Chewing your food completely is an often overlooked part of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. If you are like most people, you lead such a busy life that meal time is cut down to a fraction of what it should be. Have you ever timed yourself when eating? How long does it take you to finish a meal? Is it ten minutes? Twenty minutes? Five minutes? If you fall into these time frames, chances are you are not chewing your food properly. Read on to uncover the reasons why chewing your food completely is so important to good health.

Most people think that digestion begins in the stomach. This is not true. Digestion actually starts in the mouth. Saliva in your mouth contains enzymes that are important to food digestion. One of the enzymes that your saliva contains is called alpha amylase. This enzyme is responsible for breaking down the starches that you eat into smaller molecules that the cells in your body can use for energy. When your food is not chewed properly, the alpha amylase in your saliva does not have the opportunity to break down these starches, leaving body cells starved.

Another important enzyme in your saliva is lingual lipase. This enzyme is secreted by glands located under the tongue. Lingual lipase starts digesting the fat content found in the food that you eat.

Do you find yourself feeling bloated and gassy after eating? You are not chewing your food properly. When you do not chew your food thoroughly, this will result in incomplete digestion. Large particles of food will pass into the colon and become a breeding ground for bacteria. This can lead to bacterial overgrowth, indigestion and flatulence. Not chewing your food completely will also result in just a portion of the nutrients being released from your food.

Properly chewed food is important for a healthy lower GI tract. There is a muscle that sits at the bottom of your stomach. This muscle must relax to enable food to pass from the stomach and into the small intestine. When your food contains large amounts of saliva, this will help the muscle to relax and the food can pass into the small intestine easily.

So how many times should you chew a bite of food? It is impossible to give an definitive answer to this question. There are plenty of variables that would come into play. For example, you would need to chew a piece of meat a lot more than you would need to chew a piece of bread. A good way to tell if your food has been chewed properly is to chew until you can no longer recognize the food by the texture. If you are chewing a carrot and are still able to tell it is a carrot by the texture in your mouth, then you need to chew it a lot more before you swallow.

Not only does chewing your food completely lead to a healthier lifestyle, it will also bring out the flavor in the foods that you eat. Chewing your food completely will make all of your meals more enjoyable.

By: Lambert Klein

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If you are like many other individuals, there is a good chance that you have heard that organic foods are healthier to eat. This may have caught your attention. If you are uncertain about making the switch to organic foods, you may be looking for reasons why you should. One of the most common questions asked is why organic foods are better? For a number of answers to that question, please continue reading on.

When it comes to organic foods, it is important to know that not just anyone can make organic foods. There are strict standards. Foods and organic food companies that are certified by the Quality Assurance International group (QAI) must undergo rigorous tests and meet very high standards. When this is done, all foods should be stamped with a Certified Organic by QAI sticker or label. This certification helps to give many comfort in knowing that the foods that they eat are truly healthy.

Another one of the many reasons why organic food is better for you is because it usually tastes better. This means that you and other eaters are more likely to eat more organic foods, as well as stick with organic foods or start a fully organic diet. These steps can help to improve your health. This is mostly due in part because vegetables and fruits are grown without the assistance of pesticides and other potentially harmful chemicals. Clean soil, which is required when growing organic foods, is likely to produce better results, which should mean better tasting food.

It has also been said that organic foods can help to lower the risk of cancer. Although some pesticides that farmers use are considered safe by many, there are still a number of risks, including a risk of cancer. This is alarming, but it is also something that many individuals are not aware of. Although the EPA does consider many chemicals, including weed killers and insect killers to be dangerous, they are still used on many of the foods, namely fruits and vegetables, that are sold today. This is not something that you have to worry about when buying organic foods. That is why many claim that organic foods can reduce your chances of cancer.

Although there are a number of benefits to eating organic foods, especially where health and wellness is concerned, many individuals are concerned with the cost. Yes, organic food does cost more money, but many still consider it to be well worth the cost. Some ask themselves if it is even possible to put a price tag on health. Even with the high costs of organic food, it is still possible to save money. You can do this by using organic food coupons, searching for organic food sales, and stocking up when you do find those sales. Many stores outline their weekly sales in store sale fliers or online. Organic food coupons can be found online or in weekend newspaper inserts.

