WALNUTS – Brain food

We have seen the health benefits and usages of nuts like Almonds, Pistachios, and Cashews in our previous posts. Here is another important nut called walnut. This also have number of health benefits like other nuts.

Walnut shell inside Green husk
Photo by: Böhringer Friedrich 

Walnut is an edible seed of walnut tree. Romans introduced walnuts to many European countries. Walnut seeds have number of health benefits ranging from weight loss to prevention of various cancers.

Walnuts are high in protein, vitamins, OMEGA-3 fatty acids, lecithin and oils compared with other nuts. This is only nut with a significant amount of alpha linoleic acid. Moreover have insignificant amounts of sodium and with cholesterol free.

 

Walnut – on the outside and insidePhoto by: AndonicO.

Presence of antioxidants and anti- inflammatory properties in the walnuts help to maintain cardiovascular system thereby preventing heart problems.

Very important to note in these nuts is the content of OMEGA-3. Omega-3 and omega-6 are very much essential fatty acids required for our body for cell growth, immune function, blood clotting, and disease prevention. Our body cannot make them on its own. These fatty acids have to be obtained from diet. Walnuts serve this purpose.

Walnut is good for hair’s health, because of its content of vitamin 7. It will reduce hair fall and improve hair growth. Studies reveal that regular consumption of walnuts may help to prevent type II diabetes.

Walnuts have very good antioxidant content and will fight against cancers. Walnuts help to prevent breast cancer, prostate cancer. It may prevent and even slow the progress of prostate cancer. This is one of the home remedies to try and prevent prostate cancer.

Chocolate walnut cake
Photo by: PlayMistyForMe

Walnuts are packed with many groups of vitamin B complex like riboflavin, niacin, thamin, vitamin B6 and folates. And also contain minerals like manganese, copper, potassium, calcium, iron, zinc and selenium.

The presence of more vitamin E in this nut is beneficial as this vitamin helps to maintain the integrity of cell membrane and mucus membranes and also protect the skin from harmful oxygen free radicals.

Precaution: Some studies reveal that despite of many health benefits of this walnut, one must be careful on the amount and the frequency of consumption of walnuts because of it is high in oxalates. High oxalates may contribute to kidney stone formation. Any allergic reaction noticed while consuming this nuts, immediately stop taking this nuts.

Walnuts are a delicious way to add extra nutrition, flavour and crunch to a meal and are sometimes referred as “Brain food”. Better take twice in a week that too with other nuts

Do not forget walnut is one of the best home remedies to slow the growth of prostate cancer.

Cashew nuts – Tasty seeds that form an Healthy Snack

We have seen the health benefits and the usage of Almonds and Pistachios nuts. In this post we will discuss about cashew nuts.

Colorful Cashew fruits in a tree, in Kannur, Kerala, India
Photo by: Vinayaraj

This kidney shaped seeds stick to the bottom of the cashew apple. In India it is called KAAJU. 

Cashew Nuts are a native of Brazil’s Amazon forest. Today it is cultivated in many parts of the world – Mainly Nigeria, India, Vietnam, Philippines etc.

Mostly cashew nuts are used in preparing cakes, sweets, biscuits etc. Roasted nuts are very popular among us. 

Cashews are nutritiously dense with variety of essential fats and proteins, vitamins and minerals which can bring a number of health benefits to our body.

Many people avoid eating of cashews because of its fat content. In fact cashews contain fat less than other nuts. And also contain only unsaturated fat. This fat can help lower cholesterol and improve heart health.

The proanthocyanidins a class of flavonols, contained in this nut help to fight against tumour cells by stopping them to divide further. Cashews contain less fat, cholesterol free and the antioxidants present in these nuts keep away heart diseases. With sources of magnesium cashew helps lower blood pressure. 

Cashew helps to keep up healthy bones because of calcium and magnesium contents. And help to keep healthy teeth and strong gum.

Women preparing Cashew for packaging,
Africa

All nuts including cashews have been associated with a reduced risk of gallstone disease. Recent study shows cashews like other nuts work with a person’s lipid profile to have a beneficial effect on diabetes.

This nut can reduce triglyceride levels in diabetes protecting them from further complications. Consumption of cashews especially raw cashew in our diets may lower the risk of type II diabetes.

