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Functional foods

Out of various vegetables, fruits, nuts, and whole grains, many are very good for you. But some are better than others and some are so good that not only feed you but can heal and prevent diseases.



When a food is researched well enough and recognized as providing health benefits beyond basic nutrition (being healing and protective) - it is officially put on list of functional foods.



Here's a sample list of official functional foods:



apples

beef

cheese

berries

broccoli

carrots

chocolate

cinnamon

citrus

cocoa

collards

corn

cranberries

cruciferous vegetables (like cabbage and lettuce)

eggs (especially yolk)

flax seeds

garlic

grapes

honey

leeks

fish oils - e.g., sardines for your snack

lamb - e.g., cold cuts

oat

onions

peanuts

pears

psyllium husk - add it to your snack shakes

red grapes

rolled oats - e.g., as oat bars

rye - e.g., as whole rye bread or crackers

salmon

scallions

soy - e.g., soy nuts for your snack

spinach

strawberries

tea

tomatoes

tuna

walnuts

wheat

wheat bran

whole grains

wine

yogurt

Kirgizian Lamb Recipe: Beshbarmak

Beshbarmak is meant to be eaten with the hands hence the dish name: Besh is Kirgizian for five, barmak is for finger. Beshbarmak consists of home made noodles, boiled meat, and bouillon poured over the dish. Traditional meat is horse meat, which is now replaced by lamb.

Ingredients:
2 kg lamb with bones (about 4 pounds)
2.5 liter water + 250 ml (250 ml is about 8 ounces)
1 teaspoon salt
3 + 1 onions
1 cup chopped chives
3 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 carrot
3 tablespoons oil
Homemade noodles

Instructions:
Make a rich lamb broth cooking it until meat easily comes off the bones. Remove bones and cut the meat into slices. Cook noodle circles or squires in the broth.

In a heavy skillet, cook vegetables until tender, add the meat, and continue cooking until the onions are golden-brown.

In individual soup bowls, combine the noodles, vegetables and lamb, pour the broth over each serving. Serve very hot.

The Health Benefits of Carrots

A medium carrot contains 6.19g total carbohydrates and 1.83g fiber making 4.36 effective carb grams. Is this too high for a low car diet? It's now being debated. Carrots is a no-no on Glycemic Index diet due to their fast influence on blood glucose levels.

It's not advised on Atkins induction phase, but can be OK if you stay within your individual carb daily allowance on later phases. It is encouraged on the Zone diet. With just 26.23 Callories of energy, a medium carrot has 343% of Daily Value for Vitamin A - a very potent phytonutrient.

The health benefits of carrots are outstanding. Carrots' antioxidants can protect against heart disease and cancer, promote healthy vision, and prevent night vision problems.

Cooking carrots not only keep the beneficial properties but actually raises them allowing the nutrients enter the bloodstream easier due to the softening of carrot's fiber.

Black Peper Is Good For You

Black pepper (Piper nigrum in Latin) contains in large quantities manganese, potassium, fiber, iron, and vitamin C. However, its nutritional quality is not limited to just these four components.

Black pepper improves digestion, prevents heartburn, gas, diarrhea, and constipation. It also promotes sweating and acts as diuretic helping to get read of excessive water accumulated in body tissues.

Black pepper is a potent antioxidant with antibacterial properties and stimulates the breakdown of fat cells.

And don't forget that it's just so good in so many dishes!

The Many Forms And Uses of Garlic

Garlic has been used as both a medicine and a spice for thousands of years starting as early as 3,000 b.c. Garlic flesh consists of sulfur compounds, amino acids, minerals, such as germanium, selenium, and zinc, and vitamins A, B, and C.

The active chemical in garlic is Allicin. Allicin is also responsible for garlic's odor. The cloves can be eaten raw, cooked, dried, in aromatic oils and vinegars - or in tablets and capsules. Expert herbalists agree that garlic does not have to be eaten raw to be effective. Cooked garlic or various aged extracts and oils can in some cases can provide even more effective.

Garlic's most common uses as a dietary supplement are: to inhibit and kill bacteria, fungi, and parasites, for high cholesterol, heart disease, and high blood pressure. Some studies suggest consuming garlic as a regular part of the diet may lower the risk of certain cancers. However, no clinical trials have examined this.

Preliminary research suggests that taking garlic may slow the development of atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries), a condition that can lead to heart disease or stroke.

Garlic can thin the blood the same way aspirin does. Use garlic with caution if you are planning to have surgery or dental work, or if you have a bleeding disorder.

Food Additives: Monoglycerides, Diglycerides, BHT

Food additives are considered safe otherwise they wouldn't be cleared for the use in the processed food industry. Whether or not they are good for you is a different question. Here are the three of most common additives:

Monoglycerides or monoacylglycerols are 'food surfactants' -- substances that are active on the surface -- that are used in food industry to increase product's shelf live and to prevent oils from separating out, like in margarines, low-calorie spreads, peanut butter, etc. They also help making bakery products taste smooth. There's no known indications of their health dangers other than mild individual sensitivity.

