Herbs to Help With Sleep

It seems like every time I turn on the TV lately, I see an ad for another new prescription sleep aid. You can find them from your pharmacist and over the counter in every shape and size. It’s as if there’s a perfect sleep aid for every occasion, but what if you don’t want to take dangerous and possibly addictive chemicals to get yourself to sleep every night?

If you’ve tried all the popular sleep remedies and nothings works for you, consider a trip to your local health food store where you can find a great assortment of natural herbal supplements. While most of these remedies have not been clinically tested, they have been used for years in various cultures to help people naturally relax and get a good night’s rest. Check out these common herbal sleep remedies, one of which is bound to help you finally get some rest.

German chamomile. This is probably the most widely publicized herbal sleep aid in recent years. Simply brew the tea and drink to relax yourself into a peaceful sleep. The best part is that it’s safe to drink during the day when you just need to unwind, something no medical sleep aid can claim.
Lemon balm. This is an herb often used in gardens for its fresh, lemony scent. Lemon balm is a great herb to calm your nerves. You can find it as a tea, in capsules, or as a liquid extract. This makes it extra convenient for every situation.
Valerian root. This is one of the oldest and most widely used herbal sleep remedies. Unlike many other herbs, valerian root has been the subject of several clinical trials where it was found to help people fall asleep faster and get a more restful night’s sleep. It is also available in tea, pill, or liquid form.
Catnip. Sure it sounds crazy, but the herb that makes your cats go wild can actually calm you down and prepare you for sleep. Catnip contains chemicals similar to those in valerian root. In addition to being a sedative, catnip can also help with indigestion and heartburn. It can be enjoyed as a tea or taken in liquid extract form.
St. John’s Wort. This herb not only helps you fall asleep at night, it has also been indicated for treatment of anxiety and depression. Just be sure to take the prescribed dosage because too much can be harmful.
Lavender. This is a safe relaxing herb that is so powerful, it has been shown to reduce and sometimes completely counteract symptoms of caffeine use. Lavender is so convenient because it comes in tea or as an essential oil that can be massaged on, put into a bath, put on cotton balls to infuse into the air, or simply put on your pillow. Lavender oil is not only a great way to calm yourself, it’s also safe for use on children and babies.

You should remember that herbs are generally slower acting than modern medicine, so they may take days or even a couple weeks for you to feel the full effect. Also, just like with any other medication, you should consult your doctor before taking any of these remedies, especially if you’re on any prescription medications. Sweet dreams!

Helpful Tips for Getting a Good Night's Sleep

Now that we know that sleeping well can help us lose weight, it’s time to address things we can do to help us get a good night’s sleep. Most of us have experienced nights when we just couldn’t get to sleep or kept waking up in the middle of the night. While one night of not sleeping can be annoying, persistent insomnia can have negative consequences on our work, personal relationships, and health. If you just haven’t been able to get a good night’s sleep, here are some tips and tricks you can use to catch some zzz’s.

To get proper sleep at night, first watch what you eat. Here are some eating tips for you to sleep on.

Avoid caffeine and other stimulants. You may think you’re okay if you don’t drink caffeine before bedtime, but stimulants can stay in our bodies for up to six hours. If you’re having trouble sleeping, try not to drink caffeine after lunch time. That includes more than the obvious coffee but also sodas and some health drinks.
Don’t drink alcohol. A comforting glass of wine may put you to sleep right away, but you’re much more likely to wake up in the night and have a much less restful sleep.
Try some tryptophan. This is the chemical in turkey that makes us sleepy, the one we hear about around Thanksgiving time. It’s also found with most protein. Try eating a little protein with some complex carbohydrates at night. You could also try a warm glass of milk, another good source of tryptophan.
Avoid a big dinner. A lot of food late at night provides you energy and actually helps wake you up. It can also cause painful indigestion that will keep you from sleeping. Try eating a moderate dinner and a small bedtime snack instead.