Fried Cashew Nuts
Photo by: Midori

Cashews can be eaten as a snack with other nuts as raw, salted or roasted. These nuts are widely used in confectionery as addition to biscuits, cakes, sweets etc.

Precaution: it is advised to consume only limited quantity of cashews. And also better to take along with other nuts like almonds, walnuts, pistachios or along with other dishes. Do not eat too many at a time. 

For some people cashew nuts may cause allergy. Individual with known allergic reactions to these cashew nuts may observe caution while eating especially raw. Cashew allergy is a common condition in some individual.

Hope I have given few benefits and usages of cashews. If any of you know more please free to mention here so that others may know more about this nut.

Pistachios – Healthy nuts that help in Diabetes and reducing Heart diseases

Dear friends, I had a minor surgery last week and hence could not post for a couple of weeks. I am back home now and recuperating. Will continue the posts as before.

In the previous post we discussed about Almonds. Now will see the health benefits of PISTACHIOS. Okay?

Pista flowers and nuts
Photo by: Paolo Galli

This is another nutrient nut which is commonly called as PISTA. Pistachios are one of the healthier nuts. They are filled with essential nutrients and have number of health benefits. 

Pistachios are one of the oldest nuts that were commonly used in the world many for more than 8000 years. They are native of Central Asia. 

Today many countries (mainly Iran, United States, Turkey) are cultivating pistachios. A tree of Pista nut takes ten to twelve years to deliver for good seeds and the seed is what we eat as the nut.

Let us see the health benefits of these sweet nuts.

Pistachios help in reducing (LDL) cholesterol and increasing good cholesterol (HDL) thereby preventing heart diseases. Also increases the strength of nerves and making heart stronger.

The contents of vitamin A and vitamin E and anti-inflammatory properties in this nut which help to reduce inflammation in our body.

Vitamin B6 contained in this nut helps in carrying oxygen in the blood. If taken daily, the high quantity of B6 present in this nut can increase the oxygen quantity in the blood and increase the hemoglobin count in it. Another benefit of vitamin B6 present in high concentration in this nut is that it is very beneficial to nervous system and also for a healthy immune system.

These nuts contain fewer calories and more potassium and vitamin K than other nuts. Sodium present in this nut is zero which is different from other nuts. This is good news for the people suffering from hypertension because they have to curb the intake of sodium in their diet.

The Food and Drug Administration of USA (FDA) has approved a health claim regarding nuts lowering the risk of heart diseases (CHD – Coronary heard disease) - "Scientific evidence suggests (not prove) that eating 1.5 ounces (42.5 g) per day of most nuts, such as pistachios, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease"

Studies involving humans have shown that 32–63 grams (1.1–2.2 oz) per day of pistachio seeds can significantly elevate plasma levels of lutein, alpha-carotene, and beta-carotene etc.

Note: The fat profile of Pistachios. Dry roasted pista seeds have Its fat profile is roughly 14% saturated fat, 54% monounsaturated fat and 32% polyunsaturated fat. Keep note of this while calculating your fat intake for the day.

LUTEIN and ZEAXANTHIN are two anti-oxidants present in pistachios. These help to fight against free radicals and destroy them thereby preventing macular degeneration and are also good for the eyes. Pistachios help promoting healthy vision and are highly recommended to those suffering with any vision related issues.

Vitamin E present in these nuts is very essential for our healthy skin. It protects the skin from harmful UV rays and prevents from skin diseases and makes the skin healthy and more beautiful. Similar to skin pistachios have much to offer hair care also. It deeply nourishes and moisturizes hair which helps in improving flexibility of hair.

Vitamin B6 also helps in increasing the blood count. Thus WBC or white blood cells help in preventing infections and various cancers.

Pista toppings in a cake

Finally it helps to control Diabetes. How? The sugars form inappropriate bonds with proteins and make them unusable in a process called glycation. The antioxidants in pistachios help in reducing process of glycation and thus can help in controlling diabetes. It lowers the blood sugar level by slowing down the carbohydrate absorption of the body. Check this link for more information about whether pistachios can help lower blood sugars.

Pistachios are also used in various sweets, Milk shakes, Cake toppings, Ice-creams, Kulfi, Turkish delights etc.

Triflavour kulfi
Photo by: stu_spivack

So friends now you may understand the benefits of taking this sweet nut. 

Take at least twice in a week that too with other nuts or with other dishes during tea time which may help in so many ways for healthy living. 

