Medical research is currently being carried out in an attempt to substantiate the many uses of green tea, but the results will take years to obtain. One simple use we can tease out of the complicated benefits is the use of green tea as an antioxidant. It is believed that drinking green tea or ingesting it in liquid or tablet form will provide your body with the antioxidants that will enable you to burn calories in a natural manner and thus achieve weight loss.

Everyone touts the enormous anti-aging benefits of green tea. It works by speeding up cell regeneration and slowing down oxidation. For the purposes of weight loss, green tea is especially notable for its ability to help eliminate toxins from the body as it increases metabolism while at the same time working as a natural and gentle laxative. A faster metabolic rate means that we burn more calories and stop the dieter’s enemy, fatty tissue, from building up in our bodies.

Of course, using green tea alone will not cause weight loss. It is instead part of a strong commitment to a healthier lifestyle involving positive changes in diet, attitude and exercise. But once the commitment is made, green tea is something you can give your body right away to help speed your journey to good health and weight loss.

If you are preparing green tea as an infusion, you should take it at bedtime. When you begin taking green tea it may cause stomach or bowel discomfort for a day or two, although if you continue to use the tea this discomfort will disappear rather soon. This reaction could concern you, but it is the way that these supplements work. This is just the supplement helping to let the body increase its rate of metabolism. If you follow a sensible weight loss diet that includes ample vegetables, plenty of liquids and are sure to exercise, you can usually witness results within a week.

Sometimes you will find extract of ginseng root mixed with green tea. This makes a great combination which increases effectiveness. The popular ginseng root, revered in Tibet and China as the very root of life, provides needed mineral and vitamin supplements as your body detoxifies.

Ginseng is also a great source of energy when you add it to the green tea products and is very apparent when a person is dieting to lose weight, for it helps them keep their energy levels up. Ginseng also has properties that increase the efficiency of a dieter’s immune system. Ginseng and green tea are natural substances that are safe to use, even if you plan to be dieting for as long as twenty-six weeks.

Dark berries like blueberries and cranberries are increasingly recognized in the public as health icons. Not only nutritious by their contents of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, protein and dietary fiber, berries are also synonymous with antioxidant health benefits.

Antioxidants are an important nutrient category thought to be the major health characteristic of colorful fruits and vegetables. Antioxidants are substances synthesized in our bodies or obtained via edible plant chemicals that can prevent or slow oxidative stress to our body’s cells. More than 60 diseases, including cancer, diabetes, inflammatory, neurological and cardiovascular diseases, are linked to oxidative stress that may be relieved by dietary antioxidants.

Scientists believe that plants make antioxidant chemicals to protect the plant’s regenerative capacity from the damaging effects of constant exposure to sunlight, ultraviolet radiation, infections, pests, injury and oxygen radicals produced during photosynthesis. These antioxidants are found in their highest concentrations in the fruit skin (or rind) and seeds.

Antioxidant phytochemicals, such as the blueberry anthocyanins, contribute scent and blue pigment to the berry skin. This plays a useful regenerative role to attract insect pollinators and birds that eat the fruit and then disperse the seeds in their droppings.

Plants also benefit from antioxidant protection in their skin against ultraviolet radiation, photo-oxidative processes, and viral or bacterial pathogens. These are benefits that can be passed on to animals and humans who consume the berries.

Oxidative Stress and “Pigment Power”

Without protective antioxidants from pigments like anthocyanins in berry skin, reactive oxygen species (ROS) are created during normal photosynthesis leading to oxidative injury. These injuries affect proteins, lipids and nucleic acids, and can cause alteration in gene transcription and even lead to programmed cell death (a process scientists call “apoptosis”, eh-poh-toe-sis) in the fruit or its seeds. Some botanists and food chemists refer to this protective benefit as “pigment power”, which is desirable to obtain through the human diet. We acquire this transfer of protection by eating fruits, vegetables and animal sources that have color-rich pigments. Dark berries are an excellent source of these pigments.

Within colorful berries we can find many members of the pigment group called “phenolics.” Each member provides antioxidants, color, scent, and flavor qualities. The following is just a sampling of the thousands of edible plant phenolics. Any one berry species may contain dozens of antioxidant pigments. Each of the berries below is a rich source of anthocyanin pigments; a few of which are listed where medical and food science have revealed preliminary evidence for health benefits.

