Hot chocolate recipe

Is it cold and depressive outside? Prepare yourself a hot chocolate and improve your mood instantly. :)

What you will need:

- 2.5 dl milk (try almond or rice milk)

- 1 full tbsp raw cacao powder

- 1 and 1/2 tbsp dark chocolate (chopped)

- sweetener of your choice (try 1/2 tsp of Stevia)

Instructions:

First, heat the milk. Next, add cacao powder, chocolate and sweeter and stir to combine. After that, warm again until your reach the desired temperature.

Your hot chocolate is ready! :)

Enjoy!

How Mulberries Can Help You Live a Better Life

MULBERRIES FACTS

Mulberries are large, deciduous trees native to warm, temperate, and subtropical regions of Asia, Africa, and the Americas. Each fruit measures 2-5 cm long. In most species, mulberries are purple-red when ripen. However, they can be white, red, purple or multiple variegated colors in the same fruit.

There are three species of mulberries:

• White mulberry (Morus alba).
• Red or American mulberry (Morus rubra).
• Black mulberry (Morus nigra).

Mulberries are refreshingly succulent, tart and sweet fruits. They are rich in numerous health benefiting flavonoid phyto-nutrients.

HEALTH BENEFITS OF MULBERRIES

• Delicious, fleshy, succulent mulberries are low in calories (only about 43 calories per 100 g). They compose of health promoting phyto-nutrient compounds like polyphenol pigment antioxidants, minerals and vitamins that are essential for optimum health.
• Mulberries have significantly high amounts of phenolic flavonoid phytochemicals called anthocyanins. Scientific studies have shown that consumption of berries have potential health effects against cancer, ageing and neurological diseases, inflammation, diabetes and bacterial infections.
  
• The berries contain resveratrol, another polyphenol flavonoid antioxidant. Resveratrol protects against stroke risk by altering molecular mechanisms in the blood vessels.
• In addition, these berries are an excellent source of vitamin C (33 mg per 100, about 41% of RDA), which is also a powerful natural antioxidant. Consumption of foods rich in vitamin C helps the body develop resistance against infectious agents, counter inflammation and scavenge harmful free radicals.
• Further, the berries also contain small amounts of vitamin A and vitamin E. Consumption of mulberry provides another group of health promoting flavonoid polyphenolic antioxidants such as lutein, zea-xanthin, ß-carotene and α-carotene in small but notably significant amounts. Altogether, these compounds help act as protect from harmful effects of oxygen-derived free radicals and reactive oxygen species (ROS) that play a role in ageing and various disease processes.
• Zea-xanthin, an important dietary carotenoid selectively concentrates into the retinal macula lutea, where it thought to provide antioxidant functions and protects the retina from the harmful ultraviolet rays through light-filtering actions.
• Mulberries are an excellent source of iron, which is a rare feature among berries. They contain 1.85 mg of iron per 100 g of fruit (about 13% of RDA). Iron, being a component of hemoglobin inside the red blood cells, determines the oxygen-carrying capacity of the blood.
• They are also good source of minerals like potassium, manganese, and magnesium. Potassium is an important component of cell and body fluids that helps controlling heart rate and blood pressure. Manganese is used by the body as a co-factor for the antioxidant enzyme, superoxide dismutase.
• They are rich in B-complex group of vitamins and vitamin K. Contain very good amounts of vitamin B-6, niacin, riboflavin and folic acid. These vitamins function as co-factors and help body in the metabolism of carbohydrates, protein and fats.

SIDE EFFECT OF MULBERRIES

As mulberries are highly dense with potassium it creates discomfort to the kidney patient. So avoid eating large quantities of mulberries.

Source: Nutrition and you

Spirulina

Gives strength and energy. Helps with slimming and dieting. Contains more essential nutrients than any other food. Rich in easily absorbed proteins, iron, vitamins B1, B2, B6 and B12. Spirulina is also a source of calcium, copper, chromium and selenium, chlorophyll and beta carotene.

Spirulina are floating filamentous cyanobacteria with cylindrical trichomes in left-hand helix. Spirulina grows naturally in tropical and subtropical lakes with high pH and high concentrations of carbonate and bicarbonate. It is commonly used as food supplements.

For centuries Aztecs have been eating Spirulina. The earliest record reveals that it grew in Lake Texcoco, and was collected and sold as food. The first Spirulina manufacturing factory was established in 1970s. Recent years it has become a popular thing in the world, and has been approved by the FDA, WHO and other medical authorities as health food.

Spirulina is rich in proteins, vitamins and minerals. It contains Lysine, Cysteine, Methionine, Phenylalanine and Threonine, which are important amino acids that can only be acquired by human beings through food. Spirulina is also a very rich source of Vitamin B-12. It has much higher iron content than Spinach. It contains much higher amounts of Beta-Carotene than carrots.

