Foods are essentials that the body requires to function properly. It is therefore mandatory that we include the right combinations of these foods in our diet to ensure that our body receives adequate supplements.
Below are the top 10 foods that must always be part of your meal, if you are to live healthy lifestyles:
Sardines
Omega-3 fats can help prevent depression, as well as dementia cause by free-radical damage to brain membranes. Fish is the best source of omega-3 fat, but farmed and large varieties often contain high levels of mercury or other contaminants. Since mercury levels increase with the size of the fish, tiny sardines are safe to eat. And because they are wild, sardines are low in contaminants associated with fish farming. Besides being high in omega-3s, they’re low in calories (one sardine, canned in tomato sauce, has just 71), high in protein (8 grams each) and a good source of calcium and vitamin D.
Walnuts
If you’d rather jump ship than eat a sardine, walnuts are a great alternative source of omega-3s. In fact, walnuts trump all other nuts in this regard. It’s mainly the omega-3s that are responsible for the fact that walnuts help prevent hear disease, but antioxidants unique to walnuts also play an important role. The health benefits you’ll reap are worth every one of the 164 calories in ¼ -cup serving.
Chickpeas
Also called garbanzo beans, these legumes are a great source of fiber, which helps keep blood-sugar levels stable and may aid in preventing type 2 diabetes. Even better news is the emerging evidence that chemicals in legumes called saponins can boost the immune systems and help reduce cholesterol levels. Packed with saponins, chickpeas get extra credit for versatility: You can add them to soups or use them to make hummus.
Spinach
This superstar veggie is high in folic acid, a B vitamin that can help protect against heart disease. Spinach is very high in antioxidants, too, and has been shown in animal studies to prevent and/or reverse age-related damage to neurons (nerve cells that transmit messages in the brain). Spinach also helps prevent macular degeneration, a potentially blinding eye disease associated with aging. Make sure you eat veggies both cooked and raw. When spinach is cooked, the antioxidant lutein is released, but vitamin C is lost. And while cooking carrots releases more vitamin A, eating them raw aid in warding off constipation because their fiber hasn’t been broken down by cooking).
Green Tea
Drinking green tea has been linked with lower rates of breast and gastrointestinal-tract cancers. Much of the early research on the anti-cancer power of green tea focused on antioxidants, but more current research points to the effect it has on the body’s detoxification systems. Chemicals in green tea work in the liver to help deactivate carcinogens that damage DNA in our cells.
Blueberries
The deep color of the superberry is a clue to its antioxidant power. Like spinach, blueberries are linked to improved mental clarity and concentration. In fact, a recent animal study showed that the brain damage that can lead to Alzheimer’s disease. While it is premature to extend this finding to humans, blueberries show promise against degenerative brain diseases.
Broccoli
By far, the best thing anybody can do to protect her health and delay some of the downsides of aging is to eat seven to 10 servings of a variety of fruits and vegetables daily. Some including broccoli, are superstars. Broccoli, which is high in the antioxidant vitamins A and C, is also a good vegetarian source of calcium. More important, broccoli contains an anti-cancer compound called isothiocyanate. A recent study shows that premenopaulsal women who ate 11 servings of broccoli a month had a lower breast-cancer risk.
Yogurt
Calcium-rich low-fat dairy foods can help prevent not only osteoporosis, but obesity, hypertension (high blood pressure) and colon cancer as well. (Calcium supplements don’t offer the same benefits.) Women should aim for 2 to 3 servings a day of skim milk or nonfat yogurt. Active-culture yogurt is preferable because it promotes a balance of “good” bacteria (probiotics) in the digestive tract; it’s easier to digest, too, if you’re lactose-intolerant. Plain yogurt is also a calcium powerhouse, with about 400 milligrams per cup, more than an equivalent amount of skim milk or flavored yogurt.
Flax
Phytoestrogens are plant compounds that are chemically similar to, but less potent than, the estrogen your body produces; they bind to estrogen receptors in your body and may help prevent osteoporosis and heart disease. Flax is a terrific source of the phytoestrogen lignan, and flaxseeds can benefit perimenopausal and menopausal women by helping to reduce symptoms such as hot flashes. Flax is known to be more effective than soy in eliminating bad estrogen.
Rye
Although all whole grains are beneficial for healthy digestion, rye in particular has been shown to protect against insulin resistance and the type 2 diabetes that can result. Rye also may help lower breast-cancer risk due to its very high levels of lignan. Unfortunately, most commercial ryes are of the pantywaist variety. You will need to search hard to find real rye bread (the main ingredient on the label should be whole rye). It could be found in a good supermarket.
Inclusion of some of these foods in your daily diet guarantees you good health.
|
