Water is more necessary than food; from one point of view it is food. Water is the great temperature regulator, the basic fluid medium for all the body’s processes, and the supply is guarded zealously. The brain contains water in practically the same proportion as milk. You need to have water to think, to move, to exist - Water is Life!

But there can be too much of a good thing. Waterlogged tissues may not be fat tissues, but that’s the way they strike the public eye. You cannot control your water content by exercise or intake, to any satisfactory extent. Unless there is sufficient moisture in the tissues you can’t break down and burn up fat. There is no valid health rule that can set down your water needs arbitrarily at six or eight or ten glasses a day. A great deal depends on what you eat, too. The safest rule is to drink enough water so that the color of the urine is a light straw yellow.

So in what ways can you do to try and prevent edema or water retention in your body?

One way to prevent water retention is to be sure that you get enough protein in your diet. When protein is severely restricted, water tends to accumulate in the tissues and make them puffy.

The second way to control water retention is by restricting the use of common salt in your foods. Salt has a natural affinity for water; look at the Pacific Ocean. Internally, your fluid economy is something of an ocean itself, in that it contains mineral salts in approximately the same proportions as are found in the seven seas.

Salt holds about seventy times its weight of water in the tissues. If you get a mental picture of one surplus teaspoonful of salt holding seventy teaspoons of water in captivity in your person, you may be encouraged to reduce your salinity. Unless there is water retention, however, or some heart or kidney condition, it is not necessary to restrict salt too severely in the diet.

Instead of salt, which is sodium chloride, you can substitute potassium chloride as an alternative. As the salt surplus dwindles, excess water that it has held in subjection gradually disappears.

An increase in potassium discourages water retention too. Vegetables are, in general, rich in potassium and low in calories. With liberal use of vegetables of low calorie value, and there is an added virtue in the tendency of their potassium to drive out surplus water. Of course if you yield to the natural urge to sprinkle vegetables with common salt, this benefit will be foregone.

In a desire to be fair, water keeps your weight down as well as up. One-fourth of the calories you consumed in yesterday’s meals have already escaped from your person in the form of water vapor—as insensible or invisible perspiration, and in the moist air exhaled from your lungs.

If you don’t believe it, breathe a few calories onto a mirror

Originally, whey was used as an animal feed and later research was conducted into he benefits of whey when Veterinarians noticed that the animals became healthier after being fed with whey.

What is Whey?
Whey contains many similar ingredients in mother’s milk and they are very high in quality proteins. So of all the proteins, whey is no doubt the best! Whey proteins supply the body with many essential amino acids and is a precusor to building muscles, enhances endurance and reduces muscle deterioration.

Where does whey come from?
As we know that there are 2 main proteins in milk:casein and whey, so whey comes from the process where milk is turned into cheese and when liquid is separated from the casein protein, that liquid is whey.

The 2 ways of obtaining whey:
The fastest way to obtain whey is from the top of the yogurt. Yes, the little liquid that forms on top of the yogurt with the extra nutrients. I don’t recall seeing whey in those processed and flavored yogurt that are sold in the supermarkets though. I make my yogurt at home, so must check out the shops’ chillers one of these days!

Making your own whey is quite simple but it needs time so I haven’t done it for a long while.
The only ingredient you need is plain yogurt which is mostly available in the local supermarket. Place a strainer sitting on a high pot or pitcher and line the strainer with 2 layers of cheese/muslin cloth. Next, pour in the yogurt and leave to drip until it slows down, then take the four ends of the cloth and tie them tightly to a long wooden chopsticks or spoon. Put the utensil across the container’s opening and with the yogurt now suspended in the container, leave it to hang until the drips stopped completely. Now, what you have collected in the pot is the whey.

What are some of the benefits of whey proteins?

• Enhances your immune system and fights infections by raising the body levels of glutathione, a powerful anti-oxidant that produces by the body to protect cells and neutralise toxins.
• Promotes fat loss by enhancing the release of glucagons that builds muscles and burns fats and inhibiting the release of insulin.
• Assists in building muscles by stimulating protein synthesis.
• Encourages bone growth thus helping to prevent or slow down osteoprosis.
• Reduces stress and alleviates depression by slowing the production of cortisol, a stressful hormone and promote the release of serotonin which is a calming neurotransmitter.

