by potassium deficiency are depression and fatigue.

Potassium is essential for blood pressure regulation | Better Nutrition (1989-90) | Find Articles at BNET

The Chemistry of Depression

There seems to be a potassium/magnesium link in depression