Health
Ginger :Raw or cooked? #BlogchatterAtoZ
Ginger isย very popular in my kitchen. I add it in my morning cup of green tea, in my curries and I also have ginger infusion water. Ginger tea is a childhood favorite. Inย green tea or milk tea, I love my ginger.
With milk tea, adding too much ginger early on can curdle the milk. But with green tea, no such problem. Raw ginger has several amazing benefits. But it can be difficult to chew it raw. Adding it to my glass infusion water bottle, helps me have my raw ginger water without trouble.
Can you grow a ginger plant?
Yes. It’s easy. The only thing you need is a piece of ginger root. Just make small nicks, on a piece of ginger tuber and plant it in a little soil. The green shoot will appear and there will be several small ginger tubers appearing below it. Harvest when the green shoots die.
Ginger powder: is it any good?
Nothing like the natural and dried powder is used if you don’t have access to the real thing.
What are the active chemicals in Ginger?
The active ingredients in ginger root are gingerols, shogaol, and paradols. Gingerol is the main bioactive compound in ginger. It has powerful anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.
Benefits of gingerย
Antioxidant and anticancer effect
Ginger and some of its components are effective antioxidants in vitro.ย Due to the antioxidant property, it is considered to exert an anticancer effect. It has potential action in colon cancer. In humans in vivo action needs further research.
The cognitive improvement and neuroprotective effects occur due to the antioxidant effect.
Even dried ginger may have beneficial effects in treating dementia, including Alzheimerโs diseaseย (Ghayur, Gilani, Ahmed, Khalid, Nawaz, Agbedahunsi, Choudhary, Houghton 2008). But this effect in Alzheimer’s disease is not conclusive.
Better digestion and prevents nausea
Several research data show that active ingredients of ginger accumulate in the gastrointestinal tract. But the exact mechanism of action is still not clear.
Ginger also reduces cholesterol and improve lipid metabolism. This makes its role in the prevention of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases significant.
A survey of a group of obstetricians and gynecologists: Most recommend taking an antiemetic (71.3%), and specifically ginger (51.8%), to patients with moderate to severe nausea (Power, Holzman, and Schulkin 2001).
Ginger has been recommended to combat nausea associated with chemotherapy.
Gingerol in ginger helps maintain orodental health by its antibacterial activity.
Ginger is used in many illnesses, such as colds, nausea, arthritis, migraines, and hypertension since ages.
Even when we see the safety profile of ginger, there is an incomplete understanding of the mechanism of action. Thus you need caution while trying any therapeutic uses. But including ginger in your diet will only enhance the taste. Do you include ginger in your diet?
Other posts in this series
Asparagus: Also a medicinal plant
Beetroot: Benefits and worries
Disclaimer: This post is meant for spreading healthcare information and not meant as a replacement for a professional medical opinion. Always consult a medical professional before taking any decision related to health and healthcare. Healthcare information is a rapidly evolving field. While all attempts are made to keep this website updated, the author/s and or website disclaim all responsibility for any inadvertent omission/commission.ย ย Read my full disclaimer.
Reference:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92775/
Sharma and Gupta 1998Grant and Lutz 2000
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3665023/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5008850/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92775/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3665023/
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Protected: Healthy Joints:Diet for Rheumatoid Arthritis #BlogchatterAtoZ
Do Salads help in Satiety?
Consuming low-energy-dense salad before rather than with the main course increased vegetable consumption by 23%. To moderate energy intake, maximizing the amount of salad eaten may be more important than the timing of consumption.
problem of obesity, it is important to identify effective strategies for decreasing energy intake.
Research has shown that reducing the energy density of foods and meals is one promising approach for moderating energy intake in both the short and long term (Rolls, 2009; Ello-Martin, Roe, Ledikwe, Beach, & Rolls, 2007).
In multiple controlled studies, consuming a preload of a low-energy-dense food such as soup, fruit, or vegetables reduced meal energy density and energy intake. It is unclear, however, whether the effect of consuming a low-energy-dense food depends upon eating it as a first course, or whether it would be as effective eaten as a side dish along with the main course.