Since there are a number of benefits to eating organically, you may be serious about doing so. If you are, you will find that you have a number of different options, in terms of organic food purchase points. Organic food, including fresh food, is sold online and locally. Your local options tend to include the organic food section at your supermarket or a specialty organic food stores.



By: Ronnie Wilson

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The tropical rainforest food web is all about who eats who in the tropics. The web describes the chain of events every organism goes through to obtain nutrition, or energy, in order to survive. A food web is a network of food chains.

There are some things we need to know about the food web. Each level of the chain is dependent on the adjoining levels. Autotrophs make their food from light or some form of chemical energy and are at the bottom of each food chain. These primary producers are eaten by herbivores (plant eating organisms) that are eaten by carnivores and omnivores. The secondary consumers may be eaten by tertiary consumers, who are carnivores. When any organism dies, tiny microbes (detrivores) take over and what we humans know as decay occurs. And the food web starts all over again.

The rainforest is home to more plants and small insects than any other organism. And herbivores far outweigh carnivores and omnivores. We could provide pages of scientific facts about tropical rainforest food webs. Instead, we’ll cut to the chase and tell you why all this is important.

Its importance lies in the very critical concept of interdependence. Each organism in the food web depends upon all other organisms in the chain for basic survival. For example, if an insect becomes extinct, plants that it consumes will proliferate and equilibrium in the rainforest will be disturbed. In addition, members of the food web that rank above the insect in question will be affected because it will no longer be available for consumption. This disruption leads to further extinction of species and ultimately the entire food web is drastically changed if not completely obliterated.

We humans need to work to avoid obliteration of any member of the tropical rainforest food web. The endangered species list keeps getting longer, not shorter. We should be concerned.



By: Sharon Elrod

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Food & Drink

Need a quick way to thaw frozen food for tonight’s dinner? Can’t get those rock-hard steaks ready for the party? If you’ve been watching cable TV, you’ll probably think your problems are over thanks to Miracle Thaw.

Dubbed as a “revolutionary defrosting tray that makes counter top and microwave defrosting obsolete,” Miracle Thaw promises to quickly thaw food, fruits and vegetables in a matter of minutes without electricity, chemicals or batteries.

The secret, we are told, is in the product’s “space-age metal” that absorbs natural heat energy in the air and releases it directly into the frozen food. This supposedly hastens defrosting and thaws any food like magic in minutes. The TV ad says the food’s natural juices are retained for best flavor.

“This incredible kitchen miracle can be yours for only $$$!” screamed the hidden TV announcer. Not one to miss a miracle, I bought my Miracle Thaw at less than half the price at a big department store. I was looking for something for my wife and a “revolutionary” defrosting tray seemed like a good idea at that time.

But there was nothing revolutionary about the product. And the only miracle that occurred was my money vanishing into thin air. How did this happen?

First, the ads don’t say that you have to pre-heat the tray by running it under hot water for 20 to 30 seconds. You’re supposed to do this twice: before thawing food and midway through thawing time. That explains the miracle. The tray doesn’t really absorb heat from the air; it gets heat from hot water!

To test the device, my wife placed a couple of pork chops on the tray hoping to see them “butcher-block fresh in 14 to 18 minutes” as the accompanying brochure promised. Alas, 45 minutes later, they were still frozen stiff. By that time it was clear I had wasted money on a conversation piece.

I wasn’t the only one disappointed with Miracle Thaw. Tests made by Consumer Reports on this particular product and other aluminum-alloy trays like Instant Thaw and D-Frost Wonder Deluxe all showed them to be a waste of money.

“Miracle Thaw never came close to its claimed defrosting times, even though we followed instructions to the letter. Quarter-pound hamburger patties (10 to 14 minutes claimed) took us 24 to 34 minutes. Shell steaks (19 to 22 minutes) took us 32 to 36 minutes. The other trays were even slower, even when pretreated. A heavy, unheated aluminum frying pan defrosted meals just as well and quickly. Defrosting in a microwave oven was by far the best,” said the editors of Consumer Reports.

