Benfits of Amla

Amla promotes Digestion

Amla is a fibre rich fruit. It helps in healthy bowel movement and makes gastrointestinal tracts clean. Its bitter and sour taste triggers various taste receptors and makes the digestive enzymes active. These juices help in proper breaking of the food and make digestion efficient. It is known to neutralize acidity in the stomach and has a cooling effect.

Amla Benefits for Diabetes

Blood sugar level can be maintained by the consumption of amla. Low sugar and high fibre fruit are ideal for any diabetic patient. Antioxidants in it help in reducing glycosylated end product, serum level of creatinine and hiobarbituric acid-reactive substances levels which are oxidative. These are significantly reduced by amla consumption. Amla helps in regulating glucose in the blood and decreases albumin level in patients.

Amla improves Skin Health

Vitamin-C and antioxidants in amla makes it beneficial for skin health. It helps in reviving the skin texture and makes it smooth and glamorous. Vitamin-C helps in proper digestion thereby flushes out toxins from the body. This results in reducing skin blemishes and pigmentation and provides a rejuvenating and healthy skin. Acne and pimples can be avoided by its consumption. Antioxidants help in restricting the free radical damage to the skin and reduce the onset of aging and wrinkles. Amla is anti-viral and thus helps from harmful pathogenic diseases.

Health Benefits of Amla – Reduces Cholesterol

Amla contains potent antioxidants like Vitamin-C, amino acids and pectin. Pectin helps in decreasing serum cholesterol in the blood and reduces LDL cholesterol concentration. Amla also helps in increasing HDL cholesterol which is beneficial to the body. Triglyceride and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels are significantly reduced by its consumption. Arteries and blood vessels are also protected from fat and plaque accumulation.

Amla Prevents Cancer

Amla is rich in antioxidants which help in restricting the growth of carcinogenic cells. It helps in keeping harmful free radicals at bay. Antioxidants in amla can even counterattack the side effects of anti-cancer drugs. Stomach, skin and liver cancer can be successfully prevented by its intake.

Health Benefits of Amla for Weight Loss

All the health conscious and obese people must add this fruit in their diet. Amla juice has been found to lower the fat content in the body. It helps in increasing the metabolism of food which leads to reduction of food accumulation in the body. Fat accumulation can generate toxins in the body. These toxins slow the digestion process and hence hamper the health of a person. Amla is a rich source of Vitamin-C which can flush down these toxins. It is most effective when consumed empty stomach in the morning.

Other Health Benefits Of Amla

Amla is a source of Vitamin-C which makes it a mighty medicine against cough and cold. Its intake can provide immunity to the body and helps in reducing flu and throat infection.

Amla can be helpful in preventing mouth ulcers. Rinsing with amla juice can reduce the occurrence of it.

Amla has anti-inflammatory properties. It can reduce pain and swelling and is helpful against diseases like arthritis.

Amla is a stress reliever and can help in inducing sound sleep.

Amla helps in improving memory and improves cognitive functions. It also aids in improving central nervous system of the body.

Age related macular degeneration can be avoided by its consumption.

It aids in proper functioning of liver and urinary system.

Carrot

Health Benefits of Carrot

- Prevent heart diseases: In a study meant to reveal therapeutic value of carrots researchers at the Wolfson Gastrointestinal Laboratory in Edinburgh, Scotland revealed that cholesterol level reduces by 11 percent if seven ounces of raw carrots a day is taken for thee weeks. High cholesterol is a major factor for heart disease. Since regular consumption of carrots reduces cholesterol level it is good to prevent heart related problems. A group of Swedish scientists discovered that root vegetables can reduce the chances of having a heart attack. A study conducted at the Mario Negri Institute of Pharmacological Research in Italy found that those who ate more carrots had one third the risk of heart attack as compared with those who ate fewer carrots. 

- Prevent cancer: Beta-carotene consumption has been linked to reduced risk of several cancers, notably lung cancer. British researchers discovered that increasing beta-carotene consumption from 1.7 to 2.7 milligrams a day reduced lung cancer risk more than 40 percent. The average carrot contains about three milligrams of Beta-carotene. In a study, researchers found that eating fiber rich carrots reduce the risk of colon cancer by as much as 24 percent. Another study shows that women who ate raw carrots were five to eight times less likely to develop breast cancer than women who did not eat carrots. 

- Macular degeneration: This is a common eye disease of elderly. It impairs the macula. Researches found that people who ate the most Beta-carotene had a forty percent lower risk of macular degeneration compared with those who consumed the least. 

