H1N1 (“Swine Flu”) and Health Nutrition

Facing the Flu H1N1 (Swine) Flu outbreak Mark D. Sisson, a health, fitness and nutrition expert stressed that good health immune system is critical. According to Sisson, the key to avoiding the Swine or any other type of flu, or lessening its impact greatly, depends on the health of the individual’s immune system and strength of their organ reserve, which is the functional capacity of one’s organs to support life. People should take some steps to ensure they have a strong immune system, including avoiding sugar and bad fats and – for some people – even grains for their bad effect on the immune system. Health nutrition, in contrast, will boost the immune system.

It is no secret anymore that true immunity comes from nutrition, because proper nutrition builds good immunity. Nutrition is the most valuable point of health that boosts our immune system like nothing else can. Health nutrition is the key factor to prevent and for the recovery of disease that allows us to overcome the most devastating diseases known to mankind, and gives us a vibrant healthy life.

Fresh fruit and vegetables containing health nutrition, such as broccoli, watercress, carrots and peas which contain antioxidants, apples, prunes, citrus fruits, cabbage and lettuce which contain flavonoids, as well as oily fish will boost our immune system. In general a well balanced diet that is nutrient dense and includes a wide variety of different foods will help keep the immune system healthy and working well. Research studies have found that nutrients are most effective when taken in balance of each other and are included as part of a healthy diet.

Health nutrition in herbs, foods, and vitamin supplements are the source of our immunity which is missing from allopathic medicine today in favor of drugs (chemicals). Many physicians are learning nutrition and herbology and homeopathy so people will have a choice and a place to turn to nutritional oriented physicians when in need.

Some health nutrition can assist in combating various viruses – including flu virus, one of the most popular one is monolaurin (glycerol monolaurate). It is a monoglycerol ester of the saturated fatty acid, lauric acid. Lauric fatty acids are present in many animals and plants, for example, in cow's milk, butter, margarine, palm-kernel and coconut oil, and also in human adipose tissue, urine, milk, and amniotic fluid. This health nutrition possesses broad-spectrum activity against fungi and viruses.

Monolaurin is supposed to be effective against those viruses by breaking down the membrane, envelope or outer wall of the viruses so that they are chopped into bits, turned to liquid, and eventually are removed from our body. It is believed to work by interacting with the lipids and phospholipids that form the envelope, causing it to weaken or disintegrate, destroying their main defense and prevents the virus from 'un-coating.' By doing so, monolaurin prevents viral attachment to susceptible host cells. That's how this health nutrition inactivates the virus.

Want to Know about Acai Berry?

Acai berry is one of the newly known tropical fruits that have attracted so many attentions nowadays. Want to know more about it? Check this out.

Acai (ah-sigh-ee) berry grows in the Amazon Rainforest on acai palm tree, a tall, slender palm with pinnate leaves. It is a member of the genus Euterpe, which is native to tropical Central and South America, growing mainly in floodplains and swamps. The genus is named after the muse Euterpe of Greek mythology, while the name acai is the European derivation of the Tupian word ïwasa'i, 'fruit that cries or expels water'.

Acai palms are fast growing, and cultivated for both their fruits and their superior hearts (the soft inner growing tip) which is often consumed in salads. Recent rapid increase in global demand for the fruits makes acai now cultivated primarily for them.

The fruit is a small, round, black-purple drupe about 1 inch in diameter and looks like a purple grape, but with less pulp and a single large seed which makes up about 80% of the fruit. The exocarp of the ripe fruits is deep purple or green, depending on the kind of acai and its maturity; the mesocarp is pulpy and thin; the endocarp is voluminous and hard containing a seed with a diminutive embryo and abundant endosperm.

The berries are harvested as food. They make up such a major component of diet and are economically valuable in the Amazon region of Brazil. The seeds, which are a source of polyunsaturated and saturated fatty acids, may be ground for livestock food or as a component of organic soil for plants. Planted seeds are used for new palm tree stock.

The acai berry must be carefully handled before it can be consumed. As the high fat content of acai makes it deteriorate rapidly after harvest, its raw material is generally available only as juice or fruit pulp that has been frozen or processed as a pulp powder or freeze-dried powder. Several companies now manufacture juices, health drinks, yogurts, and sorbets of acai berries. The juice and pulp of acai fruits (Euterpe oleracea) are frequently used in various juice blends, smoothies, sodas, and other beverages. In northern Brazil, acai is traditionally served in gourds called cuias with tapioca and can be consumed either salty or sweet. Acai has become popular in southern Brazil where it is consumed cold as acai na tigela (‘acai in the bowl’), mostly mixed with granola —in which acai is considered an energizer. Acai is also widely consumed in Brazil as an ice cream flavor or juice. The juice has also been used in a flavored liqueur.

In recent news in the United States, the use of acai berry supplements has been promoted in weight loss diets, boosting energy and for its anti-oxidant properties. However, these supplement products have not been evaluated by the FDA and efficacy is questionable in weight loss.

Banana Bread

Banana bread is a type of bread that uses bananas in its ingredient and so gets its flavor. It can be a quick bread, a sweet, cake like-bread which uses baking soda as the leavening agent or traditional style yeast bread.

The banana added in the recipe is the mashed of very ripe, usually yellow, sweet banana. The riper it is the better. It gives not only stronger flavor but also its sweetness so we can reduce the sugar used.

Ingredients

Banana bread recipes usually use spices, such as cinnamon, nutmeg or ginger, nuts, like pecans or walnuts, raisins, brown sugar or chocolate chips, or even other carbohydrate such as pumpkin.

For diet purposes, part of the wheat flour is substituted with whole wheat, butter or shortening is replaced with canola oil and sugar reduced. Some recipes replace part of the sugar with applesauce or honey. In vegetarian diet, banana bread recipe usually substitutes egg with soy yogurt, tofu or, more simply, additional banana.

Aside from being healthier, the whole wheat gives banana bread a pleasingly coarser texture as well as a subtle nutty flavor. Whole wheat also keeps feeling full. Replacing sugar with honey or applesauce gives banana bread better flavor.

Nutrients

Banana contains Vitamin C, potassium and dietary fiber. Vitamin C helps the body defend and heal against infections, and proves valuable in the synthesis of the connective tissue, absorption of iron and formation of blood; potassium is essential for maintaining normal blood pressure and heart function, helps ease body stiffness by encouraging acids to leave joints, and helps to ease anxiety, irritability, and stress; while fiber helps prevent heart disease, normalize movement through the digestive tract and ease constipation.

Banana also contains other minerals, such as magnesium, phosphor, calcium and manganese, other vitamins like vitamin A, vitamin B6 and folate, protein and three natural sugars, sucrose, fructose and glucose. These nutrients enrich the bread and contribute to its healthy snack attribute, especially when it is made with whole wheat, low sugar and low unsaturated fat.

Serving and Storing

The good thing about banana bread is it tastes good whether it is fresh from the oven, being served the next day or after frozen. So you may bake a loaf fresh for the week, and then slice as you go; bake several loaves and freeze, and then pulling them out as needed (muffins and quick breads can be frozen for up to three months) or slice loaves and freeze servings individually (wrap each in cellophane, then in a re-sealable plastic bag). Kids can grab one from the freezer in the morning for a snack if they are going straight from school to an after-school activity.

Making

As mentioned earlier, banana bread can be made in the form of quick bread using baking soda as leavening agent or traditional bread with yeast. Traditional bread needs more efforts since it undergoes fermentation and kneading, while quick bread is easier to make: just a handful of simple items to mix together.