Superfoods - A Great Top Twenty For Everyone!
If you want to stay healthy and live longer read on. Okay so maybe that's a slight exaggeration. After all there are hundreds of foods that are good for you and millions that are bad!! There are top twenty lists for muscle building, for endurance, for speed, for losing weight, for every contingency. These are the top twenty foods, in my view ,which can contribute to general health, a healthy diet, keeping illness at bay and in some cases helping you live longer. Although there's 20 they're not in any particular order.
So let's start off with:
1. Chocolate: Sorry, only joking!! Its not chocolate but the raw cacao bean which is the main ingredient of chocolate. Whilst chocolate is really not a good contributor to a healthy diet this bean is fantastic! It contains anti-oxidants that protect the cardio-vascular system, tryptophan which makes you feel great, magnesium and potassium as well as dopamine a neurotransmitter which can help you get motivated. Use the raw bean in yogurt, fruit salad, desserts, smoothies and just about anything else you like.
2. The number 2 ingredient towards maintaining a healthy lifestyle is one of the cheapest foods on the planet - watercress. This little baby contains Vitamin C in abundance, iron, folic acid and calcium. It will even help protect you from cancer as it also contains phenylethyl isothiocyanate, a cancer fighting ingredient. Eat cheaply but eat well!
3. Broccoli weighs in at number 3. One of the most under rated superfoods and possibly the least popular as many people think it tastes bland, this vegetable can also help you live longer. Like water cress it can help prevent cancer as it contains Indole-3-Carbinol. Also like water cress it has lots of calcium, iron as well as sulphur. Why buy detoxifying remedies - this food will do it all for you!
4. Alfalfa Sprouts: at number 4 the humble alfalfa sprout is great for having a healthy lifestyle. This contains so much stuff that's good for you that you'll be bouncing with energy and vitality. Included are: Vitamin K, B vitamins, magnesium, zinc, calcium, as well as amino acids and iron. I'll ask you again: why buy expensive vitamin supplements when you can buy these?
5. Beetroot - love 'em or hate 'em these come in at 5. The green leafy tops are great for a healthy diet- they contain calcium, iron and beta-carotene. They're also a great source of vitamin A ,potassium and manganese. To finish off with beetroot is also meant to improve your circulation, purify the blood and detoxify your system. Wow! By now you should be buzzing with ideas for your new, healthy lifestyle.
6. Nettles: Not a romantic food I know but nettles can help you achieve a healthy diet. They can give you energy, and reduce water retention and high blood pressure. Not bad for starters but they also contain iron, potassium and vitamin C as well as cleansing, the bowels, the blood and the urinary tract.
7. Ginger: ginger has been used for hundreds of years to help treat sickness and nausea. But did you know that it can also treat indigestion and bad circulation. It can boost the immune system and if you grate it into honey and lemon it will help you fight off colds and get rid of mucus.
8. Hemp seeds: weighing in at 8 to help you with a healthy lifestyle is the humble hemp seed. These contain Omega 3 and Omega 6 essential fats as well as Vitamin E. Eat them with salad, on their own or sprinkled liberally with sweet potato, soup or just about anything else you fancy. Eat them in the evening when you're feeling a little hungry to maintain a healthy diet.
9. Flax seeds: Sprinkle these on salads and yogurt. They contain Omega 3 fats and a gel that lubricates the bowel. Not especially tasty but effective! They can also help lower blood pressure and help balance female hormones as they contain lignans.
10. Artichokes: Fantastic for keeping to a healthy diet. These have been used to stimulate liver cell regeneration and to help stop fatty plaques building up inside the walls of the arteries, which causes high blood pressure.So what do you think? Are these superfoods or not? Cancer curing, aids to help you keep a healthy lifestyle. And cheap and easy to buy? What more could you possibly want?
Most fruits are healthy and good for you but one of the best weighs in at number 11. It's the simple blueberry. Simple in taste but a great superfood.
11. The Blueberry: this little fruit is packed full of antioxidants which protect the eyes and cardio-vascular system. They also have anti-cancer properties. The antioxidants are also found in abundance in blackberries and bilberries. Eat them all in smoothies, in fruit salad or just on their own. Fantastic!
12. Goji Berries: at number 12 it's the goji berry. Is there anything that this great tasting berry doesn't do ? It's a wonderful superfood. Wait for it- it contains anti-ageing and anti-tumour properties, its packed with vitamin C, antioxidants, selenium, zinc and calcium . Goji berries are also high in omega which are needed for the efficient working of the nervous systems and the brain. They also taste fantastic with cereal, yogurt, as a smoothie, in muesli or just on their own. In fact this superfood is one I eat every day!
13. Sauerkraut: At 13 its raw sauerkraut. Sounds horrible- this food even increases your libido- wow more sex as well !! This superfood is rich in vitamin C and has been used in the past to treat constipation. I have to admit this is the only superfood I haven't tried but I soon will.
14. Oregano: Oregano is a herb rich in antioxidants, so rich that it has the most of nearly any food. This herb is wonderful for improving digestion and the immune function. It also has anti-inflammatory and anti-bacterial properties. Add it to stews and soups but make sure its after cooking or you'll lose all its goodness and it won't help improve your health.
15. The raspberry: At 15 its one of the world's most popular and tasty superfoods- the humble raspberry. These are high in fibre and folic acid as well as containing ellagic acid which has been proven to have anti-cancer properties. Eat them alone, in smoothies, in any number of great superfood recipes. For the best superfood cocktail use the raspberry in a fruit salad - packed full of goodness.
16. The carrot: At 16 it's the humble carrot, loved by humans and by rabbits ! These contain antioxidants such as zeaxanthin and lutein which protect against cancer but are also great for protecting the lungs, the eyes and skin.
17. Turmeric weighs in at number seventeen. Stacked full of curcumin which contains antioxidant, anti-cancer and anti-inflammatory properties.
18. Sea veggies - these are alkalizing and detoxifying and are so powerful that they only need to be taken in small quantities. They contain calcium, iron and iodine in higher quantities than land plants. great superfoods though you might prefer fruit.
19. Slippery Elm tea - this can help assist recovery from stress related disorders, from surgery, inflammation and gastro-intestinal disorders. To gain real benefits you need to drink 2-3 cups a day. Drink it often, preferably every day.
20. Water - so why is water in the top twenty list? Because you need water for efficient brain function, circulation, digestion, stamina, healthy skin - in fact every bodily function that you can think of. So drink plenty of clean water. Tap water is not a good source of drinking water!! Preferably, use Reverse Osmosis water for drinking and cooking.
So that's it the world's top twenty superfoods. Most are cheap, most are easily available so be sensible and grab a superfood not a burger! Become a superfood addict and live longer and healthier! After all there are hundreds of foods that are good for you and millions that are bad!! There are top twenty lists for muscle building, for endurance, for speed, for losing weight, for every contingency. These are the top twenty foods, in my view, which can contribute to general health, a healthy diet, keeping illness at bay and in some cases helping you live longer. Although there's 20 they're not in any particular order.
Author: Paul Costello
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