How is this article? Do you find it useful and interesting? 

Please give your comments and also pass on any more information if you have. It will be useful to all.

Almonds (Badam) – the king of Nuts

We have seen the medicinal benefits of many plants (Insulin plant, Bitter Gourd), leaves (Moringa), fruits (Grapes, Watermelon) and vegetables (Potatoes, Tomatoes, Onions, Green Peas) in previous posts. Now let us see how nuts can play a crucial role in our healthy living.

There are many nuts that we use daily for cooking but we will discuss only a few important nuts like Almonds, Cashews, Walnuts, and Pistachios in upcoming posts. Each of these have different health benefits.

Let us take Almonds now (or Badam in India, Persia etc.). 

Almonds are called world’s healthiest nut also sometimes the king of nuts. This delicious versatile almond is available throughout the year. 

Almonds are an ancient food – mainly from the Mediterranean regions (seems the Romans referred these as Greek nuts) extending all the way till the Indus. 

Although we think of Almonds as a Nut, it is actually the seed of the fruit of the almond tree.  Check out the nice white and pink flowers with fruit from an orchard in Iran.(Photo By: شهریار)

They are high in monounsaturated fats which are associated with reduced risk of heart diseases. A quarter cup of almonds contains 62 mg of magnesium and 162 mg of potassium. When there is enough magnesium around veins and arteries helps to breathe comfortably and improves flow of blood, oxygen and nutrients throughout our body. Potassium is an important electrolyte involved in nerve transmission and the contraction of all muscles including the heart.

Currently United States produces the maximum between 50% to 80% and all of it is produced in California. 

Almonds can be eaten as raw, roasted and also with many dishes. Almonds are used in various recipes, especially in bakery items like chocolate, breads and also used as medicine.  

Almond Tart  
Photo By: Lorraine Murphy

Almonds are rich in calcium which helps for bone strength. 

They are also high in vitamin E which helps the condition and appearance of skin. 

Since the skin of these nuts has got heart protecting compounds called Flavonoids, if you take Almonds with its skin, it will help to protect heart. (We also read about Flavonoids in Grapes and how they help reduce the Plaque buildup in arteries)

In Short, Almonds 

• Reduce the risk of Heart attack and lower bad cholesterol in our body. 
• Protect artery walls from damage due to their Flavonoid content. 
• Help to build strong bones and teeth because of phosphorous present in them 
• Lower the rise in blood sugar and insulin after meals 
• Help to nourish the nervous system. 

Just a handful of almonds contains one eighth of our necessary daily protein. 

Almond oil is extracted from the nuts used as an emollient (or moisturizer). If applied regularly it will help to protect the skin from dryness. This oil is used in cooking and is used in some medicines in aromatherapy. Also used in cosmetic industries and in pharmaceuticals.

Eat nuts to cut the risk of cancer and heart diseases. Eating nuts everyday may prolong our life. Better to take few almonds along with other nuts daily during your tea time.

Your comments about this post are welcome.

Health benefits of grapes - For Heart, Metabolism and immunity

Hello friends, My blog is one year old baby now. Your response is much encouraging and gives me a moral booster to continue writing about various subjects in this blog.

In our last three previous posts we have discussed about the health benefits of Water melon, Drumstick (Moringa), Coconut water. 

Fresh brown grapes

Now let us discuss about GRAPES, its health benefits and usages. 

Grapes are non-climatic type plants. Grapes are one of the most liked fruits in the world. 

Grapes are available in different varieties and in different colours according the cultivation and nature of fields in which they are cultivated. Mostly they are available in red, green, black and purple colours.

Grapes in a farm fence

It is learnt that grapes were cultivated first in the middle- east. Grape is considered a berry. Grapes are in different in tastes according to the varieties.

Studies reveal that grapes will help in prevention of cancer, heart diseases, high blood pressure, and constipation etc. They are high in water content and good for hydration.

Green grapes

How do Grapes help in cancer treatment? Grapes contain powerful antioxidants known as POLYPHENOLS which can slow/prevent many types of cancer cells including prostate and colon cancers. You can learn more about PolyPhenols and their health benefits in the www.grapescience.com website.

The appearance of flavonoid quercetin which is a natural anti-inflammatory may reduce the risk of atherosclerosis (A disease of heart involving hardening of arteries due to Plaque or Plak buildup) . The high content of polyphenol in grapes may help to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disorder by preventing artery wall build ups and reducing blood pressure via anti-inflammatory mechanism.

