A Juicy, Fun Way To Take Your Vitamins

Take Your Vitamins. While kids want great taste, you want to give them the vitamins, minerals and fiber their growing bodies need. Serve watermelon and you can both be happy.

Watermelon is a fun, nutritious way to make sure active kids don't get dehydrated; it's 92 percent water. Take Your Vitamins.

A two-cup serving of watermelon is an excellent source of vitamins A, B6 and C, and it provides 7 percent of the recommended daily value of potassium, with only 80 calories.

Watermelon is fat-free and also contains fiber. Its beautiful red color comes from all-natural lycopene, an antioxidant that can help keep kids' bodies healthy.

Watermelon can be eaten at any meal, breakfast, lunch or dinner, and it's a wonderful snack for the whole family. Delicious on its own, watermelon is a fantastic ingredient in recipes, too. Previously just a summertime treat, tasty watermelon is now available year-round.

A watermelon carving makes a great addition to a kids' party buffet, and the birthday boy or girl can help make it. The salad inside can be as simple as a mixture of blueberries, seedless green grapes and balls of watermelon, cantaloupe and honeydew melon. It's colorful and kids love it.

Carving Instructions for Watermelon Fish

Slice 1/4 inch off the bottom lengthwise to provide a stable base.

With a melon baller, cut half circles over half the top of the watermelon in a rectangular shape, remove and set aside. This piece will be used for the top fin and tail.

Scoop out the flesh.

Cut out the tail shape and the melon balled fin-piece from the rectangular piece set aside earlier. Attach the fin and tail with sturdy, round toothpicks.

Cut out eyes using a melon baller. Trim around the outside of the eye socket, then place it back in, rind side out.

For the mouth, point a paring knife at a downward angle above the stem and slice through 3 inches on either side of the stem, cutting through the rind. Push out the mouth from the inside. For the side fin, cut 3 cuts into the side using the melon baller to make the curves on the back of the fin. Then slice straight cuts to form the top and bottom of the fin.


Read another article : Good Nutrition

A Healthy Guide to Good Nutrition

Good Nutrition. Whether you are at your ideal weight or striving to reach your weight goal is it simply a matter of burning more calories than you take in? The answer, I suggest, is no! Overall body health improvement as well as weight gain or loss must be factored in to the equation or you could be heading for problems. Correct nutrition can help to reduce the risk of a miriad of health-related problems, the most frightening of which are surely heart disease and cancer. Proper nutrition, however, entails eating many different foods, monitoring your consumption of some food and beverage items, and counting calories. Good diets offer balanced nutrition that reduces cholesterol, blood pressure, and helps with weight control.

To function properly, your body must have the correct combination of nutrients Good Nutrition :

Carbohydrates. They are the primary source of ammunition in your diet. The body uses carbohydrates to build glucose which can be used immediately or stored in your body for later. Too much glucose, however, is stored as fat. There are two types of carbohydrates - simple and complex. Sugars are simple carbohydrates. Starches and fibers are complex carbohydrates.

Proteins. Proteins help your body build and maintain muscles and other tissues. They also function in the creation of hormones. Like carbohydrates, excess protein is stored as fat.

Animal and vegetable are the two major types of proteins. Too much animal protein can cause high cholesterol, as it is high in saturated fat.

Fat. Strange as it may seem; fat is another nutrient your body requires. It comes in both saturated and unsaturated forms. Saturated fat puts you at risk of health problems. Unsaturated fat is healthy, but if it goes through any type of refinement process, it can become saturated fat.

Vitamins. These are also required nutrients. Different vitamins perform different tasks within the body. They can work with the metabolism to help with energy levels for any task you can think of that you need your body to perform. It has also been noted that certain vitamins can prevent disease.

For example, vitamins A, C, and E, also called antioxidants, can assist with the prevention of coronary artery disease by keeping build up from occurring on artery walls. Vitamin B-1 is needed for digestion and proper nervous system function. Vitamin B-2 is needed for normal cell growth. Vitamin B-3 helps to detoxify your body. Folic acid assists with production of red blood cells. Vitamin D assists with the absorption of calcium. Vitamin K helps your blood clot.