Here is a list of the antioxidants found in the following berries:

o Blackberries: gallic acid

o Black raspberries: ferulic acid

o Blueberries: anthocyanins, chlorogenic acid, peonidins

o Cranberries: proanthocyanidins, catechins, quercetin

o Elderberries: myricetin

o Red raspberries : ellagitannins, procyanidins

o Red grapes: resveratrol, proanthocyanidins (seeds), catechins

o Strawberries: ellagic acid

ROS – Radical Oxygen Species

When human cells use oxygen, they naturally produce ROS as by-products of normal metabolism. This can lead to cell damage if normal counter-balances are absent in the environment inside and around cells. ROS are also called “oxygen free radicals” or elements so reactive they are “free” to interact with numerous cells and chemicals in the body, often in a way that is damaging.

Antioxidants synthesized internally or introduced from our diets act as neutralizing sponges or “scavengers” of ROS. By donating electrons sought by the free radical, antioxidant molecules serve to counterbalance, absorb, quench, prevent or repair damage done by ROS.

However, when balancing mechanisms are ineffective, perhaps because of a diet poor in antioxidant foods or during the decline of body functions with disease or aging, ROS disperse randomly in a concentration gradient from their point of formation. There, if unchecked by antioxidants, they can cause damage within cells and to nearby cells, that can contribute to disease and aging. This is one of the leading theories for how Alzheimer’s disease progressively destroys neurons.

Oxidative Stress and Dietary “Therapy”

Most diseases are initiated and perpetuated to some degree by ROS and by insufficient amounts of internal and dietary antioxidants. These are the underlying conditions for “oxidative stress” which may explain a sizable component of aging.

If chronic, oxidative stress can lead to an increased risk of developing the following diseases:

• Cancer

• Cardiovascular and inflammatory disorders

• Diabetes

• Neuronal degeneration (e.g., Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease)

• Macular degeneration causing vision loss and general deterioration of aging

• Chronic sickness

Measuring Antioxidant Strength: ORAC

The term ORAC, standing for “oxygen radical absorbance capacity”, is a numerical way of representing antioxidant strength in berries and other foods. When antioxidants are present in a food, their collective strength can be measured in the test tube assay called ORAC.

Recently, scientists working with the US Department of Agriculture published a database of ORAC values.

Dark berries, especially wild and cultivated blueberries, blackberries and cranberries, stood out with the highest ORAC values among some 25 fruits tested. Their values were in a range of about 7,000-13,000 ORAC units per Cup or 250 ml serving.

Preliminary North American guidelines recommend at least 5,000 ORAC units per day for the adult diet. Doubling that number would not only be safe for antioxidant reserves, but would also provide antioxidant qualities that would supply numerous essential macro- and micronutrients. Most importantly though, it would make for enjoyable eating!

The ORAC test will likely gain public acceptance as a standard measure allowing comparisons of freshness and antioxidant strength in different foods. This standard will facilitate selection of high ORAC foods and relate antioxidant capacity to potential protection of health. For example, there is already scientific evidence for an inverse correlation between dietary intake of antioxidant foods and incidence of some cancers (US National Cancer Institute).

Antioxidant Berries

Wild Blueberry (Vaccinium angustifolium).

Wild lowbush blueberries have nearly 50% greater antioxidant strength than their cultivated cousins – the highbush blueberry – that is so popular in grocery stores. Wild blueberries score highest in ORAC among common (but not all) berries, having about 13,000 ORAC units per Cup or 250 ml. Over the past 10 years, the focus of food scientists on health properties of wild blueberries has revealed a compelling story of nutrient richness and diversity of potential health benefits, including:

• Urinary tract health (identical in strength to cranberries)

• Inhibition of cancer development

• Cardiovascular protection

• Mental alertness

• Vision support

Blackberry (Rubus ursinus)

The juicy delicious dark blackberry has great taste and nutrient richness. Confirming the idea that the darkest berries correlate with the strongest antioxidant activity, science has recently demonstrated that blackberries have some of the densest concentrations and widest diversity of phenolics found in the plant world. Blackberry’s ORAC is nearly 8000 units per Cup or 250 ml.

Black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis)

“Blackcaps” are a little-known powerhouse of antioxidant richness and outstanding taste. Isolates from black raspberries were shown in laboratory tests to specifically starve tumor cells by preventing growth of new tumor blood vessels. Overall a more powerful antioxidant berry than even the wild blueberry (ORAC > 15,000 per Cup or 250 ml), blackcaps contain a toolkit of flavors and nutrients.

Cranberry (Vaccinium macrocarpon)

The North American cranberry has become famous for its popular juice. Known well for its anti-adhesion properties, which inhibit bacterial infections in the urinary tract, cranberry extracts have shown anti-cancer and cardio-protective effects in laboratory studies. These results occur mainly from the cranberry’s abundant supply of antioxidant phenolics that also make it a promising agent for blood, brain and vision health.

