Reduce Skin Cancer Risk with Black Tea

Black tea is made from the dried leaves of the Camellia evergreen shrub that is native to southeast Asia. Green tea and oolong tea also come from this plant. In 2007, Partmouth Medical School did a study and found that drinking at least two cups per day of black tea can cut the risk of skin cancer in half.

The tea has polyphenols that could protect the body against UV radiation. Tea has an antioxidant called catechins that can inhibit the growth of cancer cells. Both black tea and green tea has 10 times the amount of antioxidants found in fruits and vegetables. The antioxidants have a detoxifying effect that protects cells from free radicals. Free radicals can cause damage to cells that can cause blood clot formation, atherosclerosis, and cancer. Studies have shown that when tea extracts are applied to the skin, the risk of skin cancer due to sun damage is decreased.

Protect Vision with Leafy Greens

It is found that people who eat at least two servings of leafy greens, such as collard greens and spinach, are 46 percent less likely to develop macular degeneration. Even though carrots have been considered helpful at maintaining vision, leafy vegetables are more important at keeping eyes healthy.

Leafy greens contain lutein and zeaxanthin, which are two carotenoids that are good at helping the eyes to absorb short wavelength light and to protect the retina. They may also help to reduce discomfort from glare, enhance contrast, reduce photostress recovery time, and increase visual range. The American Optometric Association recommends ten milligrams of lutein per day. Leafy greens also contain beta-carotene, which reduces the possibility of developing serious cataracts by 39 percent.

Health Benefits of Vitamin K

Vitamin K is a fat soluble vitamin that helps to protect bones from fracture, calcification of arteries, and helps blood to clot normally. Vitamin K is not a single chemical substance. It is a family of related chemical substances that go by the name of “vitamin K.” It helps the body transport calcium and metabolize into your skeleton. It increases bone mineral density and reduces fracture. It also lowers the risk of liver and prostate cancer.

Vitamin K is best known for its role in healthy blood clotting. It is important for the function of several proteins involved in the blood clotting process. In the blood clotting process, it is important in the product of prothrombin and is required for the body to make four of the body's blood clotting factors, mainly prothrombin and the factors VII, IX, and X.

Sources of vitamin K include spinach, Brussels sprouts, Swiss chard, green beans, asparagus, broccoli, kale, mustard greens, carrots, green peas, and cauliflower. Vitamin K deficiency is rare due to bacteria synthesis in the body.

Improve Memory with Apples

It is found that eating apples could help to improve and prevent Alzheimer's disease. Eating two or three apples a day causes the levels of acetylcholine to increase. Acetylcholine is a neurotransmitter that is important to maintaining memory that decreases with age. Neurotransmitters are chemicals that are released from nerve cells that transmit messages to other nerve cells. Apples also have an antioxidant called quercetin, which has been proved in studies to help prevent Alzheimer's disease and it improves memory. Quercetin is found in the flesh and skin of an apple. The juice in apples may protect against oxidative damage that contributes to age-related disorders, such as Alzheimer's disease.

Stop a Heart Attack by Coughing

It is found that coughing deeply and vigorously can stop a heart attack from turning deadly. Properly timed and performed coughs could allow a heart attack victim to remain conscious and regain an effective heart beat. If you feel palpations or lightheaded, take deep breaths and cough repeatedly and very vigorously and hard several times. This could support your circulation for a while until help arrives. A deep breath should be taken before each cough and the cough must be deep and prolonged. A breath and a cough should be repeated every two seconds until help arrives or until the heart is beating normal again.

Coughing deeply would cause a pumping action that would cause blood to be pushed through the body and to the brain. Coughing also increases and decreased chest pressure, which can raise a slow heart rate, increase cardiac output, and sometimes stop an arrhythmia. Taking deep breaths get oxygen into the lungs and coughing causes the heart to squeeze and helps the the blood to circulate. The squeezing pressure on the heart also helps it to have a normal rhythm.

Cure Hangovers with Asparagus

It is found that asparagus contains certain amino acids and minerals that can help to relieve hangover symptoms from drinking too much alcohol, such as headache and nausea, and it protects liver cells against toxins. The amino acids help to metabolize alcohol and the faster that alcohol breaks down, the less likely that hangover symptoms will occur. Asparagus has been used for many years as a herbal medicine due to its anticancer, antifungal, anti-inflammatory, and diuretic properties. Eating it before or after drinking alcohol can be a good hangover remedy.

Lose Weight Before Weight-Loss Surgery

It is found that losing at least a little bit of weight before having weight-loss surgery can reduce the risk of having surgical complications. Medical records of 881 patients who had weight-loss surgery show that the more weight patients lost before surgery, the less likely they suffered from post-operation complications, such as infection, blood clots, and kidney problems. The post-surgery complication rate was almost twice as much in patients who gained weight before surgery than patients who lost weight before surgery.

