10 Health Benefits of Lentils

Lentils, coming from the legume family are edible seeds or pulses that can be cooked in a variety of ways. The most popular kinds are black, brown, red, yellow, yellow split peas, black-eyed peas, mung beans, soya beans and French green lentils. They are a rich source of protein, carbohydrates, dietary fiber, essential amino acids and contain a variety of minerals including iron, copper, potassium, manganese, phosphorous, molybdenum, vitamin B1 and folate. Legumes are also ideal for supporting heart health, managing diabetes, preventing cancer, improving digestion, aiding in weight loss as well as boosting the nervous system. Below are some other health benefits of lentils.

 

1. They regulate blood sugar and manage diabetes
Lentils help to regulate sugar levels in the bloodstream preventing diabetes. In fact, it is suggested that individuals who suffer from type 2 diabetes should follow a diet rich in lentils. As lentils are high in soluble fiber they can help lower insulin and plasma glucose thereby stabilizing blood sugar. Studies have also shown that fiber contents help slow down the rate at which the blood absorbs food, thereby keeping sugar level constant.

2. They help lower cholesterol
Studies show that people who consume 3/4 cups of lentils or any other legume had 5% less generation of LDL (bad) cholesterol. 

3. They prevent cancer
Lentils have also been found to counteract cancer. Research shows that foods rich in protein - such as lentils can have a positive effect on cancer cells. Protein has also been shown to create cytotoxin and apoptosis, meaning that they can manage the growth of cancer as well. 

4. They improve digestion
As with other types of legumes, lentils can also boost the digestive process. Lentils are rich in dietary fiber, a non-digestible component that is beneficial in maintaining digestion. Additionally, fiber can promote bowel movement, preventing constipation and other problems associated with digestion. They also remove toxins from the body and ferment healthy bacteria, essential for the digestive tract. 

5. They promote weight loss
It is estimated that a cup of lentils contains just 230 calories and occupies up to 63% of your requirement of daily fiber and protein - two components that keep you full for longer. 

6. They boost the metabolism
The metabolism relies on rich sources of vitamins, including vitamin B3, which is essential for improving digestion and boosting the nervous system. The vitamin also stimulates the metabolic process, whereby it removes more toxins and harmful substances out of the body, bringing more nutrients to all parts of the body. Vitamin B3, also found in lentils, has been shown to control cholesterol levels and decrease the risks of diseases like diabetes, osteoarthritis, Alzheimer's disease and cataracts. 

7. They support brain health
Few foods contain as much folate as lentils do. Just one cup of lentils occupies up to 90% of your daily requirement of folate which plays an important role in the production of neurotransmitters, boosting the nervous system. Folate can also help prevent the risks of birth defects in pregnant women as well as blood disorders, making it a key nutrient for human health. 

8. They improve electrolytic activity
Electrolytic activity plays an important role in the proper function of your body. Lentils contain a mineral known as potassium which is considered to be an excellent substitute for electrolytic activity. Besides acting as an electrolyte, potassium is also beneficial for the functioning of some organs, including the brain, the heart and the kidneys. 

9. They boost energy
If you're feeling a little low on energy, lentils are an excellent source. They are rich in minerals including iron and copper, both of which are essential in boosting energy production. While iron makes copper facilitate red blood cells and protect against anemia, copper plays a role in transferring energy from carbohydrates into the cells. 

10. They improve heart health
Lentils have been found to lower the risks of coronary heart disease. The benefits of lentils are predominantly found in their source of fiber. Studies show that people who eat about 20g per day, experienced 11% fewer risks of cardiovascular disease and 12% fewer risks in comparison to those who eat less fiber. Lentils also contain magnesium, which contributes to cardiovascular health. Magnesium also helps prevent the occurrence of a heart attack and supports the heart after a heart attack has taken place. 