Elderberry (Sambucus nigra)

Another phenolic-rich dark berry with a delectable taste, the elderberry has been associated with many of the potential health benefits already mentioned. It has stood out particularly in laboratory tests for its anti-inflammatory and urinary tract benefits. The elderberry also shows promise for anti-bacterial and anti-viral effects that may offer protection against such virulent pathogens as Salmonella, E. coli, H. pylori and Staphylococcus.

Red Raspberry (Rubus idaeus)

The red raspberry is well loved for its subtle distinct flavor but is also a wonderful store of antioxidant phytochemicals, particularly one called ellagic acid. One of its other constituents, a ketone, was shown in recent laboratory studies to stimulate fat metabolism, causing experimental animals to lose significant weight.

Red Grape (Vitus vinifera)

The red grape is valued for its familiar popular taste and diverse number of phenolics residing mainly in its skin and seeds. Especially rich in the phenolic called resveratrol, a powerful antioxidant, red grapes are linked to having a possible beneficial effect on:

• Alzheimer’s disease

• Heart disease

• Cancer

• Osteoarthritis

• Other aging disorders

Strawberry (Fragaria vesca)

Containing a host of antioxidant phenolics, the strawberry’s constituents may be particularly important as natural blood-thinners, anti-fungal agents and inhibitors of oxidizing effects on cells from chronic stress.

Other Antioxidants

Other phenolic antioxidants mentioned in current public media include:

• Apigenin

• P-coumarin

• Kaempferol

• Caffeic acid

• Hydroxycinnamic acid

• Tannic acid

• Salicylic acid (similar to aspirin)

These pigment chemicals belong to the flavonoid subclass of the phenolic super-family and are present among dark berries.

Color-rich plant foods like berries offer a delicious, nutritious way of keeping dietary intake of antioxidants high. Eat color! Gain ORAC! Live Well!

Reading

* PubMed, US National Library of Medicine, http://pubmed.gov

* Wild Blueberry Association of North America, http://www.wbana.org

* Wu X et al., Lipophilic and hydrophilic antioxidant capacities of common foods in the United States. J Agric Food Chem 52:4026-37, 2004.

Copyright 2006 Berry Health Inc.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/advice-articles/berries-as-natures-1-antioxidant-food-77044.html

About the Author:

Dr. Paul Gross is a scientist and expert on cardiovascular and brain physiology. A published researcher, Gross recently completed a book on the Chinese wolfberry and has begun another on antioxidant berries. Gross is founder of Berry Health Inc, a developer of nutritional, berry-based supplements. For more information, visit http://www.berrywiSEOnline.com

Course management is developed only by going to the golf course and getting experience to develop your skills. Of course you will make mistakes, but we can avoid making the same mistakes by learning from them and increase the chances of making a good score.

You should always play to your strengths.

Positional Play

The easiest way to the hole is usually best. Take note when you stand on the green the position of the flag. It will be easier to come in from the left side of the fairway if the flag is on the right side of the green.

It may be that the hole is near a hazard or a bunker, in which case a shot to the middle of the green will be the sensible play. The flag may be at the top of a slope, if this is the case it is better to play below the pin as this will give you an easier putt.

Try to think of where you would like your shots to be when you start the hole and play to those positions. Being on the fairway is easier than being in the rough.

Hazards

Some holes will present you with hazards that you cannot get over. The sensible play would be to lay up short. Many times, when ‘laying up’ a common error is made and too much club is used with the result of ending up in the hazard. If you decide to ‘lay up’ then it is best policy to choose a club which will not allow your ball to reach the hazard.

Dog Legs

With the dog leg there is always the temptation to cut off ‘as much as possible’. It is nearly always better to be too wide off the tee than too narrow, as this keeps you out of trouble and gives a better view, without obstacles, around the corner.

Recovery Shots

Even when you plan your positions carefully on a hole we often find that we need to play some kind of ‘escape’ shot. You should always take the safe option - something which wont land you in more trouble - it could be a sideways chip, but if played correctly will get you out of trouble. You should guard against ‘having a go’ unless you are very confident you can play the shot.

The same applies to bunkers, take enough loft to get you out of the bunker. This is the object of the exercise - not to try for the longest shot and in doing so hit the top of the bunker and land back in it!

Course management is the skill of assessing your ability and relating that to the demands of the course correctly. Achieving this to obtain the lowest possible score is what keeps us coming back each week…………………..