You can also get to sleep better if you adjust your sleeping and bedtime habits. Here are a few suggestions you can try.

Have a set sleeping schedule. Our bodies thrive on schedules and rhythms. Waking up and going to bed at a set time will help your body develop a normal sleeping rhythm.
Get darkness and light. Another way to help set your natural rhythms is to make your bedroom dark or wear a mask while you’re sleeping. Shortly after you wake up in the morning, expose yourself to the sun or other bright lights.
Start a bedtime ritual. Our bodies develop natural responses to what we do. If you follow a certain pattern before you go to sleep every night, your body will know it’s time for sleep when you do these things. This will help you fall asleep faster and easier.
Reserve your bedroom for sleeping only. You’re much less likely to be able to sleep well in a place where you work, read, or watch TV. If you sleep and only sleep in your bedroom, your mind won’t be occupied by other things.

If you’re feeling stressed and have a wandering mind at bedtime, try these techniques to calm yourself down.

Take a warm bath. This will soothe your muscles and help you relax. Just be sure your bath isn’t too hot; that can actually make you more awake.
Try deep breathing and visualization. These can not only help calm you and prepare you for rest, they can also clear your mind and push away stressful thoughts. There’s really something to be said for counting sheep!
Avoid stimulating activities. This includes not reading or watching TV before bed. Instead of relaxing and sleeping, you’ll end up thinking about what you saw or read.

If you find that none of these techniques work for you, you may also want to consider herbal remedies that will calm you and help you rest. If all else fails, you should pay a visit to your doctor to rule out any medical causes for poor sleep.

Good News! Sleep and Lose Weight!

Have you been struggling to lose weight? Have you tried diet, exercise, and even weight loss pills, but nothing seems to be doing the trick? The trouble may not be with the things you’re doing while you’re awake, but rather the simple fact that you are awake. Studies have shown that getting more sleep and better quality sleep can help you shed pounds without expensive fad diets. So if you really want to get rid of those excess pounds once and for all, why not spend less time counting calories and more time in bed?

One reason that sleeping more helps you lose weight is probably the most obvious: The more hours you spend sleeping, the fewer hours you have to eat. We all have cravings for certain foods that aren’t good for us, and the longer we’re awake, the longer we have to fight those cravings. Plus, sleep deprivation reduces deductive reasoning skills, so we have less will power to resist.

Another benefit of getting a good night’s rest: You feel energized and awake the next day. If you sleep well the night before, you’re more likely to be able to get up and exercise. Sufficient sleep can give you the energy to work out harder and for longer periods of time, further fueling your weight loss efforts.

It used to be thought that people felt hungry when their stomachs were empty and felt full when their stomachs had no room left, but we know better than that now. Researchers have learned more about hormones and other chemicals in the body and how they affect hunger. One of these chemicals is cortisol. Excess cortisol not only causes us to feel hungry when we’ve had enough to eat, it can also affect the amount of fat we store. On top of this, cortisol decreases memory retention along with other stress inducing side effects. Getting sufficient sleep helps return the cortisol balance to normal.

Two other chemicals that have recently been shown to be affected by the amount of sleep we get are the hormones leptin, which makes us feel hungry, and ghrelin, which makes us feel full. Reduced amounts of sleep can reduce ghrelin levels and increase leptin levels, causing us to feel we need to eat more when we’ve actually had enough.

Another side effect of sleep deprivation is a change in the way the body metabolizes carbohydrates. Most individuals have problems fully digesting carbs without sufficient sleep. This means that instead of being burned for energy, these calories are being stored as fat. Plus, excess carbs in our system can cause a rise in blood sugar levels, along with insulin resistance; these are both symptoms of type 2 diabetes.

If all this evidence isn’t enough to convince you that adequate sleep is important, here’s one more fact: Lack of sleep also drops the level of human growth hormone in your system. While HGH helps children grow bigger, it affects the percentage of fat in proportion to muscle in adults. Decreased levels of this hormone send even more of the food we eat to be stored as fat reserves, further hindering weight loss.

