When Salad Is Not My Forte

So which one are you? A person who eats for health or the one who eats because they taste so good? I am more towards eating for health. So I am really not that picky when it comes to food as long as it is healthy. But don't get me wrong, I love the unhealthy delicious food, but I take them with caution especially fried foods. Sometimes delicious food although not too healthy but it can boost up your mood level.

Unhealthy delicious food are easiest to find but healthy delicious food takes up a bit of challenge. Well shall I conclude that delicious food are always not healthy and vice versa?

I have been feeling a bit sluggish and tired lately. I suspect that either I haven't got enough sleep or my body is lacking enzymes. We can easily get enzymes from raw food and the food that I can think of is salad. We need enzymes to have a good digestive system. When we have a good digestive system, our body is able to absorb nutrients and get rid of toxins at the same time. Having cooked food all the time is not good too because when we cook our food it will destroy a lot of enzymes. That is why I always keep them in mind in order to motive me to eat more veggies.

Check this website which I found useful. They have some good info on why we need enzymes - http://www.learnsomethingtoday.com/text%20pages/Enzymes.htm

Oh I can tell you that after eating those crunchy leaves and my favourite cherry tomatoes I feel refreshing and my body is supercharged. Hooray to salade!



Tags: eating salad, raw food, enzymes, we need enzymes, feeling refreshed

What Do You Think This Is?

 

What do you think? This is actually my breakfast. The ingredients are great.....I've added quick oats, goji berry, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, cashew nuts and raisins. Then, I add hot water to and 1 tablespoon of blackstrap molasses.

I love the nuts and oats but adding blackstrap molasses is a bad combination. There is so much talk about the goodness of blackstrap molasses but there aren't many delicious recipes that includes blackstrap molasses. They only taste great when they are made in cookies, cakes and "Gan Lao Mien" (chinese dried sauce noodle) but other than that they don't go easily well with other food. 

I have been trying to increase my iron and calcium intake and blackstrap molasses is one of the best option since they are packed with iron, calcium, manganese, magnesium, copper, potassium, selenium and Vitamin B6.

It is also claimed that they are able to improve some ailments such as anemia, constipation, anxiety, ulcers, varicose veins, dematitis, rheumatism, arthritis pain, period pain and etc.

After I discovered its benefits, I am all out to try it .....can you imagine that this blackstrap molasses which is usually used as a sweetener and came from a third boil sugar cane can actually have so many nutrients?  Anyway I believe we can get the best from all natural food sources and not the synthetic / man made ones.

Tags: health benefits of blackstrap molasses, breakfast, calcium, iron, healing benefits of  blackstrap molasses,ailments

Reading Cookie Labels

Do you read labels when you shop for your groceries? I don’t know where I learned this but it is definitely from a book that I read (I can’t remember which book).



Nowadays I don’t buy many things off the shelves because there are too many unknown ingredients in them.

I bought this box of crackers mainly because of the imprints “Multigrain cracker”- I am always into healthy biscuits.
I think this biscuits have less unknown ingredients as compared to others. And it is not too sweet too.

But I wonder what is this Ammonium Bicarbonate (E503) ? I found out from Google search that it is actually commercial salt. My thought was, was it harmful? According to this website it is safe.

I’ve tried this biscuit from Mcvitie’s too. They are yummy but a bit too sweet for my liking. The good thing is they have a more detailed ingredients. They will tell you how much percentage of rolled oats and whole wheat flour they used in their biscuits.

Sorry….was thinking of taking pictures on the looks of those biscuits but I have already finished them all. None is left! :p






















Tags: reading food labels, cookie labels, food ingredients

Plum, the fruit of youth

Picture: I have to de-skin the plum for Little Marc because he is not skillful enough to chew the skin yet.

I never realize that plum can be so juicy and deliciously sweet with a tint of its aroma. I feel lucky that my family is able to enjoy it. After all, it is not easy to get really nice plum these days. I bought the same type of plum 2 weeks ago from another stall and it was all spoiled and they are all tasteless too.