Numerous factors can result in back pain and quite important of them all is knots in local muscles. These knots are Indications of diseases like ulcers, kidney stones, a pinched nerve or injury to the back will result in lower back pain. Trigger points, also known as muscle knots and myofasical pain syndrome, is one of the major causes of back pain of these and many other kinds. A little knowledge of trigger points can resolve pain troubles easily especially patients suffering from sciatica.

Muscles that have been tightly contracted and a remote spasm affecting a small part of muscle cells are known as trigger points. The small part of the knotted muscle is stagnant and swampy, partly cutting off its individual blood supply, an aggressive sequence called “metabolic crisis.” A cluster of a lot of malicious trigger points is known as myofasical pain syndrome (MPS). A lot of trigger pints located in a particular muscle group can cause potential magnificent amount of distress for the patient.

It’s very important that you have knowledge of the dangerous effects caused by these trigger points in the human body. Trigger points can result pain straightly in chronic patients along with burning breathing, muscle spasm, infections in vertebra, lower spine, hips, and injuries in lower spine.

Trigger points are fairly able of existing separately of any apparent fundamental setback. In sagacity, they are a natural and usual fraction of muscle tissue. Trigger points cause difficulties in injuries. Trigger points usually form in response to internal and external damages or truly any other sort of pain and dysfunctions with in the lower back muscle or in the muscles of whole body.

Trigger points can elevate and affect other medical conditions and related medical conditions in the human body for physicians and doctors alike. An example would be that trigger points are a major reason for pain than the more well known extensively reported repetitive strain injuries (RSIs), and many several scapegoats for which its usually mistaken for.

The regular practicing massage therapists, physical therapists, and physicians strongly identify that in the majority of cases general pains and aches are actually caused by trigger points, or small contraction knots in the muscles.

Trigger point (back pain knot) treatment is not an overnight remedy for chronic pain but it’s a safe way of treatment for some patients. Physiotherapists and chiropractors consider that “structuralism” exercise therapy (massage), and proper joint functioning in case of trigger pints infections are of the most importance. Other types of treatments require analgesics(pain medications), such as NSAIDs or acetaminophen for acute or chronic muscular pain, relaxants are also greatly helpful. Antidepressants may also be prescribed to patients with chronic low back pain knows are also recommended. Intensive multidisciplinary treatments may help in acute or chronic low back pain knots. Acupuncture along with exercise also helps aid chronic pain.

Most of us have heard that antioxidant vitamins have many health benefits and can even prevent cancer. But getting the correct intake of antioxidants every day as not as simple as eating your fruits and veggies regularly. Find out how to take the most advantage of antioxidants in everyday life and to stay younger and healthier.

Cancer can affect anybody, and despite all the cancer research there is still no real cure for it. That is why it is so important for everybody, to take some preventive measures against cancer. The best way to prevent cancer is to include antioxidant vitamins into your everyday diet.

We all know how bad free radicals can be for our health. But what are they? To put it simply, free radicals are particles that allow extra oxygen into human cells, which causes the cells to break. Antioxidant vitamins can stop this distractive process.

Antioxidant vitamins rich foods

All doctors recommend including a variety of fruits and vegetables into your diet. These bring many benefits to your health, being low in fat and high in fiber. But they are also very rich in antioxidants. Brightly colored vegetables and fruits contain the most antioxidants. So including beetroot, carrots and red capsicum in your everyday menu, would serve you a reasonable amount of antioxidants.

Here are foods with highest content of antioxidants

- cherries,
- blackberry,
- strawberry,
- blueberry,
- red grape
- walnuts
- sunflower seeds
- ginger
- spices
- green tea
- coffee without milk

Common vitamins like Vitamin A, Vitamin C and Vitamin E are all powerful antioxidants, so all fruits rich in these vitamins should be included. But there are many more, for example red wine and red grape contains Reservatrol, an important antioxidant. Another great antioxidant Flavonoid can be found in green tea. So, the most sensible thing to do is to include a wide variety of different fruits, vegetables and berries in your diet. Berries are particularly good, because they all contain large quantities of antioxidant vitamins.

And there is one more source of antioxidants, a food that is usually on a “bad for you” list - chocolate. But it has to be dark chocolate; milk chocolate doesn’t have antioxidant properties. When you eat chocolate, or any antioxidant food, avoid drinking milk at the same time. Milk significantly reduces the effect of antioxidants.

Antioxidant vitamin supplements - are they any good?