If you’re really serious about losing weight, make it a goal to get a full night’s sleep every night. With adequate sleep along with a healthy diet and an active lifestyle, you’ll likely start seeing those pounds fly off much more quickly.

Hula-Hooping it Up for Exercise Fun and Fitness

I’ve never been a particularly active person. Give me a good book or movie, a soft couch with a few pillows, and a warm afghan and I’m good to go. However, I’ve discovered that couch potatoes like me do need to take a break now and then and get moving in order to stay healthy and keep the pounds and the extra inches off. An easy way to do that? With a hula-hoop!

When my active 74-year-old mother had a problem with her knees and had to stop jogging in place during her Curves workout, she decided to use a hula-hoop instead. In time, she recommended that old childhood toy-friend to me – and I’m so glad she did. She had purchased her hoop at Wal-Mart and recommended I get one like hers, a water-filled hoop. The extra weight of the water made the workout more effective and, actually, made the hoop turn a little more slowly, thus making it easier to keep going. I’m old enough now that I’ve learned to listen to my mother’s advice, so I rushed right out and purchased my own water-filled hoop from the toy department (look near the bikes) at my local Wal-Mart store.

When I was a kid I was really good at keeping a hula-hoop going and it was a lot of fun. I guess that’s one of those skills like riding a bike; it came right back to me. Soon I was spending less time on the couch or in front of the computer and, instead, I began spending time during commercials of my favorite TV shows or even in the kitchen waiting for water to boil, just little snippets of time, hooping it up with my new piece of exercise equipment, my hula-hoop.

I’ve read more about exercising with an exercise hoop since then and it turns out that larger hoops are easier to use, as are weighted hoops. I found a website of a company that sells weighted hoops, a place called Sports-Hoops. They also have a page that shows pictures of how to hoop plus other ways to use their hoops, including a chin workout and an arm workout, both of which I need to try. I’m not sure I can master any of their additional workouts, but I won’t know until I try – and you won’t know if you can hoop it up until you try.

Take a look at the Sports-Hoop instructions and consider either ordering a weighted hoop from them or, for a quicker alternative, trying an inexpensive hula-hoop from your local Wal-Mart or toy store. Try it for a few minutes a day then work up to eight or 10 minutes per day. You may find your waistline whittling away and your fitness level improving. Who would have thought that exercising and being active could be so much fun!

(As with any exercise program, check with your doctor to be sure this one is safe for you.)

Evening Primrose Oil for Healthier Skin

What is the first thing people see when they look at you? Is it your hair, your face, your eyes? Well, it’s probably your skin. While we may not realize it, the skin is the most important part of our body when it comes to looking young and healthy. If our skin looks old, tired, or if we have skin problems, it can seriously affect the way we look and feel. A great way to get healthy, young-looking skin is to use evening primrose oil, or EPO. It can clear up problems and have you looking beautiful in no time.

Before I tell you what it does, I should probably tell you what it is. Evening primrose is an edible plant that grows naturally in North America and has been used by Native Americans for centuries. While they used various parts of the plant, EPO is made from the seeds. It can help improve skin and has also been suggested to help with a variety of other ailments from PMS to breast cancer.

So what’s so special about EPO? Well it is one of the best sources of GLA, an essential fatty acid. GLA is used to maintain normal cell structure. It is also used to produce a hormone that has many uses in the body, including reducing inflammation and helping with digestion.

While there hasn’t been extensive research done on EPO, there has been some scientific evidence to show its effect on skin. It can improve your skin’s health by improving problem skin and allowing your young fresh skin to shine through. Here are some of the benefits of EPO.