Minerals and trace elements. These are another nutrient your body requires. Both are used in many different body processes. Minerals like chlorine help make your digestive juices. Phosphorus helps build strong bones. Both can be found in the foods we consume, but with a trace element, your body just needs a tiny amount. Salt is one final nutrient your body requires. You should not consume more than 2400 milligrams per day, though, as it might raise your blood pressure.

You should follow several guidelines to create a well balanced, nutritional diet. First, try to consume two and one half cups of vegetables and two cups of fruit each day. When making your selections for each day, be sure to choose a good variety. A good rough guide is to eat as many different colors as possible, this will help you to select from all five vegetable subgroups at least four times per week.

You should eat at least three ounces of whole grain products each day. At least half of your grain intake should be whole grain based. Milk should also be part of a healthy diet. Consume at least forty-eight ounces of low fat milk or milk products on a daily basis. Your total fat intake should only be between ten and thirty percent of your calories. Most of the fats you consume should be in the form of unsaturated fats, as saturated fats can do much to damage your health. Meat, poultry, dry beans, and milk or milk products should all be lean, low-fat, or fat-free. Less than ten percent of your calories should come from saturated fats, and you should always try to avoid trans-fatty acid.

Fiber-rich fruits, vegetables and whole grains should be a regular part of your diet as should potassium rich foods. Alcoholic beverages should only be consumed in moderation.

Excellent nutrition is the basis of a healthy diet.


Read another article : Your Colon Health

A Colon Detox Can Improve Your Colon Health

Your Colon Health. A healthy colon is a vital part of a healthy body.  The colon, along with the small and large intestines, are a major area where the nutrients in food are absorbed.  If the colon is not clean, it cannot fulfill this important task.  Not only that, the impacted fecal material that builds up in the colon and intestines releases toxins into the bloodstream.  You are in effect getting toxins instead of nutrients - not a very good trade.

 Symptoms that a colon detoxification might be in order include tiredness, PMS, headaches, and of course, constipation.  There are a variety of ways colon cleansing can be done, including colonic irrigation, enemas, dietary fiber, and laxative herbs.  These methods can help, but each has negative points.Your Colon Health.

Another natural option for colon health is to use an oxygen based colon cleanser.  This method uses magnesium oxide that has been treated with oxygen and ozone.  This substance will react with the hydrochloric acid in the stomach to release oxygen.  The oxygen gets into the bloodstream to nourish all parts of the body, but it does more than that.  It also nourishes the favorable bacteria that live in the digestive tract.

Unfavorable bacteria in the digestive tract will give you vomiting, diarrhea, and cramps.  Favorable bacteria compete with the unfavorable ones for living space.  An oxygen based colon detox will encourage those good microbes, for better all around health.  So how exactly does it work?

An oxygen based colon health product creates a chemical reaction that releases oxygen and melts the impacted material in the intestines and colon into gas and liquid.  It will make you need to stay close to a bathroom for a day or so while you eliminate the material from your colon, but you will feel much better afterwards.

Look for an oxygen based colon detox product that is available in a capsule form.  Make sure it does not include ascorbic acid among the ingredients because ascorbic acid is an antioxidant.  An antioxidant will undo the good that could be done by the oxygen.  A good ingredient to look for, however, is GE-132.  This is the germanium-132, which is good for the health of the immune system.  It also facilitates and adds oxygen.  It is considered to be a nutrient that is helpful for many ailments.

Cleansing the colon can help with weight loss.  Many people who have eaten an average diet for years have accumulated ten to twenty pounds of impacted fecal matter in their colons.  An oxygen based colon cleanse will help the body eliminate this material, resulting in a quick loss to jump start your weight loss plan.  Follow up the cleanse with reasonable portions of healthy natural food.  You should have enough energy after the cleanse to start an exercise program, too.