Getting vitamins and antioxidants from natural sources is of cause the best. However, with our busy lives many people can’t eat as much fresh produce as they would like. Also bear in mind that when you buy vegetables and fruits during winter months, their antioxidant value is very low. Most vitamins are easily destroyed by light and storage, so tomatoes that are sold in a supermarket in December give you almost no health benefits, even though in general a tomato is considered a good source of antioxidants.

In this case antioxidant supplements can be beneficial. There are plenty of vitamins and dietary supplements on the market. Some of them are specifically marketed as “antioxidant supplements” others are just a variety of vitamins. Many multivitamins contains 100% of all essential vitamins for your health. Also remember, that Vitamin C is an antioxidant, and multivitamins usually don’t contain enough of Vitamin C. So it makes since to take additional Vitamin C supplements.

Whether or not vitamin supplements are as good for you as antioxidants from natural sources is debatable. Some doctors say that by taking antioxidant supplements you can meet most of your antioxidant needs. Others argue that supplements are not as beneficial as vitamins you get from food.

The problem is that vitamins in a pill are not as easily absorbed by our bodies as nutrients we get from food. So eating mostly fast food and taking antioxidant vitamin supplements to compensate is not such a good idea after all.

You can also get natural antioxidant supplements, like grape seed extract. These are absorbed better, than synthetic vitamins.

More health benefits of antioxidants

The best you can do for yourself is to include antioxidant rich foods in your diet and take antioxidants supplements if you feel that you need additional antioxidant boost. But only take quality antioxidant supplements, when it comes to vitamins they are not the same.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/non-fiction-articles/antioxidant-vitamins-as-cancer-prevention-84097.html

About the Author:

Find out what other antioxidant vitamin supplements are essential to your health. Tatyana Turner publishes an online health magazine Antioxidants 4 Health Guide where you can find reviews of best antioxidant supplements

Most books on nutrition assume everybody is the same. But it ain’t so. We’re all different. Yet we are told to avoid fat and eat fruits and vegetables as if there’s no difference between us.

Fat is blamed for everything. Heart disease. Cancer. Overweight. Rising petrol prices. You name it. Instead we should switch to carbohydrates - fruit, veg, grains etc.

When Fat Is Good

Let me inform you of a doctor approved diet for certain types of children. 90% of the calorie intake of the diet is made up of fat. Yet these kids are normal in weight and their cholesterol levels are only slightly higher than ideal. These children are afflicted with epilepsy. The diet helps to control their seizures.

The children might eat a meal consisting of chicken and carrots with butter and double cream. Not exactly your standard fare, but for the children and their families, it’s what they require.

You’re still not convinced are you? You think that’s a special case. Surely we can make the general statement: fat is bad; fruits and vegetables are good?

Not really! Some nutritionists believe our most common nutritional deficiency is …. fat.

Saturated fat from meat and dairy is not the enemy it’s often portrayed as. It may not be particularly desirable, but our bodies are well adapted to eating it. The real problem is that we’re eating far too much of the omega 6 and trans fats from vegetable oils and far too little omega 3 from oily fish.

Avoid Those Vegetables

Glasgow University professor Kenneth McColl has given a warning that vegetable consumption could be behind the UK’s fastest growing cancer. He and his 10-strong research team believe that the three fold increase in throat cancers over the last 20 years could be down to nitrate fertilisers.

Buying organic is not the answer. They are also loaded with nitrate.

I could mention all the naturally occurring toxins, carcinogens and mutagens found in fruits and vegetables. But I won’t. At least not for this article.

I could also mention those people that are especially sensitive to carbs. They need to limit how much fruit and vegetables they eat because they effect their blood sugar levels. But we’ll leave that alone as well.

I could even refer to those people that have a toxic reaction to fruits and vegetables like onions, tomatoes, oranges and grapefruit.

And there are those that are allergic to aspirin. The chemical salicylate which is found in aspirin is also found in high amounts in fruits and vegetables.

Am I seriously telling you to avoid fruits and vegetables and eat fatty foods instead? No, certainly not. For most people this is excellent advice. The point I’m making is that you are an individual. You have your own dietary requirements and needs. There is nobody on earth like you, so don’t let anybody else tell you what to eat. Get to know your own body’s needs. Listen to what it is trying to tell you.

Listen to your body, not to nutrition ‘experts’.

Meet the “New-trients”

Today’s consumers are witnessing a new era in how foods are identified. New nutrients, not commonly understood for their health benefits, seem to be popping up on our grocer’s shelves every day. Omega fatty acids, newly defined sources of dietary fiber, and antioxidant phytochemicals are examples of healthful plant elements that are creeping into public media reports and water-cooler debates.

