Free Health Tips

Soya Can Help Prevent Cancer

Recent studies have shown that eating soya products has helped protect Asian women against certain types of cancer. Scientists at the Cancer Research Center of Hawaii and Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee conducted a study of 120 Asian women. Results produced more evidence that a long-term diet rich in soya can be linked to a reduced risk of breast cancer - as much as a 50 percent in some cases - according to research presented in Honolulu in December during the 2000 International Chemical Congress of Pacific Basin Societies. 

The soyabean is used in foods and beverages, including tofu, miso, soyamilk, soya coffee, butter, veggie burgers, crackers, cookies and flour. Low in cholesterol and high in isoflavones, the benefits of the soyabean are many. Start adding some to your diet today. Better yet, start your babies on it early and continue as a lifelong commitment to healthy eating.

Healthy Beans

Eat your beans! Nutrient compounds called 'flavonoids' have been found to be effective antioxidants that help protect against heart disease and cancer. These flavonoids are found in the coating of such beans as navy, pintos, kidney, great northern and black beans

Climb Stairs

To add strength to leg muscles and get a cardiovascular workout at the same time, try climbing plain old stairs. This can be done at home, in your office, apartment building, or on stair-climbing machines in the gym. Climbing two steps at a time is good for building the quadriceps (thigh muscles) and the gluteus (butt). Going down steps builds strength in the quadriceps and to a lesser extent, the hamstrings

Whole Grains Lower Stroke Risk in Women

In a study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, researchers from Boston's Brigham and Women's Hospital found that just one more whole grain serving a day that women eat lessens the likelihood of their having a stroke. The research involved a study of 75,521 women participating in Harvard University's Nurses Health Study. Between 1984 and 1996, 352 strokes occurred among the women. The researchers found that the women who ate the equivalent of two or three slices of whole grain bread daily had a 30 to 40 percent lower risk of having an ischemic stroke (the most common type) than women who ate the equivalent of less than half a slice of whole grain bread daily. So replace those refined products with whole grain to benefit from its rewards. This includes whole grain products such as whole wheat bread, whole grain cereal, popcorn, wheat germ, oatmeal, bulgur and couscous.

Importance of Protein Balanced Meal 

It is important to balance meals and snacks with carbohydrate-rich and protein-rich foods together. A meal with carbohydrates alone often results in one becoming hungry sooner because glucose levels shoot up and then crash down afterwards. This can leave you feeling tired, hungry, and weak. When protein is included, you will not only stay full longer, but glucose levels will stay more consistent and you will feel energized for a longer period. All meals should include a good balance of protein and complex carbohydrates.

It is important to understand how protein and carbohydrates interact with each other. Each food nutrient is broken down at different times. Carbohydrates are digested in about two hours. Proteins take longer to digest, and when the two are combined or eaten together, protein slows down digestion of carbohydrates, and energy from carbohydrates is released more slowly. Protein actually slows down the release of glucose from carbohydrates into the bloodstream.

Thus, eating protein-rich foods with carbohydrate-rich foods stabilizes the glucose, which could otherwise lead to hunger. This keeps us feeling energetic and satisfied until the next meal. In addition, when carbohydrates are used as energy, they spare proteins from being used as energy so they can be used to build and repair tissues. For example, a meal only rich in carbohydrates, such as soup, bread, and salad would result in a period of hunger soon after the meal.

On the other hand, a balanced lunch that includes a protein source such as a chicken breast with salad, pulses, beans, legumes will provide and sustain energy. In other words, a meal is not a "meal" if it doesn't contain a lean complete protein and a complex carbohydrate together at the same time.