Awakening Beauty- Book Giveaway !

Who doesn’t want to be beautiful ? Admit it or not , all of us want to be beautiful , Last year while I was visiting family in India , my 14 year old niece had asked me at least 35 times if she looked beautiful and when I told her that she was indeed beautiful, she was ecstatic. I am the best aunt she ever has !

Often , we forget how beautiful we are , so much so that I am surprised when people tell me I look pretty , I must admit I really feel weird when someone compliments me on my looks or skin may be because I think certain aspects of my face are not so good or even ugly. While I was reading this book , It really occurred to me that I as an individual should embrace all that I have , restore peace and harmony and love myself in order to feel whole and really feel beautiful inside and out.

Most of us lead hectic lives , a fantastic career , great kids and family structure , busy weekends , girls night outs , you name it we do it , but how many of us , stop for a minute , look at ourselves and say “I am taking good care of myself , I am happy and content , I eat well , I take care of my body , my skin and my face “ ? How many of us set apart a certain amount of time everyday just for ourselves ? Well , I’m sure not many of us ! We , women tend to put our kids , family and career first than ourselves , we are programmed that way ! But if even one person, after reading this article , puts away some time for herself everyday, Id be the happiest !

Listen to the warning signs that work against your rhythm , listen to the Hungry , Angry , Lonely , Tired (HALT) signs and work in communion with your rhythms. Remember that your life is supported by your rhythms and cause it to unfold. By understanding your rhythms, you develop a sense of self , an ever- increasing capacity for genuine love and an ever – unfolding beauty.

What are rhythms ?

Rhythms are nothing but the gentle waves of your inner world which is alive with thoughts and feelings.

How do you recognize rhythm ?

Sometimes by doing nothing and relaxing and gently breathing . A simple way to bring order in your rhythm is to bring order in your environment like cleaning and de cluttering the space around you , enjoying the beauty of nature , most importantly giving time to yourself and trying to cleanse your mind of the negative thoughts that are clouding you.

I truly believe what goes into your stomach should mostly be organic and local. I also believe what you apply on your face also has to be organic. I am willing to cut back on other things which are not so important and spend on things that I use for my skin everyday ! I support cosmetics which have ingredients grown bio dynamically or organic in nature.

What is biodynamic farming?

Biodynamic farming was introduced by Rudolf Steiner , an esotericist, philosopher , thinker , It is a scientific use of crop rotation , composting, integrated soil , crop and pest management keeping in mind the health of the ecosystem and in the early twentieth century

Biological practices banned all the use of synthetic substances such as pesticides and fertilizers chemical in nature and sustainable practices like using green manure , composting , cover crops , crop rotation and companion planting were incorporated.

Dynamic practices included intentions to increase the life force of earth and the farm in general. Some practices were herbal remedies or preparations applied to the soil, the leaves of the plant and compost of the plants to make the plants grow healthier and stronger.

Out of the biodynamic farming was born the organic movement.

Boosting your life force for energy and beauty

Rudolf Steiner says there is an energetic connection between people.Our thoughts , emotions and words are bundles of etheric energy. Susan West kurz , who is the author of Awakening beauty gives us some great insight into this .
She says “ Everyone who touches you with love , care or compassion elevates your life energy and contributes to your health and beauty. The opposite is also true.

Some tips to strengthen our health, improve our lives and develop our beauty.

1.Spend some time in Nature

2.Eat unprocessed plant food

3.Express gratitude and love throughtout the day especially when you drink water or bathe or shower. Water is a powerful healing medium.

4,Dance or do rhythmic exercise

5. Seek out therauptic massage and healing touch like Reiki and acupuncture.

6. Listen to beautiful , harmonious music

7. Use skin care products made of pure plant substances, preferably grown biodynamically or organically

8. Practice rhythm

In spite of all this aging is inevitable , which means we need to be more and more conscious o exposing ourselves to the sources of healing and beauty. The reason being when you reach your thirties , forties and fifties , the life force turns its attention from the physical body towards your internal development , namely wisdom , spiritual development. Therefore your health and beauty depend on the wisdom of choices and how well you care for yourself, both internally and externally.


Thank you all for taking a moment and reading what I wrote. I have written just a fraction of what I have read and understood from this book. All I can say is Take good care of yourself. Truly believe that sometimes if you have to put yourself first ,then you should do it in order to become a better person. I am speaking from experience, I have a 10 month old baby and its no small task to care for her , I have signed away my life to her and I am the happiest about it. I believe if I take care of myself , I can do a better job in taking care of her .

We , The Daily tiffin team are giving away Awakening Beauty – Dr Hauschka Way by Susan West Kurz with Tom Monte . Please leave a comment in the below comments section. Meeta and I will pick up the winner randomly and inform the winner and post the book in 7 days. Last date for leaving a comment is 25th Feb 2009.

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Check out more details of the book on Amazon



The book has a lot of information about

Sustainable beauty practices.

Details about specific healing conditions.

The advantages of using plant products especially from Biodynamic and organic farms.

Great recipes for facial scrubs and best of all over 60 recipes for a healthy skin and beauty.


Note: Awakening beauty was used for reference and the above content is picked from the book. Thank you to Cercone Brown & Co, the publishers for sending us the book.

This post was written by Dee

Are you interested in contributing to The Daily Tiffin? Drop us an email: thedailytiffin@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing your ideas.

Foods You Thought You Knew

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So I think I’m probably going to be known as the baby-lady around here, but as many of you know, it does take over your life doesn’t it... but in a very good way.
Today we are going to talk about carrots. That’s right, you heard--err, read me correctly, carrots. Why are we going to talk about carrots? Because I use them a lot in my baby’s food and because they’re quite interesting in more ways than you’d think.

I guess there could have been many other vegetables I could have written about for this post but I picked carrots because -WARNING: I’m about to admit something I probably shouldn’t here so get ready- I only just discovered- NO not carrots silly, of course I’ve known carrots forever, who hasn’t- rainbow carrots. I’ve only just discovered rainbow carrots. I didn’t actually know there were other colors of carrots than orange, (did you?) so imagine my surprise when my husband brought home these beautiful carrots in shades of purple and greenish-yellow and told me there even were red carrots out there somewhere.
Upon doing a little bit of research I discovered that carrots, in fact, were not orange to begin with. That seems odd doesn’t it? It seems like no actually they always were orange and then some guy with too much time and a lot of carrot seeds laying around started making hybrids and coming up with cool funkedelic colors, but it just seems that way, that’s not really what happened.
In reality, it’s not exactly clear what the chronology of the modern carrot is other than, from evidence found in archaeological digs, some form of carrot, as in plants from the carrot family, existed back in the Eocene period (55 to 34 million years ago). After that, there is no actual written record of their use either for food or medicinal purposes until the Greeks and Romans, although the domesticated version of carrots (oh yes, I’ll tell you about that in a minute) are believed to date back to approximately 5000 B.C. in Afghanistan.
So, to the issue of wild vs. domesticated carrots. When I first read that there were wild carrots and that the carrots we take for granted as simply being carrots are the hybridized and domesticated descendants of "wild" ones, I imagined a Mr. Potato Head version of a carrot wearing a loincloth and carrying a sharpened stalk of celery for a spear. It turns out that you probably know wild carrots by another name; they are commonly known as Queen Anne's Lace and are mostly considered to be a weed, albeit a pretty one; the root is tough, pale (most often white), bitter and quite small. Presumably, over thousands of years and many combinations, the modern, domesticated carrot evolved partially from the wild carrot, but attempts to create domesticated edible carrots -such as we know them- purely from wild carrots have failed, so the belief that domesticated carrots come entirely from wild ones is inaccurate.
The first domesticated carrots that I mentioned above were purple and sometimes yellow. Through time and cross-cultivation, other colors appeared, first red, then white, then orange which became the most common form of carrot particularly in the West. They were brought to Europe by the Arabs in the 10th century, at which time the orange version did not yet exist, and it is thought that Western Europeans eventually developed the common orange-colored carrot some time around the 16th century.

