Dark Chocolate

Eating dark chocolate daily for two weeks may lessen the risk of heart disease. Eating a couple of chunks daily for a fortnight is enough to ward off high blood pressure and reduce the risk of diabetes, both major risk factors for heart attacks and strokes.

Although the healthy benefits of dark chocolate have been highlighted before, this is believed to be one of the first studies to show it can have such a rapid effect in preventing illness.

The research raises the possibility that chocolate could help some patients boost their health without the need for prescription drugs.

Italian and US researchers who carried out the study deliberately chose a small group of patients who already had problems with blood pressure and the early stages of diabetes.

But they stressed only dark chocolate is good for the heart. Milk chocolate, which is more popular in Britain, does not contain the same quantities of disease-busting ingredients.

Heart disease is Britain's biggest killer, claiming the lives of one in five men and one in six women.

In recent years scientists have discovered certain plant-based foods and drinks such as fruits, vegetables, red wine tea and cocoa can protect the heart against disease.

This is because they are all rich in natural ingredients call flavanols, a type of chemical found in plants. Cocoa beans, the main ingredient for chocolate, contain relatively high levels of flavanols.

Researchers were attracted to cocoa's potential benefits in the war against heart disease by the healthy status of the Kuna Indian tribe of the San Blas islands, near Panama.

The population there has remarkably low levels of artery disease, diabetes or high blood pressure. Even as they age, their blood pressure barely changes, unlike populations in more developed countries, where it tends to rise as we get older.

It's thought high consumption of cocoa is one of the key factors.

Other recent studies have found dark chocolate can protect blood vessels against damage from diabetes and could even hold the key to stopping bowel cancer in its tracks.

Volunteers included 11 men and eight women who already had high blood pressure and a condition called insulin resistance an early warning sign for type two diabetes.
Half the group were then given 100 grammes of dark chocolate over 15 days, averaging just over six grammes a day.

The other half were given the same amount of white chocolate, which contained more fat and sugar and no flavanols at all.

After the first stage of the experiment was over, the two groups swapped over to the other type of chocolate to see how they reacted.

The results, published in the latest Journal of Nutrition, showed dark chocolate triggered significant falls in blood pressure but the white chocolate had no effect.
High blood pressure is anything above 140mmHg/85mmHg.

Those on the dark chocolate diet saw their average readings drop from 142/90mmHg to 137/87mmHg in just two weeks, a significant decline. White chocolate made no difference at all.

One reason flavanols in cocoa work is by increasing production of nitric oxide, which helps relax artery walls and let’s blood flow more freely.

The dark chocolate also reduced the level of insulin resistance. This means the body's cells start to make better use of insulin that is circulating in the blood, rather than let it build up and raise the risk of heart disease.

In a report on their findings, researchers from the University of L'Aquila in Italy and Tufts University, in Boston, USA, said food and drinks manufacturers should look at developing a range of healthy cocoa-based products to help fight heart disease.

'Our findings suggest flavanol-rich, low-energy cocoa food products may have a positive impact on cardiovascular risk factors,' they said.

Confectionery firms have already started to cash in on chocolate's healthy image.
Two years ago Cadbury Schweppes relaunched its Bourneville brand to focus on the surge in demand for healthy dark chocolate.

Some high street retailers report sales of dark chocolate have doubled in recent years as sweet-toothed consumers hope to use their favorite treat to help them live longer.

Read more: UltraCoolFun

Food as Medicine

HEADACHE? EAT FISH!
Eat plenty of fish -- fish oil helps prevent headaches.
So does ginger, which reduces inflammation and pain..

HAY FEVER? EAT YOGURT!
Eat lots of yogurt before pollen season.
Also-eat honey from your area (local region) daily.

TO PREVENT STROKE DRINK TEA!
Prevent buildup of fatty deposits on artery walls with regular doses of tea. (Actually, tea suppresses my appetite and keeps the pounds from invading....Green tea is great for our immune system)!