Diglycerides are not only safe but there's evidence of their dietary advantage: taken as part of calorie-restricted diet may increase your chances of weight loss, according to a study published in 2002 in the American journal of Clinical Nutrition.

BHT (stands for butylated hydro-toluene) prevents racidity of fats and may also have antiviral and antimicrobial activities. There's no conclusive FDA statements concerning BHT health dangers.

Balanced Reduced Calorie Breakfast Ideas

Counting calories? It's advised that you have about 20% daily calorie allowance for breakfast if you are not on a low carb diet, which can call for much less portion of daily calories for breakfast.

Here are several options for breakfasts. Choose lower-calorie breakfasts if you are going to have more substantial lunch and/or dinner.

-------------
371 Calories:
-------------
1. Puffed rice cereal, 2 cups, with 1 cup skim milk
2. Grapefruit
3. 1 cup Orange juice
4. Coffee with cream

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396 Calories:
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1. 2 Scrambled eggs
2. 4 rings Pineapple
3. 1 cup Orange juice
4. Coffee with cream

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397 Calories:
-------------
1. 1 cup Raisin bran
2. 1/2 cup skim milk
3. Grapefruit
4. 1 cup Orange juice
5. Coffee with cream

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408 Calories:
-------------
1. 2 cups Rice flake cereal
2. 1 cup Skim milk
3. Grapefruit
4. Coffee with cream

-------------
408 Calories:
-------------
1. Scone with 2 tablespoons applesauce
2. 2 slices Cantaloupe
3. 1 cup Orange juice
4. Coffee with cream and sugar, 1 cup

A Low Carb, No Fat Australian Dessert

Pavlova meringue is a very popular dessert in Australia and New Zealand, which was named after Anna Pavlova, the famous Russian ballerina. It's been invented in 1930's by a chef Herbert Sachse. This recipe is modified to reduce calories and carbohydrates. Makes 8 servings, 45 calories, 8 carb grams, zero fat each.

For the cake, take:

4 large egg whites
1 cup sugar substitute
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon white vinegar
1/2 tablespoon cornstarch

For the topping:

1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar substitute
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
Fresh fruit

Instructions

Beat egg whites with a mixer until whites are firm. Continue beating, gradually adding sugar substitute. Add vanilla and continue beating until mixture is stiff.

Line a baking sheet with parchment. Scoop meringue onto the sheet creating a depression in the center; place in oven and reduce heat to . Bake at 250 F, without opening oven door, 45 minutes. Turn off oven, open door and let cool for 30 minutes. Remove from oven; cool completely. Fill centers of meringues with whipped topping and fruits.

Comfort Foods, Rewards, and Their Alternatives

In the late 50s, the classic experiments by Dr. Olds shook the world. He implanted electrodes into certain regions of rat brains and taught the rats how to press lever to stimulate these regions with weak electric currents. Rats stopped doing anything but pressing the lever till their death from complete starvation. The Positive Reward theory was born. It turned out that anything pleasurable in life did related to these "Centers of Pleasure" -- sex, alcohol, drugs of abuse -- all that mankind has invented in its hedonic journey, were but attempts to stimulate these brain regions. When stimulated, these brain centers cause the release of our body's own morphine-like chemicals, endorphins.

We know that eating will produce a pleasant sensation so often we eat even though all we need is comfort. The truth is, exercise, sauna, cold shower, massage, pleasant odors, and mental efforts - "workoholism "is real! - all increase Endorphin level while only eating, especially when your body does not need it, will cause extra pounds of fat to collect in your body's store.

The tricky thing with endorphins is that there are pairs of releasers resembling a thesaurus' antonyms: exercise does the same os its antonym sleep, pleasure goes together with pain, etc. The eating-fasting pair also exists. Many people reported elation when they skipped breakfasts. Religeous fasters experience euforia.

"Severe food restriction produces endorphin activity, which is reinforcing. Feeding interrupts the endorphin activity and, thus, produces withdrawal. Not-eating, therefore, is rewarding." (Appetite 19:1-13; 1992).

TIPS:

1. Ask yourself "What is it I really need? A glass of water? A walk? A hug?"

2. Try periodic fasts. After resuming eating, your taste buds will be satisfied with lesser taste intensity thus reducing the taste influence on the body weight set point.

3. Try other rewards. Buying fresh flowers can be a better answer than a bowl of Rocky Road. Exercise, go to sauna, take a cold shower, invest in a massage device, buy a vail of perfume, or enjoy reading a book.