For me it works if I have it as a first course and take atleast ten to fifteen minutes to have it
Maximizing salad intake was an effective strategy for reducing meal energy intake.
Reference:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3264798/
https://www.deepdyve.com/lp/elsevier/salad-and-satiety-the-effect-of-timing-of-salad-consumption-on-meal-HJ6u0sj8Dr
Featured post
How is the Health of the Nation: The report is an eye-opener!
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World Health Day :Universal Health Cover #WorldHealthDay
7th April is World Health Day and WHO wants you to help the world pledge its sincerity for the goal. #HealthforAll that isย Healthcare facility available for all.If you want to know what Universal healthcare involves and what it doesn’t you must read further.You also need to know. how you can bring about a change right where you are.
But there are a few corollaries.It needs to be timely and quality healthcare.While thats the best way to go forward as a race we cannot ignore the economics of it.
Its easier to teach educated people about health easily.So shouldn’t #EducationforAll be the goal?For all this goal money is needed.But then shouldn’t #FamilyPlanning for all be a goal too.Let’s start with what we have where we are.Right?The chicken or the egg?Which comes first?The National Health Protection Schemeย is partly a step in the right direction but the National Medical Council Bill is controversial.
The Goal of WHO is Universal health Coverage .What does it mean?
This is what WHO says:
UHC means that all individuals and communities receive the health services they need, when and where they need them.It will prevent people from being pushed into poverty when paying for health services out of their own pockets. UHC will help everyone access the services that address the most important causes of disease and death. UHC is about health services for individuals and populations, such as controlling mosquito breeding grounds.
At least 50% of the Worlds population is unable to access the healthcare they need.
Did you know?
Globally, approximately 100 million people are pushed into ‘extreme poverty’ (living on $ 1.90 or less a day) because they have to pay for healthcare services.
All UN Member States have agreed to try to achieve universal health coverage (UHC) by 2030, as part of the Sustainable Development Goals.
Good health allows children to learn and adults to earn, helps people escape from poverty and provides the basis for long-term economic development.
What UHC is not: There are many things that are not included in the scope of UHC:
- UHC does not mean free coverage for all possible health interventions.It is not sustainable economically to provide all services free of charge
- UHC includes health financing, health service delivery systems, health workforce, health facilities and communications networks, health technologies, information systems, quality assurance mechanisms, and governance and legislation.
- UHC is not only about ensuring a minimum package of health services, but also about ensuring a progressive expansion of coverage of health services and financial protection as more resources become available.
UHC ย covers individual treatment services and population-based services such as public health campaigns, adding fluoride to water, controlling mosquito breeding grounds etc.
UHC is more than health.It is about equality, social inclusion, and cohesive society.But we have a problem.Even when people know things are bad for their health they indulge in wrong lifestyle choices.Not once a but repeatedly.This action is common to both the educated and the uneducated sections of society.Maybe there should be penalties associated with expecting free healthcare after chewing tobacco for twenty years.Or maybe Government needs to take a strong stand on selling and buying products which are proved to endanger health and quality of life?
In a balanced society you would expect the adult human will be capable of deciding about good and bad.But evidence is contradicting that theory.
How can you help?
- First, help yourself and your family.Try to make yourself and your family healthy.You can cut down on health expenses by investing in a healthy lifestyle.Educate children so that they learn about healthy living.
- Get your health checkups done regularly.Invest in a good quality health-insurance even if you have a group health insurance.The sooner you invest in a health insurance the better it is.Try to opt for an insurance where no claim-years increase your coverage amount.
- A healthy diet, regular exercise, sleep and health checkups go a long way in keeping you healthy.
- Spend time on a hobby or something which challenges you.This helps in ensuring mental health and prevents age-related degenerative diseases.
- Avoid social practices which include negative interactions to cut down on stress.Stress is a silent disease and has long-standing repercussions.Try to make your environment greener at home and office.Encourage community activities to promote a healthy lifestyle.
Planting trees, maintaining cleanliness in all neighborhoods.Try to encourage community kitchen gardening in association with socially and economically backward sections of surrounding regions.
The above canย help in several ways:
1)It will help everyone get fresh food grown locally with more control over quality
2)The fresher the food is more is the nutritional benefits.You are what you eat .If food is high quality , health and nutrition is easier.