Now to the nutritive properties of carrots, which is really why you might still be reading this post:
Carrots are phenomenally nutritious. They contain the most beta-carotene (unsurprisingly and that which gives carrots their orange color) of any fruit or vegetable which is converted to vitamin A by the body. They also are a source of vitamins B6 and C, and a pectin fibre known as calcium pectate which may have the ability to lower cholesterol. Carrots are loaded with potassium, thiamin, folic acid, and magnesium and when cooked also contain copper, iron, manganese, phosphorus and sulphur. The lesson here being that an apple a day is all well and good, but maybe you should consider eating some more of those carrots you have laying around. It's as easy as washing and peeling one. If you happen to get a bunch of carrots with their greens, those contain vitamin K which is not present in carrots themselves, so you might want to use those as well. It's all good.

I used to hate cooked carrots when I was little, but realized in retrospect that that was only because my mother didn't cook them and the only cooked ones I had were often boiled to death and lacking any flavor. I've always loved them raw however, and now like them cooked as well. I've been making all of the carrots pictured above for my little noodle and she loves them, no matter the color or the manner in which they are cooked. It is thanks to her that I've discovered all of these things about carrots, and that I continue to discover things every day about foods I eat.
Have you learned anything about foods you thought you knew from your children?



This post was written by Hilda


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Back to School with Healthier Lunch Boxes

Soeren's already back at school since the past few weeks, but in many countries schools are still out for a few weeks. Not sure about how you feel, but vacations always bring back some of the easy going feeling and especially after summer break I seem to be scrambling to keep up with the hectic pace school life and chores bring along.

One thing that needs attention everyday is packing balanced and healthy lunch boxes. They need their daily nutrients to keep them active and give them the power to get through the day. Unfortunately, in our convenient world, lunch boxes are often filled with packaged ‘convenience’ foods. Full-calorie soda, chips, and cookies can add up to a lot of excess fat, sugar, sodium and calories, which may contribute to long-term health problems like high blood pressure, diabetes and obesity. Furthermore, these extra calories also make kids sluggish or cranky in the afternoons.

After packing lunches for Soeren over the past few years I have learned quite a few things. Next week he's going to be 7 and very much has a head of his own. So, I know that the lunch boxes has to have items which he enjoys and is most likely to eat.

What we've done is made a chart and included included all his favorite healthy foods. The chart divides the foods into different groups and we try to focus on a variety to be able to provide a balanced lunch box. This provides the energy and nutrients needed to grow, play, learn and stay healthy.

The basics are simple - the lunch box needs to include:

• One serving of vegetables or salad and a serving of fruit (preferably fresh, but canned or dried can counts).
• One serving of a low-fat or fat-free dairy item such as a low-fat cheese stick, a yogurt cup, milk or some cottage cheese.
• One source of protein. Things like meat, chicken, fish, eggs, peanut butter or beans.
• A healthy drink such as water or unsweetened 100% juice or as Soeren likes a mix of 100% fruit juice with some sparkling water.

With this in mind the chart is fairly simple to create. Below I've made a copy of Soeren's chart.

Main	Vegetable/Salad	Fruit	Dairy	Protein	Drink
Whole wheat pita with egg salad + quark dressing	Carrots	Strawberries	Natural quark w/honey and peaches	Gouda cheese stick	Apple juice w/Sparkling water
Multigrain bread with tuna salad	Cucumber Sticks	Peaches	Chocolate milk	Unsalted cashew nuts/almonds	Cherry Juice w/ sparkling water
Rye bread with turkey meatballs	Bell Peppers (no green ones)	Homemade apple sauce	Plain yogurt w/ agave nectar and strawberries	Hummus dip	Multivitamin juice
Chicken/Falafel wraps	Tabouleh	Honey Melon	Plain yogurt w/ blueberries

These are just a few of his favorite things. There are plenty more items he likes but we wanted to list just a few so that both of us understand in which direction we are going. What I mean is, by getting Soeren to make this chart with me he is more aware of the healthy things he likes. For me it means something to follow when I am lost for ideas or need some inspiration.

I use the chart to mix and match and as a basis to make new creations. From a very young age Soeren ate a lot of fruit - I am lucky there as I get no fuss in that aspect. In addition I do add a healthy treat or snack, like buckwheat blueberry muffins or homemade cookies, sticky buns etc. I prefer to make these treats at home so I can manage the level of sugar and use healthy organic products with less preservatives.

It’s important to add variety and be innovative. If you’re packing cheese and cucumber, cheese and lettuce, or cheese and tomato day in and day out it most probably will get monotonous.

Here are a few ideas I’ve successfully put past Soeren:

• I use different kinds of breads avoiding white bread as much as I can. I try to make variations of different sandwiches – everything from whole wheat pita, naan bread to wraps and baguettes, focaccia to ciabatta rolls.
  
• Sneaky mums add salad to the sandwiches – arugula, shredded cabbage, lettuce, cress etc. Soeren has learned to love his salad in this way!
  
• I use different spreads like goat cheese, cream cheese, avocado dip or a herb flavored quark. Go easy on the butter and avoid mayo.  
  
• Add raw veggies like cucumbers, carrots and bell peppers to the lunch box as a side to nibble along with the sandwiches. I make this a must. Soeren loves to have a dip with these raw veggies. I often pack a hummus, herby flavored quark,  plain cottage cheese or a yogurt tahini dip for him to dunk his veggies into.
  
• A nice change from sandwiches are leftovers from a quiche, spring rolls or pasta bake.
  
• I pack at least 2 types of fruit in his lunch box. Strawberries, blueberries, yellow kiwis, raspberries, apples, orange wedges, melon slices – the list goes on.
  
• During the colder season when the variety of fruit is not as abundant as in the summer, I often turn to dried fruit and nuts.
  
• Sometimes I skip sandwiches and make a salad with couscous, bulgur, pasta or rice. Adding some shredded chicken, veggies or hard boiled eggs makes it more filling. Fat-free or low-fat dressing is often packed in a separate container.
  
• Drinks – I pay very close attention to this. It’s amazing how many drinks label themselves as “healthy!” but a closer look at the label show that they are loaded with sugar. I usually buy 100% fruit juices like apple, grape or cherry. I fill Soeren’s drink thermos with 1/2 juice and the rest is topped off with sparkling water. Low-fat and unsweetened chocolate milk and unsweetened herb/fruit iced teas are also a few of Soeren’s favorite drinks.
  
• Like every child, Soeren loves snacks and treats. I usually make mini treats like small muffins, cookies and brownies, where instead of sugar, I use agave nectar, honey or maple syrup. Smaller mini versions satisfy the snacker’s appetite and does not have that many calories/sugar as the larger portions. Furthermore, I try to use fruit as much as I can in my baked treats.

If you are looking for great inspiration you’ll find several healthy, fun, innovative and scrumptious lunch box ideas right here on the Daily Tiffin. If you’ve ever wondered what Bento is you’ll find the answer to this and much more in our article The art of Japanese lunchboxes - an introduction to Bento.

