Vital Wellness

The way we think about food and our mental attitude towards what’s on our plates is an extremely important factor when considering a healthy and wholesome diet. Food should always be enjoyed at a steady pace; try to sit down whenever possible and take your time over a meal instead of grabbing something unhealthy on the go. This will only result in a poor diet.

Despite many of us operating extremely hectic lifestyles and also busy home lives, you should still make time for a healthy meal and if you are going to snack then invest in some healthy alternatives. These alternatives can include the likes of dried fruit, unsalted nuts and homemade smoothies. There are also a range of natural and gluten free snack bars available at stores such as Holland & Barrett , which are a great and more fulfilling alternative to the likes of greasy fries, fast food, crisps, sweets, chocolate bars and fizzy drinks.

Eating with friends and family is also a great way to enjoy a substantial meal and will also make you enjoy the food served at a slower pace due to being in a more relaxed environment. Many eat whilst at their desks or alternatively in front of the TV, this however often leads to over eating, even if we don’t realise it, as it generally takes 20 minutes for our brains to register when we are full.

Chewing your food is also a must and every bite should be savoured instead of gulped down in a mindless fashion, which is often what people tend to do on the go, which often results in indigestion. Food is meant to be enjoyed and with so many amazing and healthy dishes available, each flavour and texture should be made the most of.

Many will mistake thirst for hunger, which is why it is important to keep hydrated at all times. Ask yourself if you are really hunger or if you are just eating for eating sake and always have a glass of water prior to a meal.

If you’re looking for herbal supplements to help aid weightloss, then visit www.hollandandbarrett.com where you can browse a range of products such as hoodia diet pills and acai berries.

There’s no doubt that antioxidants play an important role in almost every function of the body, but scientists have been zeroing in on antioxidants’ ability to defend against respiratory illnesses, such as allergies and asthma. Researchers found out where very few children suffer with allergies. They surveyed 690 chil­dren between the ages of 7 and 18 and gathered data from questionnaires that were completed by their parents.

The researchers discovered that those who ate fresh foods high in antioxidants, such as grapes, oranges, tomatoes, and nuts, were less likely to have wheezing and other respiratory symptoms. In yet another British study of over 2,500 middle-aged men, those who ate five apples a week had greater lung functioning than those who ate no apples. The researchers believed that healthy compounds found in apples, like anti­oxidants, have allergy-fighting effects. Read the rest of this entry »

Food-based vitamin C supplements contain bio-flavonoids. These colorful chemical compounds are intimately related to the ascorbic acid compound of vitamin C. The chemical structure of bio-flavonoids is similar to that of a drug called cromolyn, used in inhalers to reduce asthma-related inflamma­tion.

Bio-Flavonoids

Bio-flavonoids reportedly help reduce the release of symptom-producing histamine, reduce inflammation, and promote healthy connective tissue. Read the rest of this entry »

You probably know someone with a drinking problem. In fact, maybe that person is you.

Problems with alcohol are fairly common in the United States. Two- thirds of all Americans drink and sixty percent are light to moderate drinkers, but up to 10 percent drink excessively.

Alcoholic Problem

The lights to moderate drinkers are probably in pretty good health, because is safe and may be beneficial, since it lowers the risk of cardiovascular disease. But excessive alcohol consumption is another story. Excessive drinking on a daily basis—more than three drinks for a woman and more than six for a man—increases your risk of cancer and can damage the liver, pancreas, heart, and brain, and also increases the risk of breast cancer in women, says doctor. It can cause vitamin deficiencies resulting in anemia, memory loss, osteoporosis, and night blindness. Although rare in this country, when scurvy due to vitamin C deficiency and pellagra due to niacin deficiency do occur, it’s usually in alcoholics. Read the rest of this entry »

If vitamin D is the sunshine vitamin, then vitamin C is the sun block vita­min, say some researchers—many of whom also proclaim it the healthy skin vitamin.

In general, vitamin C is important for keeping the skin younger look­ing, recommends a safe daily vitamin C intake of about 300 to 500 milligrams to maintain skin quality.

Studies have shown that just a minimal amount of ultraviolet rays can deplete exposed skin of vitamin C by 30 percent. Exposure to the ozone in a polluted city can decrease levels of vitamin C by as much as 55 percent. Med­ical researchers have also found vitamin C to be of some help when applied topically. It has been shown to significantly reduce the amount of so-called free radical damage that occurs from sun exposure. Free radicals are naturally occurring unstable molecules that steal electrons from the body’s healthy mol­ecules to balance themselves. Unchecked, they can cause significant tissue damage. Read the rest of this entry »