- Improves eyesight: Deficiency of vitamin A can cause some difficulty seeing in dim light. Since carrot is rich in vitamin A it is good for improving eyesight. 

- Stroke: A carrot a day reduces stroke risk by 68 percent. Many studies have strengthened the “carrot effect” on brain. Studies conducted on stroke patients revealed that those with highest levels of Beta carotene have the best survival rate. 

- Diabetes: Carrot is good for blood sugar regulation because of the presence of carotenoids in carrot. Carotenoids inversely affect insulin resistance and thus lower blood sugar. 

Food is Medicine

Civilizations have long revered honey for its sweetness, medicinal properties and other useful applications. Ancient Egyptians used honey as a sugary condiment and a key ingredient in embalming fluid. Early Greeks believed it had powerful wound-healing properties.

In America, honey reigned as a home remedy for various illnesses and infections until the middle of the 20th century, when it was supplanted by penicillin. Today, the sweet stuff is making a comeback, as modern science confirms honey’s health-promoting benefits.

More than 300 types of honey are available in the United States; each carries a distinctive color and flavor, depending on the bees’ nectar source. In general, lighter-colored honeys (like clover honey) are milder in taste, while darker-colored honeys (like buckwheat honey) are stronger.

Antioxidants & Other Nutrients

The National Honey Board characterizes honey as a natural source of simple carbohydrates, composed of fructose (about 38.5 percent), glucose (about 31 percent), sucrose, maltose and other sugars. It contains enzymes and other compounds derived from bees and flowers, as well as small amounts of vitamins and minerals, such as niacin, riboflavin, pantothenic acid, calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus and potassium.

A University of California-Davis study detected higher levels of polyphenolic antioxidants in participants after just one month of honey supplementation. Other studies confirm that honey contains numerous antioxidants. They include chrysin, pinobanksin, vitamin C, catalase and pinocembrin, which all help to prevent and repair cellular damage from disease-causing free radicals.

The amount and type of these goodies available depend largely upon the floral source of the honey. Darker honeys usually contain higher levels of antioxidants than lighter varieties.

Athletic Prowess

For athletes, carbohydrates enhance performance and recovery. A natural, convenient and inexpensive source of carbohydrates, honey, provides 17 grams per tablespoon.

One study at the University of Memphis Exercise and Sport Nutrition Laboratory, evaluated the effectiveness of commercial sports gels and honey. The researchers concluded that honey is an excellent pre-workout energy source, in part because it is easily digested and released into the body at a steady rate.

A companion study indicated that honey is also an effective post-workout carbohydrate source when paired with protein. Weight-trained men and women who consumed a powdered honey-protein combination drink not only sustained optimal blood sugar levels for two hours after their workout, they showed favorable changes in a hormone measurement that indicates positive muscle recovery.

Antimicrobial Properties

As grandmother knew, honey proves an exceptional healing agent when applied to cuts, scrapes and lacerations. All honeys exhibit some antibacterial ability. New Zealand’s active manuka honey, a monofloral (from one plant) variety derived from the nectar of the manuka bush (Leptospermum scoparium), possesses greater antibacterial characteristics than most other varieties.

A review of 22 clinical trials published in the International Journal of Lower Extremity Woundsverified that honey quickly heals existing wound infections, protects against further infection, reduces swelling, minimizes scarring, helps remove infected and dead tissue, and stimulates new tissue growth. Research indicates that active manuka honey, in particular, shows promise for treatment of wounds infected with the superbug, Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA).

How does honey fight infection and promote healing? Research suggests that honey’s low water content makes it hygroscopic, enabling it to absorb moisture from tissue and bacteria. Its high sugar content makes it difficult for microorganisms to grow.

Many monofloral honeys contain an enzyme that produces low levels of hydrogen peroxide, a natural antiseptic. Honey’s ability to keep the area around a wound sealed, moist and protected, promotes rapid healing and helps prevent scars.

Honey at Home

Honey is a delicious sugar substitute in oatmeal and tea, and a tasty treat drizzled on bread or fruit. Plus, it easily incorporates into baked goods.Use a tried and true recipe or develop a new one, by replacing the amount of sugar with an equal amount of honey and reducing the liquid in the recipe by 1/4 cup. In pastries, lower the oven temperature by 25 degrees to prevent over-browning. Honey’s only caveat is that it should not be fed to infants younger than 12 months.

One of the oldest sweeteners used by man, honey remains a perennial favorite for good reason, with far more to recommend it than just savoring its sweetness.