 

this is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     
https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement     

 

The colour of your booger can tell a lot about your cold

The colour of your booger can tell a lot about your cold

It’s that time of the year again when your nose feels stuffed most of the times and you are blowing wads of snot into countless tissues. But before you throw the next tissue in the bin, take a look at it. We know it sounds gross, but the colour of your booger can tell a lot about your cold.
Here is what different colours mean:

Transparent

A transparent fluid means a healthy mucus, which has water, proteins, antibodies and infection-fighting substances. The purpose of this fluid is to irrigate your nasal passage and trap the dust, pollutants, allergens and dust. Your body produces almost a litre of it every day.

White

Mucus that stays around in the clogged nasal passage thickens and becomes white and cloudy as it loses moisture. White mucus is also a sign of dehydration. You can use an over-the-counter saline spray to thin the secretions. 

Yellow

This colour indicates you might have a virus infection. The infection-fighting white blood cells get mixed with your mucus. When these die, it gives your mucus a yellow or brownish colour. If your mucus is yellow, it is also a sign that your cold might last for seven to ten days.

Green

Green colour booger doesn’t always mean that you have a bacterial infection, contrary to what most people believe. If the green colour lasts for more than two weeks along with facial pressure and congestion, you need to see your doctor.

Pink or red

If you have been blowing your nose too hard or your nose is too dry, the blood vessels close to the surface of your nose can rupture. If your nose is too dry, use a humidifier at night and wrap a scarf around your face when you go out. 

Brown

Brown booger can mean dried blood or some dirt that has gone and stayed inside for a while. 

this is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.     
https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations  
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes    
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement     

8 Methods Companies Use To Hide Sugar In Foods

It’s no secret that eating too much added sugar can harm your health in a variety of ways, with excess sugar consumption being linked to a variety of conditions like diabetes, heart disease and cancer. But even if you use little to no added sugar in your cooking, you might be consuming way more of it than the recommended daily amount. How is that possible? One major reason why that might be happening is that companies add a lot of sugar to their products, but they try to conceal it in a variety of ways to be able to pass them off as healthy foods.

And while the maximum daily amount of added sugar for men should be no more than 37.5 grams (9 teaspoons) and for women it should not exceed 25 grams (6 teaspoons), 1 protein bar can contain as much as 30 grams (7.5 teaspoons) of added sugars, which is over the daily recommended allowance for women. Let’s investigate how it is possible for companies to sell you junk food under the premise of healthy food, and how you can use food labels to make smart purchasing decisions that would promote and not harm your health.

1. They Use a Different Word For Sugar

When you want to find out how much sugar a product contains, let’s say, a box of cereal, you usually look at the back of a cereal box and scan the ingredients list for key words like sugar, sucrose, glucose, and fructose. If you don’t find those, or find them in the middle or at the end of the ingredients list, which means that there isn’t a lot of it in the product, you make the conclusion that it’s a healthy choice, right?

Well, not entirely, as many companies nowadays use many “alternative” names for sugar in an attempt to deceive a consumer that is used to scan the ingredients list before purchasing a certain product. Here is a list of such alternative names that you should watch out for when it comes to powdered added sugar.

Added sugar is also often used in syrup form rather than powdered form, in which case they commonly appear as the following ingredients on nutrition labels.

2. Adding Sugar to Things That Aren’t Sweet

You would expect to see added sugar appearing as an ingredient on a box of cookies, but not so much on a can of tomato sauce, salad dressings and soups. The truth is that humans simply love sweet food because our brains run on sugar and it’s addictive, and for companies, it’s a cheap way of making a product tastier for consumers.

Unfortunately, all of the foods we mentioned above can actually contain a lot of sugar, which add up and can be the culprit behind excess sugar consumption. For example, 100 grams of some ketchups can contain as much as 38 grams of sugar, which is higher than the daily allowance for men. That’s why it is always important to always check the sugar content of a product, be it sweet or savory.

3. Adding Health-Related Claims on Product Packaging

You’re better off completely ignoring claims like natural, zero, healthy, low-fat, diet, and light that often appear on the packaging of products. Instead, look directly at the label and analyze the ingredient list. These products are often lower in fat, calories, and sugar, but they’re often way too abundant in sugars.

