25 Health Benefits of Cinnamon

PEAR

The pear is a sweet fruit that is said to be related to the apple.  Its size is about that of an apple with several seeds in the core, like an apple.  Unlike apples though, most pear varieties have paper-thin skins which are not easy to peel.  The skins vary in color-yellow, green, brown, red, or a combination of any of these colors.

The light color flesh of pears is juicy, sweet and usually mild.  Its texture is soft and buttery and some varieties have grainy flesh.  We usually think of pear as bell-shaped, but some varieties are shaped almost like a rounded apple.

Among all the variety of pears, the Chinese pear is known to have the most medicinal values.  But nonetheless, the other varieties are also healthful in their own right.

Pears are in season throughout the year but especially from end of June to February, depending on the variety.

Nutritional Benefits
Pears are excellent source of water-soluble fiber.  They contain vitamins A, B1, B2, C, E, folic acid and niacin.  It is also rich in copper, phosphorus and potassium, with lesser amounts of calcium, chlorine, iron, magnesium, sodium and sulfur.
Some variety have more iron content than others.  This can be seen when a cut pear turns brown.  If it doesn't turn brown, it means that the iron content is very low or non-existent.



Health Benefits
Pears are often recommended as a hypo-allergenic fruit that is high in fiber but less likely to produce adverse reactions.  Pear juice is safe to be introduced to infants as they are mild, yet healthful. 
Blood pressure:  Pears have anti-oxidant and anti-carcinogen glutathione which help prevent high blood pressure and stroke.
Cancer prevention:  The high vitamin C and copper content act as good anti-oxidants that protect cells from damages by free radicals.
Cholesterol:  The high content of pectin in pears make it very useful in helping to lower cholesterol levels.
Colon health:  When not juicing, eat the pear whole for its precious fiber that are highly beneficial for your colon health.
Constipation:  The pectin in pears is diuretic and have a mild laxative effect.  Drinking pear juice regularly helps regulate bowel movements.
Energy:  You can get quick and natural source of energy from pear juice, due largely to its high amounts of fructose and glucose.
Fever:  The cooling effect in pear is excellent in relieving fever.  Best way to bring a fever down quickly is by drinking a big glass of pear juice.
Immune booster:  The anti-oxidant nutrients in pears are critical in building up your immune system.  Drink pear juice when you feel a cold coming.
Inflammation:  Pear juice has an anti-inflammatory effect and helps relieve sufferers of much pain in various inflammatory conditions.
Osteoporosis:  Pears contain high level of boron.  Boron helps the body to retain calcium, thus prevents or retards osteoporosis.
Pregnancy:  The high content of folate (folic acid) prevents neural tube defects in infants.
Shortness of breath:  The summer heat may cause children to have shortness of breath with excessive phlegm.  Drink pear juice during this period to help clear the phlegm.
Throat problem:  The pears are in season during the summer for a reason.  Drinking pear juice every morning and night helps to cool your body down during this time.  It nourishes the throat and helps prevent throat problems.
Vocal chord:  Boil two Chinese pear juice with some raw honey and drink warm.  This is extremely healing for the throat and the vocal cord.

Apples have been recommended for : Obesity, Headache, Arthritis, Bronchial asthma, Inflammation of the bladder, Gonorrhea, Anemia, Tuberculosis, Neuritis, Insomnia, Catarrh, Gallbladder stones, Worms, Halithosis, Pyorrhea
Nutritive Values : Per 100 grams

• Vitamin A : 900 I.U.
• Vitamin B : Thiamine .07 mg.;
• Vitamin C : 5 mg.
• Vitamin G : Amount uncertain
• Calcium : 6 mg.
• Iron : 3 mg.
• Phosphorus : 10 mg.
• Potassium : 130 mg.
• Carbohydrates : 14.9 gm.
• Calories : 58