Little Marc asks for more after taking his first bite (what a glutton) and my husband who doesn’t really like fruit that much commented that it was delicious. I would say it’s the perfect fruit ever. I bought another batch last weekend from the same stall. Hopefully it is of the same quality. If you would like to know, I bought them from SS 2 weekend market and the stall is next to a fish stall. She is the only fruit stall there. I bought them at 7 pieces for RM10.

A health conscious fruit eater I am, my curiosity drives me to look for the health benefits that we can have from eating plums. Here are my findings:


Nutrients

1) High source of antioxidants

2) Rich in vitamin C

3) Vitamin A

4) Vitamin B2

5) Fiber

6) Potassium


Health benefits

1) The antioxidants properties are able to counteract aging process. This means that it protects our skin and body cells from being damage by free radicals.

2) High vitamin C to help iron absorption.

3) Build a strong immune system so you won’t easily catch cold and flu.

4) Vitamin C is able to avoid conditions such as asthma, arthritis, cancer, diabetes and heart disease.

5) Good for your eyesight because of its vitamin A content.


How to choose a ripe plum?

1) Rich in color with a slight of “whitish bloom”.

2) Soft when you apply gentle pressure

Note: You gain more health benefits from a full ripen plum.



People who should avoid eating plums:

1) kidney patients

2) gallbladder problems

The reason for the people described above to avoid eating plums is because it contains measurable amounts of oxalates. Oxalates when it becomes too concentrated in our body fluids will tend to crystallize and cause some health problems such as kidney stones or gallbladder stones.

Excessive oxalates are also found to interfere with our calcium absorption.



Pesticides

Plums have been researched to have the least pesticides contamination compared to apples and strawberries. So, good news for plum lovers!



If you like healthy smoothies you may be interested in this book:

 

                                                          Click Here

What you get from this book:

-Over 180 smoothie recipes that make use of a wide variety of ingredients.


-Tips on how to choose the freshest fruit and vegetables!

-Tips on how to properly store and prepare your ingredients so you don't lose the flavor, vitamins, and minerals.

-When it's okay to substitute frozen ingredients for fresh ones.

-How to avoid disastrous combinations that result in unpalatable smoothies.

-How you can make delicious cocktail and dessert smoothies. Give in to some cravings, while still staying healthy!

















Tags: Plums, Health benefits, side effects, oxalates, good eyesight, vitamin C, Vitamin A, antioxidants, aging

Healthy snacks for toddler

Just to get myself prepared if little Marc is on his "no mood to eat" again. Off and on he will refuse to eat.....so all I can do is to provide him some healthy treats that he won't resist. So wish I have a kitchen to cook other things for him. Oh well it won't be long until I have my own kitchen :).

Bought these 5grain nutrient bars at the BMS organic shop. No sign of chemicals in the ingredients printed on the packaging. The ingredients are Organic brown rice, quick oat, pearl barley, buckwheat, millet, red rice, wheat, corn, black bean, Soya bean, red bean, mung bean, green pea, pumpkin seeds, sunflower kernel, black sesame, white sesame, almond, walnut, pine nut, wheat germ, sea salt, glucose, grape seed oil.




Looking at the ingredients, I would say it’s the healthiest, more fiber, protein and it's not too salty. yummy! This is 100% better than the salty chips and cheezels that are on the market. As Dr. Gillian described in her book "You are what you eat" that these chips and cheezels are fake food. They fill your stomach, drain away your nutrients and put calories into your body. I'm not going to spoil my baby for it. So I have to be a “picky” mommy now when it comes to food choices for little Marc.



The Star newspaper just did a write up on an article last weekend about some teenage boys going for plastic surgery to remove their breasts....yeah they have women’s' breasts and teenage girls removing their hairs from other parts of their body. What are we having here? A mutated generation? I don't think the mutation is alarming yet but few years down the road we might have an X-men generation. Not so much of a human being with super powers but more to a human with four eyes, without legs, men with breasts, women with hairy legs, men able to get pregnant...what will we become?