There's a lot more to learn about colon cleansing, and you can do it at

Read another article : Drink Mangosteen Juice

22 Reasons To Drink Mangosteen Juice

Drink Mangosteen Juice. A coworker of mine at work brought in a mangosteen supplement drink and she was selling it for $30 (her price) for a 25 fl oz bottle.  She also gave me information and these 22 reasons why everyone should be drinking mangosteen juice:

1. prevents hardening of the arteries.Drink Mangosteen Juice
2. protects the heart muscle
3. anti-Parkinson, anti-Alzheimer and other forms of dementia
4. anti-depressant
5. prevents and arrest fungus
6. prevents bacterial infections
7. viral fighters and prevention of infections
8. prevents fum disease
9. anti-diarrheal
10. lowers fevers
11. eye care-prevents glaucoma and cataracts
12. pansystemic - a synergistic effect on the whole body
13. energy boosters - anti-fatique
14. anti-aging
15. weight loss (wooo, I'll drink to this!)
16. lowers blood fat (what the heck, I didn't know there is fat in our blood!)
17. anti-tumor benefits
18. cancer: Mangosteen helps in the prevention of cancer with its powerful anti-oxidants.
19. lowers blood pressure
20. numerous references to "Immunostimulants"
21. blood sugar lowering
22. it tastes good

I thought to myself, holy smokes!  Who in the world would buy that? What is mangosteen? I have never heard of it or have the slightest idea what it looks like.

Upon further research, the mangosteen (Garcinia mangostana) is a tropical evergreen tree, believed to have originated in the Sunda Islands and the Moluccas. The tree grows from 7 to 25 meters tall. The edible fruit is deep reddish purple when ripe. In Asia, the mangosteen fruit is known as the "Queen of Fruits," while the durian (Durio spp.) is known as the "King of Fruits." It is closely related to other edible tropical fruits such as button mangosteen and lemondrop mangosteen.

The outer shell of the fruit is rather hard, typically 4-6 cm in diameter. Cutting through the shell, one finds a white, fleshy fruit 3-5 cm in diameter. Depending on the size and ripeness, there may or may not be pits in the segments of the fruit. The number of fruit pods is directly related to the number of petals on the bottom of the shell. On average a mangosteen has 5 fruits (round up figure).

I have eaten a lot of exotic fruits in my life, including the King Of Fruits - durian, but I have never seen or tasted this Queen of Fruits.  I bought the $30 bottle from my coworker and chucked down the mangosteen juice.  I do feel more energetic for the rest of day, and I will have to let you know in the near future if it will help lose some weight!


Read another article : Your Family’s Diet

10 Ways To Sneak Some Extra Fruits And Vegetables In Your Family’s Diet

We all know by now that we should be eating at least five servings of fruits and vegetables each day. But knowing and doing are two different things, aren’t they? Sometimes it is just not easy to get them all in there. We are constantly tempted to fill up on convenience and junk food. If your family is anything like mine, they’d much rather fill up on a bag of chips or a bowl of rice or pasta instead of trying an apple or a plate of steamed broccoli. So we’ll have to get creative. Here are a few ideas to “sneak” some extra vegetables and fruits in your family’s diet.

 1. Start the day with a breakfast smoothie. All you have to do is throw some fruits, low-fat yogurt and ice in a blender. You may also want to add a scoop of protein powder in there for good measure. Just blend for a few seconds and you have the perfect breakfast ready to go. I like to sip mine in a thermal cup on the way to work. To make it even more appealing for your kids, use some frozen yogurt or a scoop of ice cream in the smoothie. They won’t believe that you are letting them have ice cream for breakfast. your family’s diet.
2. Dried fruit makes an excellent snack any time of the day. Add some small cartons of raisins to your child’s lunch box, pack some yogurt-covered raisins in your husband’s briefcase and keep some trail mix sitting around for snacking. You can also add dried fruit to oatmeal and cereal in the morning. My family loves banana chips in their breakfast cereal.

3. Add some fruits and vegetables to your family’s sandwiches. You can add some banana, sliced apples or strawberry slices to a peanut butter sandwich. Top a turkey sandwich with lettuce, tomato, cucumber and anything else they will eat. You can even make a sub shop style vegetable sandwich by combining several different vegetables with some mayonnaise and cheese on bread.

4. Have a salad bar at dinner. Set out a variety of chopped vegetables, some cheese and croutons as well as several choices of salad dressing along with the lettuce and let everybody create their own perfect salad.