“Advertisements for thawing trays claim that frozen food can be thawed rapidly at room temperature. Some ads claim the trays are made of a special ‘superconductive’ metal that speeds the natural thawing process. Yet most are simple aluminum trays, and the same accelerated thawing effect can be achieved with any metal pan. In fact, thawing times for these trays often are exaggerated in advertisements,” added the U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

But the worse part is that these products may even increase the risk of food poisoning. This was revealed by the FTC which said that leaving frozen food to thaw at defrosting trays is an ideal way of cultivating deadly bacteria.

“Because thawing trays require that food be thawed at room temperature, and many items will have greatly extended thawing times of well over two hours, there’s some risk that harmful bacteria my develop. Generally, food safety experts agree that to avoid risk, frozen food should be thawed in the refrigerator, in a microwave oven, or in cold water, but never at room temperature,” the FTC said.

So the next time you need to thaw food, forget about Miracle Thaw and other similar products. Your kitchen is better off without them.

To sharpen your mind and remember all this information, take Neurovar. For more information on this powerful memory enhancer, go to http://neurovar.com/prod10.aspx.



By: Sharon Bell

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Food & Drink

You can make your own supplement for general fish feeding that is high in DL-methionine (an important amino acid in fish nutrition); Start with whole salmon which is an excellent source of carotene for color (frozen or even canned works), frozen peas, hard boiled egg, frozen or FD brine shrimp, duck weed or spiulina powder, and fish oil (cod liver oil works fine). Blend this mixture then add corn starch to the paste to dehydrate. Spread this paste on small strips of foil (or even wax paper if your dehydrator does not get to hot). Make sure you leave room for air circulation.

For a frozen food, substitute the corn starch with unflavored gelatin powder.

For goldfish and koi, add wheat germ powder. Use this formula for African Cichlids, except delete the wheat germ.

For more carnivorous fish increase the whole fish and decrease the spirulina powder or duckweed. Calamari (squid) can be added too for carnivorous fish, but make sure that all the ink is removed from whole squid.

Use this formula for Discus.

For spirulina powder, Spirulina One Flake can be substituted, but since this already a complete diet for many fish, I double the amount of this and decrease other ingredients by comparable amounts.

Here are basic percentages, please note that you can change these percentages to suit your fish food requirements:

BASIC/GOLDFISH/CARNIVOURE

Whole Salmon: 25% 20% 30%

Peas: 25% 25% 15%

Egg: 20% 15% 25%

Brine shrimp: 15% 15% 15%

Spirulina Powder:10% 15% 5%

Wheat Germ: 0% 5% 0%

Squid: 0% 0% 5%

Fish Oil: 2% 2% 2%

Corn Starch or Gelatin: 3% 3% 3%

For a complete article about what constitutes quality fish food ingredients, please visit this article: Quality Fish Food; What ingredients are needed for proper nutrition, growth and health



By: Carl Strohmeyer

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From soups to pies your favorite recipes will love what dried food can do for them when you purchase from your choice of food dehydrators. Recipes will be enhanced with dried foods and you will be able to store dry foods longer to prepare whenever you need that special recipe. From apples to thyme dried foods can help your recipes taste their best and you can dry those special ingredients with dehydrators. When you have a special recipe you want it to taste just right a dried ingredient may just be what separates your recipe from all the rest and makes it the best.

When you are making your specialty recipes you want to make sure that you always have the ingredients you need. If you find yourself needing an ingredient that is out of season you can now have the ingredients you need anytime when you dehydrate those special ingredients. Dehydrating fruits, nuts, herbs and spices can help you have what you need to complete your favorite recipes even if that ingredient is out of season. If you have the capability to dry foods you can have what you need at anytime you may need it. Dehydration can also give you what you need when it comes to recipes with vegetables. Vegetables can be dehydrated also and you can make as much as you need or as little as you need. So making that great vegetable soup recipe is possible even in the middle of winter when you use dehydration to dry your vegetables.

Freshness sometimes is what may make or break a recipe. When you want fresh herbs and spices for any recipe drying them with food dehydrators may be what sets your recipe a part form everyone else. Drying your own herbs and spices allows them to be as fresh as possible and allows your recipe to soak up the entire great fresh flavor. Drying your own herbs and spices will also give you pride in knowing that you are providing the freshest ingredients you can in all your recipes.

