Healthy Resolutions
New Years resolutions can be hard to maintain, albeit fun to make! One of the most popular resolutions is to lose weight and eat more sensibly, as long as you set realistic goals and don’t expect overnight success you will succeed. A good place to start is to keep a food diary and allow yourself a cheat day each week, that way you won’t get bored with your new diet!
Try to incorporate some of these superfoods into your diet:
- Blueberries: Packed with antioxidants,these berries are also high in potassium and vitamin C. They can lower your risk of heart disease and cancer and are also anti-inflammatory.
- Broccoli: Broccoli fans claim this Sunday staple can help combat cancer, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.Broccoli is a good source of vitamin C and folate (naturally occurring folic acid). It also contains vitamins A, K, calcium, fibre, beta-carotene and other antioxidants.
- Oranges: You may already know that oranges are an excellent source of Vitamin C. Did you know a good intake of vitamin C is associated with a reduced risk of colon cancer?
- Tea (green or black)The overall antioxidant power of black tea is the same as green tea,” A recent Japanese study on green tea found that men who drank green tea regularly had lower cholesterol than those who didn’t. Researchers in Spain and the United Kingdom have also shown that ECGC ( a powerful antioxidant) can inhibit the growth of cancer cells. For a double health whammy, replace sugary drinks with tea.
- Tomatoes: If you are seeking a good antioxidant then put some tomatoes in your shopping trolley. Researchers have recently found an important connection between lycopene( found in tomatoes) its antioxidant properties, and bone health. A recent study was conducted in which tomato and other dietary sources of lycopene were removed from the diets of postmenopausal women for a period of 4 weeks, to see what effect lycopene restriction would have on bone health. At the end of 4 weeks, women in the study started to show increased signs of oxidative stress in their bones and unwanted changes in their bone tissue. The study investigators concluded that removal of lycopene-containing foods (including tomatoes) from the diet was likely to put women at increased risk of osteoporosis. They also argued for the importance of tomatoes and other lycopene-containing foods in the diet. We don’t always think about antioxidant protection as being important for bone health, but it is, and tomato lycopene (and other tomato antioxidants) may have a special role to play in this area. Very interesting, don’t you think!!
Intake of tomatoes has also long been linked to heart health. Fresh tomatoes and tomato extracts have been shown to help lower total cholesterol. - Dark Chocolate: Good News! Dark chocolate is packed with antioxidants and can lower blood pressure. Look for chocolate with 60% or higher cocoa content; the darker, the better. In addition, the darker it is, the lower the fat and sugar content.
Think of it this way, once you cut an apple, it begins to brown, but if you dip it in orange juice, which contains vitamin C (an antioxidant), it stays white. You can defend your body the same way by including rich sources in your diet. Renew your commitment to healthy living and feel energized, fit, and beautiful, inside and out.