The article goes on to say that the culprit of all the abnormalities stems from the diet and food that we are taking. It says that eating too much of meat with growth hormones and food with chemicals jumble up our hormone system. So shall we stop eating those food altogether? It's hard to do but I'll try.



Here is another treat that little Marc loves:

Yummy seaweed.....it's a great snack rich in iron, calcium, iodine, high protein, vitamin C, vitamin A, potassium, magnesium and riboflavin(B2). Sometimes I’ll add some into his porridge or rice for some flavor.




 
Tags: Health snacks, mutation, plastic surgery, X-Men, toddler refuse to eat

Baby girls developing breasts?

As a parent, I tend to worry a lot when it comes to news about tainted milk that kills precious tots. And to have it tainted and caused babies developing breasts is outrageous. You can read the news in this website: http://news.yahoo.com/s/time/20100812/wl_time/08599201004400

Truth will tell whether the company really claim that there is no hormone added when tests were conducted. But my personal opinion is that though there may not be hormone added but the cows that they are farming could have been tainted with bovine hormones which could be damaging for our health. Bovine hormone is used to inject cows in order to increase their milk production.

So many food products are tainted with chemicals because companies want to reap more profits. You have cows injected with hormones to give us more milk or chicken to give more meat and so on. But nothing is about the effects of it on human health. This is what I call unethical.

I think the best choice is to breastfeed our babies and if not we should pay more attention in reading labels and opt for a more natural or organic products. Labels may not tell anything, but it’s the best we can do.

Why sunshine is good for our children?

We often hear nursery rhymes, children songs and animations telling us that the sunshine makes everyone happy and bright. We also hear the old saying that our children need to go out and get some sunshine. But had it occur to you what makes sunshine so good for our children?


When the sun came in contact with our skin, our body is able to produce more vitamin D. Vitamin D helps in the absorption of calcium in our body thereby giving us strong and healthy bones. Deficiency in vitamin D will cause rickets in children and osteoporosis in adults. According to James Dowd, professor of medicine at Michigan State University and author of The Vitamin D Cure found that vitamin D in our body will only activate itself when it gets ultraviolet B rays from sunlight. This means that vitamin D will not serve its purpose when it is without sunlight.

Breastfeeding children are at risk of having rickets because of the lack of vitamin D in the breast milk. Thus, these children should take foods or supplements with vitamin D.

Today’s modern culture has encouraged children to engage in unhealthy activities such as staying indoors watching TV, playing computer games, no outdoor activity and thus lack of sun exposure. These unhealthy habits give rise to children contracting rickets disease, bones disorder, diabetes and other diseases.

Apart from building strong bones, the sun also helps in the production of white blood cells to build a strong immune system to our body. A strong immune system is important to fight against germs, bacteria, viruses and toxins.

Through the warmth of the sun it stimulates blood circulation throughout our body and driving more oxygen into our body.

The sun makes people happy or in a good mood because it stimulates the production of serotonin. Serotonin is a type of hormone found in the human brain. It helps to regulate our mood, relieve depression and give us a goodnight sleep.

The other benefit of sun exposure is that it stimulates our liver and helps in breaking down toxins. This will greatly benefit newborns because newborns have weak liver and that makes them susceptible to jaundice. By having sun exposure for a few minutes a day will prevent the occurrence of jaundice.
Having sun exposure will also help with any kinds of skin disorder such as eczema, acne and cradle cap.

Although there is so much goodness in receiving sunshine, however experts only recommend that a good sun exposure of 10 to 15 minutes a day between 8am to 9.30am and the hours after 4pm. It is also recommended not to use sunscreen while receiving the benefit of the sun. Exposing too much on the sun will risk us getting skin cancer and thus it is good to wear sunscreen after the recommended time.





