Health Benefits of Dates
Dates are a great source of dietary fiber. The American Cancer Society recommends that you consume 20-35 grams of dietary fiber a day. Dietary fiber comes in two forms – soluble and insoluble. Each serves a valuable function. Insoluble fiber increases the rate at which food moves through the digestive system. Soluble fiber may help control diabetes by decreasing elevated blood glucose levels. Soluble fiber also had been found to help lower serum cholesterol levels, particularly undesirable low density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol.
According to researchers at the University of Scranton in Scranton Pennsylvania, they have the highest concentration of polyphenols among dried fruits. The findings of this research suggest that dried fruits should be a greater part of the diet as they are dense in phenol antioxidants and nutrients, most notably fiber.
A serving of power-packed dates contains 31 grams of carbohydrates, making them a powerhouse of energy. Carbohydrates include 3 grams of dietary fiber and 29 grams of naturally occurring sugars such as fructose, glucose and sucrose to provide quick energy and are readily used by the body. Dates are a perfect energy boosting snack.
Dates are one of the best natural sources of potassium. Potassium is an essential mineral your body needs to maintain muscle contractions including the vital heart muscle. Potassium is needed to maintain a healthy nervous system and to balance the body’s metabolism as well.
Since potassium is not stored in the body, and much is lost in perspiration, it must be continually replenished. As you consume potassium you excrete sodium, helping to keep blood pressure down. As people age, their kidneys become less efficient at eliminating sodium. About a 400 mg increase in potassium intake has been associated with a 40% reduction in the risk of stroke. This roughly amounts to one additional serving daily of Dates.
Dates also contain a variety of B-complex vitamins – thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, vitamin B-6 and pantothenic acid. These vitamins have a variety of functions that help maintain a healthy body – to metabolize carbohydrates and maintain blood glucose levels, fatty acids for energy, and they help make hemoglobin, the red and white blood cells. Dates also contain Magnesium which is essential for healthy bone development and for energy metabolism and Iron which is essential to red blood cell production. Red blood cells carry all the nutrients to cells throughout the body. In addition, Dates are fat and cholesterol free!
Warm holiday greetings to you and yours!
Now that Thanksgiving has come and gone, it’s time to look forward to a busy and festive month filled with trimming trees, spending time with friends and family, and celebrating the season. But don’t forget to leave a little time for yourself – in fact, why not start now? Go ahead and whip up a mug of hot cocoa, put your feet up, and relax. We’re here to help you keep yourself in fine form, inside and out, keep your houseplants in tip-top shape, and get your holiday baking off to a great start.
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STUFF YOUR STOCKINGS WITH 5 DVDS, A FREE GIFT, AND FREE SHIPPING!
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I’ve got the perfect gift for you and any other “green thumbers” on your holiday shopping list: My Year ‘Round Gardening 5-DVD Set. It’s jam-packed with my best tips, tricks, and tonics on:
DVD #1 - Year ‘Round Lawn Care
DVD #2 - Year ‘Round Flower Care
DVD #3 - Year ‘Round Rose Care
DVD #4 - Year ‘Round Tree, Shrub & Evergreen Care
DVD #5 - Year ‘Round Vegetable Gardening
As a special bonus, the 5-DVD Set also includes 50 printable tonic
recipes, so you’ll always have them at your fingertips. What’s more,
if you order now, I’ll send you a special FREE GIFT, my terrific Secrets from the Jerry Baker Test Gardens book (a $30.76 value, and it’s yours FREE!), and I’ll even pay for the shipping and processing.
A perfect Christmas present, a Free Gift, and Free Shipping &
Processing, to boot - what could be better than that? So don’t delay - stuff your stockings the fast, fun, and easy Jerry Baker way - today!
To buy your Year ‘Round Gardening 5-DVD Set now, click here.
