Super Foods. Super Foods to the Rescue-- Steven Pratt, MD

Transcription

1 Super Fds Beans: A great lw-fat, lw-calrie surce f prtein and an easy way t help cntrl yur weight and yur bld sugar. Blueberries: The best fd n the planet t preserve a yung brain as we mature. Brccli: The best fd n the planet t prevent cancer. Oats: A sure-fire way t lwer yur chlesterl. Oranges: The mst readily available surce f vitamin C, which in turn lwers the rate f mst causes f death in this cuntry, fr example, heart disease and cancer. Pumpkin: Laded with phytnutrients, which keep ur skin yung and help prevent damage frm sunlight. Wild salmn: A guaranteed way t lwer yur risk fr cardiac-related death. Sy: The nly cmplete vegetarian surce f prtein. Spinach: The best fd n the planet t prevent cataracts and age-related macular degeneratin, thus ensuring a lifetime f gd visin. Tea -- green r black: The easiest and cheapest n-calrie way t avid heart disease and cancer. Tmates: One f the easiest ways fr men t avid prstate cancer is the cnsumptin f tmates and tmat-based prducts. Skinless turkey breast: The leanest meat surce f prtein n the planet. Walnuts: Cnsuming walnuts is an easy, tasty way t lwer yur risk f cardivascular disease. Ygurt: A tasty, easy way t bst yur immune system. Super Fds t the Rescue-- Steven Pratt, MD

2 All fruits are stellar surces f nutrients, but strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries stand ut frm the pack. They're high in vitamin and fiber cntent. They're an excellent surce f antixidants, cmpunds that prtect ur bdies frm the stress f day t day living. The antixidant anthcyanin has triple the stress-fighting pwer f vitamin C and is knwn t blck cancer-causing damage as well as the effects f many age-related diseases. They give yur memry a bst. The antixidants in berries are believed t enhance brain functin. Fresh berries are kind t the waistline; they are naturally high in water and lw in calries. Dried berries als prvide excellent nutritin, but since mst f the water is missing, their calries are mre cncentrated and yu ll usually wind up eating mre f them. Stck up n fresh berries in the summer, when they re plentiful and inexpensive. Freeze them in small plastic bags t get an antixidant blast year rund. Stir berries int ygurt, sprinkle them n cereal r blend them in smthies. We all knw citrus fruits are laded with vitamin C; ne range has a whle day s requirement. But that's nt all citrus fruits have t ffer. Citrus juice cntains flavnids, a phytnutrient that lwers the bdy's prductin f chlesterl, inhibits bld clt frmatin and bsts the bang f vitamin C. They re als laded with sluble fiber which lwers chlesterl, maintains healthy bld sugar levels, and helps yu t manage yur weight. That explsin f scent that erupts when yu grate a citrus peel is prduced by limnene, an il fund in the peel that might inhibit a variety f cancers. Oranges and grapefruits are in peak seasn during the winter. Their bright flavrs are a perfect antidte t a cld, dreary day. Lemns and limes, available year-rund, are especially welcme during summer s heat.

3 les Stck yur fridge with a rainbw f vegetables and yu'll have a natural pharmacy in yur kitchen. Orange and yellw-hued veggies like winter squash, carrts and sweet ptates and leafy greens cntain cartenids, a pigment ur bdy cnverts t vitamin A. Eating lts f these vegetables will help maintain healthy skin and hair, prtect against prstate cancer, prmte healthy visin and even prvide prtectin frm sunburn. Lycpene, the plant chemical respnsible fr the ruby red f tmates and watermeln, is believed t fight cancer and prmte heart health. Green vegetables like brccli and spinach are sky-high in ptent anti-cancer cmpunds like sulfraphane and quercitin. Althugh garlic and nins may lack the vibrant clrs f ther vegetables, they cntain diallyl sulfide and sapnins, cmpunds that add distinctive flavrs t ur recipes and fight cancer and heart disease. There s n such thing as a bad vegetable. In additin t their phytnutrients, they are packed with vitamins, minerals and fiber, and are a crucial cmpnent f any healthy eating plan. Whle grains are ften in the news these days, and fr gd reasn. They re delicius, inexpensive and packed with prtein, B vitamins, minerals and fiber. Grains cntain many f the same antixidants fund in fruits and vegetables. Research shws a diet high in whle grains may help prevent heart disease, sme cancers, besity and diabetes. Lk fr grains in their least prcessed frm, and try t eat them everyday. Sme immediate benefits yu might ntice are stable bld sugar, less hunger between meals, and better weight management. Sure, cking whle grains can smetimes take a little lnger t prepare than their quick and instant cunterparts, but the benefits and flavr f whle grain are wrth the extra effrt.