Laboratory and preliminary human clinical studies are revealing anti-disease properties of these “nutrients.” Extensive food and medical research underway presently will eventually translate the chemical properties into consumer understanding and terminology that we’ll grasp and use in everyday conversation.

With such potential significance to public health, the consumer education process should begin now in a way that people, from teenagers to grandparents, can readily understand antioxidants as easily as we now understand calories, carbohydrates, fat percentage, and vitamin C.

The scientific and regulatory bodies for food labeling have a great challenge ahead of them.

There are thousands of plant food sources with suspected health benefits with complicated chemical names that are unfamiliar and can be intimidating. The challenge at hand is to decipher this blizzard of names and to promote better nutrition for our families and for ourselves.

Why Antioxidants?

The beneficial antioxidant chemicals that we get from colorful plant foods represent our best defense against threatening oxidants. While oxidative stress is a normal part of cellular metabolism that occurs even in healthy people, left unchecked, it can lead to damage that accumulates with age.

Normally, oxidative species or “free radicals” are neutralized by antioxidant enzymes and food-derived antioxidants. However, the following circumstances can cause an imbalanced oxidant-antioxidant relationship that allows oxidative stress to go unopposed.

• Contamination by environmental conditions like pollution, radiation, cigarette smoke and herbicides

• Normal aging

• Poor diets that lack essential nutrients and phytochemicals

The result of this imbalance is cell and tissue damage that could lead to diseases like:

• Cancer

• Hypertension

• Diabetes

• Chronic inflammation

• Neuronal degeneration like Alzheimer’s disease

The Color Code for Antioxidants

Over the past five years, we have begun a valuable process for recognizing plant food antioxidant qualities by groupings of color—The Color Code, as written in two books entitled The Color Code and What Color is Your Diet? (publication information below).

The following is a summary of those color guides for antioxidants, and an example of how we can begin to classify and categorize the different antioxidants into the food color code.

Summary of the Color Code

This is a general scheme of example foods that can fit into each color class. Keep in mind that there are no firm lines between the classes, which allows for overlap.

1. Red – tomato, pink grapefruit, watermelon

2. Blue/Red/Purple/Black (BRPB) – blueberry, cherry, prune, blackberry

3. Orange/Yellow – carrot, pumpkin, orange, papaya

4. Green – broccoli, kale, spinach, pea

5. White – garlic, onion, cabbage, turnip

6. Brown/Gray – spices, nuts, seeds, endogenous sources

How to Apply the Color Code

Here’s a general breakdown of the color groups that have food chemicals with antioxidant qualities:

1.Enzymes (Brown/Gray)

A protein substance with a name ending in “ase”, enzymes stimulate biochemical reactions in living cells and help form new compounds that, in this case, would serve antioxidant functions.

Members of this enzyme class of antioxidants include:

• Superoxide dismutase

• Catalases

• Reductases

• Peroxidases

• Transferases

2.Vitamins (Brown/Gray)

Most consumers would already recognize the three main antioxidant vitamins—A, C and E—that are derived from food and supplements common to the public. Vitamins A and E are fat-soluble, providing antioxidant protection in cell structures like the outer membrane and inner nuclear organelles. Vitamin C dissolves readily in body water compartments, so it is well distributed in the body. Of particular note is the important role of vitamin C in protecting vitamins A and E from damaging oxidative free radicals.

3.Phenolics (BRPB)

With more than 8,000 individual chemicals that serve plants as pigments, the phenolics (also called phenols or polyphenols) are water-soluble acids that not only give plants colors, but also differentiate scents, tastes, and bitterness. The large class of phenolics (called flavonoids) is often mentioned in current public media. Quercetin, kaempferol and peonidin are examples of flavonoids that have been in the news recently.

4.Carotenoids (Orange/Yellow, Red)

A fat-soluble group of more than 600 individual chemicals, the carotenoids (e.g., beta-carotene, lycopene, lutein and zeaxanthin “zee-a-zan-thin”) are especially powerful antioxidants. Due to their chemical structure, they are an excellent source of electrons that are aggressively sought by oxidative free radicals. A carotenoid molecule donates electrons to a free radical, sacrificing itself in antioxidant defense. Terpenes and xanthophylls are included in this class.

5.Hormones (Brown/Gray)

A growing field of medical research is identifying normal hormones typically described with cell-to-cell messaging roles in the body as having antioxidant functions. Presently only a few hormones have this identified property such as melatonin, estradiol and insulin, but future research will likely unravel similar functions for the dozens of hormones known in human physiology.