3)The collaboration between different strata of society will help in social inclusion and the dripping down of economic stability to the various strata while ensuring self-respect and honest earnings.Charity is not involved but a co-operative model.
The 16 essential health services(4 categories) that WHO uses as indicators of Equity of Health coverage
Reproductive, maternal, newborn and child health:
Family planning:The work starts here .The question is who will be the cat before its too late.
Antennal and delivery care
Full child immunization
Health-seeking behaviour for pneumonia.
Infectious diseases:
Tuberculosis treatment
HIV antiretroviral treatment
Use of insecticide-treated bed nets for malaria prevention
Adequate sanitation.
Noncommunicable diseases: Lifestyle diseases fall into this category
Prevention and treatment of raised blood pressure
Prevention and treatment of raised blood glucose
Cervical cancer screening
Tobacco (non-)smoking.
Service capacity and access:
- Basic hospital access
- Health worker density
- Access to essential medicines
- Health security: compliance with the International Health Regulations.
By sharing this artic;e you will be helping spread awareness.
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What’s in a Carrot? #BlogchatterAtoZ
Carrot, cilantro, cabbage, cauliflower , coriander, veggies starting with C are many. My new book will be covering most of them. But today I will discuss Carrots. Those lovely orange veggies which rabbits love and I do too! If I was to choose between sweet or savory the gajar ka halwa wins any day. But carrot sticks and dips are a delicious healthy snack which even children love.
Carrot Nutrition secrets
Carrots are a good source of carbohydrates and dietary fibres and minerals like Calcium, Iron, Magnesium, Sodium, potassium, Copper, Zinc, Thiamine, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin C. It also contains ย Carotenoids,(5.33 mg/100 g) ย beta carotene and lutein and phenolic acids.
Carrot calories:126 kJ/100 g
Carrot benefits you must know?
The many micronutrients and bioactive compounds make carrots a functional food with several health-promoting properties.
Carotenoids enhance your immunity They decreased the risk of degenerative diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease, age-related macular degeneration, and cataract formation. Carotenoids show promise as a potential inhibitor of Alzheimerโs disease (Zaman et al. 1992).
Phenolics or polyphenols have antioxidant, antimutagenic and antitumor activities. Polyacetylenes one of the bioactive components could be useful in the development of new therapies forย Leukemia
Phenolics in carrots are present throughout the roots but are highly concentrated in the periderm tissue (Mercier et al. 1994). The carrot peel accounts for only 11% of the amount of the fresh carrot weight, it could provide 54.1% of the number of total phenolics.
Both carrot powder and grits are a good source of crude protein, crude fiber, iron, calcium, ฮฒ-carotene and dietary fiber (Singh and Kulshrestha 2008). ย ฮฒ-carotene content of dehydrated carrots shows that the shreds lost most ฮฒ-carotene. This is followed by powder and chops during three months of storage (Suman and Kumari 2002).
Drinking carrot juice lowers systolic pressure but did not diastolic pressure. Drinking carrot juice increased the plasma total antioxidant capacity. Carrot juice and its blends are among one of the most popular non-alcoholic beverages in Germany.
Processing of carrots into products like canned slices, juice, concentrate, pickle, preserve, cake, and halwa are ways to include carrot in your diet throughout the year. Carrot pomace containing about 50% of the carotenoids.
Best ways to includeย carrot in your diet
Cook it with a little butter/oil for best absorption. Sweet or savory either way carrots are amazing
Vege sandwich with carrots, carrot cakes, pancakes, Carrot halwa Ghee and khoya are a must for the right taste. The one in Dilli haat Rajasthan stall is outstanding.
For a healthy snack try, carrot sticks with a dip.
Salad with carrots.
Add it to fried rice, pulao, khichdi, noodles, soups mixed veg, chicken stir fries, veg soups or chicken soups that taste amazing, Idli, poha, daal, fritters, anything, and everything can have carrots.
Other posts in this series
Asparagus: Also a medicinal plant
Beetroot: Benefits and worries
References:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/20063690/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/m/pubmed/22263789/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3550877/