4 All fish are great surces f prtein and lw in saturated fat. But cld-water fish, like salmn, mackerel and herring, are premiere surces f mega-3 essential fatty acids. These are fats ur bdies can t prduce, s it s essential we include them in ur diet. Omega-3s ffer many benefits. They reduce the risk f heart disease and cancer. They minimize the symptms f arthritis and inflammatry diseases. They cntribute t healthy skin and hair. They may help with depressin. Dn t lve fish? Yu can get yur mega-3s frm flaxseed, walnuts, almnds and grass-fed beef, althugh the ils are f a lesser nutritinal quality than the thse fund in seafd. Salmn is an easy fish t btain. Mst grcery stres and many restaurants carry it. It's als easy t ck. The high fat level makes salmn perfect fr grilling, rasting r sautéing withut sticking r drying ut. Althugh wild salmn can be pricey, it has an amazing flavr and higher levels f mega-3s than farm-raised fish. Lk fr fresh wild salmn in spring and summer, and farm-raised salmn year-rund. Althugh high in calries, nuts ften enable peple t maintain r lse weight. A small handful eaten between meals r added t salads, grains r vegetables gives a sense f satiety and results in less ttal fd intake. Nuts have great nutritinal benefits, as well. Almnds, pecans and pistachis are rich in prtein. Walnuts cntain mega-3 fatty acids. Tss sesame seeds in a meal fr extra calcium and vitamin E. Sesame, sunflwer and pumpkin seeds are particularly gd surces f phytsterls, als knwn as plant sterls, which prmte heart health. Since nuts are high in fats, they can easily becme rancid. Stre them in the freezer t extend their life. Nuts are als delicius, s it s als a gd idea t practice prtin cntrl. Measure ut small prtins and take care t nt eat them mindlessly frm a large cntainer.

5 The inexpensive legume family, which includes beans, peas, peanuts and lentils, has priceless benefits. Legumes are rich in flic acid, calcium, irn, ptassium, zinc and antixidants. Their high prtein and cmplex carbhydrates prvide steady energy that lasts fr hurs. They are especially high in sluble fiber, and a daily serving f cked beans may lwer bld chlesterl by as much as 18 percent, decreasing the risk f heart disease. Mst legumes als cntain prtease inhibitrs, cmpunds thught t suppress cancer cells and slw tumr grwth. And then there are the prebitics in beans, substances that aid in beneficial bacteria grwth in the intestine. All legumes, and especially sy, are imprtant in vegetarian diets fr their high prtein cntent. But best f all, beans taste great. Dried beans have a superir taste and texture but they take lnger t ck. Canned beans ffer a quick alternative and mst f the same health benefits. Rinse canned beans with water befre cking and yu ll remve as much as 40 percent f the sdium used in prcessing. Prtein is an imprtant part f every diet and is fund in many different fds. Lean prtein, the best kind, can be fund in fish, skinless chicken and turkey, prk tenderlin and certain cuts f beef, like the tp rund. Lw-fat dairy prducts like milk, ygurt, rictta and ther cheeses supply bth prtein and calcium. Prtein is crucial fr tissue repair, building and preserving muscle, and making imprtant enzymes and hrmnes. Lean meats and dairy cntribute valuable minerals like calcium, irn, selenium and zinc. These are nt nly essential fr building bnes, and frming and maintaining nerve functin, but als fr fighting cancer, frming bld cells and keeping immune systems rbust.

6 Tea is the secnd mst ppular drink in the wrld (water is the tp chice). Althugh mst peple think f tea as a sthing and delicius beverage, it pssesses a remarkable wealth f antixidants. All teas, whether black, green, lng r white, are harvested frm the leaves f a variety f plant knwn as the camellia sinensis. The primary distinctin between the different teas is the amunt f fermentatin they underg. Black teas are the mst fermented, white teas the least. Herbal teas are nt technically teas since they d nt include camellia sinensis leaves. All true teas cntain plyphenls, pwerful antixidants believed t prtect against heart disease, certain cancers and strke. The varius levels f fermentatin affect teas in different ways. Recent studies have shwn drinking green tea might bst metablism, lng teas can lwer bld sugar, and black teas can prmte ral health. Tea cntains half the caffeine f cffee. Tea is nt just fr drinking: it has been used fr centuries in marinades and as a flavring agent in dishes.