Health Benefits of Apples

We're told that an apple a day keeps the doctor away, but what exactly are the health benefits of apples? Here are ten reasons to heed the advice of that old proverb.
Bone Protection
French researchers found that a flavanoid called phloridzin that is found only in apples may protect post-menopausal women from osteoporosis and may also increase bone density. Boron, another ingredient in apples, also strengthens bones.
Asthma Help
One recent study shows that children with asthma who drank apple juice on a daily basis suffered from less wheezing than children who drank apple juice only once per month. Another study showed that children born to women who eat a lot of apples during pregnancy have lower rates of asthma than children whose mothers ate few apples.
Alzheimer's Prevention
A study on mice at Cornell University found that the quercetin in apples may protect brain cells from the kind of free radical damage that may lead to Alzheimer's disease.
Lower Cholesterol
The pectin in apples lowers LDL ("bad") cholesterol. People who eat two apples per day may lower their cholesterol by as much as 16 percent.
Lung Cancer Prevention
According to a study of 10,000 people, those who ate the most apples had a 50 percent lower risk of developing lung cancer. Researchers believe this is due to the high levels of the flavonoids quercetin and naringin in apples.
Breast Cancer Prevention
A Cornell University study found that rats who ate one apple per day reduced their risk of breast cancer by 17 percent. Rats fed three apples per day reduced their risk by 39 percent and those fed six apples per day reduced their risk by 44 percent.
Colon Cancer Prevention
One study found that rats fed an extract from apple skins had a 43 percent lower risk of colon cancer. Other research shows that the pectin in apples reduces the risk of colon cancer and helps maintain a healthy digestive tract.
Liver Cancer Prevention
Research found that rats fed an extract from apple skins had a 57 percent lower risk of liver cancer.
Diabetes Management
The pectin in apples supplies galacturonic acid to the body which lowers the body's need for insulin and may help in the management of diabetes.
Weight Loss
A Brazilian study found that women who ate three apples or pears per day lost more weight while dieting than women who did not eat fruit while dieting.

5 health reasons to not quit coffee

By Kerri-Ann Jennings, M.S., R.D., Associate Nutrition Editor at EatingWell Magazine

I really like coffee. The morning ritual of brewing a cup, the smell that perks me up before I take a sip and, of course, the flavor all make it my favorite beverage aside from water (water’s delicious!). As a registered dietitian and a nutrition editor for EatingWell Magazine, I know that coffee is fine in moderation. It has lots of antioxidants and is low in calories if you don’t load it up with cream and sugar. Nonetheless, I always feel slightly guilty about drinking it—you know, in a “it’s so good, it must be bad” kind of way.

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Which is why I’m always delighted to hear of new reasons that coffee is good for your health...and there are plenty! Over 18,000 studies on coffee have been published in the past few decades, revealing these benefits, many of which Joyce Hendley wrote about in the March/April issue of EatingWell Magazine:

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1. It protects your heart: Moderate coffee drinkers (1 to 3 cups/day) have lower rates of stroke than noncoffee drinkers, an effect linked to coffee’s antioxidants. Coffee has more antioxidants per serving than blueberries, making it the biggest source of antioxidants in American diets. All those antioxidants may help suppress the damaging effect of inflammation on arteries. Immediately after drinking it, coffee raises your blood pressure and heart rate, but over the long term, it actually may lower blood pressure as coffee’s antioxidants activate nitric acid, widening blood vessels.

2. It diverts diabetes: Those antioxidants (chlorogenic acid and quinides, specifically) play another role: boosting your cells’ sensitivity to insulin, which helps regulate blood sugar. In fact, people who drink 4 or more cups of coffee each day may have a lower risk of developing type 2 diabetes, according to some studies. Other studies have shown that caffeine can blunt the insulin-sensitivity boost, so if you do drink several cups a day, try mixing in decaf occasionally.

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3. Your liver loves it: OK, so the research here is limited, but it looks like the more coffee people drink, the lower their incidence of cirrhosis and other liver diseases. One analysis of nine studies found that every 2-cup increase in daily coffee intake reduced liver cancer risk by 43 percent. Again, it’s those antioxidants—chlorogenic and caffeic acids—and caffeine that might prevent liver inflammation and inhibit cancer cells.

4. It boosts your brain power: Drinking between 1 and 5 cups a day (admittedly a big range) may help reduce risk of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, as well as Parkinson’s disease, studies suggest. Those antioxidants may ward off brain cell damage and help the neurotransmitters involved in cognitive function to work better.

5. It helps your headaches: And not just the withdrawal headaches caused by skipping your daily dose of caffeine! Studies show that 200 milligrams of caffeine—about the amount in 16 ounces of brewed coffee—provides relief from headaches, including migraines. Exactly how caffeine relieves headaches isn’t clear. But scientists do know that caffeine boosts the activity of brain cells, causing surrounding blood vessels to constrict. One theory is that this constriction helps to relieve the pressure that causes the pain, says Robert Shapiro, M.D., Ph.D., associate professor of neurology and director of the Headache Clinic at the University of Vermont Medical School.

Now, that’s not to say that coffee doesn’t have any pitfalls—it does. Some people are super-sensitive to caffeine and get jittery or anxious after drinking coffee; habitual coffee drinkers usually develop a tolerance to caffeine that eliminates this problem (but they then need the caffeine to be alert and ward off withdrawal headaches). Coffee can also disturb sleep, especially as people age. Cutting some of the caffeine and drinking it earlier in the day can curb this effect. Lastly, unfiltered coffee (like that made with a French press) can raise LDL cholesterol, so use a filter for heart health.

But if you like coffee and you can tolerate it well, enjoy it...without the guilt.

Community Poll: How much coffee do you drink every day?

By Kerri-Ann Jennings