Top 5 Foods for Women
Make these five superfoods part of your diet at any age.
By Joan Raymond
Cranberries
They earn super status for their ability to help fight off nasty urinary tract infections. About 10 ounces of juice a day does the trick. Plus, recent research shows that cranberries might also help fend off colds and fight stomach bugs, gum disease, and certain types of cancer. Add a little unsweetened cranberry juice to smoothies, and sprinkle some dried berries into cereal and muffin mix.
Walnuts
These nuts are rich in omega-3s, which help reduce inflam-mation and increase good cholesterol. They may even help with depression and reduce your risk of Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s diseases. Top your salad with 1/4 cup or try them in pesto.
Beans
The humble legume may prevent heart disease and help head ?off colon cancer. Rich in two heart-friendly phytochemicals, beans are packed with magnesium, potassium, folate, and fiber. Get a 1/2 cup five to six times per week by adding canned kidney and garbanzo beans (rinse and drain first) to salads, burritos, and dips.
Fish
Studies show that eating seafood rich in omega-3s at least twice a week could reduce your risk of heart disease. And the reports say women of childbearing age and nursing mothers can safely eat as much as 12 ounces of seafood a week if they avoid high-mercury swordfish, shark, tilefish, and king mackerel; albacore tuna should be limited to 6 ounces a week.
Tomatoes
Loaded with the antioxidant lycopene, tomatoes and ?cooked tomato products pack a big health punch (at 32 milligrams, 1 cup of spaghetti sauce serves up the day’s recommended intake). Studies show that women with lycopene-rich diets can have as much as a 50 percent lower risk of developing breast cancer. The antioxidant can also lower your blood pressure and bad cholesterol, and may even reduce your risk of getting macular degeneration and a host of cancers.
1 comment:
Seafood can be a good source of lean protein and heart-healthy Omega-3 fatty acids, but you have to be careful when choosing which types of fish to consume. Mercury is a powerful neurotoxin that has potentially devastating consequences when it accumulates in the body. Your post explains the importance of knowing the US Food and Drug Administration’s seafood consumption advice. However, if consumers aren’t armed with this information when they go to the grocery store, they could make poor choices about what seafood to buy or even become so overwhelmed that they choose to avoid seafood altogether. A simple solution to this dilemma would be to post the FDA advice at seafood counters right inside grocery stores. Oceana, a marine conservation organization, is running a campaign to persuade grocers to display this information so shoppers can make informed decisions about their seafood. Several national grocery chains, including Safeway and Whole Foods, have already made the choice to post this information inside their stores and are now on Oceana’s Green List. You don’t have to give up the seafood you love if you know the facts about mercury. Learn more by visiting our mercury web page
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