The Benefits of Red Wine And Grapes

The phytonutrients in grapes protect our hearts and blood vessels from oxidative damage and atherosclerotic plagues; they also help our arteries stay elastic so that the blood pressure remains under control. These phytonutrients are active in fresh grapes and in wines, especially red wine. However, fresh grapes are very high in carbohydrates while in wine, friendly bacteria work hard to eat the excess sugar up, so dry wine is a low carb product containing only 1.75 carb grams in a wine glass. White grapes are less nutrient-dense than red grapes but still are very good for you. Research show that the beneficial nutrients can not be effectively extracted from grapes to create potent supplements so the broadly advertised grape seed supplements failed competing with real grapes.

European grapes are generally higher in carbohydrates (28.43g in 1 cup) and fiber (1.6g) than the American varieties (respectively 15.78 and 0.98 g) but they are much richer in Vitamin C: 1 cup of grapes contain about 29% of recommended daily volume versus 6% in American grapes.

Spaghetti Squash - A Dieter's Dream

To get the most of spaghetti squash, you might want to choose the orange spaghetti squash also called "Orangetti". It is higher in beta carotene and is in fact a dieter's dream: one-cup serving of cubed spaghetti squash has only 31 calories and less than 5 grams of carbohydrates, is abundant in fibers and phytonutrients, part of them being acknowledged cancer-preventive phytonutrients: some lab studies have shown vegetable juices obtained from squash to be equal to juices made from leeks, pumpkin, and radish in their ability to prevent cancer-risky changes in our body tissue cells.

One of traditional uses of all winter squashs is aimed to promote prostate health. Preliminary research confirmed the benefits of this vegetable in treatment of benign prostatic enlargement.

Beta-carotene has powerful antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties and getting enough of beta-carotene with foods may help to prevent atherosclerosis as well as support blood sugar regulation. Research revealed that carotenoids may help with insulin resistance.

The potassium in winter squash may help to lower blood pressure, and the vitamin C may be able to relieve asthma, osteoarthritis, and rheumatoid arthritis.

The folate in winter squash prevents some forms of birth defects and helps the body to break down homocysteine, which damage blood vessel walls.

Italian Greens and Beans Dish

Try this easy but not plain Italian classic salad.



Take:



1 tsp olive oil

1 head escarole

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup chickpeas

2 tsp grated Parmesan cheese



Cook:



Tear escarole into medium pieces. Slightly heat the olive oil with garlic and chickpeas. Add the escarole and continue to heat until the escarole is just warm. Season with Parmesan cheese and dress with olive oil and any spices you like.

The Most Filling Foods and the Satiety Index

Dr. Susanna Holt of the University of Sydney developed a system measuring the duration of filling effects of different foods she called Satiety Index.

The participants were given breakfast, which consisted of 240 Cal. in the form of various foods and were asked to rank their feelings of hunger every 15 minutes for the next two hours.

The resulting list of the foodss rated for their filling effects was huge but to give you an idea, here are a few foods to compare. Note that potato is the absolute champion, not only in this example but among all the thousands of foods tested. The higher the Index, the more filling the food:


potatoes 323
oatmeal 209
oranges 202
apples 197
grapes 162
whole wheat bread 154
lentils 133
bananas 118
french fries 116
white bread 100
chocolate bar 70
croissant 47

The Many Benefits of Peppers

Spicy peppers are good in hot climate because they prevent harmful bacteria, inside the body or even in foods, from over-multiplying, aid in appetite management: can increase poor appetite but decrease unhealthily high one.

Unlike hot peppers, bell peppers are not too spicy because they contain no capsaicin, the chemical that makes other peppers hot. Whether they're green, red, purple, yellow, or orange, bell peppers are rich in vitamins C and A, two powerful antioxidants.

For example, red peppers have three times as much vitamin C as citrus fruit, and they're a great source of beta-carotene, fiber, and vitamin B6 and can help preventing heart and joint diseases and some kinds of tumors.

Embutidos, Low Carb Pork Rolls

Embutidos are Philippines meat (pork) rolls, somewhat similar to meat loaf. Due to this recipe's ingredient set, it is low in carbohydrates and rather high in fat. Here's how to prepare the dish.

2 lbs ground pork
2 eggs, beaten
2 hot dogs, chopped
1 onion, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1/2 cup sweet pickle relish
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1 cup shredded bread
salt
pepper
soy sauce
1 stalk celery, chopped
2 tablespoons powdered milk

Combine all ingredients in a bowl; roll in foil. Steam for 1 hour; let cool. Slice diagonally.

Quinoa Salad: a Healthy Recipe

Quinoa is a high-fiber, high-protein grain. It's available at any grocery, plus it cooks in just minutes and blends nicely with tomatoes and green leafy veggies. Here's how the South Beach Diet advises to make a salad for its Phase 1.

Cook 1/2 cup quinoa in 3/4 cup salted boiling water, let cool, add salt and pepper. Chop the herbs, dice cucumbers, cube tomatoes. Toss.

For the veggie part:

3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
3 scallions
1 small cucumber
3 tablespoons fresh parsley
2 tablespoons mint
3 large beefsteak tomatoes
2 oz. low fat feta cheese