Stress brought on by everyday situations in life is often avoidable but its affect can have damaging affects, resulting in the acceleration of the aging process, heart disease and other debilitating conditions. You have probably heard of such things as mediation or yoga as stress busters but help can also be found in antioxidants in the kitchen.
Antioxidants help calm the by-product of stress, free radicals, so they can not have a damaging effect on the body. There are some simple ways to boost the antioxidant in your meals, this measure is known as the ORAC (oxygen radical absorbance capacity). The US Department of Agriculture compiled a list that can help guide the consumer to make better and cost effective choices. Their list, which was compiled in 2007, measures 277 items.
A few spices that will help not only flavor your meals but also will give a bang to the ORAC are ground cloves, dried oregano, ground turmeric, and ginger root. A few raisins, pecans and kidney beans added to a salad will kick it up a notch. Since breakfast is the most important meal of your day and one you would never skip :-)...start it off with a smoothie made with some blueberries or raspberries and to give it a real zing add a little ground cinnamon. All these are an easy and inexpensive ways to be sure you are fighting back and increasing the antioxidants in your diet.
If you have any recipes that you use to boost up the ORAC...let me hear from you...shoot me an email.
My Pearls of Health
Working together for change to live a healthier lifestyle
Posted By: Belinda Anderson
Wednesday, April 1st 2009 at 5:32PM
You can also
click
here to view all posts by this author...