* Reduces inflammation. Most of us have had the problem of red puffy skin at one point or another. EPO can help ease swelling, making your skin look younger and healthier.
* Relieves skin allergies. Being an allergy sufferer myself, I tell you there’s nothing like having to hide my legs and neck because of rashes or hives. EPO can help get rid of these symptoms and have you back into the outfits you love.
* Relieves eczema. Those who are afflicted with eczema know that skin can not only look bad, but feel bad too. EPO may ease eczema symptoms, sparing you some of the pain and embarrassment.
* Increases blood flow to the skin. Even if you don’t have skin problems, you can still be benefited by taking EPO. It can increase blood flow to your skin, leaving it healthy and nourished.
* Reduces bruising. While EPO is generally taken orally, it can also be applied directly to the skin to decrease the appearance of bruises.

Remember, as with any medication or supplement, you should talk to your doctor before taking EPO. Once you’ve gotten the okay, you can take this oil regularly for healthy, beautiful skin.

Five Ways to Sneak More Vegetables Into Your Recipes

Vegetables are good for the body, but they don’t always taste so good going down. That is why some folks would rather leave them alone altogether. If your family has trouble getting their five a day, learn a few tips on how to add more veggies to your recipes without sacrificing taste. Your family will be none the wiser.

1. Potpie or casserole extraordinaire. My family loves my homemade chicken potpie. My oldest professes not to like many vegetables, but when I make potpie or casserole dishes he eats more vegetables than he realizes. These two types of dishes offer the perfect place to hide extra servings of vegetables. A small bag of frozen vegetables would do for a potpie but I opt for the larger bag. Campbell’s® Fat Free Cream of Chicken soup coats and hides the extra vegetables in the pie. No one notices the veggies, just the great taste.

2. Hamburger mix-ins. Again, my oldest son doesn’t like anything except ketchup on his hamburgers. To make sure he gets his vegetables, I add a few to the hamburger before I shape it into patties. This technique also works well for meatloaf and turkey burgers. Finely chopped onion and other vegetables will brown along with the burger and blend in, and they make the burgers more flavorful, too.

3. Homemade spaghetti sauce. I call it homemade because I add my own extras. Start with a flavorful sauce such as Hunt's® Garlic and Herb (my favorite). Add whatever meat you desire to the sauce. Diced zucchini, onion, and skinless tomato pieces give the sauce a vegetable boost. After mixing all the ingredients together the vegetables blend evenly into the sauce. No one will suspect that the spaghetti dinner is actually good for them.

4. Add color to your rice. My family loves rice as a dinner side dish. To liven up that plain rice and add some color, mix in a few of their favorite vegetables. I like to add corn or peas or cooked diced carrots. I flavor the rice by boiling it in chicken broth instead of water. When the rice is ready, I add a few peas or carrots and toss well. The slightly sweet vegetables complement the broth and make the rice taste extra good. No one minds the vegetables because they are small.

5. Breakfast scramble. An interesting twist on breakfast is adding crumbled sausage or bacon and low-fat cheese to the scrambled egg mixture. This one-dish meal is perfect for a busy Saturday or Sunday morning. While you are adding the other ingredients, sneak in a few minced red and green peppers for color and health value.

People need a way to eat more vegetables without having to eat them raw or cooked by themselves. Integrating vegetables into as many meals as possible will help your family reach their five-a-day requirements with ease.

Save Time, Money, and Your Health with Weekly Meal Planning

When you first come across weekly meal planning, you may wonder why people even bother. After all, the idea of sitting down once a week to figure out what you are going to cook, making a list of everything you need and then running to the store doesn’t seem like much fun at all. However, weekly meal planning must have benefits, since it is becoming increasingly popular with both families and childless couples. In fact, planning your weekly menu in advance has three major benefits: You save time, save money, and eat healthier meals.

