Sharpen your memory with grapes!
You’ve heard it a million times: Eating right, getting enough sleep, exercising and avoiding stress are all important for protecting your good health. But if hectic days make it too difficult to stay on track all the time, don’t worry! You can stay health
1 Dropping excess pounds with ginger!
Too crunched for time to exercise away excess pounds— or just don’t like working out? Sipping four cups of ginger tea each day or taking a 500-mg. ginger supplement four times daily will help get you to your slim-down goal anyway! ✤ It works! Years of research shows that unique ginger compounds (gingerol and shogaol) supercharge your metabolism, reducing the absorption of carbs in your digestive system and tamping down insulin spikes. One option: Swanson Superior Herbs Ginger Root, $8.99 per 120-250 mg. capsules, Swansonvitamins.com.
And breakfast on oatmeal!
Eating foods rich in soluble fiber (such as oats, apples and beans) pares pounds! As it’s digested, soluble fiber produces appetite-taming fatty acids that balance blood sugar and prompt your body to burn fat rather than store it!
2 Staying sunny with magnesium!
Yes, exercise, enjoying favorite hobbies and spending more time with friends are all proven to keep the blues at bay. So what can you do when your schedule makes it hard to fit in those activities? Take at least 300 mg. of magnesium daily— and your mood will stay sunny! ✤ It works! A growing mountain of research shows that women who get the minimum recommended dietary allowance of magnesium (310 mg. for ages 19 to 30; 320 mg. for 31 and up) are far less likely to develop depression, thanks to the mineral’s ability to increase serotonin in the brain! And listen to oldies! Good sleep and a healthy diet are proven to make you more hopeful about your future. What also works in a pinch? Listening to the music you enjoyed as a teen! By triggering nostalgic memories of happy times, oldies can make you believe that more happy times lie ahead, report scientists in Britain.
3Slowing aging with yoga!
Worry that you’re shaving years off your life because you’re not exercising enough or getting your fill of nutritious foods? Not to worry! You can slow down how quickly your body ages by doing yoga! ✤ It works! In a new study, scientists discovered that adults with unhealthy habits who enrolled in a yoga class were able to protect their cells from aging without making any other changes to their routines! Yoga’s combination of slow breathing, meditation and poses reduces inflammation, DNA damage and oxidative damage, making up for a less-thanhealthy lifestyle, reports the journal Oxidative Medicine and Cellular Longevity.
And enjoy a cuppa!
The caffeine in coffee and tea curbs the inflammation linked to the onset of many serious ailments, including Type 2 diabetes and Alzheimer’s, reveals new research in the journal Nature Medicine.
4Shielding your heart with mushrooms!
If you’ve slipped into eating lots of high-fat foods, adding fresh portabella and shiitake mushrooms — or mushroom powder to your meals, such as Hoosier Hill Farm Portabella Mushroom Powder, $11.99, Amazon.com—will go a long way toward keeping your heart healthy anyway, report USDA researchers. ✤ It works! Mushrooms are rich in selenium, potassium, vitamin D and a unique antioxidant (ergothioneine), which all help widen arteries that get narrowed by a high-fat diet. Plus, they contain a type of fiber (beta-glucans) shown to help lower cholesterol!
And drink orange juice!
Regularly consuming oranges and other citrus fruit protects against the health risks linked to a fatty diet, such as heart and liver trouble, thanks to antioxidants that fend off damaging free radicals caused by high-fat foods, reveals Brazilian research.
5Maximizing your memory with grape juice!
Notice you become more forgetful when stress spikes? It’s not your imagination— our memory really does get fuzzy when pressure mounts! Fortunately, you can keep your recall sharp — no matter what life throws at you— by drinking a cup of purple grape juice daily! ✤ It works! Polyphenols in grapes reverse a slowdown caused by stress in areas of the brain that manage memory, reports The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition.
Rev recall with an amino acid!
Another culprit behind forgetfulness: lack of sleep! What to do when late nights or early mornings are a must? Take a daily 500mg. dose of l-carnitine (such as Vitacost Acetyl L-carnitine HCI, $6.79 per 60 500-mg. capsules, Vitacost.com). This naturally occurring amino acid neutralizes the damaging molecules in the brain’s memory centers activated by a sleep shortfall, reports the journal Brain Research Bulletin.