4. Using So-Called “Healthy” Sugars

Certain products use labels like refined sugar-free or contains no refined sugar. What these labels mean, however, is that a product doesn't contain white sugar. While it may be true that these so-called “healthy” sugars have a slightly lower glycemic index (GI), they still have little to no additional nutrients compared to whole foods and, at the end of the day, they are still added sugars. A list of popular sugars marketed as healthier can be found in the picture below.

The bottom line is that like white sugar, fructose or corn syrup, these sugars should not exceed the overall amount of 37.5 g for men and 25 g for women. So, it doesn’t matter if you consume 25 g of white sugar, or 10 g of coconut sugar, 10 g of agave syrup and 5 g of honey as a woman, both equal your daily recommended amount. That doesn’t mean that you cannot choose these alternatives, but remember that they are just as damaging to your health as any other sugar.

5. Using a Few Types of Sugar

As we mentioned previously, ingredients appear in any ingredients list according to their amounts in a product, so the first ingredient is usually the most abundant one, whereas there will be very little of the last ingredient on the list. Companies learnt to take advantage of this regulation and often uses several types of sugar in smaller amounts, which makes them appear lower on the ingredients list.

This can trick a consumer into believing that there is very little sugar in the product. So, if you see a few different types of sugar in the middle or at the end of the list, know that the added amount of all these sugars may be way higher than you expect. For example, if you look at the picture below, you will see that this cereal uses a variety of sweeteners, such as sugar, honey, and brown sugar syrup that appear in different places on the list. 

6. Not Distinguishing Between Naturally-Occurring and Added Sugars

There is a difference between eating an orange and drinking a glass of soda, even if both of these products contain a lot of sugar. While products containing added sugars, like a glass of soda, do not contain anything apart from whatever is listed on the packaging, whole foods are packed full with fiber, vitamins, antioxidants and essential nutrients that not only mitigate the damage caused by the sugar they contain, but improve your health. Ingredient labels don’t distinguish between the added and naturally-occurring sugars, but you should keep in mind that choosing whole, unprocessed foods is always better.

7. Changing the Nutritional Facts With Time

If you know that a specific brand makes a great low-sugar product, don’t assume it applies to comparable products by the same brand. It is often the case that a similar product, but with a different flavor or simply one that is sold in a different country will not have the same nutritional content the original did.

It is also often the case that brands change the content of their products when they update the packaging, so always be critical of any changes or variations in the product you know is good, as it may actually turn out to be not so low in sugar.

8. Check the Serving Size

The last, but definitely crucial line in the nutrition facts portion of a product is the serving size. Food companies often manipulate the serving size of a product, making it too small to be realistic, but this makes the product look like it’s not that high in sugar. So, for example 1 small can of soda that even a child can gulp down in a matter of seconds often contains multiple servings, which means that by drinking the whole thing you’re actually consuming double or triple the amount of sugar mentioned on the packaging. Be careful and make smart food purchases.

THIS IS ONLY FOR INFORMATION, ALWAYS CONSULT YOU PHYSICIAN BEFORE HAVING ANY PARTICULAR FOOD/ MEDICATION/EXERCISE/OTHER REMEDIES.                                    PS- THOSE INTERESTED IN RECIPES ARE FREE TO  VIEW MY BLOG-                                                                                           https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com/    

                                                                                                                                                     FOR INFO ABOUT KNEE REPLACEMENT, YOU CAN VIEW MY BLOG-                                                  https:// kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com/  

         

                   FOR CROCHET DESIGNS                                                                                                                                                                                                  https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com 

The Colour of The Phlegm Revelas A Lot About One's Health.