The main benefit of meal planning is that it saves you time. You don’t have to run to the grocery store several times a week, park your car, wander around, wait in the checkout line.... You plan for what you need first, and then go shopping once. You also have everything you need to prepare every single meal for the week on your list, saving you from aimlessly wandering around the store looking for something to fix for dinner. Not only that, but meal planning saves you time when it comes to cooking. You don’t have to dig around your pantry and fridge to figure out what you could fix. Your daily meal, along with a recipe, is right there in front of you. It’s so simple, even your spouse will “get it” and may just start preparing dinner if you are running late.

Weekly meal planning also saves you money. How much money does your family spend on take-out and fast food in a given month? Oftentimes, because there’s no food to prepare when you get home from work, you end up calling for pizza delivery, or you pick up a bucket of fried chicken on the way home. Add up how much money you spend on take-out each month. Even if you only resort to this once a week, it can quickly add up and destroy your monthly food budget. But there’s another reason why weekly meal planning saves you money. Because you will know exactly what you need when you go to the store, you avoid buying groceries that you don’t really need. You also don’t buy food each week just to watch it go bad in your fridge, because you know ahead of time what you need to prepare each meal.

The third major, very important, benefit of meal planning is that you eat healthier. Simply cutting out the fast food is a major health benefit, of course, but menu planning helps you to plan more balanced meals each week. You are more likely to cook baked chicken with brown rice, steamed veggies and a side salad when you plan for it than if you're on a last-minute search for food. Without a menu plan, you might end up heating up a frozen meal or fixing chicken nuggets and tator tots, which ends up not being much healthier than fast food. By planning your menu, you can make sure to include plenty of fresh fruits and vegetables along with lean meats and fish into your family’s diet.

As you can see, the benefits of weekly menu planning are definitely priorities for most people. Who doesn't want more time, more money, and better health? Don't know how to make a plan? Fortunately, there are menu planning services that will handle the “boring” part of finding recipes and making your shopping list for you, and they are quite affordable. So, if you think you'd benefit from weekly menu planning, give it a try on your own, or try a menu planning service. Enjoy your additional time, money and health.

Are you ready to give healthy menu planning a try? Sign up for a FREE 7-day trial to start benefiting from meal planning this week.

Why Focus On Folic Acid?

It's National Folic Acid Week, so it's a fitting time to give this essential vitamin the attention it deserves. Folate, the natural form of folic acid, is a B-vitamin found in many foods, including many South Beach Diet®-friendly foods, like leafy green vegetables, beans, and asparagus.

Folic acid, the synthetic form of the vitamin, is added to fortified foods (such as cereals) and is also found in supplements. Both play a key role in healthy cell growth and may improve cardiovascular health by teaming with vitamins B6 and B12 to lower homocysteine, an amino acid in the blood. An excess of homocysteine is linked to an increased risk of coronary heart disease, peripheral vascular disease, and stroke.

"Meeting your folate requirements by increasing your intake of delicious, folate-rich foods will help moderate homocysteine levels, which may reduce your risk of heart disease," says Dr. Arthur Agatston, preventive cardiologist and author of The South Beach Diet®. "Eating the South Beach Diet® way and getting regular exercise are also important when it comes to lowering your risk of heart disease," he explains.

The recommended dietary allowance (RDA) for folate is 400 micrograms for all adults. Women of childbearing age need to be particularly vigilant about meeting this requirement. Upon the recommendation of a physician, they may need higher doses, since folate can prevent up to 70 percent of neural tube birth defects (such as spina bifida) and can also help prevent cleft lip and cleft palate.
Meeting your folate needs may have other benefits as well. Research suggests that folate may reduce the risk of colon, cervical, and breast cancers, and it might prove helpful for preventing Alzheimer's disease.

Fortunately, folate is abundant in many foods enjoyed on every Phase of The South Beach Diet®. In addition, in 1998, the FDA began requiring folic acid fortification of enriched breads, cereals, flours, pastas, rice, and other grain products to help ensure that people meet their requirement of this nutrient. Enjoy whole-grain versions of these products beginning in Phase 2 of the South Beach Diet®.