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DRY SKIN REMEDIES
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If you live in a dry climate, or are exposed to drying indoor heat, your skin probably feels as crackly as an old paper bag. Try one of these old-time remedies to go from dry to dewy:
After bathing, while your skin’s still damp, slather on almond or sunflower oil. And if you’d rather not smell like a Caesar salad, add a few drops of lavender oil to the mix.
Mix equal parts of milk and honey and starting at your feet, massage the lotion into your thirsty skin. Do this in the shower, then you can simply rinse off when you’re done.
Bring 3 cups of water to a boil, then remove the pot from the stove. Add 1 drop each of rose, geranium, rosemary, fennel, and peppermint herbal oils to the water. Drape a towel over your head and tuck the ends around the pot so the steam is captured inside a “mini-sauna.”
Make a big pot of oatmeal, let it cool a bit, and slather it on your lightly oiled skin from head to toe. When it’s dry, soak it off in a warm tub.
For more Grandma-tested, doctor-approved solutions, check out my new Grandma Putt’s Home Health Remedies book – FREE for 21 days. It’s filled with hundreds of safe, natural, and effective cures to keep you (and yours) healthy.
For a Free 21-Day Preview, click here.
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OH, MY ACHIN’…
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With the stress of crowded shopping centers, long drives on icy roads, and family gatherings with noisy kids running around, a tension headache is sure to spoil your fun. Try these quick tips to move it along:
Heat your head. Put a heating pad or washcloth soaked in warm water on the areas that hurt. If you have time, hang out in a hot shower for 10 to 15 minutes with the water hitting the achy spot.
Push and flex. Press your fingers firmly where it hurts while flexing those muscles against the pressure.
S-t-r-e-t-c-h. Keep the pain away by gently turning your head from left to right. Turn it as far as you comfortably can in each direction. Then lower your chin toward your chest, hold for a moment, and tilt your head all the way back until you’re looking at the ceiling.
For even more super solutions and remarkable remedies, check out my Anti-Pain Plan book – FREE for 21 days. It’ll put an end to your all-too-frequent aches and pains!
For a Free 21-Day Preview, click here.
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SUPERMARKET SECRETS WINNERS
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This month’s winning tip comes from Sylvia L., of Ohio:
“Just place pieces of cardboard under the legs of furniture you need to move, and push. The furniture will slide easily over carpet, and if you have hardwood floors, the cardboard will protect it.”
Thanks, Sylvia, and thanks again to all of you who entered. If you didn’t win this month, there’s still hope! We’ll draw a new winner next month, so get your entry in now (click here).
Here are a few more terrific tips we received:
“Sprinkle baking soda and vinegar over an area of carpet that has been stained, then place a towel over the area, and cover it with ice. Leave it alone until all of the ice has melted, then remove the towel and let the carpet dry. Vacuum up any remaining residue.” Colleen G., PA
“Use unflavored, unwaxed dental floss to cut a cake. Cut a piece of floss that is longer than the cake, then wrap an end around each hand. Holding it taut, slice quickly through the cake.” Katherine K., TX
“Squeeze the juice out of a lime and drink the juice in the morning before breakfast. It’ll give you a mega-dose of vitamin C to relieve cold symptoms and sore throat pain.” Jed Y., TX
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POINSETTIA POWER
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If you’re the lucky recipient of one of these room-brightening flowers, keep it lush and lovely through the season by following these tips:
Poinsettias like full sun, so keep them near a light source, but sheltered from drafts. If you set your poinsettia on a windowsill, place a piece of cardboard between the plant and the window at night to protect it from chilly air.
Water your plant regularly and thoroughly, but don’t ever let it stand in water. If you want to make this task super easy, pick up a pack of my Watering Spikes. They’ll keep your poinsettias perfectly watered without any work on your part.
To pick up a pack of Watering Spikes, click here.
If your poinsettia’s foliage starts to yellow, the plant is probably not getting enough light or nitrogen, or is being watered too much. Set it in a brighter location, give it a dose of fertilizer, and hold off on the watering until the top of the soil has dried out.
Leaves will start to wilt if the plant is too dry or is exposed to a draft. Move it to a more sheltered spot and perk it up with a drink.