Finally there are always times when we are in a rush and the lunch box needs to be packed quickly. The best tip I can give on this is try to prepare as much as one can the evening before.

• Fruit and veggies can be cut the evening before and wrapped in Clingfilm.
  
• Frozen rolls, bread etc. can be taken out the evening before. In the morning they are thawed and ready to be spread.
  
• Spreads and dips can also be made the evening before and packed in containers.

You’ll find more useful quick lunch box packing tips in our article Need for speed: A mommy's lunch manifesto. While packing lunches, hygiene plays an important role and our food safety for packed lunches article will provide you with the best pointers.

Our recipe section might also offer you with a few healthy option for the next lunch box. These sweet Asian meatballs are simple and low in stress, which work not only as a party appetizer but also are perfect in a lunch box too. Or how about quesadillas? In our article Que Sera Sera Quesadillas, we share with you just how versatile these are. They make great alternatives to the regular sandwich. My personal all time favorite are these quick Chickpea Spinach Pockets. We also have several ideas and recipes for breads, which you can easily make at home.

I hope a few of these suggestions will help you to recover from the lunch box burn out.

Do you have more helpful and yummy lunch box ideas?
What do you find challenging when packing lunch boxes?

Share your thoughts with us. 

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This post was written by Meeta

Middle Eastern house salad

Sorry this is a day late. I was in Seattle for most of last week for the Web Design World conference and then spent time with my parents who came to visit me for the weekend. Seattle was beautiful and I cannot wait to show you pictures, but first, there's a salad I've been meaning to write about - it's called fattoush (فتوش).

It seems like the market for Middle Eastern salads outside of the Middle East is disproportionally dominated by tabbouleh, a salad, that when made right, combines ultra-finely chopped parsley with tiny pearls of fine-ground bulger wheat and other finely chopped vegetables. Fattoush is quite the opposite, at least when it comes to preparation - it can be thrown together in a matter of minutes, in a very rustic and hearty way that's all about flavor rather than embellishments. Tabbouleh is delicious though, don't get me wrong. Sometimes, however, I just want a quick and tasty, no-frill salad, and for moments like these I make fattoush.

The mise en place can be overwhelming, but in one trip to the farmer's market you can have all these vegetables laid out on your table, too. The most exotic ingredient here is probably the sumac, which is a lemony, sour spice that can be found in most specialty markets these days and certainly any Mediterranean market you know of. If you like cooking Middle Eastern dishes, this is a spice that you should always have on hand.

This is the part where some people might disagree: the bread. Probably the best (and most traditional) way you can prepare the bread for fattoush is by pan-frying the triangles in extra virgin olive oil, but that takes a long time and makes a mess of my stovetop. I prefer to toss the triangles in olive oil, sprinkle some sumac on the bread (something my grandmother taught me), and throw the whole tray into the oven/broiler, on high.

The dressing for this salad is equally simple, as promised. It's a combination of olive oil and lemon juice, with a sprinkle of salt and sumac - that's it. You can add dried mint to the dressing like I did, but that's completely up to you.

Click here to view or print the recipe.

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This post was written by Tony

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Fresh, Frozen, or Canned?

In my dream world, I walk out to my bountiful garden several times a day and pick whatever we need for the next meal, whether it’s tomatoes, onions, greens, cabbage, herbs, squash, eggplant, beans, corn, almonds, cashews, pecans, walnuts, berries, apples, plums, oranges, lemons, limes, mango, bananas, grapefruit, or passionfruit. All of these things are available year round and crops produce perfect yields, neither too much or too little. Now that is a dream! I would love to have all of those things growing in our yard year round, but like most people in the world the climate and soil type determines what we can grow and when, and the ever-changing weather affects the harvest. Some years we struggle to get enough and some years we have a bounty and store the excess.

When faced with an excess of produce from our garden, we preserve foods by freezing or canning, and each has its own benefits.

Pickled Green Tomatoes.

Freezing

Frozen fruits and vegetables are often nutritionally equal or even sometimes superior to fresh as they are usually frozen just after harvest, locking in the vitamins and minerals that would otherwise leech from the food if stored in the refrigerator or on the counter. Harmful organisms are not destroyed in the process, but the freezing temperature inhibits growth. Some vegetables and fruits can be frozen whole, such as tomatillos and berries, but others should be cut, such as zucchini and carrots. Spread out on a baking sheet the produce you plan to freeze and leave it in the freezer for at least one hour, then put into labeled freezer bags.

Leafy vegetables such as spinach should have stems completely removed. Many vegetables should be blanched or even cooked before freezing, but fruits are often frozen after rinsing clean. Herbs can be frozen as whole leaves or chopped and put into ice cube trays, then frozen. Store the whole frozen leaves in plastic containers and frozen cubes in plastic containers or bags.

Always label everything you freeze with the contents and the date. Storage time for frozen produce varies from 1 to 3 months, but that is based on quality of the product not safety. Properly frozen foods are safe indefinitely.

Frozen basil cubes.

Canning

The canning process applies heat to the food to kill any harmful organisms such as bacteria, molds, and yeasts and destroy enzymes and remove oxygen that break down food. Heat does break down some beneficial vitamins (C, thiamine, folate), but most are stable when heat is applied, so canned foods still have health benefits. Canning at home requires some basic equipment:

• boiling water canner or pressure canner
• jars and lids
• large pot for sterilizing jars and lids

Low acid foods such as vegetables and meats require a pressure canner to ensure the temperatures get high enough to destroy harmful microorganisms such as Clostridium botulinum, so don’t try to just boil them in an open pot. Fruits have enough acid and can be processed in an open pot (the boiling water method). Once you have canned your foods and the lids have properly sealed, they will be shelf stable for up to one year and can be stored without refrigeration until opened.

Canned jams and jellies.

We can pickles, jellies, jams, and fruit butters, and then freeze the rest. Last year we put up about 40 jars of canned goods and froze 5 pounds of tomatillos, several batches of pesto and frozen basil, and then slow roasted and froze about 5 pounds of leftover ripe tomatoes. We have enjoyed the bounty of our summer garden throughout the winter and are looking forward to doing it all over again this summer.

References

National Center for Home Food Preservation

National Center for Home Food Preservation – Freezing

National Center for Home Food Preservation – Canning

WebMD – Frozen Vegetables are Hot

U.S. Food and Drug Administration Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition

USDA Food Safety and Inspection Service – Focus on Freezing

University of Minnesota Extension – How to Prepare Vegetables for Freezing

Beyond Vegetarianism – Effects of Cooking on Vitamins

Andrea’s Recipes – Home Canning (Boiling Water Method)

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This post was written by Andrea

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5 Essential Practices for a Successful Diet

Now that the year is well underway, many people are trying harder than ever to hold firm to their resolutions, many of which include a healthier way of eating. Whether you are looking to shed a few holiday pounds or completely transform your look, there is hope when it comes to dieting. With a few simple guidelines, diets can produce some amazing results. Keep reading for some great practices that will make your diet a successful endeavor.

Learn the Principles of Your Diet

How is your diet plan ultimately going to help you reach your goals? Will you need to count calories or watch carbs? Perhaps you will need to do a little of both. Take some time to learn how the body uses food and what kind of diet will truly suit your weight loss needs. Knowledge is power, so take some time to research the best methods for achieving your desired results.

Find New Recipes

The internet is an amazing resource for food lovers of all walks of life. A simple search will give you access to thousands of great recipes, all of which can be tweaked to meet the needs of your specific diet plan. Learning new recipes is a great way to find new flavors from the comfort of your own home without having to place undue strain on your pocketbook.