INSOMNIA (CAN ' T SLEEP?) HONEY!
Use honey as a tranquilizer and sedative.

ASTHMA? EAT ONIONS!!!!
Eating onions helps ease constriction of bronchial tubes. (When I was young, my mother would make onion packs to place on our chest, helped the respiratory ailments and actually made us breathe better).

ARTHRITIS? EAT FISH, TOO!!
Salmon, tuna, mackerel and sardines actually prevent arthritis. (Fish has omega oils!, good for our immune system)

UPSET STOMACH? BANANAS - GINGER!!!!!
Bananas will settle an upset stomach.
Ginger will cure morning sickness and nausea.

BLADDER INFECTION? DRINK CRANBERRY JUICE!!!!
High-acid cranberry juice controls harmful bacteria.

BONE PROBLEMS? EAT PINEAPPLE!!!
Bone fractures and osteoporosis can be prevented by the manganese in pineapple.

PREMENSTRUAL SYNDROME? EAT CORNFLAKES!!!!
Women can ward off the effects of PMS with cornflakes, which help reduce depression, anxiety and fatigue..

MEMORY PROBLEMS? EAT OYSTERS!
Oysters help improve your mental functioning by supplying much-needed zinc.

COLDS? EAT GARLIC!
Clear up that stuffy head with garlic. (Remember, garlic lowers cholesterol, too.)

COUGHING? USE RED PEPPERS!!
A substance similar to that found in the cough syrups is found in hot red pepper. Use red (cayenne) pepper with caution-it can irritate your tummy.

BREAST CANCER? EAT Wheat, bran and cabbage
helps to maintain estrogen at healthy levels.

LUNG CANCER? EAT DARK GREEN AND ORANGE AND VEGGIES!!!
A good antidote is beta carotene, a form of Vitamin A found in dark green and orange vegetables.

ULCERS? EAT CABBAGE ALSO!!!
Cabbage contains chemicals that help heal both gastric and duodenal ulcers.

DIARRHEA? EAT APPLES!
Grate an apple with its skin, let it turn brown and eat it to cure this condition. (Bananas are good for this ailment)

CLOGGED ARTERIES? EAT AVOCADO!
Mono unsaturated fat in avocados lowers cholesterol.

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE? EAT CELERY! AND OLIVE OIL!!!
Olive oil has been shown to lower blood pressure.
Celery contains a chemical that lowers pressure too.

BLOOD SUGAR IMBALANCE? EAT BROCCOLI AND PEANUTS!!!
The chromium in broccoli and peanuts helps regulate insulin and blood sugar.

Kiwi: Tiny but mighty. This is a good source of potassium, magnesium, Vitamin E &fiber. Its Vitamin C content is twice that of an orange.

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

Strawberry: Protective fruit. A strawberry have the highest total antioxidant power among major fruits & protects the body from cancer causing, blood vessels clogging free radicals... (Actually, any berry is good for you...they're high in anti-oxidants and they actually keep us young.........blueberries are the best and very versatile in the health field........they get rid of all the free-radicals that invade our bodies)

Orange: Sweetest medicine. Taking 2 - 4 oranges a day may help keep colds away, lower cholesterol, prevent & dissolve kidney stones as well as lessen the risk of colon cancer!

Watermelon: Coolest Thirst Quencher. Composed of 92% water, it is also packed with a giant dose of glutathione which helps boost our immune system. They are also a key source of lycopene - the cancer fighting oxidant. Other nutrients found in watermelon are Vitamin C &Potassium. (Watermelon also has natural substances [natural SPF sources] that keep our skin healthy, protecting our skin from those darn sunrays)

Guava &Papaya: Top awards for Vitamin C. They are the clear winners for their high Vitamin C content. Guava is also rich in fiber which helps prevent constipation.

Papaya is rich in carotene; this is good for your eyes. (Also good for gas and indigestion)

Tomatoes are very good as a preventative measure for men, keeps those prostrate problems from invading their bodies.