6.Minerals (All colors)

Minerals have elements that enable enzyme activity. Selenium, zinc, manganese, magnesium and copper are minerals involved in hundreds of antioxidant roles in the body.

7.Glutathione (Brown/Gray)

Probably the human body’s single most important native antioxidant, glutathione is a water-soluble molecule synthesized from food-derived amino acids. It also depends on lipoic acid (below) for synthesis.

8.Lipid effectors (Orange/Yellow)

Lipoic acid is perhaps the “perfect” antioxidant because it is a small powerful molecule that dissolves readily both in fatty layers of cells and in water – the only antioxidant to do this. Other lipid oriented antioxidants include omega fatty acids, tocopherols (like vitamin E), phytosterols, perillyl alcohol and essential oils such as limonene.

9.Saponins, steroids and stilbenes (Green, BRPB)

Related in this discussion only by their common first letter “s”, this group has established antioxidant functions and includes some well-known chemicals such as resveratrol (a stilbene of red wine and dark grapes), brassinosteroid (the growth regulator of plants) and saponin (the waxy covering on plant leaves).

10.Sulfur-containing chemicals (Green, White)

Including organosulfides, tri and diallyl sulfides and sulforaphane, this group from plants like broccoli and cabbage has been shown to have properties affecting antioxidant enzyme activity, inflammatory mediators and tumor growth.

Proposing an Antioxidant Nomenclature

Just as vitamins have been given a nominal identity (Vitamin A, B, C…etc) so too should we refer to antioxidants. This is a new system not yet formally proposed to any regulatory authority or scientific body. Classification of antioxidants must undergo the scrutiny, revision and adoption by scientists, industry and government to be acceptable for food label use in the public.

Here is the proposed breakdown:

1. Antioxidant C – carotenoids

2. Antioxidant E – enzymes

3. Antioxidant G – glutathione

4. Antioxidant H – hormones

5. Antioxidant L – lipid-associated chemicals

6. Antioxidant M – minerals

7. Antioxidant P – phenolics

8. Antioxidant S – saponins, steroids, stilbenes, sulfurs

9. Antioxidant V – vitamins

Over time, the public must feel these proposed antioxidant classes are informative and practical for understanding antioxidants and choosing preferred foods. Time will tell, but this list gives us a simple working structure to get a handle on naming antioxidants.

Reading

* Heber D. What Color Is Your Diet? HarperCollins, New York, 2001.

* Joseph JA, Nadeau DA, Underwood A. The Color Code, Hyperion, New York, 2002.

* Lee J, Koo N, Min DB. Reactive oxygen species, aging, and antioxidative nutraceuticals. Compreh. Rev. Food Sci. Food Safety 3:21-33, 2004.

Copyright 2006 Berry Health Inc.

Article Source: http://www.articlesbase.com/advice-articles/getting-a-handle-on-antioxidants-a-color-guide-for-selecting-foods-by-specific-antioxidant-groups-77020.html

About the Author:

Dr. Paul Gross is a scientist and expert on cardiovascular and brain physiology. A published researcher, Gross recently completed a book on the Chinese wolfberry and has begun another on antioxidant berries. Gross is founder of Berry Health Inc, a developer of nutritional, berry-based supplements. For more information, visit http://www.berrywiSEOnline.com

Weight loss is a very difficult task because you have to change the way you live your life. Successful weight loss and lasting weight loss is only done by changing your lifestyle. Making changes with regards to what foods you consume and your exercise habits.

People are rarely successful if they look at weight loss as a race. It took time for you to put the on the excess weight. So naturally it is going to take some time to lose your excess weight. Instead of changing everything, change one thing such as how often you go for walks or regularly eating vegetables.

When you make your changes be patient and keep them practical. For instance if you are not exercising at all, decide to exercise twice a week. This will allow you to easily make exercising twice a week a new lasting habit.

By keeping changes rational you have a higher likelihood of being successful. This will give you a sense of accomplishment and make the next step much easier. Easy changes will still cause you to lose weight and a lot of little steps will equal a huge step.

Frequently people will revert back to their old lifestyle. This is nothing to get frazzled by it is normal. What determine your success is, if you can return to your new healthy lifestyle. Thus, it is important to take small steps and make it effortless to return to your healthy lifestyle.

When you make your initial changes just look at a healthier lifestyle. The aim is to get healthy and that will bring about weight loss. Think about the places in your life where you can minimize your unhealthy habits, such as eating too many sweets or exercise. Then make a sensible change and stick with it.

If you are concerned with immediate weight loss then consider taking a diet pill. This has been found to help lose weight right away. Remember the goal is to be healthy so make sure to change your lifestyle along with taking a diet pill.

