Apples

The phytonutrients in apples can help you regulate your blood sugar. Recent research has shown that apple polyphenols can help prevent spikes in blood sugar through a variety of mechanisms. Flavonoids like quercetin found in apples can inhibit enzymes like alpha-amylase and alpha-glucosidase. Since these enzymes are involved in the breakdown of complex carbohydrates into simple sugars, your blood sugar has fewer simple sugars to deal with when these enzymes are inhibited. In addition, the polyphenols in apple have been shown to lessen absorption of glucose from the digestive tract; to stimulate the beta cells of the pancreas to secrete insulin; and to increase uptake of glucose from the blood via stimulation of insulin receptors. All of these mechanisms triggered by apple polyphenols can make it easier for you to regulate your blood sugar.

Water

Drink water with a wedge of lemon everyday to naturally detox your body and flush out your system.

Fruit

An apple a day keeps the doctor away.  Although an apple has a low vitamin C content, it has antioxidants & flavonoids which enhances the activity of vitamin C thereby helping to lower the risks of colon cancer, heart attack & stroke.

Medical Benefits of Tea

1. Tea can boost exercise endurance. Scientists have found that the catechins (antioxidants) in green tea extract increase the body’s ability to burn fat as fuel, which accounts for improved muscle endurance.
2. Drinking tea could help reduce the risk of heart attack. Tea might also help protect against cardiovascular and degenerative diseases.
3. The antioxidants in tea might help protect against a boatload of cancers, including breast, colon, colorectal, skin, lung, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, pancreas, liver, ovarian, prostate and oral cancers. But don’t rely solely on tea to keep a healthy body — tea is not a miracle cure, after all. While more studies than not suggest that tea has cancer-fighting benefits, the current research is mixed.

You may be able to boost your fight against the flu with black tea.
Your best defense against contracting the flu is to wash your hands often and get vaccinated against the influenza virus. Black tea may further bolster your efforts to stay healthy. In a recent study, people who gargled with a black tea extract solution twice per day showed a higher immunity to flu virus compared to the people who did not gargle with black tea.

Health benefits of tea#

 A recent study published in the journal Circulation found that drinking more than two cups of tea a day decreased the risk of death following a heart attack by 44 percent. Even less spirited tea drinkers were rewarded: Consuming just two cups a day decreased the risk of death by almost a third.
Tea is a rich source of the flavonoids quercetin, kaempferol, and myricetin, and research shows that high dietry intake of these compounds is associated with a reduced risk of fatal heart attacks. In one study, people who drank about a cup and a half of tea per day were almost 40% less likely to suffer a heart attack compared to tea abstainers.

How to stay young

1.  Throw  out nonessential numbers. This  includes age, weight and height. Let the doctors worry about them. That  is why you pay 'them'

2. Keep  only cheerful friends. The  grouches pull you down.

3. Keep  learning. Learn more  about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain  idle. 'An idle mind is the devil's workshop.'

4.  Enjoy  the simple things. 

5.  Laugh often, long  and loud. Laugh until you gasp for breath.

6.  The  tears happen. Endure,  grieve, and move on. The only person, who is with us our entire life, is ourselves (and GOD). Be ALIVE while you are alive.

7.  Surround  yourself with what you love , whether  it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge. 

8. Cherish  your health: If it is  good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what  you can improve, get help.

9. Don't  take guilt trips. Take a  trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT  to where the guilt is.

10.  Tell the people you love that you love them,  at every opportunity.

AND ALWAYS REMEMBER...
Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but  by  the moments that take our breath away.

And if you don't send this  to at least 8 people - who cares?  But do share this with someone. We all need to live life to  its fullest each day!!

Worry about nothing, pray about everything.

Health is the greatest gift

Health is the greatest gift, contentment the greatest wealth, faithfulness the best relationship.

The benefits of walking

It’s a gentle, low-impact form of exercise that’s easy, free and suitable for people of all ages and most abilities. Here’s why it’s so good for you…

If you’re walking outside in daylight, you’ll be boosting your body’s stores of vitamin D – a nutrient that’s hard to get from food, but that we can synthesise from exposure to sunlight.

1. It strengthens your heart. Regular walking has been shown to reduce your risk of heart disease and stroke. It lowers levels of LDL (bad) cholesterol while increasing levels of HDL (good) cholesterol and keeps blood pressure in check. ‘Anything that raises your heart rate and gets your blood pumping is a workout for your heart and circulatory system,’ says personal trainer Stuart Amory. According to the Stroke Association, walking briskly for up to 30 minutes can help prevent and control the high blood pressure that can cause strokes – reducing your risk by up to 27 per cent.