Dealing With Memory Loss – Causes and Treatment

“I know ginkgo biloba helps with the memory, but I keep forgetting to take it!”

While forgetting to take your ginkgo makes for a funny, stereotypical cartoon, memory loss can range anywhere from annoying to devastating, depending on its causes. No one wants to lose their memory. If your memory is starting to go, there are many things you can do. The first step in fighting memory loss is to determine the cause. Once you know what’s taking your memories, you can determine the best plan to fight it.

The most common cause of memory loss is aging. As we age, we naturally lose some of the memory capabilities we previously had. While you can’t stop the effects of aging, you can take steps to slow them down. You should eat a healthy diet rich in fruits, vegetables, fish, and other protein sources. These foods contain nutrients that will help feed your brain and keep it working properly. You should also keep your body in shape by getting regular exercise. If you are older and can’t move as much as you used to, try to get up and walk as much as you can; every little bit helps. Along with exercising your body, you should also take steps to exercise your mind. Try to work on puzzles that require accessing memories and using deductive reasoning like crosswords or Sudoku. You can also make an effort to learn new skills and practice them regularly. This will help keep your neurons firing and your mind in shape.

One important fact to know is that memory loss due to aging is a slow process. However, if you notice a sudden or steep progressive loss of memory, it’s important to see a doctor immediately. If your memory loss is caused by a medical problem, early detection could be the key to treatment. Memory loss can be caused by Alzheimer’s or other neurodegenerative diseases, brain tumors, stroke, infection, or seizures. All of these are very serious and need to be treated as soon as possible. If you find you have a neurodegenerative disorder, you’ll probably find it helpful to take the steps mentioned above along with your prescribed medicines and therapies. As with aging, you may not be able to prevent all memory loss from these conditions, but you can see improvement or slow losses.

Have you been feeling kind of down lately? Clinical depression is caused by (and may cause) chemical imbalances in the brain. If your brain isn’t working correctly due to depression, you may experience some memory loss. If you’re noticing memory loss along with symptoms of depression like sadness, changes in appetite, and not wanting to participate in activities, you should seek treatment. In addition to the therapy or prescription medication a doctor may give you, eating right, exercise, and getting plenty of rest are good ways to help combat depression.

You may notice memory loss shortly after going on a new medication. Many times these drugs are simply making you very tired, which is why you are forgetting. Other medicines, particularly barbiturates, can just make you stop remembering things you used to. If memory loss from a medication is interfering with your everyday life, ask your doctor if there are any other options for treatment. You may also want to look into herbal remedies which generally have fewer side effects than conventional medications.

While all of us forget where we put our keys every once in a while, true memory loss is a problem and it’s important to let your doctor help determine if your problem is serious or reversible. The key to dealing with memory loss is to take action early. The sooner you act, the more likely you will be able to manage your memory loss.

~ Take a look at these puzzles and games - for your health's sake.

A Great Antioxidant Recipe - Red Bean Salad

First, a quick quiz. (Did you pay attention to the previous posts?) It's only one question, so don't panic. Ready? The most antioxidant-rich food is . . . what?

If you said "red beans," congratulations! You're absolutely right. And here's your reward, a wonderful recipe from Rachael Ray, from the Food Network website.

Red Bean Salad

2 (15-ounce) cans dark red kidney beans, rinsed and drained well
1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped
3 scallions, chopped, whites and greens
1 rib celery, chopped
1/4 cup (a couple of handfuls) chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 cup sweet red pepper relish
2 tablespoons (2 turns around the bowl in a thin stream) light olive oil or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon (2 splashes) white distilled vinegar
Coarse salt and pepper

Combine all ingredients in a medium bowl and toss well; adjust seasonings.