For more holiday houseplant helpers, check out my Great Green Book of Garden Secrets – FREE for 21 days. The tips, tricks, and tonics inside will help you show off your green thumb both indoors and out.
To order your FREE 21-Day Preview click here.
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BUST THE DUST
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A house always seems dustier during the long winter months – because it usually is! Running the furnace dries out everything in sight, including the tiniest of dust particles which fly around, then settle on every surface. You can get ‘em out of every nook and cranny by using one of these terrific tricks:
Take aim. Use the coolest setting on your hair dryer, take aim, and blow the dust away. This is perfect for lampshades, artificial flowers, ceramic figurines, and anything else with intricate carving or relief work. You can even blow the dust out from behind radiators, bookcases, and refrigerators.
“Hose” it off. Metal mini blinds and computer and TV screens attract dust like there’s no tomorrow, but so do panty hose. Cut a leg off an old pair, and give it a new career – as a dust magnet.
Paint a masterpiece. When you’re dusting furniture with intricate designs in the wood, reach for a soft paintbrush. It’ll get into all the cracks and crevices that a cloth-covered finger could never reach.
Discover tons of great tips that’ll have you and your home in top form in my Grandma Putt’s Old-Time Vinegar, Garlic, Baking Soda, and 101 More Problem Solvers book – FREE for 21 days!
To get your Free 21-Day Preview, click here.
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THAT’S THE WAY THE COOKIE (OR CAKE!) CRUMBLES
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The holidays are so close you can almost smell them. Or maybe that’s just the delicious aroma of yummy baked goods already wafting from your kitchen! Here are some simple tips that’ll make the task of holiday baking oh-so-easy, and lip-smacking good:
Storing cookies with a slice of bread in the container will keep them soft and chewy.
Before chopping sticky fruits to add to your desserts, lightly butter your knife. That way, your figs, dates, and apricots will wind up in the mixing bowl, not stuck to your knife!
Sprinkle your cookies and cakes with confectioner’s sugar while they’re still warm – it’ll be sure to stick.
Thoroughly cool your baked goods, then wrap them in a layer of waxed paper, then aluminum foil before freezing them. If your dessert is to be frosted, do so after thawing. And make sure you label your items – once they’re wrapped and frozen, you won’t be able to tell the candy cane cutouts from the date nut bread.
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AND SPEAKING OF YUMMY BAKED GOODS…
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Cranberries are everywhere this time of year, so why not use them to liven up an old favorite? This Cranberry Shortbread is a delightful holiday treat that’s as easy to make as it is delicious.
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature
¾ cup powdered sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
½ cup chopped dried cranberries
Combine butter, powdered sugar, vanilla, flour, and salt in a large mixing bowl. Beat with a wooden spoon until the ingredients are combined but the mixture’s not too creamy. Stir in the dried cranberries. Pat the dough evenly into an 8-inch square baking pan. Bake in a preheated, 325º oven for about 20 minutes, until the shortbread turns golden. Run a knife around the edges, remove the shortbread, and transfer it right side up to a work surface. Use a cookie cutter to cut out holiday shaped cookies, or cut the shortbread into bars. Yum, yum!
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http://www.betterwayhealth.com/drinking-water.html
Drink to Your Health . . . With Water!
Mother Nature’s Healthy “Cocktail”
Some nutritionists insist that 80% of the country is walking around dehydrated. We drink too much coffee, tea, and sodas containing caffeine, which prompts the body to lose water. More troubling is that fact that when we are dehydrated, we don’t know what to drink.
The answer is simple: drink water!
Water is pure liquid refreshment and accounts for a large percentage of what makes each of us “human.” The average 150 lb. adult body contains 40 to 50 quarts of water. Almost 2/3rds of our body weight is “water weight”:
Blood is 83% water
Muscles are 75% water
The brain is 74% water
Bone is 22% water
The Fountain of Youth, Health, and Everything Else that’s Good
Water is necessary for your body to digest and absorb vitamins and nutrients. It also detoxifies the liver and kidneys, and carries away waste from the body. And when it comes to digestion . . . it’s just not happening without water. Fiber alone cannot aid proper digestive function by itself. In fact, without water as its partner, good fiber goes bad, causing constipation and extreme discomfort.
