The 12 Super Foods That Better Your Health

There are 12 foods that, if eaten on a regular basis, do wonders for your health. Do you know what they are?

If you're reading this than you already have some knowledge of how important good nutrition is. I'm a big advocate of "you are what you eat." Meaning, what you put in your body largely determines what you look like on the outside.

And if you make a serious effort to improve your eating habits, you will notice a positive change in how you look and feel. It's not about perfection though. Thrive to make small changes to your diet over time and you'll eventually be amazed at the will power you develop.

There are 12 foods that you should be eating on a regular basis. All have their own unique health benefits and if you mold your diet around the majority of these foods, you'll notice an improvement in your health.

The list is as follows:

1. Almonds and other nuts- a great source of good fat.

2. Beans and legumes- a great source of fiber and protein.

3. Spinach and other green vegetables- a great source of phytonutrients and antioxidants.

4. Low-fat dairy- a great source of calcium and protein.

5. Oatmeal- a great source of fiber and protein.

6. Eggs- a great source of vitamin E and protein.

7. Turkey and other lean meats- a great source of protein.

8. Natural peanut butter- yes, this can be included under #1, but natural peanut butter makes eating nuts easier because you can spread it on wheat bread, bananas, celery, etc.

9. Olive oil- a great source of good fat.

10. Whole-grain breads and cereals- a great source of fiber.

11. Extra protein- a great source of protein!

12. Raspberries and other berries- a great source of antioxidants.

All 12 foods above have a high nutritional value and should be incorporated into your daily snacks and meals.

I personally bring the list with me food shopping and you might want to consider doing the same.

Quick And Easy Way To Figure Out If It Is Junk Food

This article was written to answer many of the most frequently asked questions on this topic. I hope you find information helpful. Unless we really love cooking or plan and prepare ahead with our meals, we can fall victim to the easy way out - fast food or junk food.

Here is a story; could it be you? The weekend is here and you think you now have a couple of days to relax. Saturday morning - you make the coffee to start the day and then you're off shopping. You get back just before lunch and discover that you have to get the kids to their hockey practise. Too late for a healthy lunch, by the time they are organized it will be time to go. So you pick up a hamburger on the way. Traffic is a nightmare. By the time you put your feet up, you find it is time to get the kids. It's almost supper time and you're really tired now and you're in no mood to prepare a meal so you pick up pizzas from a well-known fast food outlet. Sunday and time to prepare brunch and you go downhill from there so you pick up some chicken with chips and some salad...

So what is a good diet? One which contains the nutrients your body needs in the correct amounts. That is the key to a healthy lifestyle. The main things your body needs from food are proteins (for growth and repair), carbohydrates (for energy), fats (gives a store of energy and the fatty layer protects and insulates your body from impacts and temperature loss), vitamins (for good health), minerals (for the correct functioning of your body systems) fibre (aids digestion and production of faeces) and water (70% or so of the body is water).

Does the hamburger provide all the things your body needs? Does it supply the nutrients you need? The answer is yes. The burger itself contains some meat, so there is the protein, some minerals and fat, the burger also contains fillers and those, plus the burger bun provides carbohydrate. The salad that comes with the burger meal provides fibre, water, vitamins and minerals. The fries provide more fat and carbohydrate and the main bulk of the water comes from the drink. To our surprise, the burger meals do provide all you need!

The problem is with the quantities of these nutrients. There is usually way too much fat and carbohydrate compared with the other nutrients. There is very little fibre. The vitamin and mineral proportions are low, unless you have a shake with the meal, which will increase the proportion of dairy product based minerals such as calcium. Now you need to make sure your next meal makes up for this out of balance meal. For your evening meal you should eat a low fat, high fibre meal, plenty of vegetables cooked lightly or eaten raw so as not to destroy the vitamins. If you must eat between meals, snack on fruit or vegetables.