Antioxidants – The Where’s and How-To’s

Antioxidants are essential to any diet. They not only keep us healthy and functioning properly, the may also prevent cancer and aging. Previously we talked about what antioxidants are and why they’re important, so if you’ve decided you need more of these wonderful nutrients, you’re probably wondering, “Where can I find them?” Well here’s a list of foods and supplements that will help you get all the antioxidants you need to live a happy, healthy life.

While you can get supplements with antioxidants, the best delivery system is your food. A study was done recently to determine which foods were highest in antioxidants and these are some of the ones that made the list.

Beans. You’ve probably always known that beans were good for you, but you may not have known that they are one of the best food sources around for antioxidants. Beans that provide the most antioxidants are small red beans, red kidney beans, black beans, and pinto beans. Small red beans were actually found to be the best antioxidant source of any food!

Fresh fruits. We all know apples are good for us, but what about blueberries, cranberries, blackberries, raspberries, strawberries, cherries, and plums? These are all tasty ways to get your antioxidants. If you’re still partial to apples, stick to red delicious, granny smith, and gala apples. They have more antioxidants than other varieties.

Artichoke. While some people cringe at the thought of eating an artichoke heart, they might be more inclined to chow down when they find out they’re one of the top ten best sources of antioxidants.

If you don’t eat enough of these foods, you can always get antioxidants from supplements. Just remember to look closely at the labels before you buy; supplements need to come from natural sources, not be artificially manufactured. That way you’ll get the best benefit for your money. The best supplements for antioxidant properties are: Vitamin C, Vitamin E, selenium, carotenes, copper, and zinc.

Instead of buying six different individual supplements, you should look for something that contains all these vitamins and minerals in one pill. Not only will you be saving money, some studies indicate that a combination pill is a safer and more effective delivery system for antioxidants. Next time you’re at the grocery store, take some time to look at multivitamin labels to find the perfect one.

In addition to the foods listed above, those that contain the vitamins and minerals listed as supplements can also be eaten to increase your antioxidant intake if you don’t want to use supplements. Try eating an orange for vitamin C or having a carrots as a source of beta carotene.

So remember, by taking supplements or making diet changes, you can drastically increase your antioxidant intake and improve your health and quality of life.

Next time, we'll have a great recipe rich in antioxidants!

Antioxidants - The What's and Why's

You’ve probably heard a lot about antioxidants lately: in the newspaper, in magazines, and on TV. While many supplements and nutrients have been talked about for as long as you can probably remember, antioxidants are a more recent topic. Don’t let this fool you into thinking they’re any less important. Antioxidants are a vital part of staying young and healthy. Today we’ll talk about why antioxidants are important.

First of all, we need to know what an antioxidant is. During normal processes, molecules called free radicals are produced in the body. These are basically unstable atoms or molecules that desperately want to become stable. They do this by stealing electrons from healthy cells, making them unstable and less healthy. Antioxidants reverse this reaction, helping to keep the cells of our body healthy and functioning properly.

One of the most talked about effects of antioxidants is their anti-aging properties. As we age, we constantly copy our cells to replace them when they die. Errors in copying occur and build up to form the aging process. Free radicals can also interfere and have been shown to promote wrinkles, memory problems, weakness of the immune system, and reduced elasticity of tissue; all of which are associated with the aging process. We can’t completely stop aging, but proper amounts of antioxidants can slow the process considerably.

Damage caused by these free radicals is also considered to be a cause of certain cancers. Getting more antioxidants can reduce our risk for certain types of cancer, including cancer of the stomach, prostate, colon, breast, bladder esophagus, pancreas, and possibly many more. Besides cancer, antioxidants have been shown to help prevent other serious problems, such as cardiovascular diseases, stroke, rheumatoid arthritis, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and vision problems. It is likely that antioxidants can help prevent other diseases and disorders, but their full effects simply haven’t been studied yet.