5. Let them drink their fruits and vegetables. Keep an assortment of fruit and vegetable juices in the fridge and encourage everyone to drink them as a snack. Get creative. You could start “family cocktail hour” by pouring everybody a glass of his or her favorite juice over ice. Add some straws, cocktail umbrellas and sit together to talk about how everybody’s day went.

6. Try this for dessert. Put a small scoop of ice cream or frozen yogurt in a bowl and top it with lots of fresh or frozen fruit.

7. Offer fruits and vegetables as snacks. You can cut apples into slices and top them with peanut butter or cheese. Cube cheese and serve with grapes. Cut up some fresh veggies and serve them with ranch dip. And of course there’s ants on a log. Spread some cream cheese or peanut butter on the inside of a stick of celery and sprinkle raisins on it (wow, fruit and vegetable in one snack).

8. Try some new fruits and vegetables. Pick something exotic to get your family’s curiosity. With a little luck their curiosity will outweigh their initial apprehension to trying something new. You could try artichokes, plantains, papaya, mango, star fruit, or anything else you can find in the produce department of your local store.

9. Make a pot of vegetable soup or a stew that’s heavy on veggies and easy on the meat. Both of these make some great comfort food when the weather gets cold.

10. Start “My Veggie Day”. Each family member gets to pick a vegetable one day of the week. They qualify to pick a vegetable as long as they tried each vegetable the week before, otherwise they loose a turn and Mom gets to pick.

Incorporate a few of these ideas and you will have everyone in your family eating more fruits and vegetables in no time.

Here is another tip:

Now that everyone in the family has gotten a taste for it, make sure you always have plenty of fresh fruits and veggies available and ready to snack on.


Read another article : Into Your Diet

10 Ways To Get More Antioxidants Into Your Diet

Into Your Diet. It’s no secret that antioxidants are incredibly beneficial to good health. It’s believed the antioxidants in food can help prevent cancer, reverse or slow aging, enhance your immune system, increase your energy and improve heart and other organ health.

Given all we know about antioxidants and their beneficial properties, it’s amazing more people don’t get enough fruits and vegetables, the primary sources of antioxidants. Experts recommend a minimum of 5 servings of fruits and vegetables daily, but say getting 7-10 servings is best. Into Your Diet

There are 10 steps to getting more antioxidants into your diet.

1.Breakfast

Breakfast doesn’t have to be a hurried toaster tart on the way out the door. Throw some strawberries, 100% juice and yogurt into a blender; pour your delicious mixture into a cup and head out the door. You’ve just added one to three servings of fruits to your daily intake. Or throw some berries onto your cold or hot cereal.

Say you truly have no time in the morning and usually grab something on the run. Even the Golden Arches can be some help here. Order a fruit and yogurt parfait and some apple slices. For about $2, you have a breakfast providing one to two servings of fruit.

2.Snacks

Here’s an easy way to get more antioxidants in your diet. How about a handful of raisins for a snack, or some fresh red grapes? Dip some strawberries in yogurt. You’ll feel decadent, but the berries provide the color you’re looking for. Need crunch? How about some baby carrots dipped in hummus? Consider a handful of pecans for crunch and a nice antioxidant boost.

3.Lunch and dinner

It might sound trite, but adding a salad to each of your main daily meals can add loads to your overall health and well-being. They don’t have to be boring, and they don’t have to be just salad greens. If you’re going classic, add some red pepper slices to your green salad, some tomatoes to the Greek salad, or tart cranberries to your field greens. Whip up a broccoli salad for lunch, or be adventurous and mix up a rice salad with a mélange of fresh vegetables like string beans, tomatoes, peppers and red onions.

4.Dessert

Berries, with or without whipped cream or chocolate are a wonderful way to end your day of healthy, antioxidant-rich eating.

5.Beverages

Replace your soda with tea or coffee, both of which boast antioxidant compounds. Have a glass of wine with dinner, or for a real change of pace, pour a glass of chai tea.