Drying fruits for pies is another way a dehydrator can come in handy especially when fruit is off season. If you want to make the best apple pies for Thanksgiving and Christmas you can dry your apples in the summer when they are in season, which means if you buy them you will save money. Once you have your apples dry them and they will be ready anytime you want to make the best tasting apple pies for your family and friends. You can also dry other fruits to make your favorite pies. Maybe it isn’t pie you want to make but breads and muffins your dessert choices are endless when you dry your fruit.

You will love what drying fruits, nuts, vegetables and herbs & spices do to your favorite family recipes. Everyone will love the freshness and the taste that dehydration can bring to all your recipes. So make your choice from the food dehydrators that are available to you and your recipes will love it.



By: Mike Brown

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Today, fast food became a way of life. Some studies have shown that by just eating two fastfood meals a week, exactly what they ate didn’t seem to matter much. Breakfast sandwiches, fries, burgers and nuggets all meant a greater risk of obesity and it can increase the chances of obesity by 50%. It is not only fast, cheap and convenient, it also tastes good, making it harder to resist. It contains high levels of sodium, refined sugar, oil and refined flour. This combination alone can be harmful to one health as well as cause obesity.

Some fact show that Fast Food Cause Obesity?

Many doctors and experts are concern about obesity in today, with the rise in obesity they start to question and study whether fast food can cause obesity. There are many facts show that eating too many fast food meal per weeks will cause obesity. Some of the facts are:

- Obesity rates is increase every year

- Many people choosing fast food as their primary food

- Cheap and convenient, fast-food restaurants everywhere

- A lot of fast-food advertisements

It is little wonder that fast food and obesity go hand in hand. There have been countless studies that show that fast-foods are of poor and low nutritional value. The typical fast food meal consists of low quality carbohydrates, white bread, high levels of saturated fat and a sugary soda. Usually, it also has relatively low fiber content. Fast-food has high caloric density, before you know about it; you will have overeaten and put on weight. So it does cause obesity.

BMI and You

A lot of researchers report that fast food can cause obesity; especially those families that choose it as a meal more than three times a week do run a higher risk of obesity and larger BMI’s. The BMI, or body mass index, is a formula that doctors use to determine exactly how overweight a person is. A BMI of a number between 25 and 30 means the patient is overweight, if 30 or more is an indication of obesity. About 70% of adults in our country can be classified as overweight, and about 35% Adults is considered obese. These are very high figures and many of them having high BMI, when you know that obesity can lead to health problems, such as diabetes and high blood pressure.

Our lifestyle choices also might affect our body weight as well. For example, if you and your family members visiting the fast food chains frequently, then you have a tendency to keep less healthy and high nutritional choices in at your home. The absence of fresh vegetables, fruits and whole grains can make the effects of the fries and burgers that much more severe. Some study show that slender teenagers know how to take balance food, example if they choose it on occasion will balance that choice by consuming fewer calories the rest of the day. But overweight teenagers don’t know or can not control to take balance food. While there is evidence to show that it causes obesity, it seems that other factors and choices come into play as well.

The Risk for Diabetes

Experts on fast food and obesity say there is now an alarming rate of cardiovascular disease and diabetes in the United States. These numbers have continued to rise in the past few years. A study found those who eating lots of fast food gained 10 pounds more than those who did so less often, and increases twice the chance of developing an insulin disorder that directly linked to diabetes. The sedentary lifestyle, are rapidly becoming one of the top causes for type II diabetes and coronary artery disease. The high carbohydrate content of fast-food may cause the bodies inability to produce the amount of insulin needed to deal with the sugar levels produced after a meal. This may lead to increase sugar levels and block arteries.

Some Improvement

While some fast-food restaurants have begun offering healthier alternatives, including fruit, whole-grain bread, lower-fat fries, salads, as well as bottled water, rather than sodas.

However, this seems to be a rather weak and slow response, even though it is a step in the right direction. But, it does show that even the fast food restaurants acknowledge that their food cause obesity.