All of the patients had open Roux-en-Y gastric bypass surgery where staples are used to create a pouch in the stomach that can hold only a small amount of food at a time. A part of the small intestine is attached to the pouch so that food bypasses the rest of the stomach and part of the small intestine. Some of the surgeons who perform weight-loss surgery mandate that certain high-risk patients lose weight before having the surgery.

Slow Aging with Tea

White tea is good at slowing down the aging process of the body. It has ingredients that are effective at boosting the immune function of skin cells and protecting them against the damaging effects of the sun. It also has an extract that protects the skin from oxidative stress. Oxidative stress of the skin causes a breakdown in cellular strength and function. The extract has antioxidant properties that make it very effective. Antioxidants rid the body of free radicals that speed up the aging process. White tea has a high amount of the antioxidant called catechin, which is believed to help prevent stroke, diabetes, cancer, and heart failure.

In a study done on 21 different plant extracts, scientists have found that white tea was better than all of the other botanicals at stalling the activity of the enzymes that wear down elastin and collagen, which are two proteins that help to prevent wrinkles. Elastin helps maintain the elasticity of the skin, lungs, and arteries. Collagen is commonly found in the connective tissue and it is important for the strength and elasticity of the skin.

White tea also has anti-viral and antibacterial properties. It has a considerable amount of both caffeine and the amino acid theorine, both have mood enhancing qualities.

Health Benefits of Sage

Sage is a herb that is native to the Mediterranean region and it is currently sold in most supermarkets. It can be used as an ingredient in dishes but it is mostly used in beverages. It is an antioxidant, which makes it good at helping the body fight off the effects of free radicals. It has antibacterial and antifungal properties and it is good at treating sore throat, inflammation and infection of the mouth and throat, gingivitis, profuse sweating, hot flashes associated with menopause, indigestion, fevers, nervous exhaustion, lactation, migraine headaches, and high blood sugar. It has memory enhancing benefits and it can be used to treat cold and flu. It is good at treating bronchitis because it can cause you to sweat, which can help to relieve the body of toxins.

Sage tea can be made by adding one teaspoon of sage to one cup of boiling water and letting it steep in a covered cup for 15 to 30 minutes. Adding honey can make the tea taste better. A compress scan be made out of sage tea by dipping a cloth into the tea and placing the cloth on the appropriate area, such as the forehead to treat migraine headaches, the abdominal area to treat cramps or other digestive problems, or over cuts or sores to make them heal faster and provide relief. For a sore throat or to clear up sinuses, make a cup of regular-strength sage tea.

Health Benefits of Thyme

Thyme is a herb that is native southern Europe and western Asia. It has many benefits and has been used for thousands of years to preserve food. It is now cultivated commercially in many parts of the world. Thyme contains an essential oil that is rich in thymol, which is a powerful antiseptic, antibacterial, and strong antioxidant.

Thyme is good at treating colds and it is commonly used in cough drops. It is also used in mouthwashes to treat inflammation in the mouth and throat infections. It has expectorant and bronchial antispasmodic properties that make it good at treating acute and chronic bronchitis, whooping cough, and inflammation of the upper respiratory tract.

Thyme is also good at easing menstrual cramps and PMS symptoms. It is effective at treating wounds, ulcers, and abscesses. It can help digestion and remove mucus from the intestinal tract. Thyme teat can be made by adding one teaspoon of crushed thyme to a half cup of boiling water, letting it steep for 10 minutes, and then straining it. It can be sweetened by adding honey.

New Plate Weighing Scale to Help Fight Obesity

A new device has been created by the scientists at Sweden’s Karolinska Institute to help fight childhood obesity. It is called a Mandometer and the device has an electronic scale that would sit under the plate and weigh the remaining food as the meal is eaten. Next to the device would be a small screen that would show a graph indicating the rate that the food is being eaten. The line on the graph would be matched against an ideal graph of consumption. If there is too much deviation from the ideal graph, the computer will make a spoken request for the eater to slow down. The concept of the device is to train overweight people to eat less and more slowly to help them feel full without overeating.

Researchers at the Bristol Royal Hospital for children and the University of Bristol in Western England did a test on 106 obese patients aged between nine and seventeen years old. The patients used the Mandometer, exercised 60 minutes a day, and followed a healthy diet for a year and had successful results. The Mandometer helped the patient’s portion sizes to be smaller by the end of the study and caused a reduction in the speed of eating by 11 percent. The Mandometer gives the best results when used in conjunction with exercise and a healthy diet.

Ease Stress with Scents

It is found that the scents of lavender, lemon, orange, grape, mango, and basil are good at easing stress. They all contain linalool, which is a chemical that can offset the effects of stress. Linalool has a calming effect on the limbic center of the brain, which is involved in processing emotions.

Lavender is a good scent that is good at aiding relaxation and reducing anxiety. Lavender oil can be used to treat pain from tension headache when it is breathed in as a vapor or diluted and rubbed on the skin. When it is added to a vaporizer, it can help to treat cough and respiratory infection. The scent of lemon has shown in studies to enhance mood and ease stress and depression. Basil can help to ease depression and relieve headaches and migraines.