Avoid Eating Out

Eating out provides many temptations that could ultimately subvert your dietary goals. Many restaurants claim to have healthier or lighter items, but these items or only healthier or lighter when compared to other menu items. Salads at fast food restaurants, for example, can have as many or more calories than a large burger and fries once the protein and dressings are layered on. When you cook at home you know what you’re getting, plain and simple.

Keep a Food Journal

Keeping a food journal can serve many useful purposes when dieting. First of all, it helps you track what you’ve been eating, as well as what you liked and didn’t like about these items. You can track your portions and the ingredients, even the cost of your meals quickly and easily. Make it an interactive journal by pasting in photos of your meals or even recipes and responses from others who have tried your food. Doing this is a great record of your diet and a resource for the future.

Keep With It

Developing the bad habits that caused you to either want or need to develop took time, so expect your good habits to take a while to develop. Thirty days is the standard amount of time to supposedly change habits, so keep at it. Dieting is not always easy, but can be facilitated by practicing a few of these suggestions.

This post was contributed by guest writer Holly McCarthy, who writes on the subject of nursing school.

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Vegetarian Food Pyramid – A Series

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In recent years, with words like Diabetes, Cholesterol and Blood Pressures becoming commonplace in many households, we all are turning to crash diets, low-carb foods and probably to Jenny Craig’s. And no – I dint leave out the obvious “exercise” by mistake. The fact is, that anything worth taking effort, is thrown into the back burner by many of us. I am not going to elaborate on the benefits of exercise, it has been insisted at Daily Tiffin often enough. I am going to concentrate more on foods which not only help to us get healthy but also help to reduce the unnecessary bulk efficiently, without having to go through yo-yo dieting.

Vegetarian foods need not be bland or boring. Consuming whole foods mean that our intake has not been heavily processed by way of chemicals, additives or unnecessary flavorings. Such foods are loved by our body and regular ingestion of these will purge our system of harmful toxins. The purpose of this series is to talk about such foods, expand our knowledge base more about these ingredients with some basic recipes, which are delicious and colorful to boot, so that we can start adding them in our day to day meals. One doesn’t have to become a vegetarian to be healthy – it simply requires us to include some good food options to make a difference to our lifestyle.

I. Grains.

Let me kick start this series with the staple of all foods - Grains. They are available in so many forms from whole grains, rice, cereal grains to flours and the options are endless. They have been cultivated all around the world and are a staple in most of the countries. Each one of them have their own value added benefits which make them one of the most sorted out food groups by health gurus.

1. Oats

This is commonly seen in almost all our pantries. Oats are warming, filling and are popular grains in many places around the world esp. Scotland, where they are usually enjoyed as pancakes, oatcakes and as hot oatmeal. They are available in a variety of forms – as regular oatmeal, rolled, flaked or as oat bran. Here are the various types and their ways to cook and benefits.



a. Oat Groats.

These are whole oat grain - the hulled whole kernel. They have a nutty flavor and a very chewy texture. They are best in breakfast cereal although from my experience they are an excellent rice substitute too. Have you ever tried to make patties with these? They are excellent – taste wise as well as nutrition wise.

How to Cook Oat groats?

Clean the groats well with cold water. Soak Oat Groats overnight. One can use any of the following methods to cook them.

Stove top method:Simmer 1 cup of groats with 2 cups of water, salted. One can also use milk or broth instead of water. It takes about 45min to 1 hour

Rice Cooker method: The process is similar to cooking rice. Use 2 cups salted water/broth to 1 measure Oat groats. It usually takes me a little more than 45 minutes.

Crockpot method: Although I have not tested this method personally, this works very well for an acquaintance of mine who uses 2-1/2 cup to 3 cups salted water for 1 cup of oat groats for cooking in her crock pot on low overnight.

b. Oat Bran

Image courtesy : Purcell Mountain farms

This is the outer coating of the oat grain and is rich in fiber. These are mostly available in your local health markets. The bran is an excellent addition to cookies, muffins, breakfast, breads, pancakes, cereals or as topping. I have sometimes used them even in Roti’s (Indian flatbreads) to good effect. It is better to buy Oat bran in small quantities since they go rancid quickly. Freezing them prolongs the shelf life.

c. Rolled Oats

Rolled oats are nothing but groats which have been pressed flat by heating. Rolled Oats are found in different forms and one would often find these common types in the market:

1. Old Fashioned Rolled Oats:

They are made by heating groats and flattening them with a roller. The very thin rolled version of the same produces very creamy oatmeal than thickly rolled ones. The Quaker Old Fashioned Rolled Oats are thinly rolled and theirs is considered the industry standard and considered to be the regular Old fashioned rolled oats. The thicker ones are referred to as Thick Old Fashioned Rolled Oats.

How to Cook Old Fashioned Rolled Oats:

Stove Top Method: Bring required quantity of water or milk to a boil. Stir in the oats and stir occasionally for about 5-8 min over medium heat until done. Use sugar or salt as per taste.

Microwave Method: Combine the oats with either milk or water along with salt(or sugar) in a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for about 3-5 min. The cooking time varies depending upon your microwave. Stir well and then serve , topped with fruit of choice, with honey or raisins etc.

2. Quick- Cooking Rolled Oats:

Just as the name emphasizes, these are quick cooking variety of Oats and this is because these are made by flattening the pre-cut groats and rolled very thinly using the rollers. Although it is called as Quick cooking, it takes more or less the same amount of time as that of Old fashioned Rolled Oats. Cooking Instructions are same as that of Old Fashioned Oats. I find that it takes about 2-4 min to cook these quick cooking oats.

3. Instant Oats:

Usually there is no cooking involved in these varieties and just adding it to warm milk/water is enough. These are precooked, hence the speed at which it is done. Although they are convenient, it is not advisable since it is loaded with preservatives and other additives. Instant Oats = Instant harm! :) Any recipe asking for Instant Oats can be substituted with quick cooking Oats.

d. Steel Cut Oats ( also referred to as Scottish Oats, Irish Oats or pinhead Oats)

These are immensely healthy since they unrefined and are closer to the natural oat grains. These are formed by cutting the oat groats into smaller pieces. As the name suggests they form the basis for making the Traditional Scottish porridge. They take a little longer time to cook than regular oats.

How to Cook Steel Cut Oats:

Stove-top Method : For 1 cup of Oats bring about 3-4 cups of water to boil in a saucepan and stir in the oats. Keep the heat on high and keep stirring until it thickens up – approximately 5-8 min. Once it becomes thick, stir well, lower the heat to a simmer, cover with a lid and let it cook for another 30-45 min until done. A little milk can be added once done.

Microwave Method: This is not the best method since its need stirring quite often so that the oats does not stick to the bottom. But if needed, follow the same method as mentioned for stove top method taking care to stir every 5 min. The cooking time, although is much lesser taking approximately 20-25 min, again depending on the microwave.

e. Oat flour

These are excellent alternatives to refined flours in baking, although it requires other flours to rise since it does not have any gluten required for bread to rise. If making quick breads, then no additional flours is necessary. Oat flours can be made at home very easily by grinding rolled oats in a food processor. It takes about 2 cups of old Fashioned Rolled Oats to make 1 cup of oat flour.

f. Oat Sprouts

One of the best ways to consume Oats is by sprouting them - which are much thicker than other sprouts. The benefits are countless and they are an excellent addition to – breads, soups, smoothies etc. Make sure you use unhulled Oat seeds for sprouting. Oat groats do not sprout.