Always make your good choice

If you are concerned about whether fast food causes obesity, you can take time to practice healthy lifestyle, make choices for healthy eating that do not have to include avoiding fast-food all of the time. You can balance the occasional burger with plenty of healthy food options in between, and make sure that you go for regular exercise as well. With some wise and healthy choices, you do not have to worry whether fast food will cause obesity to you.



By: Cindy Heller

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Kansieo.com

There are thousands of harmful food additives that we are consuming every day. Many of these food additives have been show to be harmful to our health. The information in this article will help empower you to know what to look for.

In 1958 the government passed the Delaney Clause Food Additives Amendment which prohibited companies from adding known harmful chemicals to our food. But in spite of this, there are still dangerous chemicals that are still being added to our food and it is important to understand which chemicals these are and what the potential dangers are.

The only defense we have as consumers is that all packaged food is required to list all the ingredients on the label. We need to educate ourselves and become familiar with the harmful food additives and read every label of the food we purchase. The challenge however, is that food companies tend to make finding these suspicious ingredients somewhat tedious, hiding them in hard-to-find areas of the package and making the print extremely small so as to discourage their discovery.

The names of these chemicals themselves can complicate matters. These chemical names are long and foreign-sounding and people typically skip over them because they are tedious to try and read. The food producers are clever. They will intentionally use healthy-sounding phrases to dupe pepople into thinking that the product is free of chemical additives. For instance, “Natural Flavors” or “No Preservatives” are commonly found on packaged food products, but does this mean that the product is free of harmful food additives? Absolutely not. Again, you must check all the ingredients to determine whether a product is completely free of food additives.

Here is a helpful tip that relies on basic common sense. If you are reading the ingredient list and you find it is long and loaded with long words that you are unfamiliar with, guess what? This product almost assuredly has plenty of chemical food additives.

Here is a list of twelve food additives that you should definitely try and avoid. This is not an exhaustive list, however, these food additives have been linked to health concerns and harmful side effects.

Sodium Nitrate or Sodium Nitrite

Found primarily in lunch meat and hotdogs, this is a preservative and color and flavor enhancer and has been linked to cancer.

BHA and BHT

Butylated hydroxyanisole and butylated hydrozyttoluene are used as a preservative. You can find them in things like chips, cereals and even chewing gum. They are know to oxidize the cells and cell oxidation is the precursor to cancer.

Propyl Gallate

Also a preservative. There has been evidence that this can be linked to cancer.

Monosodium Glutamate (MSG)

MSG is one of the more well-known food additives and is primarily used as a flavor-enhancer. Much of the restaurant food we consume is flavored with MSG. This food additive can cause reactions in some people such as headaches and nausea.

Trans Fats

Trans-fats are proven to cause heart disease. Restaurant food, especially fast food chains, often serves foods laden with trans-fats.

Aspartame

Aspartame is a sweetener and is also known as NutraSweet. The brand of sweetener called Equal is also aspartame. This food additive has been linked to cancer and neurological problems.

Acesulfame-K

A new sweetener used in baked goods and candy, Acesulfame-K has had limited testing and there has been some evidence that it may cause cancer in lab rats.

Food Colorings: Blue 1, 2; Red 3; Green 3; Yellow 6

Food colorings are basically just a form of paint. They can liven up the walls in your living room but should definitely be avoided in food. Blue 1 and 2, found in beverages, candy, baked goods and pet food, have been linked to cancer in lab animals. Red 3, has been shown to cause thyroid tumors in rats. Green 3 has been linked to bladder cancer. Yellow 6 has been linked to tumors of the adrenal gland and kidney.

Olestra

Olestra is a chemical fat that is used in chips and can have a wide array of side effects. Additionally, Olestra can impede the absorption of vitamins from fruits and veggies.

Potassium Bromate

This food additive is found in many breads and products that use flour. It has been linked to cancer in animals.

White Sugar

White sugar is white because of bleach. Eating foods that add a lot of white sugar is very bad for you.

Sodium Chloride

AKA… salt. Most of the commercial foods we eat are loaded with Sodium Chloride. This additive has been proven to cause heart disease.



By: Joe Costello

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