Foods Fight Diseases for YOU !

The Body's Best Weapons

 

All foods give you energy . It can have a dramatic effect on your body's ability to fight off heart disease, cancer, diabetes, high blood pressure, stroke, and weak bones , etc. 

With remarkable consistency, recent research has found that a diet high in plant-based foods-fruits, vegetables, dried peas and beans, grains, and starchy staples such as potatoes  ==> these are the body's best weapon in thwarting many health-related problems.





These foods work against so many diseases that the same healthy ingredients you might use to protect your heart or ward off cancer will also benefit your intestinal tract and bones.

Here's what is currently known about these different disease-fighting foods :

1) Cancer Fighters

 

Preventing cancer is a compelling reason to load up your cart in the produce department. 

Scientists have recently estimated that approximately 30 to 40 percent of all cancers could be averted if people ate more fruits, vegetables, and plant-based foods and minimized high-fat, high-calorie edibles that have scant nutritional value. Up to 70 percent of cancers might be eliminated if people also stopped smoking, exercised regularly, and controlled their weight.

In the past, researchers had linked fat consumption with the development of cancers, but they currently believe that eating fruits, vegetables, and grains may be more important in preventing the disease than not eating fat. "The evidence about a high-fat diet and cancer seemed a lot stronger several years ago than it does now," says Melanie Polk, a registered dietitian and director of nutrition education at the American Institute for Cancer Research.

2) Antioxidants

The antioxidants (carotenoids, such as beta carotene and lycopene, and vitamins C and E) found in fruits, vegetables, and other plant-based foods fight free radicals, which are compounds in the body that attack and destroy cell membranes. The uncontrolled activity of free radicals is believed to cause many cancers.

The carotenoids, in particular, which give fruits and vegetables their bright yellow, orange, and specially red colors, are now gaining recognition for their nutritional worth. Numerous studies have extolled the virtues of lycopene (the carotenoid that makes tomatoes red) in preventing prostate cancer. One such study at Harvard University found that men who include tomato products in their meals twice a week could reduce their risk of developing prostate cancer by one-third compared with men who never touch tomatoes.

3) Heart Saving Foods

No other part of your body benefits more from good dietary choices than your cardiovascular system. What you eat, and choose not to eat, has a dramatic effect on your risk for heart disease and stroke.

Plant-based foods provide complex carbohydrates as well as vitamins and minerals. And they contain very little fat. Because they're rich in indigestible fiber, they take up space in the intestines, which can help you control your appetite -- and your weight. 

These foods have another advantage. "When you look at non-drug alternatives to reduce cholesterol," says registered dietitian Linda Van Horn, Ph.D., of Northwestern University Medical School , "you find that a high-fiber component to a low-fat diet is very effective."

4) Bone-Making and Protecting Foods

The road to strong bones is paved with calcium-rich food. Leafy green vegetables and low-fat dairy products are excellent sources of calcium, the mineral that puts stiffness into your skeletal system and keeps your bones from turning rubbery and fragile.
Your body uses calcium for more than keeping your bones strong. Calcium permits cells to divide, regulates muscle contraction and relaxation, and plays an important role in the movement of protein and nutrients inside cells. If you don't absorb enough from what you eat to satisfy these requirements, your body will take it from your bones. Because your body doesn't produce this essential mineral, you must continually replenish the supply.

And also , Sun can help you with using Vitamin D !