How to Sprout Oats:

1. Rinse the oats in cold water until the water runs clear. Transfer into a wide-mouthed jar or sprouting vessel and cover it with twice or thrice the amount of water. Cover the jar and let it soak for 8 hours.

2. Drain and then rinse the oats. This time return them into a jar without any water and cover the mouth with a cloth. Direct sunlight should be avoided.

3. Repeat step 2 every 8 hours for 2-3 days until you see the sprouts. Rinse once again and store it in the refrigerator. They keep well for 10-14 days.

Health Benefits of Oats

Oats is one of the nutritious grains whose health benefits are immense. From helping to lower the bad cholesterol (LDL) while increasing the good cholesterol (HDL), to helping prevent certain cancers, Oats are especially considered to be a boon to people suffering from Celiac disease. They are high in fiber, phytonutrients, Vitamins E and B as well as iron, potassium, magnesium and calcium.

Oat bran consists of bulk of dietary fiber of the grain. Oat Sprouts are rich in vitamins and minerals including essential amino acids and proteins. The whole grain oats is said to contain 7 B vitamins and 9 minerals and twice the protein content as that of wheat. Isn’t that amazing!

What better way to start a day,knowing that every spoonful of that simple oatmeal is loved by our body.

This post was written by Dhivya

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Diets, Diets, Diets - Which One's For Me?

It’s funny how the new year begins with good intentions to eat better: eat less, more nutritiously, less- sugar, more vitamins. I presume that several of us have “loosing weight” as one of the resolutions on our list. Don’t worry you are not alone! January and February are probably the months when people start more diets than any other time in the year.

After the Holidays, I too have been feeling a little unsatisfied with myself. Too many sweets, too much eating and my pants were giving me signals that I needed to take action. I have always been very careful with what I eat. Being a mum of a 6 year-old I pay close intention that our meals are healthy and nutritional. So, a little indulgence here and there, when the bigger picture fits, is OK. However, my weakness has always been sweet desserts and treats and especially over the period of Thanksgiving right through to New Year’s I tend to indulge more than I should.

The result is often that besides my scales showing me things I do not want to see, my energy levels are at a low, I feel down and am often easily irritable. It’s not surprising really – because the more sugary foods I eat the more I crave and these bad sugar and carbohydrate treats simply causes me to feel bad.

Sound familiar to you? If it does than it I am sure you have certainly considered going on a diet to get rid of the extra weight and to start a new regime that will make you feel better.

Generally there is nothing wrong with a diet but one really should consider the contents of the diet and exactly what it preaches. A diet that revolves around drinking powder mixed shakes all day and a big meal in the evening cannot be a healthy option.

It should not be only about loosing weight, it should always be about keeping your body fit and healthy. My dad, who has paid meticulous attention to his food and nutrition, always tells me that our bodies are the running motors and we have to look after this motor throughout our lives. No wonder at the age of 68, he still weighs exactly the same as he did 25 years ago and has the energy of a powerhouse (bless him)!

For me a diet has to be something where I know I am eating sensibly and my food options are healthy. As I reviewed several diets over the past 8-9 months I was amazed at how many were promising a loss of a lot of weight in the shortest of time. We all know that these crash diets are not effective. As soon as we begin to eat “normally” again we put all the weight back on, if not an additional kilo or two. To avoid the yo-yo effect a sensible diet will offer you a better eating plan, offer you loss of weight over a longer period of time, recommend sport and exercise and explain that the diet is more about integrating a healthier meal plan into your lifestyle. It is something you then live by.

As I mentioned above I have been looking into the subject of diets for several months now. Mainly because I was interested in Ayurveda cooking, the glycemic index and the South Beach diet. The more I read about these topics the more I became aware that it was not a “diet” in the way we would consider it to be – it was a lifestyle. These programs do not promise you “loose 10 kilos in 10 days!” but rather promise you a healthier lifestyle when we change certain aspects of our eating habits.

What I have tried to do in this post is summarize a few of these healthier dieting options, listing the advantages and disadvantages of the respective diets. Please remember I am not a dietician or a professional nutritionist and these ideas, recommendations and thoughts are based on my research and common sense!

Ayurveda Diet

This diet is based on the 3500 year old traditional Indian treatment methods. According to the Ayurveda teachings, the human is one entity of body, soul, spirit and the environment.

Three biological forces, called Doshas, interact with and effect every human: Vata, Pitta and Kapha. These three forces define the physical health of the person. With overweight people, for example, it is often the Earth force Dosha Kapha that is strongly distinctive.

The Ayurveda diet consists mainly of salads, vegetables, milk and dairy products, oil and ghee (clarified butter). Meat, fish and eggs are allowed in moderation. For those wanting to loose weight alcohol should be avoided, instead drink a lot of warm water and herbal teas.

Nevertheless, there are no strict dogmas in the Ayurveda philosophy. One should simply enjoy each meal and keep in mind that with the consumption of food they should establish a balance with body, soul and mind.

Advantages

Those who like exotic spices and flavors will love the dishes and food in the Ayurveda diet. Positive is certainly the higher proportions of raw vegetables and fruit – the vitamin and mineral supply is covered. Ayurveda is a lifestyle and the engagement with ones own body and nutrition, the meditation and massage leads to a relaxed relationship with ones own body. This in turn motivates to really think about the healthier aspect of dieting.

Disadvantages

Generally speaking the Ayurveda diet does not do any harm – the only fact is that there is no scientific proof that backs weight loss with this diet. Furthermore there is some skepticism from dieticians with regards to certain aspects of the Ayurveda diet – for example eating ghee (pure clarified butter) for breakfast.
You might not notice a massive weight loss with this program, but combined with a regular fitness regime, this certainly is a very healthy approach to improve your eating habits.

Further reading tips:
- Ayurveda and Food for Skin
- Eating for Balance

Glycemic Index Diet

The Glycemic Index Diet is based on the Glycemic Index (GI). According to the Glycemic Index Diet all foods can be eaten as long as they have a low Glycemic Index. It is not necessary to reducing the amount of calories and fat- consumption on the Glycemic Index Diet.

Basically, the Glycemic Index is a a type of a ranking system for carbohydrates based on their immediate effect on blood glucose levels.

The logic behind this is easy to understand. Carbohydrates with a high Glycemic Index are absorbed quickly by the body, which causes the blood glucose levels to rise rapidly. The body then releases large amounts of insulin in order to decrease the high blood glucose level. The excessive amounts of insulin lower the blood glucose level to such an extent that it can cause a mild form of hypoglycaemia. The reaction that your body gives you as a result of this hypoglycaemia is a feeling of hunger. Furthermore the higher levels of insulin make the decomposition of fat more difficult.

Those carbohydrates that have a low Glycemic Index are broken down slowly. This lower glycemic response means a lower insulin demand and a better long-term glucose control. This also means that the food fills you up for much longer.

In praxis this basically means choosing foods with a low glycemic index, which tend to be (but are not necessarily) healthier, nutrient-rich, less refined, and higher in fiber -- like whole fruits, vegetables, beans and whole wheat products.

Advantages

Following the Glycemic diet generally means a permanent change in your eating habits. Like the Ayurveda Diet, it is not a quick method to loose weight, but a philosophy one lives by, which not only will keep you at a steady weight over a longer period of time but also help to eat more nutritiously.

For this reason, here in Germany the Glyx diet (as it is called here) is often reviewed as a positive diet.

