Saturday 31 May 2014

Health Benefits of Pumpkin Seeds

Nuts and seeds make up part of a healthy and balanced diet. Pumpkin seeds, also called pepitas, boost your intake of several essential nutrients. While both raw and roasted pumpkin seeds offer health benefits, raw pumpkin seeds offer more nutritional value because some nutrients are destroyed during the roasting process. Adding a few tablespoons of pumpkin seeds into a salad or in a trail mix with nuts and dried fruits is a really easy way to incorporate these tasty seeds that are also really good for you into your diet.

Pumpkin seeds can be boiled, baked or eaten raw. They are low-calorie, high-nutritive snacks and can help improve various physical conditions including prostate and bladder problems, as well as depression.

Maintains prostate heath

Since ages, pumpkin seeds have been considered as an important natural food for men's health. Due to their high zinc content, which is important for prostate health (where it is found in the highest concentrations in the body), research suggests that both pumpkin seed oil and pumpkin seeds may be particularly beneficial in supporting prostate health as well as treating benign prostatic hyperplasia.

Depression Treatment

Depression can be caused by a chemical imbalance. A chemical that the body makes from tryptophan called 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) regulates behavior. It can have a positive effect on sleep, anxiety, mood, appetite and pain, according to the University of Maryland Medical Center. For mild to moderate depression, 5-HTP can be an effective treatment.

Rich in B Vitamins

Pumpkin kernels are also excellent source of B-complex group of vitamins such as thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B6 and folate. B vitamins are really important for metabolising energy, and if you are a busy person with a lot of stress, you want to ensure you are getting enough vitamin B. Pumpkin healthy seeds are better than any vitamin pill!

For a good heart

A quarter cup of pumpkin seeds contains nearly half of the recommended daily amount of magnesium that is essential for your heart formation and maintanence. It helps control your blood pressure and prevent sudden cardiac arrest, heart attack, and stroke.

Improves immune system

A rich source of zinc, pumpkin seeds help to regulate the immune system and decrease the risk of viral infections like cold and flu, chronic fatigue, depression, among others.

Rich Iron Source

Iron is often associated with red meat, but pumpkin seeds are an awesome way for vegans to get iron. Just one serving (30 grams) of pumpkin seeds will provide 20-30% of the recommended daily allowance of iron. It is really important to get enough iron so that your body can make new red blood cells, and too little iron can lead to anaemia. So get munching on pumpkin seeds to increase the iron levels in your system.

Reduces risk of diabetes

According to research, pumpkin seeds may help in improving insulin regulation, thereby preventing diabetic complications by decreasing oxidative stress.

Regulate sleep

Having pumpkin seeds a few hours before bed, along with a small piece of fruit, is especially beneficial as it provides your body the tryptophan needed for your melatonin and serotonin production to help promote a restful night's sleep.

Monday 26 May 2014

Treadmill Workouts to Lose Weight

Treadmills are a great piece of equipment for your cardio workouts. Regardless of whether you use your treadmill at home or at the gym, you will find the perfect means to do your cardio and burn calories, regardless of the weather. Regular use of a treadmill can help you burn from the fat and get a flat stomach. Treadmill workouts for weight loss are a great addition to your weekly fitness routine.

For all those wanting to drop extra pounds and decrease belly fat in the comforts of their home, use of treadmills is really a good option. Running or walking in outside everyday, is most of the time not convenient, especially during cold climatic conditions. In such instances, a treadmill comes in handy for losing weight.

Walking

There isn't any truth about the belief that walking doesn’t assist in burning fat because as a matter of fact, walking briskly on the regular basis allows a person to lose weight much faster than he/she would when jogging. Speed walking on the treadmill is one of the best treadmill workouts that you can do at home-say, you hide 4 miles per hour but just spend 30 minutes for speed walking if you find the workout too stressful for your joints. For speed walking on a treadmill very seriously, there’s no reason the reason why you won’t lose significant amount of weight at a lesser time.

Starting Out

To include exercise in your daily routine, it’s essential to awaken early in the morning. Try to get up at least half an early from your normal “getting up” time. For instance, if you get up at 7 AM, try to get up latest by 6:30 AM to include the morning treadmill workout in your routine. The workout can be best started with a slow five-minute walk or some stretching. This sets a dark tone for the major workout.