I have just recovered from a sore throat and some sniffles developed this week after an overseas trip and partly also, due to social circumstances I have been eating the foods I don’t normally eat back home, maybe too, the cold weather played a part in it… so the immune system just went haywire…

Anyway, before the ailment gets out of hand, for the last couple of days, I made a home-brewed concoction using cumin seeds, crushed peppercorns, lemon juice and a tomato to alleviate my discomfort. I can’t remember where I picked this up but I have been using this concoction whenever is needed for some years already as it worked well for me and my family.

It is very easy to prepare this drink, Just roughly take a handful of cumin seeds, some peppercorns and crushed them a bit and a tomato. Lightly rinsed them and place all the ingredients in a small pot of about 400 to 500ml water and bring to boil. Lower the fire and cook until the tomato is soft and turn off the heat.

Strain the liquid with a sieve into a big mug and squeeze a generous amount of lemon juice in. Sip the drink hot. I don’t add any salt to this drink as I find it already tangy and tasty. But if you prefer some taste, you could add a pinch of Himalayan salts. This drink will make you perspire but it is very soothing and soon the sniffles will go away.

Studies done have shown cumin seeds may stimulate the secretion of pancreatic enzymes, compounds that are necessary for proper digestion and absorption of nutrients. Black peppercorns is known for its antioxidant and anti-bacterial properties. A tomato is rich in lycopene which is an antioxidant and vitamin C.

So before you rush off to buy your cough and cold medicine from OTC medications, you might want to give this concoction a try first for it is much more friendly and doesn’t over burden your body…^^

A couple of days I wrote about the benefits of ripe mango. Today’s post is the continuation of the subject - about the benefits of green or unripe mango which I read in article recently. Since the mango is still unripe, the properties of the fruit is acidic, astringent and anti-scorbutic or scurvy.

This is beneficial for the followings:

Heat Stroke : It protects men from the adverse effects of hot and scorching winds. Eat raw mango with salt quenches thirst and helps prevent the excessive loss of sodium chloride and iron due to excessive sweating.

Gastro-intestinal Disorders : Eating one or two small tender mangoes with salt and honey is found to be very effective for treating diarrhoea, dysentry, piles, morning sickness, chronic dyspepsia, indigestion and constipation.

Bilious Disorders : The acids contained in the green mango increases the secretion of bile and act as intestinal antiseptic. Thus, eating green mango daily with honey and pepper treats biliousness and food putrefaction as well as tone up the liver and keep it healthy.

Blood Disorders : It is valuable for treating blood disorders because of its high Vitamin C content. It increases the elasticity of the blood vessels and helps in the formation of new blood cells. The unripe mango helps in the absorption of food iron, prevents bleeding tendencies and increases body resistance against anaemia, tuberculosis, cholera and dysentry.

As always, it is still best to consult your physician first before you treat yourself.

I love eating mangoes…The King of Asiatic Fruits! My favourite way of eating it, is to cut the mango into half and scoop out the flesh and savour the fruit. I also love mango gelato than mango ice cream because I feel that in most ice creams, the fruit essence is used instead of the real fruit puree.

Anyway, I came across this very interesting article on the natural benefits of mango today of which I never thought about until now and would like to share them here, maybe it might help someone? Anyway, don’t take them too seriously.

There are two parts : the ripe mango and the green or unripe mango.

Here, I’ll list about the Ripe Mango benefits:

Eye Disorders : Ripe mangoes are highly beneficial in the treatment of night blindness in which one cannot see properly in dim light. Eating mangoes liberally will also prevent development of refractive errors, dryness of the eyes, softening of the cornea, itching and burning in the eyes.

Infections : Liberal use of mangoes can prevent frequent attacks of common infections such as colds rhinitis and sinusities due to the high concentration of Vitamin A in the fruit.