Another positive effect is that you are eating plenty of fruit, vegetables and fewer processed products. Therefore your body is getting the right amount of vitamins and dietary fiber.

Disadvantages

The fact that bleached/white flour products, pizza and chocolate bars are unhealthy for us is not a new concept for most of us. In this respect, the idea behind the Glycemic diet is not a passing fad, but a sensible diet plan.  However as in all cases one should use common sense when choosing food items from the Glycemic index - after all a Snickers scores 55 on the Glycemic Index!

One other point of critique is that the Glycemic index does not only vary from food to food but also other factors play a role in the value. The method of preparation and the combination of the foods that are eaten are some factors that can change the value of the food item on the Glycemic index. For example a boiled potato rates medium (56) but baking it raises the value of the potato to high (85).

Further reading tip: The Glycemic Index Diet (Low Glycemic Diet)

South Beach Diet

The South Beach Diet teaches a way of life where you rely on the right carbohydrates and fats. This new way of eating allows you to live contently without eating the bad carbohydrates and fats. In contrast, when a person eats bad carbohydrates and fats they feel hungrier, causing them to eat more, which causes weight gain.

The diet, which was created by cardiologist Dr. Arthur Agatston,  is designed to work with your body safely and effectively. This diet works in three phases, the first two for a specific timeframe and the third phase for life. There is no calorie counting and food portions are not weighed with this approach.

The South Beach Diet allows you to eat three normal-size meals and two snacks each day. The meal plans are designed to be flexible and a variety can be enjoyed, based on what sounds good to you on any particular day.

In phase 1 of the South Beach Diet potatoes, rice, pasta, fruit, sweets, baked goods and alcohol are to be avoided. Phase 2 allows you to introduce good carbohydrates and low glycemic index fruits. With the first two phases completed, phase 3 provides a change in diet for life.

The success of South Beach Diet depends on the glycemic index. Rule of thumb: always choose low glycemic index foods with good carbohydrates. Phase 1 of South Beach Diet consist of low glycemic food. In later phases, you can mix foods with higher glycemic numbers.

Advantages

The well balanced mix of fruit, vegetables and good carbohydrates with vegetables fats satiates well, without the hunger pangs. Furthermore, positive is the high portions of fruit and vegetables, and the recommendation to eat a lot of fish.

Disadvantages

Phase 1 is a radical adjustment and that is why it is recommended to stick to it not more than 14 days as without fruit over a longer period of time you will be denying yourself nutritious vitamins.  Phase 1 is the strictest phase and eating eggs for breakfast everyday for 14 becomes rather monotonous. Furthermore, it is not recommended for diabetics and vegetarians.

Further reading tip: South Beach Diet - What is it?

This is just a basic summary of the three types of diets of several. It should be a used as a guideline to do your own research on these three diets. The reason I chose the three is basically because to me they are less of a diet to loose weight only, but a lifestyle - a philosophy to change your eating habits for a lifetime. The benefit is that you will feel good about yourself, you will naturally know how to make the sensible choices in life when it comes to food. The bonus is that you will be looking good the whole time.

I personally chose the South Beach Diet and have successfully completed phase 1 and really looking forward to phase 2. I have lost 2 kgs (approx. 4.5 pounds) already and am back to my "feel good" weight. The thing that amazed me the most was that it has shown me, I consume a lot of empty sugar. For example, I always took 1.5 teaspoons of sugar in my coffee - 3 cups a day that was 4.5 teaspoons per day. I've also become more aware of combining my foods correctly and controlling my carbs.

My eating habits previously were definitely not bad but I know how I can improve it for a healthier (maybe a sexier) me! In the future I will be orienting myself more on the glycemic index and choose the right type of foods that keep me filled longer.

One last word, any diet you do choose for yourself you have to remember that if it makes you feel weak, faint, or just not good then you might want to re-consider the concept of the diet. Exercising at least a half hour each day will improve weight loss considerably.

Stay healthy!

This post was written by Meeta

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How To Prevent Osteoporosis?

If you are a woman in your early 40's or higher, you've probably experienced aches and pains in your bones, at least at some point in your life! I'm barely 30, and I still experience a shooting pain in my knees when I play a lot or go for a long and steep hike! Osteoporosis is an age-related disorder in which bones become gradually thinner, more porous and less able to support the body. This condition attacks both men and women, but women usually suffer more severely because bone loss accelerates rapidly after menopause. By the time a woman reaches the age of 70, she may have lost as much as 30 percent of her bone density! Osteoporosis is largely preventable for most people. Prevention of this disease is very important because, while there are treatments for osteoporosis, there is currently no cure for this ailment!

Building strong bones, especially before the age of 30, can be the best defense against developing osteoporosis, and a healthy lifestyle can be critically important for keeping bones strong. Lack of exercise, calcium and vitamin D deficiency,
prolonged use of drugs, alcohol, caffeine, high-phosphate soft drinks, or smoking, are all factors that can contribute to deteriorating bone strength. And though you may not realise it now, Osteoporosis is something that will manifest itself at a very later stage, and by that time, it may be too hard to overcome it!

So try these healthy changes in your lifestyle to prevent the pain of Osteoporosis:

Get plenty of exercise:
Weight-bearing exercises can help prevent bone loss and may encourage bone growth. Specific exercises to twist, bend, stretch and compress bones are needed to strengthen the common sites at risk: the upper arm at the shoulder, the forearm at the wrist, the thigh bone at the hip, and the spine. This process is known as "bone loading", and is extremely important.

Before beginning any exercise program, always consult your physician. If you're given the go-ahead, start slowly and build up over time. An ideal program should include bone-specific, aerobic weight-bearing exercise three days per week, as well as standard cardio and endurance training as a part of your regular workout.

Get More Calcium
Calcium is needed for the heart, muscles and nerves to function properly and for blood to clot. Inadequate calcium is thought to contribute to the development of osteoporosis. National nutrition surveys have shown that many women and young girls consume less than half the amount of calcium recommended to grow and maintain healthy bones.

According to NOF recommendations, adults under age 50 need 1,000 mg of calcium daily, and adults age 50 and over need 1,200 mg of calcium daily. If you have difficulty getting enough calcium from the foods you eat, you may take a calcium supplement to make up the difference.

Load Up on Vitamin-D
Vitamin D is needed for the body to absorb calcium. Without enough vitamin D, you will be unable to absorb calcium from the foods you eat, and your body will have to take calcium from your bones. Vitamin D comes from two sources: through the skin following direct exposure to sunlight and from the diet. Adults under age 50 need 400-800 IU of vitamin D3 daily, and adults age 50 and over need 800-1,000 IU of vitamin D3 daily. Vitamin D3 is the form of vitamin D that best supports bone health. It is also called cholecalciferol. Vitamin D can also be obtained from fortified milk, egg yolks, saltwater fish, liver and supplements.

Get a Bone Density Test
A Bone Mineral Density test (BMD) is the only way to diagnose osteoporosis and determine your risk for future fracture. Since osteoporosis can develop undetected for decades until a fracture occurs, early diagnosis is important. A BMD measures the density of your bones (bone mass) and is necessary to determine whether you need medication to help maintain your bone mass, prevent further bone loss and reduce fracture risk. So ask your doctor about one before it gets too late!

Regular exercise and a balanced diet are important components for preventing osteoporosis. By taking care of your bones now, they will stay strong enough to carry you safely through a lifetime of health and activity. Remember, Prevention is Better than Cure!