Beginning Workout

If you’re new to this kind of workout or if you are resuming workout following a long hiatus, start slow. There’s no reason in rushing through things. It might be day-dreaming to think that you would be able to reduce 15 kilos by exercising for a week. Start with two minutes of fast-paced jogging, alternating with two minutes of slow-paced walking.

Running

Apart from walking, you can also do running-one of the best options of treadmill workouts to lose weight that burn calories in a rapid rate. If you find it dangerous to operate outdoors, you can always run on a treadmill because the benefits are just the same anyway. Treadmills possess a feature that allows you to adjust the speed of the platform so that as far as duration is worried, you have to run for around 30 minutes at 6 miles per hour speed so you would notice rapid burning of calories.

Saturday 3 May 2014

Health Benefits of Ginger Tea

Ginger is not often used by the majority of Americans, even though it commonly appears in the kitchens of countries across the globe. With so many healthy properties to it, it makes sense to start adding this to more of your dishes, or to start brewing a daily glass of ginger tea. It’s easy enough to make ginger tea, simply add boiling water to slices of ginger root.

Ginger tea can be made of by peeling off and cutting ginger roots in thin slices. Then add the ginger slices in boiled water and cover and simmer for 15-20 minutes. Strain the tea and enjoy it hot. You can add a little bit of lemon or honey just to enhance the taste of the tea.

Fights Cancer

There are particular cancers that ginger has been shown to help treat, including ovarian cancer. Research has proven that ginger can act to literally obliterate ovarian cancer cells. Even more promising is that the cells actually end up killing and attacking themselves. This is good news for those that already have cancer, and reason enough to start having more ginger show up in your diet if you’re currently cancer-free.

Reduces Migraine Pain

Ginger can be effective for stopping the onset of migraines. Take one-third of a teaspoon of fresh or powdered ginger at the first sign of a migraine. It may reduce your symptoms because ginger helps block prostaglandins, which are chemicals that cause inflammation in your blood vessels.

Reduces Motion Sickness

It helps to get an effective remedy from nausea associated with motion sickness. It also prevents vomiting during long distance trips. Due to ginger’s anti-emetic properties, it is advised to drink one cup of ginger tea before traveling. It prevents nausea effectively.

Helps with Irritable Bowel Syndrome

Those suffering from IBS will be happy to note that getting more ginger should spell relief from the symptoms of the condition. The interesting thing to note is that it doesn’t seem to matter how you get the ginger into your system, whether including more ginger root in your cooking, taking ginger supplements, or brewing ginger tea, they all seem to have a calming effect on the bowels and digestive system.

Protects Against Alzheimer’s Disease

If Alzheimer’s runs in your family, or you are just worried about coming down with the debilitating disease, you should think about incorporating more ginger into your diet and daily routine. Research has shown that ginger helps to slow down the loss of brain cells that typically is a precursor to Alzheimer’s. By protecting and preserving these cells you are prolonging the amount of good years you have being alert and coherent and aware of your surroundings.

Reduces Digestive Disorders

It accelerates digestion process by contributing to stomach acids release. This herb can be used to address indigestion & flatulence.

Fight Against Cold

Drinking a cup of ginger tea can be good for you especially when you are suffering from common respiratory problems like cough and runny nose. This will loosen your phlegm and clear the respiratory system. It helps in permanent sneezing and hay fever. Its spreads a warm feeling throughout the body and makes you really fresh.

Helps in Relieving Pain

It has its own anti-inflammatory properties. Ginger tea can reduce different types of pain like arthritic pain, joint pain, muscle pain etc. Drinking a cup of tea daily can assist prevention of joint and muscle pain but also help with fatigue relief. Drinking ginger tea has been used to relieve symptoms of rheumatoid arthritis and Raynaud's syndrome.

Reduces Stress Level

A cup of ginger tea can change your mood dramatically. It leaves the feeling of freshness and tranquility for a long time. Its taste dispels all your sorrows and negative thoughts during a bad day. Ginger brew is also a great remedy for stressful moments.

Improves Immune System

It strengthens immunity by the help of its anti-oxidant properties. Even one cup of tea a day helps reduce the potential risk of stroke, since ginger acts by breaking down fat deposits which block the arteries. Ginger also results in restoring cholesterol levels to normal and preventing cancer. It slows the growth of colorectal & ovarian cancer cells.