Tags: Benefits of sun, sunshine, sun health, strong bones, heal skin disease, prevent osteoporosis,rickets, moods, vitamin D

Wonders of Manuka Honey

Maybe it’s the flu season again. My mom just told me that few of my relatives are down with flu. Could it be the nights watching world cup? Well sleep deprivation does bring down your immune system.

But my husband is not a fan of world cup and neither am I. But last week my husband came down with a bad sore throat and I suggest he try Manuka honey UMF 15 and it all cleared in four days. I know it is slow recovery but then save ourselves from the side effects of medicine and not to mention the Rm50 of consulting a doctor.


I’m a fan of natural healing. It has no side effects apart from the hassle of slow recovery and it brings a lot of benefit to the body. We consume so many chemical foods these days that it’s time for us to slowly cut them down. I always believe that it is always best to take home remedy when a mere discomfort or initial symptoms show up. If the symptoms have been dragging a few days then it is better to go to the doctor.

Here are some facts about active manuka honey.

The origin of manuka honey came from New Zealand and its antibacterial properties have been known to have healed stomach ulcer, indigestion, cold, flu, sore throat, skin ulcer, mild burns and fever.

The difference between active manuka honey and the normal honey is that manuka honey is found to have the highest levels of healing properties.

If we buy an active manuka honey it has to be sealed with a UMF trademark. UMF stands for Unique Manuka Factor which is a standard for the measurement of antibacterial potency in the honey. The higher level of UMF signifies a higher antibacterial potency.

Benefits of manuka honey:

It is a natural antibiotic

Boost immune system

Ease digestion

Heal skin conditions such as eczema, scars, infected wounds, acne, cuts, burns and insect bites

There are so many natural remedy in the market, one that works for me might not work for you. So, we have to try all sorts of natural remedy and if we find one that is right, then stick to it.

A note of caution: active manuka honey or any other honey is not safe to be consumed by babies below 1 year old because of botulism which could be deadly.

My son is having flu for over a week now. But it’s not really that bad. Last week he had few dribbles from his nose but this week he only dribble once in the morning. I just gave him a teaspoon of manuka honey once in the morning and once in the evening after meal. Hopefully by tomorrow I won’t see any dribble from him anymore.

Bought it this year at Nature's Farm for RM 132 (500g).

Brand name: Waitemata UMF 15

Tags: active manuka honey, UMF, sore throat, digestion, skin disease, immune system, natural healing, home remedy

Molar Pregnancy

A molar pregnancy or medically known as hydatidiform mole occurs when you have an abnormal placenta. Instead of growing fetus inside the placenta, it grows into clusters of fluid filled cysts.

You can have all the symptoms of a pregnancy; nausea, vomiting, weight gain and swollen breasts but there is no baby. This is like fake pregnancy but worst, you have growing tissues inside you in which if not treated could spread to other organs such as your lungs, bone, brain and vagina. It can be cancerous.

There are two types of molar pregnancy; complete and partial molar pregnancy. Complete molar pregnancies have only the placenta but no fetus present. It forms when the sperm fertilizes an empty egg and it produces high pregnancy hormone, called HCG mimicking symptoms of a normal pregnancy.

This form of abnormality is easily identifiable through an ultra sound.

A partial molar pregnancy is where 2 sperm fertilize an egg and created twins. But the fetus rarely survived.

Molar pregnancies are more common in Southeast Asia and Mexico. However, the incidence only occurs in 1/1000 and 1/2000 throughout United States and Europe.

It is not known why a molar pregnancy occurs but it is believed to be due to nutritional deficit in protein or carotene. It can also be caused by ovulation defect.

Who is at risk?

• If you are age 35 and above
• History of molar pregnancy
• Women who had miscarriage before

Symptoms:

• severe nausea and vomiting
• develop hyperthyroidism
• High levels of HCG
• Vaginal bleeding
• Enlarged uterus

Diagnosis:

• Pelvic examination
• Vagina ultrasound

Treatment:

The treatment is through uterine suction or surgical removal. Normally women who had treatment for molar pregnancies are advised not to conceive for one year to avoid the recurrence of molar pregnancy.