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This Post was written by Mansi from Fun and Food

Vegetarian Kids

As more and more people are turning towards vegetarianism, we need to pay special attention to the children in our lives. Vegetarianism is becoming more popular as many have come to realize the health benefits behind a vegetarian diet.

Many parents may wonder if kids can safely pursue a vegetarian diet and still get all the nutrients required for growing up healthy and strong. At first the idea of avoiding meat may sound like a bad idea, after all it offers the much required protein growing kids require. However, most dietary and medical experts will agree that a well-planned vegetarian diet can actually be a very healthy way to eat.

To set the record straight here, I am not a vegetarian and neither is my family. However, the last 12 months has seen us completely change our weekly meal plan to incorporate more vegetarian meals. Putting it into numbers, I would say 75-80% of our weekly meals are vegetarian. I do not need a study to show me the advantages or disadvantages of eating vegetarian. I see the effects in person.

My husband says he feels better – more energy and simply “lighter”. I see exuberance in 6 year old son’s face and his high spirits are all signs that show me, the slight change in our diet is working for the positive. Personally, I have lost a bit of weight and I feel my skin glowing and energized throughout the day.

Special care must be taken when feeding kids a vegetarian diet. If you have chosen to also omit dairy and egg products, as with any diet, you'll need to make sure that your child is getting enough of all the necessary nutrients. Furthermore, you will have to take some time and understand the nutritional needs of children because as they grow their requirements change.

To get you started you will find the introduction to vegetarianism very helpful.

If, like us, you have decided as a family to incorporate more vegetarian meals into your diet to enjoy a healthier lifestyle, you will be surprised at the variety and creativity vegetarian meals will bring.

Important, especially for children, is that the meals need to be nutritious. Children should be offered a variety of foods, which provide enough calories and nutrients to enable them to grow normally. Many pediatric experts are of the opinion that a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet is a healthy choice for most children.

I was always very particular about my fruit and vegetables and have paid special attention that my son gets his 5+ servings of fruit and vegetables a day. A few great tips to get you started here.

The place I started was making sure I added at least two portions of fruit and one portion of vegetables to his lunch box. You’ll find several creative and very scrumptious ideas here. Making the food look colorful and fun will always appeal to your child and soon you’ll be seeing empty lunch boxes.

The next step for me was integrating more grains, cereals and nuts. I found myself becoming creative with ingredients like bulgur, couscous, quinoa, amaranth and co. Light stir-fries or steamed vegetables and fresh salads incorporated with some bulgur or couscous were the way we began to enjoy our dinners. I’ve always made my own granola, but here too I experimented with cereals like spelt flakes and popped amaranth, adding amounts of chopped nuts and a mixture of dried and fresh fruit.

Here are a few great ideas for you to try out:

• Bulgur with Vegetables and Feta
• Couscous Salad
• Breakfast Couscous
• Tunisian Farka
• Quinoa Pudding
• Nutty Amaranth Granola with Fresh Berries

Next I needed to tackle the protein and being an Indian I know the best place to get them is in legumes. Before you start giving me excuses that your child will not eat lentils or beans take a look at these great ideas and then tell me your child will not eat beans and lentils!

• Black Bean Chili with Saffron Rice
• Sprouted Masoor Usal
• Chickpea Pumpkin Tajine with Coconut Couscous
• Mixed lentil soup

It has always been very important to me as a mum not to raise a picky eater. Soeren and I have a pact – if he eats his 5+ portions a day he can have one sweet or dessert. To help him see this visually we made our own fruit and vegetables chart. With the help of this list and the nutrient information here, we printed a daily chart. For every fruit or vegetable he ate he got to color a box in. If 5 boxes were colored, he got to choose his sweet or dessert for the day. This was a huge motivation for him in the beginning. What’s more having the list in front of me I could see where I could improve myself and offer more variety.

At first I kept the food simple. There was nothing too fancy or extravagant that might be refused. I substituted rice and pasta for bulgur or quinoa, mixed lentils in with pasta sauces, left out the salami on pizzas and added spinach and feta cheese instead. Slowly discovering if his tastebuds would warm up to the new meal plan. I often use pasta made with spelt or buckwheat flour, which we found nuttier in flavor. Once it was clear which foods he was enjoying I started to be more creative and experimented more.

I do allow snacking! As vegetarian diets are high in fibre and low in calories, a child's stomach will become full quite quickly without having had the chance of taking in the required amount of calories needed to meet their energy level. But we snack cleverly with nuts, dried fruit or bread sticks. Soeren eats 5 smaller meals a day, which keeps his energy level on a balance throughout the day.

I am not fighting any fat cells with my child. He is extremely energetic and very slim. The percentage of North American children who are overweight has reached the point where childhood obesity is now considered a major health problem. In Europe too many experts and nutritionalists are warning parents about the health and psychological issues childhood obesity carries with it. I am doing something about it early because I want my son to grow up being carefree and enjoying every aspect of his life. 

Don't you?

Note: I am not a certified dietician, nutritionalist or a doctor. I am a mother of a 6 year old boy, who is full of energy and life. I have written this article purely based on my experience over the last six years of motherhood.

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This Post was written by Meeta from What's For Lunch, Honey?

Superfoods: Avocados - A High Calorie Fruit Good for You!

A toasted Veggie Delight at Subway is part of my staple diet, and most of the times I get tempted to add some avocado onto it, but I hold myself back thinking its a very high-calorie food! But some time back, I was engaged in a pleasantly surprising discussion about the health benefits of avocado with a colleague at work which set me thinking that perhaps there's more good than bad in this under-rated fruit. So I set out to find a few "facts" rather than just thoughts & myths about Avocados, and here's what I found about their health benefits(img credit: wikimedia commons)

Avocado is known as "avocado pear" or "alligator pear" and traditionally comes from Mexico, but is now a very popular fruit consumed in several countries, including US. The Haas Avocados in California are especially famous, and though most people enjoy eating them in a delicious Gaucamole or as a spread on their sandwiches, few of them really know how beneficial Avocados really are! Here's a short compilation that will help you understand what makes this fruit so special.

The Good
Avocado is one of the most recommended fruits as well as a food for bodybuilding and medicine for cholesterol-related heart disease.

Its rich nutrient contents such as vitamin K, dietary fiber, potassium, folic acid, vitamin B6, vitamin C, copper make it a strong contender for world's healthiest fruit.

Avocado is a good source of potassium, a mineral that helps regulate blood pressure. Adequate intake of potassium can help guard against circulatory diseases, like high blood pressure, heart disease or stroke.

It has been traditionally used to treat osteo-arthritis, and its oils have been used topically to treat wounds, infections, arthritis, and to stimulate hair growth.

It is a rich source of monounsaturated fatty acids including "oleic acid", which has recently been shown to offer significant protection against breast cancer; however, avocado is also a very concentrated dietary source of the "carotenoid lutein"; it also contains measurable amounts of related carotenoids plus significant quantities of vitamin E.

It is a recommended produce that acts as an anti-oxidant, and has a improved ratio of good vs bad cholesterol. it is also low in sodium and improves our body's ability to absorb carotenoids.

The Monounsaturated fat contained in Avocados speeds up the metabolic rate when comparing it to saturated fats, and the high fat content leaves you feeling full, which helps reduce overeating, thereby complementing weight-loss plans!

Last, but not the least, it has a rich and creamy texture that can be easily used to replace high-calorie foods like mayonnaise, cheese and ketchup!

The Bad

Avocados are pretty high in calories. In fact, one medium-sized avocado contains a little more than 300 calories, most of them coming from Fats (77% Fat, 19% Carbs, 4% Proteins). However, it is mostly mono-saturated fats, which means the "good fat"; so its just the calories that you need to worry about!

