Diet to ease PMS

Women usually feel the best in week 2 of their menstrual cycle, when blood flow is over and hormones are most balanced. Bloating and digestive problems may kick in week # 3 and PMS is most frequently observed in week # 4
unless estrogen levels are too low  - in this case the next week - week # 1 - is when she feels the worst. 

Reduce: caffeine, sugar, processed foods, salt, saturated fats and animal protein

Increase: whole-food plant based proteins, essential fatty acid omega-3 rich foods,  whole grains, dark leafy greens, lemons, high quality calcium foods and water.

For example, a cup of low fat yogurt will supply you with plenty of calcium and vitamin D and, according to some studies, can reduce PMS symptoms by 40%. . Steamed broccoli is rich in Calcium too (but too much of it could make you bloated). Wild salmon, mackerel, sardines, or herring will boost your omega-3 intak and so will pumpkin seeds that will also help to fight water retention and improve your mood as manganese has been shown to reduce the irritability and tension that accompany PMS. Peanuts have plenty of Magnesium as well, and Camomile tea will make you calm and relaxed

Fruit: good or bad?

Is fruit good or bad for you?

Yes, if it's fresh fruit, answers dental student Tom, and be careful with frozen, canned, preserved and dried varieties.

It's good for your heart adds a surgeon-scientist.

But only if you don't over do it says Dr. Ben Kim as eating too much fruit can lead to osteoporosis, wasting of muscle tissue, inability to maintain a healthy weight, chronic fatigue, skin problems, thinning hair, weakening nails, and excessive irritability.

And don't forget that when you eat your fruit is also important. Gabriello explains two main reasons that fruit should be eaten on an empty stomach, at least 3-4 hours after a meal and preferably before a meal.

That's all for now and enjoy your fresh fruit!

Here’s to a Happy and Healthy 2012!

Healthy Meals to Kick Off 2012:

Super Healthy and Super Delicious Butternut squash! A -- 1 cup of cooked squash has 457% of the recommended daily allowance -- and is a good source of fiber, potassium, and magnesium. And like most vegetables, it's fat-, cholesterol-, and sodium-free.

Vegan Mexican spiced butternut squash soup with beans and corn is very healthy and full of flavor. You can also try this 5-star Squash soup recipe or Butternut Squash Risotto with Mushrooms.

Asian Tuna Salad, a healthy salad with a spicy kick from sambal oelek. Serve on top of green salad or in sandwiches, or stuff it ina large tomato.

Here are more healthy Salad and Side dishes recipes

Quinoa Salad with Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Kale, & Dried Cranberries

Israeli Couscous Salad with Roasted Vegetables

Black Quinoa Salad with Mango, Avocado, & Tomatoes

Roasted Butternut Squash Orzo Salad

Black Bean, Avocado, & Mango Salad with Cilantro and Lime

Grilled Corn Salad

Strawberry Mango Jicama Salad

Roasted Asparagus with Balsamic Vinegar

Roasted Brussels Sprouts with Balsamic Vinegar

Roasted Sweet Potatoes with Agave and Fresh Rosemary

Baked Sweet Potato Fries

Baked Zucchini Fries

White Chili with Turkey and Cannellini Beans is an easy chili with plenty of healthy protein and flavor.

This spinach and tortellini soup is very easy to make.

Sautéed fish tacos are easy and quick to make for a weeknight meal.

A fast and easy black bean soup can be made with pantry ingredients.

Moroccan spiced chicken soup is made with the butternut squash, mushrooms, carrots, and chicken.

Chinese chicken and broccoli is also easy to make at home.

Spicy red lentil and tomato soup is great for a cold winter evening.

Winter minestrone is full of flafor and healthy vegetables.

Honey!

People have been using honey since ancient times. Recent research by Dr. Paulus Kwakman identified the key elements which give honey its antibacterial activity.

Bacteria are becoming resistant to drugs faster than we’re developing them. Honey might help because it works when other drugs don’t. Studies show it has good activity in vitro against antibiotic-resistant bacteria. An older study reports successful treatment of a chronic wound infections not responding to normal medicine.

So how does it work? It’s a combination of five factors.

1. Hydrogen peroxide, a kind of bleach. The honey enzyme called glucose oxidase makes hydrogen peroxide when honey is diluted with water. We clean toilets with bleach, and it’s pretty good at killing bacteria.

2. Sugar. Honey has so much sugar there’s hardly any water for bacteria to grow in.

3. Methylglyoxal (MGO), an antibacterial compound found in New Zealand Manuka honey a couple of years ago. It’s also found in medical grade honey which is made in controlled greenhouses, albeit in smaller amounts.

4. Bee defensin 1, a protein found in royal jelly (special food for queen bee larva.) This report is the first time bee defensin 1 has been identified in honey, and it works as an antibiotic.

5. Acid. Diluted honey has a pH of around 3.5, the acidic environment slows down bacterial growth.

These five things work together to provide a broad spectrum activity against bacteria. For example, S. aureus is vulnerable hydrogen peroxide, while B. subtillis is challenged only if MGO and bee defensin 1 are working simultaneously. Honey has the right mix for maximum destruction.

So that’s how bees keep their honey fresh and unspoiled by bacterial growth. Perhaps with this information we’ll create enhanced honey to guard against infection, improving on nature like we did with penicillin. Until then, I know what I’m having on my toast.

A Schooner of Science could be named Australia’s best science blog. If you enjoyed reading, please vote for me.

Kwakman, P., te Velde, A., de Boer, L., Speijer, D., Vandenbroucke-Grauls, C., & Zaat, S. (2010). How honey kills bacteria The FASEB Journal, 24 (7), 2576-2582 DOI: 10.1096/fj.09-150789

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Honey has been known since ancient times to have antibacterial activity. The reason why is a combination of five factors: hydrogen peroxide, sugar, methylglyoxal, bee defensin 1, and acid.

anti-Alzheimer's diet

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According to Altzeimer's association, a study of elderly women showed that those who ate the most green, leafy and cruciferous vegetables . . . were one to two years younger in mental function than women who ate few of these vegetables.

Domenico Pratico, an associate professor of pharmacology in Temple's School of Medicine, had previously found a diet rich in methionine -- an amino acid typically found in red meat, fish, beans, eggs, garlic, lentils, onions, yogurt and seeds -- could increase the risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease.

Another study by Domenico Pratico demonstrated that amino-heavy methionine diet is even worse - resulting in less amyloid plaques in the brain.

Other advices include de-fating your diet and staying green and fresh

What you did not know about Urine

Human excretion is the body system that separates and gives of the wastes from the body, usually as urine or sweat.

Liver will change the ammonia a poisonous product of protein digestion into the urine

Urine is 95% water
It has a pinch of dissolved waste from the blood stream, a dash of uric acid and a sprinkle Creatine.

Romans used Urine in Toothpaste as a teeth-whitener

If Urine smells of Ammonia, you may be dehydrated.
If smell is musty, you may have liver disease
Foul smell may indicate bladder infection

the average adult bladder can hold two cups of urine for two to five hours

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So Goes Life...