The fiber and potassium present in the grapes are also support to heart health. High potassium in take may reduce risk of stroke, increase bone strength and help reduce the formation of Kidney stones.

How grapes help to treat constipation? Eating of grapes will help to have free bowel movements there by it will prevent constipation.

Studies reveal that grapes can help to control diabetic neuropathy and retinopathy.

Few more important benefits of grapes are:

• Better blood sugar regulation including high blood pressure 
• Better total cholesterol regulation reducing LDL cholesterol levels
• Better inflammatory regulation in the blood
• Increase levels of glutathione (is produced in human liver and is important for metabolism, immunity and health) in the blood.

Grapes can be eaten as raw or can be enjoyed as juice. They is widely used for making different varieties of wines, jams, and jelly etc.,  For more interesting information and facts on grapes, check out Wikipedia page on grape

I hope by knowing the above usages and medicinal properties of this wonder grapes, all of us should have a bit of grapes in our weekly diet.  

Wonder medicine Triphala - To help Diabetes, Blood pressure, Urinary problems etc.

Dear friends,

So far we have seen about many medicinal plants and herbs for treating Type II Diabetes, Heart problems, Blood Pressure and other diseases. Check out the posts to select the herbs or plants according to the condition of your illness. Even you can take one or two of these natural healthy products each day, it will be good for your overall health. Further, these natural products have very limited or no side effects.

One more natural medicine for treating Type II Diabetes is none other than TRIPHALA.  In one of my earlier posts regarding cure for constipation I have suggested about this Triphala and also mentioned that, we will discuss about the other medicinal benefits of this medicine in our later posts. (Just a note, here are my many posts regarding constipation)

Now let us see the other benefits of this Triphala. This medicine is available in tablets and in powder forms and available at Traditional Indian medical stores such as Ayurveda and Siddha etc.,

Three fruits of Triphala

The word TRI-PHALA means "Three Fruits". It is an Ayurvedic medicine consisting of equal parts of 3 fruits namely AMLA (Nellikkai), BAHERA (Thanikai) and HARADE (Kadukai). Names of these herbal fruits may differ from place to place. 

In the picture, you will find AMLA on the outermost circle, Bahera on the middle circle and Harade (Kadukkai) on the innermost circle.

These three fruits are having many medicinal properties that help to cure/prevent many illnesses.

These three herbal fruits in Triphala help for smooth functioning of bowel system and relieve constipation.

The other benefits are, it helps internal purification, improves Digestion, reduces Serum Cholesterol. This Indian medicine contains 31% of linoleic acid which reduces high blood sugar and improves liver function.  It is good for nutritional as well as blood and liver cleansing actions. It has got anti-inflammatory and anti-viral properties. Triphala can also be used for eye disease.

And also this medicine prevents urinary track disease. How? The urinary system in particular is supported by Amalaki (amla or nellikkai). This fruit is helpful in treating symptoms such as a mild burning sensation while urinating. And also acts as a mild diuretic, helping the body by eliminating excess water in natural way. This kind of action is very helpful in purifying the urine toxins.

The medicinal properties of HARITAKI (Harade or Kadukai) helps to enhance the absorption of nutrients in food and also acts as a cardio preventive by helping to promote heart health.

The other fruit contained triphala is BIBHITAKI (Thanikai).  It helps by creating balance and pure blood in nourishing the eyes and also strengthening the root of the hair.

I have given only few benefits of this wonder drug as an introduction. Here is the wikipedia link about Triphala.  

If you have any comments or if you have got benefits from this medicine, request you to please add your comments.

Sunflower Seeds - Good seed/snack for Heart problems

Friends, so far we saw posts regarding Homeopathy and its types of medicines, potency etc. I also want to share you information regarding Nature foods, Natural and Healthy living.

Nature is God’s creation and natural products like Plants, Trees, Roots, Vegetables, Fruits, Seeds, Nuts, Water etc., help us lead a healthy life. Most of the nature’s products are identified as natural herbs because they contain medicinal properties of their own.

In this post, we will discuss about one such natural product SUNFLOWER SEEDS and how it can help us with its medicinal effects.

Sunflower seeds are an excellent source of vitamin E, which has a significant anti-inflammatory property. Vitamin E plays an important role in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases.  They help in managing diabetes since they are low in carbohydrate. 