It is believed that toxic chemical called persin, which can destroy breast tissue and may damage the heart, is found in the leaves, bark, pits and skin of the avocado tree. Ingesting avocado bark, leaves, roots, or any part of the avocado other than its fruits is strongly discouraged (source)

Individuals who are allergic to latex or to other tropical fruits, such as bananas or kiwi, may also be allergic to avocado. Large doses of avocado or avocado oil may have mild laxative effects

Avocado may decrease the effects of blood-thinning drugs such as warfarin and aspirin, as the oil in it may interfere with the absorption of drugs or some nutrients from food. So one should avoid eating these when using similar prescribed drugs.

I'm not a food specialist, nor a nutritionist, and my findings are based on the power of the web that we all tend to rely on. However, from what I could find, it looks like the Good outweighs the Bad by far. Majority of nutritionists agree that "Avocados add great variety to a well balanced, low-fat diet, but you have to eat them in moderation." Overall, avocado is considered a complete food, with vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, calories and fiber, no cholesterol and no sodium.

There's always pros & cons for anything, and so is the case for Avocados. However, it is safe to consider that it has way more health benefits than people have come to believe in, so try to incorporate these fruits as part of your balanced diet, and your body will thank you for it!

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This Post was written by Mansi Desai from Fun and Food

Ayurveda and Food for Skin

This Ancient science is not only a preventive health and healing but also a philosophy of living .It is present in India's most cherished scriptures , the vedas an dates back to 1500 B.C. "Ayur" means life and "veda" means knowledge. The rough transalation of Ayurveda means Knowledge of life. Ayurveda rarely treats the current symptoms instead cures by removing the cause of the disease. According to Ayurveda we are comprised of three elements , the body , mind and soul.One of the most important organs of the body is the skin which we either tend to completely ignore or overload it with chemical food.


According to ancient ayurveda there are 5 elements space, air, fire, water and earth. These themselves are inanimate but in combination, they give rise to three biological forces or principles called Doshas where the literal meaning is impurity.The combination of doshas with their attributes is below

Space + Air = Vata Dosha, meaning "that which moves things" It exists as a movement in the body and is the flow of life. If blocked , decay begins, if the activity is frenetic , one becomes fatigued and spaced-out. Vata controls the movements of the doshas where the other 2 doshas are known to be immobile. Vata gives us inspiration, positvity and freshness as well as fear, nervousness, gas , spasms, tremors and pains. Skin type is Dry

Fire + Water = Pitta Dosha , meaning "That which digests things" It exists as metabolism in the body. Good health depends upon pitta's capacity to fully metabolize nutritional, emotional as well as sensory information we ingest. If the fires become too hot or cold, normal digestion is disrupted, toxins are produced and eyes and skin lose their glow. Pitta gives us warmth, intelligence, perception and understanding . It also gives us jealousy, anger, hate, frustration, burning sensations, rashes and allergies,ulcers and heart diseases. skin type is sensitive

Water+Earth = kapha dosha meaning "that which holds things together". Kapha is the force of cohesiveness. It cements together all the elements to make the material structure of the body,A source of bodily fluids like phlegm, plasma etc, it provides energy to heart and lungs and natural resistance to disease, If there is a depletion of the waters of life, water being the main chemical constituent of the body, or the cement too thick (earth) then heaviness and blockage. Kapha gives us the ability to love, forgive,calmness and wisdom as well as creates greed, envy, attachment , laziness , depression, bloating and obesity. Skin type is Oily.

The doshas are the key to your psychophysiological nature and skin type. Note that all the doshas are present in every individual. But what makes each life unique is the particular balance of these doshas at the time of one's birth.

Also the above types of doshas may further combine and give seven more combinations. For eg, my skin type is Vata-Pitta , meaning I have dry and sensitive skin, where the leading dosha is Vata ie dryness so Dryness is more a distinct charecter than sensitivity. Some also have a tridosha skin type where all the doshas ie Vata-pitta-kapha are imbalanced which is rare.


Skin Food

If you where given a plateful of chemicals that are present in the so called " it works wonders" cosmetic creams would you eat it ? Say for example a platterful of cetyl alcohol, red dye , sorbitol and a few phthalates( commonly used in nail polish)? Im sure if you know what harm they do to us , you wouldnt. I am not saying we should stop using our daily make up, be one needs to be aware of whats going onto our skin, just like our food where we try and use organic and fresh food as much as we can.

Treat your cosmetics like your food. Do not feed your skin with what you wouldn't eat. Start reading the labels on the products which boast about natural ingredients , more often than not , the chemical part is left out for us to know. Making Ayurvedic products for skin and storing is much easier as they are normally made with a base oil, essential oil and herbs and have a longer shelf life. Some things to keep in mind while buying ayurvedic cosmetic products in case you choose to buy them instead of making them .

It should contain exclusively pure plant extracts- no preservatives ,no dyes, no mineral oils,no chemical additives, no dyes, no preservatives, no chemical fragrances, no known carcinogens.

The product should heal and soothe the skin , not irritate or dry it.

It should contain the ingredients appropriate for your skin type.


Coming to the Ingredients suitable to one's skin type , let me introduce you to a few base oils, essential oils and herbal extracts. when you use a combination of these suited to your skin types, you will see an immediate improvement because these are alive, nutritive , healing ,soothing all at once.

For Vata( Dry Skin)

Essential Oils : Nutmeg, Cardamom,ginger,saffron, Jasmine , geranium , redrose, red sandalwood , lemon , vanilla

Base Oils : Black Sesame , Sesame , Avocado , Olive , almond , walnut , peanut , castor , ghee

Herbal extracts : Shatavari , Ashwagandha, basil or ginger


For Pitta(Sensitive Skin)

Essential Oils : Rosewhite, sandalwood , vetiver, coriander , cumin , mint , ylang-ylang , camphor

Base Oils : Almond, Coconut, sunflower, apricot,kernel, Olive, ghee

Herbal Extracts : Neem , Shatavari, licorice , fennel , cardamom , mint, saffron , burdock



For Kapha(Oily Skin):

Essential Oils : Eucalyptus, Camphor , Clove, Lavendar, Bergamot

Base Oils : Canola, corn, safflower, mustard, grapeseed , almond, apricot kernel


Herbal Extracts : Sage ,neem, rosemary


Do Cleanse, nourish and moisturize your skin daily

To Cleanse

Take 1 Oz of the base oil suited for your skin , take almond meal( ground blanched almonds) if you have Vata or Pitta skin types or barley meal if you have Kapha skin types add some milk or water and rub on your skin in one direction , wait for a minute and cleanse.

To Nourish

Take 1oZ of base Oil of your liking which is suitable to you , 10 drops of your favourite essential Oil , 5 drops of herbal extract and a little water and massage in one direction on damp skin.

To moisturize

Use cocoa butter melted in a broiler , add any essential oil if you want to and moisturize for healthy and glowing skin. Do not rub in too hard


Ex foliate weekly by using :


Avocado or Banana for Vata Types

banana or pineapple for Pitta types

Berry pulp or papaya for Kapha types.

* Shatavari and ashwagandha are found either in Indian stores or Health food stores or can be obtained from a naturopath.


Please note I am no naturopath , this article is only reference some gained by reading and some notes from my father.


References : Wiki , A life of Balance by Maya Tiwari , A collection of Indian newspaper articles from my father.

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This Post was written by Dee from Ammalu's Kitchen