2. It lowers disease risk.As well as heart disease, a walking habit can slash your risk of developing type 2 diabetes, asthma and some cancers. A study in the British Medical Journal showed taking more steps every day can help ward off diabetes. And according to the charity Walking For Health, regular exercise such as walking could reduce risk by up to 60 per cent. Those of us who are active have around a 20 per cent lowered risk of developing cancer of the colon, breast and womb than those least active.

3. It keeps weight in check. If you’re trying to lose weight, you need to burn about 600 calories a day more than you’re eating,’ says Amory. ‘Putting one foot in front of the other is one of the easiest ways to do that.’ A person weighing 60kg burns 75 calories simply by strolling at 2mph for 30 minutes. Increase that to 3mph and they’ll burn 99 calories. Speed it up to a fast walk (4mph) and that’s 150 calories – the equivalent of three Jaffa Cakes or a jam doughnut. ‘Walking also increases muscle mass and tone and the more muscle you have, the faster your metabolism – so the more calories you burn, even at rest,’ he adds.

4. It can help prevent dementia.Dementia affects one in 14 people over 65 and one in six over 80. We know being active has a protective effect on brain function and regular exercise reduces dementia risk by up to 40 per cent. And according to Age UK older people who walk six miles or more per week could avoid brain shrinkage and so preserve memory as the years pass.

5. ...and osteoporosis, too. Walking counts as a weight-bearing activity,’ says Amory. ‘It stimulates and strengthens bones, increasing their density – really important, especially for women. It also helps maintain healthy joints so may stave off conditions such as arthritis.

6. It tones your legs, bum – and tum. A good walk can help strengthen and shape your legs, giving great definition to calves, quads, hamstrings and lifting your glutes (buttock muscles) – especially if you add hills. But if you really pay attention to your posture as you walk, it can tone your abs and whittle your waist, too.Fitness expert Joanna Hall is founder of the Walkactive method of ‘conscious’ walking for better posture and overall fitness results. She says: ‘Think about lengthening up through your spine to create space between your earlobes and shoulders. Relax your shoulders, pull in your tummy and pelvic floor and imagine you have a cup of water balanced on top of each hip bone that you don’t want to spill. As you walk with this posture, your shoulders will naturally rotate and this works your oblique abdominal muscles – you’ll be taking inches off your waist with every step.’ 

7. Let’s not forget your arms. Your speed when walking comes from your arms,’ says Hall. ‘Hold them at a comfortable level, bent at the elbow, and swing them backwards and forwards as you walk. Swing them faster and you’ll automatically speed up. And all this movement tones your arms, shoulders and upper back.’ Bye bye bingo wings!

8. It boosts your vitamin D levels. If you’re walking outside in daylight, you’ll be boosting your body’s stores of vitamin D – a nutrient that’s hard to get from food, but that we can synthesise from exposure to sunlight. Many people in the UK are deficient in vitamin D and it’s a nutrient that plays a big role in everything from bone health to immunity. While sun safety is still important experts agree that exposing as much skin as you can to the sun, little and often and without burning, will help you to produce sufficient vitamin D.

9. It gives you energy. It might seem like a paradox (and the last thing you might feel like) but a brisk walk is one of the best natural energizers around. It boosts circulation and increases oxygen supply to each and every cell in your body, helping you to feel more alert and alive. It wakes up stiff joints and eases muscle tension so you feel less sluggish. Always have a mid-afternoon energy slump at work? Head out for a walk at lunchtime instead of sitting in a café or at your desk and see what a difference it makes.

10. It makes you happy The ability of exercise to boost mood is undisputed. Studies have shown regular, moderate-intensity exercise (such as brisk walking) to be as effective as antidepressants in cases of mild to moderate depression. Getting active releases feel-good endorphins into the bloodstream, reducing stress and anxiety. And don’t forget it’s often a social activity – joining a walking group or meeting friends to walk and chat is a great way to banish feelings of isolation and loneliness. A survey by the charity Mind found 83 per cent of people with mental health issues look to exercise to help lift their mood. For greatest benefit, they say, get active outdoors and somewhere green.

7 facts about strawberries

I love strawberries!  I love going out into my 

garden and picking them. There are many 

wonderful benefits to eating strawberries and 

lots of interesting facts!
Here are just 7 facts about this juicy, small, 

heart shaped fruit.

Strawberries have anti-inflammatory and anti-pain properties.

Eight strawberries have more vitamin C 
than an orange.

Roughly 27,000 kilos of strawberries are eaten 
during the Wimbledon Championships.

A 100g serving of strawberries will serve you
 for just 50 calories- that's a whooping 0g of fat.

Did you know that strawberries can help
whiten your teeth? The acids in the fruit
help to remove stains.

Strawberries can also be white or yellow and 
some 
can even taste like pineapples.

The strawberry plant with its good mate the
raspberry plant, are members of the 
rose family.