Guide Easy For Health

Alexander the Great fell in love with this surprisingly sweet fruit in Asia, where he found them growing wild. When he returned to Europe from his military expeditions, he brought some with him.

The ancient Romans gave the apricot its name – from the Latin word for “precocious” – because the apricot is the first fruit of the season to ripen. The name stuck, and the apricot spread all over, from Europe, to America, and all the way to Australia.

The apricot is a fantastic fruit – loaded with beta carotene, iron, fiber, vitamin C, and several B vitamins. If you dry an apricot, its nutrients get more concentrated, making dried apricots a great snack.

Whether fresh or dried, eating apricots will help you fight the effects of aging, protect your eyesight, ward off cancer, and prevent heart disease.

4 ways apricots keep you healthy

Combats cancer.

If you get indigestion from eating tomato products – the prime source of lycopene – here’s great news for you. Apricots, especially dried ones, are another source of lycopene, the amazing carotenoid that can help prevent prostate, breast, and several other cancers. Though apricots aren’t nearly as good a source of lycopene – about 30 dried ones have the same amount as one tomato – munching on them throughout the day can boost your lycopene quicker than you think.

Apricots are also a good source of the most famous carotenoid of them all – beta carotene. This powerful antioxidant reduces your risk of some types of stomach and intestinal cancers. To get these benefits, experts suggest getting at least 5 milligrams of beta carotene each day. That’s equal to about six fresh apricots.

Halts heart disease.

Eating dried apricots as a snack can punch up your levels of iron, potassium, beta carotene, magnesium, and copper. These important nutrients help control your blood pressure and prevent heart disease. Plus, as few as five dried apricots can give you up to 3 grams of fiber, which sweeps cholesterol out of your system before it has a chance to clog your arteries. Read more…

Diabetes remains an epidemic in the U.S., but experts are now more concerned that certain populations may not be getting the right kind of treatment because of their ethnic and cultural beliefs.

Physicians can’t use a one-size-fits-all approach to treating patients with diabetes; physicians, families and community leaders must work together to develop culturally specific programs, according to Dr. Kevin McKinney, Minority Health Affairs Committee chairman of the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists.

Cultural viewpoints of medicine and disease only compound the issue, said McKinney, who spoke at a recent American Medical Association media briefing on diabetes.

For instance, in some societies, religion influences one’s physical and emotional well-being equally. When an illness occurs, a family may seek out the advice of a religious leader before consulting a physician, which would delay treatment and increase the risk of complications.

“Most people in these communities don’t even know they’re at risk,” McKinney said. “They may know about diabetes and its effects, but they’re unaware that living a healthy lifestyle can help reduce their risk.”

McKinney stresses that education is the key to eliminating the prevalence of diabetes in certain communities and suggests programs that pair education with a cultural activity.

“Programs held at community and religious centers can focus on diabetes risk factors and some of the healthier approaches to traditional foods that may help in reducing those risks,” McKinney said. Read more…

Aging of the skin is a natural process by which the collagen and elastin, that keep our skin looking firm and youthful, begin to decline, this results in wrinkles. Cell production and cell quality also diminish over time resulting in wrinkles. These factors unfortunately are out of our control, though diet and supplements can slow down the process, but it won’t stop it.

The influences that are within our control are largely environmental such as pollution (eg; smoking) and sun damage. Here are 20 easy ways to reduce wrinkles and slow down the aging process.

1. Stop smoking (It’s #1 for a reason)
2. Always wear sunscreen whether it’s cloudy or sunny and don’t sunbake.
3. Hydrate your skin by drinking about 8 glasses of water a day.
4. Use skin care products that contain antioxidants and AHA’s.
5. Moisturize the skin on your face twice daily.
6. Reduce stress. (Try reading, exercising, meditating) 15 minutes a day is a good start. Read more…