6.Think outside the box

We know we can get our antioxidant fix from berries, salads and the like, but researchers say powerful antioxidants can also be found in a variety of unexpected foods, like russet potatoes, artichokes, and small red beans. The beans, in fact, may have more antioxidant power than blueberries, experts say. So to your rice salad full of vegetables, add some beans for even more antioxidants.

7.Cook lightly

You think you’re being good, preparing vegetables each night for your family’s dinner. But if you’re overcooking the vegetables, you’re cooking out a lot of the beneficial properties of the antioxidants. Steam (don’t boil) vegetables, and stop cooking them when they will have all of their bright color and most of their bite.

8.Plant a garden

Experts believe that people who plant and harvest vegetables from their own yards are far more likely to eat more vegetables and fruits than people who buy their produce from the store. So plant a garden, watch it grow and eat the fruits (literally) of your labor.

9.Take your healthy diet on vacation

Too many of us consider going on vacation an opportunity to take a vacation from everything, including healthy eating. Think of vacation as a way to be introduced to new foods. Order an interesting vegetable dish in a restaurant and then pay attention to how the chef prepared the dish.

10.Learn to cook

If you’re cooking, you’re not opening bags and boxes. Cooking involves scrubbing and peeling vegetables, preparing whole foods and paying attention to how things are cooked. If you’re ordering out every night, you’re far less likely to be eating the whole foods and natural fruits and vegetables that provide the base for our antioxidant intake.


Read another article : Healthy Football Season.

10 Tips to a Healthy Football Season

Healthy Football Season. From the word go, the Football season seems provide a plethora of reasons to eat badly. It starts near Labor Day, and goes right on past to New Years. Typically during this time of year our eating habits include foods and drinks that are so delicious, yet carry negative effects.


So I thought how could someone have a fun football (holiday for the Ms.) season, and still fit in their clothes that they wore during pre-season. Below are 10 that could possibly help you reach that goal they may seem like no brainers, but if you take heed you will survive another year without moving to the next waist size. Enjoy the season. Healthy Football Season

1. First things first, don’t even think about dieting during the holiday season. That is, don’t start a new diet. Your biggest goal during our most favorite season is to maintain your weight. This way you can partake in your favorite beverage and snacks without any guilt. 
2. Another good way to avoid packin’ on the pudge is to stay seated, and far away from the food table.
3. Something simple and delicious. I would recommend bringing a light dip with either multigrain or wheat bread, so you have something that is somewhat healthy to munch on. There is a company (I think it has the title of chef in its name) that sells dips and breads that anyone can make, and are a healthy alternative to normal snacks. Just ask your wife, girlfriend, or any woman where you can find a beer bread mix.
4. The beverages tend to favorites for many during this time of year, so be wise in your selection. If you must have a mixed drink, try something like a clear liquor and diet soda, a light or ultra light beer, or a nice glass of wine. I know wine doesn’t scream manly, but it is an alternative. Remember this shouldn’t be painful, just well thought-out. 
5. Good or bad, football games tend to be lengthy, use this to your advantage, and take part in the eating and drinking at a slow pace. The slower your intake, the better chance you will fit in those size 38’s come spring time.
6. Chase the kids, or take a walk, whatever it is, make sure you keep up on some type of activity other than couch coaching, and channel surfing. Winter time is hard enough for many people with the cold and darkness, so some activity will help you gain or maintain physical and mental acuity.  
7. Eat at home before you head to the football stadium, or over a buddies house. This should help prevent a complete submersion in to the food and drinks. Believe me when I tell you, you will feel much better knowing you don’t have to drive home with your pants unbuttoned, either because of pressure or an untimely stomach pain.
8. Eat some chicken wings, not the entire chicken. I think that’s clear, and best of all it applies to all food! And anyway, who wants to get stains all over their new Dallas Terrell Owens jersey.
9. If you have the chance to host a football game, stack the odds on your side by putting veggies, and light snacks out rather than the pizza and wings. I mean really, do we as men pay any attention to what we eat while we are watching a game. So long as the drinks are cold, and our food crunches, we are in heaven. 
10. This rule applies all year long. Stay far and away from fast food joints. It may seem like a good idea while you’re on your way to the game, but we all know it’s not filling, and it’s to exit. 



Read another article :Improve Your Health