When we are ill, especially if it is an illness that involves a hacking cough, it is not uncommon to cough up  phlegm, or sputum. While you may mostly think nothing of it, simply associating it with your current illness, the color of this mucus can tell you a lot about the pathogens that have invaded your body.
The body is a mucus-making machine, producing around 1 to 1.5 liters of this gel-like substance every single day, even when you're healthy. Dr. Matthew Exline, a pulmonologist and critical care specialist at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, explains that, "In health, phlegm/mucus is mostly clear and minimal. If you are coughing up significant amounts of phlegm you could have an infection or allergies.

 

While coughing up some clear phlegm is normal, larger amounts of phlegm may indicate and underlying infection. This occurs because the respiratory tract has become inflamed, which leads to the coughing. In turn, this coughing speeds up the rate of infection.
So, since we've gotten clear phlegm out of the way, let's take a look at what other colors of phlegm mean for our health.
White or Gray Phlegm
If you're coughing up white or gray phlegm then this could be a sign of an upper respiratory tract infection or sinus congestion. Dr. Steve Okhravi, an emergency physician and founder of DocChat and emergency Medical care, states that this kind of phlegm drains from the sinuses - "Normally, your sinus doesn't drip, but when there's inflammation, either viral or bacterial, it can cause a drip from your sinus into your throat."
You might have heard that dairy products can cause this type of mucus to develop, but this simply isn't true. However, dairy can make it thicker, making it harder for the body to drain. This causes the mucus to dry out, leading to a white discharge.  Meanwhile, coughing up gray phlegm could be a sign that your body is trying to rid itself of resin or tars that have accumulated as a result of excessive smoking or inhalation of air pollutants like smog or dust.

Green or Dark Yellow Phlegm
Coughing up thick and dark yellow phlegm could be a sign of a viral or bacterial infections, or a lower respiratory tract infection. Usually, this occurs when they body's immune system sends white blood cells, known as neutrophils, to the area of infection. These cells contain a green protein, which, when present in large numbers, give the mucus a greenish tint.
However, a study published in 2011 in the European Respiratory Journal  found that green or yellow phlegm is not always an indication of an infection.  After some tests were carried out, researchers found that only 59% of every 100 sample of green phlegm contained bacteria while only 46% out of every 100 samples of yellow phlegm contained bacteria. Therefore, having green mucus does not necessarily mean you have a bacterial infection.

 

Brown Phlegm

Smokers tend to produce more brown phlegm, which often comes out mixed with saliva in a grainy texture. Smoking can cause your phlegm to turn brown because of the resin, tar and other particulate matter in cigarettes, which the body is trying to expel.
If you don't smoke and are coughing up brown phlegm, it could be down to the food and drink that you're consuming - Chocolate, coffee, and red wine to name but a few.

Pink Phlegm
Coughing up pink phlegm could be a sign of a pulmonary edema, also known as fluid on the lungs. When seen in small amounts, it can also be a sign of bleeding. This type of phlegm can sometimes have a frothy texture - this is especially common in those who have pre-existing heart problems.

Bloody Phlegm
Blood in the phlegm is known as haemoptysis, while streaks of blood in phlegm is a benign sign of bronchitis. Coughing up a large quantity of bloody phlegm could be a sign of tuberculosis, pneumonia, cancer, or pulmonary embolism. If there is excessive bleeding, more blood than phlegm, or no sign of it stopping, you should seek medical advice immediately because you could be dealing with a very serious health problem. 

 this is only for your information, kindly take the advice of your doctor for medicines, exercises and so on.
https://gscrochetdesigns.blogspot.com. one can see my crochet creations
https://gseasyrecipes.blogspot.com. feel free to view for easy, simple and healthy recipes 
https://kneereplacement-stickclub.blogspot.com. for info on knee replacement   

melanoma has no rules ?

The ABCDE rules for melanoma have been well publicized, but not all melanomas conform. One type, amelanotic melanoma, for example, has no brown or black. Another kind, nodular melanoma, is often symmetrical, with fairly regular borders and few colours. And invasive melanomas can be smaller than six millimeters — the guideline in the ABCDE rules. The rule for you: Don't dismiss an odd-looking or changing mole because it doesn't resemble the textbook example; show it to a dermatologist.