Akavar is a diet tablet that some have found to be useful in weight loss. It works on restricting the number of calories your body absorbs from food. Just remember to make your lifestyle changes along with taking a diet tablet.

Everyone wants to drop weight quickly. There is a right and wrong way to lose weight fast and healthy. The wrong way is losing too fast, dieting with crazy diets, or over exercising, which can have dangerous results.

There are tons of diets, pills, and supplements currently on the market. While some of these have shown to help people lose weight, many have not. In fact, not only are most of these a waste of money but the weight comes right back.

Rather than feel disappointed, people need to be realistic about the right ways to lose weight fast and healthy. Typically, dropping one to three pounds a week is a healthy rate but anything more can be harmful. After all, the goal is to do whatever it takes to enjoy lasting results.

To lose weight fast and healthy, liquid diets need to be carefully considered. The makers of these products push hard, making them seem like miracle cures to excessive weight. In truth, once a person stops drinking the product, they regain any lost weight, meaning they did lose weight quickly but only with temporary results.

The first step to lose weight fast and healthy is to make proven choices and be wise about decisions made. The truth is that any type of healthy and quick loss associated with weight loss begins by re-training the mind and body. Most people are accustomed to eating fast or processed foods but instead, the diet needs to consist of lean meats, fish, chicken and turkey, low fat dairy, fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grains, and good carbohydrates.

Too often, a diet will fail because the results are only temporary. Obviously, this makes the person feel defeated and frustrated. To lose pounds and keep them off, the individual has to be realistic with goals, establishing only what can be achieved with daily exercise and better diet.

Along with proper diet and exercise, a few supplements have received tons of publicity for working in a safe and healthy way. One of these is Hoodia Gordonii, which comes from a plant in Africa. Hoodia was discovered by Bushmen who chew on the plant to ward off hunger while out hunting.

To lose weight fast and healthy, a person can include supplements but people need to know what these supplements are before taking them. Often, people interested in ways to lose weight fast and healthy, they will begin to bypass meals. The problem is that the body thinks it is being starved, which results in any food consumed being stored as fat for survival.

Any easy low calorie diet starts with breakfast. Of all meals, this is without doubt, the most vital. Breakfast will kick start the hormones in the body, boosting metabolism so calories are burned more effectively.

Anything eaten that is not burned with exercise will be stored as fat. With a reservoir of fat, the person will begin to notice weight gain. In other words, the body is no longer functioning at optimal performance.

Any diet that is healthy and effective has to start with a good breakfast, followed by five to six small portion meals of healthy food choices. This coupled with exercise and a positive attitude will go a long way. Soon, the weight will come off and the person can enjoy the benefits of hard work and determination.

If you’re like many people trying to lose weight, you’re always on the lookout for something new. You should consider trying green tea for weight loss and the pound might melt away faster than you’d expect. Green tea comes in several different varieties and many favors. Green tea also has additional health benefits besides aiding in weight loss.

Green tea leaves are processed by steaming or drying, they are not fermented. This means that green tea contains higher antioxidant, antiviral, and anticancer properties than other teas, which are processed differently. Green tea for weight loss has many positive aspects, including ease of use, refreshing taste, and some health benefits.

Studies show that among groups of people who consume one bottle of green tea daily over a period of three months, the average weight loss is higher than a control group of their peers who drank no green tea. Catechins are the key ingredient in the tea that is responsible for making green tea for weight loss work effectively. The catechins signal the body to burn calories, particularly those derived from fat. It also has an appetite suppressant quality to it.

Of all the teas that come from the Camellia Sinesis plant, green tea has the most fat fighting properties. For people who dislike the taste of green tea weight loss pills are available without the taste. The pills offer similar benefits as actually drinking green tea for weight loss purposes, and can be found in many health food stores.

The green tea for weight loss pills are taken one or two at a time with each of your daily meals. It is important to note that these pills do not affect your weight loss more than drinking the green tea. However, the green tea will stay in your system longer when you take it in a pill form rather than simply drink it.

There is yet another option for those of you who do not care for the taste of green tea or prefer not to take pills. The green tea patch is a new option to use the benefits of green tea for weight loss without having to brew up a pot of tea. The patch is used as a weight loss aid that sticks to your skin all day. Remember that if you have any allergies, especially adhesive allergies, to consider what is used in making the patch stick.

Exercising, eating properly and drinking green tea for weight loss is a viable program for most people who want to lose a few pounds. Remember that prior to starting a diet or exercise program, it is best to check with your health care provider so they may help you determine the best methods.