Scorpion Bites : The mango juice that oozes out at the time of plucking the fruit from the tree gives immediate relief to pain when applied to the scorpion bite or bee sting. The juice can be collected and kept in a bottle for external use only.

Weight Gain : The mango-milk cure is an ideal treatment for loss of weight. Always select and eat the ripe and sweet mangoes first and then followed by milk, three times a day. The quantity of milk and mangoes should be carefully regulated according to the condition of the patient. For rapid weight gain, the patient has to consume between 3 to 4 kilos of mangoes with 4 to 5 litres of milk.

Precautions : In general, excessive consumption of mangoes will cause constipation, eye infections, blood impurities and seasonal fever. So, eat in moderation is the best!

It is said that Iron deficiency - Anaemia, affects about twenty percent of the world’s population. It is the most common type of anaemia caused by inadequate dietary intake or absorption of iron. The deficiency is highly increased by pregnancy, bottle-fed infants, heavy menses and those who are on strict vegetarian diet.

I have just found out that there are two natural types of iron :

• Haeme iron, found in animal foods
• Non-haeme iron, found in plant foods

Here are the three natural ways to prevent iron deficiency :

1. Cooking your foods in cast-iron cookwares

Cooking foods in cast-iron cookwares could add significant amounts of iron to your food and into your body. Research have proved that acidic foods, which have higher moisture content like spaghetti or apple sauce, absorb the most iron. Foods that cooked longer in cast-iron cookwares also absorbed more iron than food being heated up quickly due to the cast-iron cookwares contact.

2. Eating foods that are naturally iron rich

It is suggested to eat animal based products because they contain haeme iron . To improve the absorption rate, it is best to cook haeme iron foods like meat, fish or poultry with non-haeme iron foods that are plant based like green-leafy vegetables or beans. Also, foods that are rich in Vitamin C would help to increase iron absorption.

3. Avoiding whole cow’s milk during infant’s first 12 months

Even though, cow’s milk contains as much iron per litre as breast milk, only a small portion of it is actually absorbed by the body. Hence, breast milk is still one of the best sources of iron for the infant in the first 6 months, besides the other nutrients and benefits found. After that, if breast feeding cannot be continued, then iron-fortified milk formulas should be given instead of whole cow’s milk.

Precautions: Don’t take iron supplements unless advised by your physician, because the need for iron supplements varies between individuals. Excess iron in a person’s body can cause damage to the liver, pancreas, pituitary, joints and heart. As a result of this damage, one can develop cirrhosis of the liver, diabetes, impotence, arthritis and heart failure.

Food Cravings…how do you break it? Many people find food cravings very crafty. They would appear from nowhere and then hit you just when you least expect them. The most critical way on how you respond to your food cravings might just make or break your success at reducing or controlling your weight.

What is food craving?
A food craving normally starts with a thought of something good to eat. It is triggered by encountering a situation in which you see or smell tempting food, even at times just visualising or thinking of something good and dwelling on the idea.

So when they do pop up, here are a few ways for you to tackle:

• Drink lots of water

Maybe you might just mistake dehydration for hunger or cravings. Take a moment to drink a glass of water and see how it goes.

• Temporarily ruin your taste buds

So, if after drinking water, your craving still does not go away, chew some strong mints and get real busy doing something you enjoy, after a while, before you know it, it is already time for your next meal.

• Don’t give in to your craving

You will face the biggest danger whenever you give into them, for you will lose control of how much you eat.
Remember Not To OverDo It! Always eat an amount that is reasonable and appropriate.

• Don’t fool yourself
  If you need that chocolate chip cookie, take caution. It is fine to allow yourself to indulge in what to eat but always remember:“MODERATION IS THE KEY”
• Avoid being hungry
  Ideally, it is best to eat 5 meals a day - 3 meals plus 2 snacks and remember to moderate your portions wisely for each meal. You will find that you feel less hungry and this also helps to boost your metabolism level.

So, if you can catch your cravings early, the better chances you would have in overcoming them