Antioxidants prevent the oxidation of bad cholesterol. When this type of cholesterol oxidizes, it can attach to the walls of blood vessels causing heart disease. This increases the risk for heart attack and stroke. Oxidized cholesterol also contributes to the hardening of blood vessel walls increasing the risk of high blood pressure. Antioxidants can help keep your heart and the rest of your circulatory system healthy.

Another great benefit of antioxidants is that they help boost the immune system. If you get sufficient levels of antioxidants, you’re not only less likely to get sick, it’s also easier for you to fight off diseases you may get. Along these lines, antioxidants can also help you heal faster when you have an injury, large or small.

Next time, we’ll talk about sources of antioxidants, specific foods to eat and supplements to use.

How to Get Your Kids to Eat Their Vegetables

(From the Healthy Meal Mailer)

Do you have trouble getting your kids to eat their veggies? I sure do.

My daughter used to be great about trying and eating just about anything…and then she turned 2 ½. Now it is pretty much impossible to get her to eat anything other than corn when it comes to vegetables. So I had to come up with some fun and sometimes sneaky ways to get some veggies in her. Here are a few of my favorites.

1) Make big pot of vegetable soup, and then add some fun noodle shapes. You can use alphabet noodles or look for some fun novelty shapes. You may be able to find some cartoon characters, toy and sports shapes etc. I have even seen pumpkin and Christmas tree shapes. With a little luck your kids will be too busy spelling words, or identifying the shape to notice all the veggies they are eating in the soup.

2) If you can’t make them eat it, make them drink it. Pour some vegetable juice over ice and add a straw, a cocktail umbrella or a stick of celery and watch them drink it up. Your kids may not get as much fiber as eating the entire vegetable, but getting them to drink their vegetables is better than not getting any vegetables in their system.

3) Have you tried offering them some raw vegetables with some ranch dressing to dip them in? Many kids who don’t care much for cooked vegetables will eat them up if they can dip them. Just grab a bag of baby carrots and cut up some red and yellow peppers and some cucumber. Arrange them on a plate with a little bit of ranch dressing or your favorite vegetable dip on the side.

4) Take it even a step further and let them create artwork out of their vegetables. Offer raw vegetables in different colors and shapes and encourage them to make a vegetable collage on their plate. You can easily make a face using slices of cucumber as eyes, a baby carrot as nose and a slice of red pepper as a mouth. You can use watercress or shredded carrots or even some cheese as hair. Before you know it, you’ll find them sampling their “art supplies”.

5) To get them to eat more vegetables at dinnertime try a little salad bar. Put out some lettuce, some sliced or chopped tomato, slices of cucumber, shredded carrot, slices of red and yellow peppers, small broccoli flowerets and anything else you can think of. You may also want to offer them some choices when it comes to salad dressing. Favorites in our house are Ranch, Italian, Catalina, and French. To top it all of set out some croutons and shredded cheese.

6) Get the kids together and make a cold vegetable pizza. Start out with a can of crescent rolls. Unroll the dough, but don’t pull the triangle shapes apart. Instead push the seams together and bake on a baking sheet according to the package directions. Let the sheet of dough cool completely, then spread with some crème cheese (we like a vegetable or herb flavored one) and top with some thinly sliced raw veggies. Cut into squares and serve.

7) Get them involved in the kitchen especially when it comes to cooking. Ask them to wash the vegetables, if they are old enough let them cut veggies (under your supervision of course), let them help you stir, or anything else you can think of that would be age appropriate. You’ll be amazed at how proud they will be of their finished product. Believe me, they’ll try just about anything if they made it.

8) If everything else fails, hide the vegetables in other food. My mom used to make us some special orange mashed potatoes. We thought it was very fancy, but all she did was to cook some carrots with the potatoes and mashed them right in there. You can also cover broccoli with tomato sauce or cheese. Think of a dish your child really enjoys and sneak a little bit of vegetable in there. Give a few of these ideas a try and see which ones work best for your children. Keep at it and sooner or later they will start to develop a taste for vegetables.

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