Its protein constituent can be easily digested form. It also contains minerals, vitamins, essential fatty acids and antioxidants that are not available to humans from any single food of vegetable or animal source known so far.

Spirulina is helpful in preventing gastro enteric disturbances as it enhances intestinal flora such as Lactobacillus and Bifidus bacteria. It is also known to reduce the risks of infection by Escherichia Coli and Candida Albicans, two virulent gastroenteritis pathogens. Spirulina by virtue of its fatty acid contents is known to reduce Cholesterol. It contains anti-oxidant radicals that scavenge highly reactive free radicals that are known to be involved in the occurrence of many degenerative disorders such as cancer.

Spirulina is a rich source of potassium, and also contains calcium, chromium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, selenium, sodium, and zinc. Spirulina contains many pigments including chlorophyll-a, xanthophyll, beta-carotene, echinenone, myxoxanthophyll, zeaxanthin, canthaxanthin, diatoxanthin, 3'-hydroxyechinenone, beta-cryptoxanthin, oscillaxanthin, plus the phycobiliproteins c-phycocyanin and allophycocyanin.

Spirulina helps prevent heart damage caused by chemotherapy using Doxorubicin, without interfering with its anti-tumour activity. Spirulina reduces the severity of strokes and improves recovery of movement after a stroke; reverses age-related declines in memory and learning; and prevents and treats hay fever.

Organic spirulina is available as powder HERE or as tablets HERE.

Barley Grass Powder

Strong, natural detoxicant. Rich in fibres, proteins and chlorophyll.

Traditionally used by ancient Egyptians, Romans and Vikings to promote their health, barley grass embodies an array of vitamins and amino acids. Embodying a significant chlorophyll content, barley grass boasts an array of minerals including iron, copper and up to 11 times the calcium in cow’s milk. Barley grass is an excellent source of protein with 18 of the 22 essential amino acids. Organically grown on the fertile plains of Canterbury New Zealand, Barley grass is harvested whilst the plant is young. The young barley grass plant is transported to an organically certified dehydrating plant. The moisture content is reduced by 4%. Once dried, the barley grass is milled into a fine powder.

Barley Grass from New Zealand is of the highest quality. Find yours HERE.

10 health benefits of raw cacao

Did you know that studies that promote chocolate’s amazing health benefits are not referring to the chocolate you usually buy in stores? The chocolate that they are referring to is raw cacao. (http://www.bmj.com/content/343/bmj.d4488)

Raw cacao powder is made by peeling cacao beans and extracting their cores to be broken into nibs. These are ground into cacao paste. The fat from the paste is extracted from the solid part and the residue dried and finely ground into cacao powder. Cacao powder contains less fat and more fibre than the beans. The production process preserves a significant proportion of the nutritional value of the beans without any additives.

HERE ARE 10 HEALTH BENEFITS OF RAW CACAO:

1. Lowers insulin resistance. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/16027246)

2. Protects your nervous system: Cacao is high in resveratrol, an antioxidant known for its ability to cross your blood-brain barrier to help protect your nervous system.

3. Shields nerve cells from damage. (http://www.medsci.org/press/cocoa.html)

4. Reduces your risk of cardiovascular disease.  (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/18296357)

5. Reduces your risk of stroke. (http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/249650.php)

6. Reduces blood pressure. (http://www.naturalnews.com/037018_cocoa_blood_pressure_flavanols.html)

7. Slows the ageing process by assisting with nitric oxide metabolism: Nitric oxide protects your heart by relaxing your blood vessels and thereby lowering your blood pressure. However, nitric oxide production produces adverse reactions and toxic metabolites, which must be neutralised by your body so they don’t result in oxidative damage to your blood vessel lining. Cocoa polyphenols protect your body from these metabolites and help counter the typical age-related decline in nitric oxide production.

8. Guards against toxins: as a potent antioxidant, cacao can repair the damage caused by free radicals and may reduce the risk of certain cancers. In fact cacao contains far more antioxidants per 100g than acai, goji berries and blueberries. Antioxidants are responsible for 10% of the weight of raw cacao.

9. Boosts your mood: cacao can increase levels of certain neurotransmitters that promote a sense of well-being. And the same brain chemical that is released when we experience deep feelings of love – phenylethylamine – is found in chocolate.

10. It is rich in minerals: magnesium, iron, potassium, calcium, zinc, copper and manganese.

Did you know that research shows that dairy inhibits the absorption of antioxidants from raw cacao? So if you are making a cacao drink you are better off using a non-dairy milk like almond, rice or coconut in order to reap all of the antioxidant benefits. (http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v424/n6952/abs/4241013a.html)

Source: iQuitSugar