Sunflower Seed

These seeds are very good source of magnesium, hence it will help to reduce severity of Asthma, BP and work well to prevent migraine headache. Sunflower seeds also helps to reduce the risk of heart attack and stroke.

Since these seeds contain Selenium which will act to reduce the risk of cancer. The usage of this seeds will also help to control cell damages, thus playing a role in preventing cancer because of the Selenium content.  

Further it should be noted these seeds contain minerals like Calcium, Magnesium, Copper which help to make bones stronger. Since these seeds contain Vitamin E it will help to reduce arthritic pain also.

See this interesting information, if you take just a handful of sunflower seeds a day it will keep heart troubles away. Why? Because these seeds disallow cholesterol from sticking to the walls of arteries, by this way it helps to prevent heart attack.

Now you may understand the importance of this nature food and how it acts in our body with its medicinal properties.

I hope this information will be very useful to you. These seeds are available in most of the departmental stores and are not too costly also..  Don’t use roasted one, use only plain seeds. 

Hint: Although the closed seed is cheaper, I prefer buying the opened seed, otherwise it is a big bother breaking the seeds to get the kernel :).  

Try this to avoid heart problems. Give your comments and also share if you have any information with regards to this topic. It will be much appreciated and useful to all. Ok?

Arnica Montana

In our last post, we saw a medicine Agaricus, which is made from a type of mushroom, to help cure Jerking, Twitching, Trembling or itching types of pains mostly in the spine 

In this post, we'll see about Arnica, which is a good cure for treating injuries.

ARNICA MONTANA commonly known as arnica is a well-known homeopathy medicine in treating all kinds of injuries. One can judge the efficiency of this medicine in healing injured tissues.

This medicine is mainly used for treating injuries, mild to severe traumas like head and spine injuries. It will also help to reduce the pain with injuries and very useful for all sprains and strains resulting because of injuries. (Note: Trauma is a body wound or a shock produced by physical body or by an accident)

These days, seems even allopathic surgeons are using this medicine to promote healing and minimizing the post-operative infections. It is amazing is it not?

Even eye surgeons are using this arnica during eye operations since it is helping to heal the eyes much faster.

Another important role of this medicine is reducing the pain during fracture and also with old fractures.

Further, another very important condition where ARNICA is very much needed is in re-absorption of blood whether it is brain haemorrhage or bleed in retina, it accelerates the absorption of clot.

It also works well by improving the blood flow to the areas of tissue damage thereby assisting in the healing process.

Here is how it works with chest and heart:  The conditions are shooting pains on sides of chest that makes breathing diffucult and stitching pain while walking. ARNICA is a well- known remedy for ANGINA PECTORIS and other cardiac problems.

Dosage as usual 4…4…4 and for children 2…2…2 and it works well in 3^rd to 30^th potencies

Don’t forget to use arnica to cure injuries and also for angina pectoris

Amylenum Nitrosum (AMYL-NIT)

AMYL-NITRITE works well on palpitations of heart and chest. This is one of the good medicines for heart and chest pain and constriction around the heart that is ANGINA PECTORIS.

Here is my experience with this AMYL NIT. Some six months back I suffered with chest pain, which started between 1230.0130 midnight and gradually increased to unbearable condition and remained for more than half an hour. I searched for medicines and selected this AMYL-NIT. I took 30 drops mixed with water (50 ml). What a surprise? The pain subsided. It worked more or less like a pain killer. Then I used it for three times daily for ten days and got relief from pain. I like to say here that I am quoting in my blog only the medicines that were experienced by me or by my family members. The example is one such AMYL-NIT. In case of heart and chest pain, it is always good to consult a doctor.

This can also be used in all the conditions where the blood vessels are spasmodically contracted. It is available in liquid form.

Dosage: 30 drops mixed with 50 ml of water thrice daily for a week or ten days or at the time when pain begins. It will work well with 6th potency. (6x potency)

Here you should know something about ANGINA PECTORIS. Here is a short note.

Due to various reasons like old age, excess of medication, and due to some chronic diseases like diabetes, cholesterol, B P, some deposits are formed in the blood vessels which carry blood to heart. These deposits block the blood flow. Because of this blockage the blood flow is reduced. This will create pain in the chest or in the heart.

Further details of angina problem will be discussed in my later post