If you’re dehydrated, your blood is literally thicker, and your body has to work much harder to cause it to circulate. As a result, the brain becomes less active, it’s hard to concentrate, your body feels fatigued, and you just “poop out.”
Water - The Miracle Worker
Simple water — when it’s pure and free of contaminants — is truly a “wonder drug.” Without chemicals, additives, or anything unnatural, a steady dose of 8 glasses of water a day (ideally ½ your body weight in ounces of water) will:
Improve Your Energy
Increase Your Mental and Physical Performance
Remove Toxins & Waste Products from your body
Keep Skin Healthy and Glowing
Help You Lose Weight
Reduce Headaches and Dizziness
Allow for proper Digestion
Help to keep you more Alkaline
Drinking Water is Heart-Healthy
The findings of a six-year study of more than 20,000 healthy men and women aged 38-100 in the May 1, 2002 American Journal of Epidemiology found that women who drank more than five glasses of water a day were 41% less likely to die from a heart attack during the study period than those who drank less than two glasses. The protective effect of water was even greater in men.
Drinking Water and Weight Loss
Water is a natural appetite suppressant, so developing a good water drinking habit can be a long-term aid in achieving and maintaining a healthy weight. Doctor F. Batmanghelidj MD, author of “Your Body’s Many Cries For Water” says most times your “hunger” is your body asking for water – not food.
It’s also important to remember that when the body is dehydrated, fat cells get “rubbery” and cannot be easily metabolized. This means that it’s harder to lose when you don’t drink your water.
Who Can Benefit From A Water Regimen? Everyone . . . including YOU!
Water is especially important for pregnant women and nursing mothers. For athletes and work-out fanatics, drinking water reduces cardiovascular stress and improves performance. And, since water reduces body temperature, it makes the whole exercise process safer and more effective.
Water is also an important “healing tool” for people with a history of kidney stones. Since water dissolves calcium in the urine, downing at least 8 glasses daily reduces the risk of stone formation. Drinking water is also valuable in preventing urinary tract infections in both men and for women, flushing impurities out of the system.
Even mild dehydration makes you more susceptible to viruses. For someone like me, with an immune system compromised from my battle with terminal cancer, water is a powerful weapon in my war on colds and other illnesses. I’ve also found that water helps me recover more quickly.
When your body is hydrated, drainage from allergies and colds doesn’t stick and collect in your throat and lungs, and your cough is more “productive”. Even cold sores that appear on the lips are minimized by drinking water because those eruptions tend to favor dry areas on the body.
Tips for Drinking Water
I know how hard it can be to remember to drink enough water every day, but I also know how hard it can be to bounce back from the effects of being even mildly dehydrated. So I’d like to share a few easy tips to help you reach your “water mark” every day:
You are naturally thirsty i.e. “dehydrated” in the morning . . . help your body flush out the toxins it has been processing all night and take advantage of this thirst to get a “leg up” on your daily water requirements by drinking a glass of water first thing.
If you are cold drink warm water instead of dehydrating coffee & tea.
Don’t wait until you’re thirsty to have a drink – you are already dehydrated if you feel thirsty.
Set a timer to remind yourself to establish a habit of drinking water and keep a bottle of water with you at all times.
Compensate for diuretics . . . thieves that steal water from your body. If you drink coffee, tea, or sodas with caffeine, you’ll need to drink a few extra glasses of water to make up for the water that these diuretic beverages “leech” from your system.
My personal choice is ionized alkaline water. The Jupiter water ionizers conveniently produce gallons of alkaline water each day for cooking and drinking. I get all the known benefits of pure water with the added advantages of micro-clustered water.