Have A Heart

February is Heart Month, so you’re probably hearing a great deal about what to do to keep your heart healthy. Eat this and not that, exercise more, get more sleep and reduce your stress level. This amazing organ works hard to keep us alive, so let’s take a brief look at what the heart and the rest of the cardiovascular system does for us, and what we can do to keep it running smoothly.

The cardiovascular system consists of the heart, blood vessels, and blood. It nourishes each body cell by transporting nutrients throughout the body. In fact, “cardio” refers to the heart, and “vascular” refers to the blood vessels.

The heart’s function is to pump oxygen-rich blood throughout the blood vessels to every living cell in the body. The human heart is divided into four chambers - two on the right (right atrium and right ventricle) and two on the left (left atrium and left ventricle). Each chamber has a different function and each chamber of the heart has valves that close when the chambers push blood out. The sound of a valve closing is the sound of a “heartbeat”. Over a person’s entire lifespan, the heart must continuously beat by repeated, rhythmic contractions. If the heart stops beating, the body cannot function and will result in death. About the size of a person’s fist and weighing less than one pound, the heart is located between the lungs, slightly to the left side in the center of the chest. Depending on what you read, a healthy human heart beats on average 72 beats per minute, functions as a double muscular pump, pumps almost 2,000 gallons (approx. 7,500 liters) of blood every day, and during an average lifespan of 70 years, the human heart will beat more than two and a half billion times and will have pumped enough blood to fill over 100 full-sized swimming pools!

Nutritional Supplements Are Important For Optimal Health

It’s estimated we are receiving only 40 percent of the nutritional value of food nowadays. Some reports suggest this is untrue while many reports go even farther by saying this figure is actually lower. In any case, unless you are fortunate enough to have a garden close by with organic fresh food you can harvest and eat on a daily basis, I believe the food available in the supermarket does indeed lack in nutrition.

Many fresh foods travel great distances and many foods are processed to increase shelf life. To obtain the highest possible yield, producers are forced to rely on chemical fertilizers and pesticides for their crops, while other producers use growth hormones, antibiotics, and inhumane confinement for animal production. (By the way, from what I understand about antibiotics given to animals destined for the dinner table…they are not necessary if the animals are kept in clean, un-crowded environments where they are able to stretch their legs and get fresh air and sunshine daily. Another reason to shop organic.)

The Real Secrets To Long-Term Weight Control

Now that the holiday season is over, many people may be noticing their clothes have gotten a little tighter around the waist and perhaps gained a few extra pounds from over-indulging. Some will have made New Year’s resolutions to lose weight and some will have made the resolution to get more exercise. These are both great resolutions and easy to keep, as long as they are included as part of an on-going health routine.

We are constantly inundated with all the ads on television, radio, and in magazines and newspapers, about how ‘this plan’ or ‘this product’ or ‘this new exercise routine’ is the ideal way to lose weight. And what about all the reality shows of heavy people parading themselves in front of the cameras hoping this will be the way to loose those extra pounds. Let’s face it. North Americans are preoccupied with their weight. Even though tens of billions of dollars are spent on weight loss products and services annually, North Americans are gaining weight faster than they’re losing it, and the incidence of obesity is on the rise.

Have Yourself A Merry Green Chistmas

The human body is very complex, therefore it’s important to nourish it with the proper nutrition it needs to perform optimally and maintain good health. To quote Dr. H. E. Kirschner, MD, “There is absolutely no substitute for greens in the diet! If you refuse to eat these ‘sunlight energy’ foods you are depriving yourself, to a large degree, of the very essence of Life.”

Green leafy and cruciferous vegetables are packed with a powerhouse of nutrition for whole body health. They are rich in vitamins (including vitamins C, E, K and many of the B vitamins), minerals (iron, calcium, potassium, and magnesium), protein, unsaturated fats, phytonutrients (including beta-carotene, lutein and zeaxanthin, which protect our cells from damage), chlorophyll and antioxidants. Consuming green leafy and cruciferous vegetables can help build our immune system and can dramatically prevent disease such as cancer and heart disease. Some of the more popular leafy green and cruciferous vegetables include: broccoli, cabbage, Brussels sprouts, cauliflower, kohlrabi, turnip, rutabaga, kale, radishes, watercress, spinach, parsley, collards, and sprouts such as alfalfa sprouts. Calorie for calorie, they are one of the best sources of nutrition available. 

Going With The Grain

For thousands of years now, hearty whole grains have been the basis of the human diet. As a matter of fact, one of the definitions of the word “meal” is: “coarsely ground foodstuff; especially seeds of various cereal grasses or pulse” Put another way, ground grain.

Whole grains are an important source of many nutrients including dietary fibre, several B-complex vitamins such as thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, and folate, the minerals iron, magnesium, and selenium, unsaturated fatty acids, and phytochemicals. Whole grains also contain complex carbohydrates that are broken down during digestion and converted to glucose, which is the substance the body prefers to burn for energy.

The Goodness Of Garlic

Garlic is one of the oldest cultivated plants in the world. Affectionately called "the stinking rose" garlic dates back over 5000 years, is native to central Asia, and has long been a staple in the Mediterranean region. Worshipped by the ancient Egyptians and consumed by Roman soldiers going into battle, this pungent little bulb also packs numerous therapeutic benefits. Over the millennia garlic has become indispensable in many cultures for both its culinary and medicinal properties. More recently it has gained increased popularity as researchers continue to scientifically validate its numerous health benefits.

Also known as Allium sativum, a diet rich in garlic may help lessen the incidence of several types of cancer, including cancer of the stomach, colon, breast and cervical. Research is also demonstrating that garlic may lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, may be helpful in the prevention of free-radical damage and in reducing the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke. It has also been used to fight infections, treat colds and rid the body of parasites. Simply put, garlic is a potent disease-fighting food. 

The GI Factor, understand how to control your blood sugar with food.

The glycemic index (GI) is a measure of the effects of carbohydrates on blood sugar levels. In the early 1980s, Dr. David Jenkins (professor of nutrition at the University of Toronto) and his colleagues developed the glycemic index (GI) in their research to determine which foods were best suited for control of blood sugar levels in people with diabetes. In was concluded that carbohydrates which break down quickly during digestion and release glucose rapidly into the bloodstream have a high GI, while carbohydrates that break down more slowly and release glucose gradually into the bloodstream, have a low GI.

There are three major components of food; proteins, carbohydrates, and fats. Because carbohydrates are a rich source of the body’s primary fuel (glucose), they have the greatest effect on blood sugar levels. (Glucose is what the body uses for energy.)