Another issue is the use of additives. For example, the addition of salt improves the flavour of food so naturally manufacturers put it in so eating processed food increases your salt levels - increases blood pressure and leads to heart problems. A little salt is necessary; it provides your body with the mineral sodium which is needed in small quantities. Preservatives are another issue here. In small quantities, these are not supposed to be harmful. Do you eat processed food all of the time? This is something for you to think about because you are really causing great harm to your body.

Antioxidants are so important. They help to prevent damage to the cells of your body, damage that can lead to cells becoming cancerous. Teas are a very good source of antioxidants. Ordinary (black) tea provides some but a lot of the beneficial constituents are lost during the fermentation process. Unprocessed, pure organic teas like Green Tea or Oolong (the latter is only partly fermented) are the best. So instead of coffee in the morning, try tea, because it is more beneficial. Tea also contains the caffeine, but not as much as in coffee. You might have to drink more but think of the extra benefits to your health. Also, Green tea is thought to inhibit the absorption of cholesterol. The high levels of animal fats in burgers inevitably mean more cholesterol so there is another good reason for switching from coffee.

Simple changes to your diet can make your hectic lifestyle more healthy. Enjoy the odd burger or other fast food; just compensate healthier foods for the rest of the day.

I must say, a system that works very well for me is when I am making meals, cook extra and freeze them. When I come home tired, I just get the individual meals out of the freezer, heat them up and in minutes I'm eating a super meal. It's even faster than fast food and tastes better too!

Thank you for joining us. We hope you have a look around while you're here.

How to Make Healthy Food Choices!

It’s Thursday afternoon, you have thirty minutes to get from work, go by the house and pickup Heath, Jamie’s already at basketball practice, oh, and what about dinner? Does this scenario seem familiar? If you’re a working Mom, I can promise that it is a familiar scene.

So how do you make healthy food choices, when you only have fifteen minutes to prepare your meals? Well, the first thing you should realize is that quite often, healthy choices do not necessarily equate to two hour meals. You can make healthy food choices that are as quick to prepare or pickup as the unhealthy ones.

For example, sub sandwiches are a healthier alternative than pizza or burger and fries, but do not really take any longer to pickup. Salads can be prepared in just a few short minutes, and provide for the necessary vegetable daily requirement. Don’ care for the usual salad? Make a Waldorf or fruit salad, either way you’ve changed it up a bit, and still provided a health choice. As for the dressing, oil based or vinegar based dressings are much better for you than the cream based, and are really more tasteful.

Okay, suppose salads aren’t what your kids like. What about other prepared foods that are also healthy foods? Healthy Choice is a brand of frozen entrees or meals that take only a few minutes in the microwave to prepare, and are still healthy alternatives. Baked rather than fried is always a better choice, and many supermarkets today offer baked products fresh from their bakery, ready to go.

Still aren’t satisfied? You want a place to go and actually sit down and eat. There are still many healthy alternatives for a family when going to eat at a restaurant. Restaurants that offer buffet style meals are great choices. Thanks to many of the health conscious consumers out there, buffets have added baked, broiled, and fresh food choices to the display.
Fresh fruits and vegetables are usually always available on food bars, along with broiled or steamed vegetables. Meats are just about as varied, with many of the choices being offered in a fried and baked option. And if you’re up for dessert, watermelons and grapes are just as satisfying as the Boston cream pie.

You can always throw up objections when it comes to healthy eating, the real trick is in realizing it’s your body that will suffer. Or your children that will suffer from the unhealthy choices you make. Why not start with healthy options, set the right example, and you will have children that make health conscious intelligent decisions about their eating.

Okay, now back to our Thursday afternoon juggling act. You’ve dropped Heath at baseball practice, picked Jamie up from basketball, and you have exactly fifteen minutes to make a decision about dinner. As you sit at the red-light contemplating your options, there is a Subway, a Pizza Hut, and a grocery store with a deli in the same shopping center. How can this still be a difficult choice to make?

DISCLAIMER: This information is not presented by a medical practitioner and is for educational and informational purposes only. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health care provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have read. Since natural and/or dietary supplements are not FDA approved they must be accompanied by a two-part disclaimer on the product label: that the statement has not been evaluated by FDA and that the product is not intended to "diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease."