Friday, April 20, 2012

Health Benefits Of Watermelon


In the hot summer, watermelon is an indispensable fruit for people's daily life. Due to the large amount of water and the sweet taste, watermelon brings much benefits to us.

A watermelon contains about 6% sugar and 92% water by weight. As with many other fruits, it is a source of vitamin C. It is also commonly used to make a variety of salads, most notably fruit salad.

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Dieting Myths


There's a long list of supposedly sure-fire tricks to losing weight fast, and it seems like a new one is "discovered" every day. Whether it's online, on TV, in pop-culture magazines, everyone has an opinion on how to lose weight. But how do you separate myth from fact?Here are some common diet myths that not only don't work, but may actually be harmful to your health.

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Rice Parboiling Makes it Nutritionally Superior

The most commonly consumed rice variety is the refined white rice, which is produced by removing the hull mechanically in a factory, but there is another, healthier, variation called the parboiled rice where the hulled rice is hydrated and steamed, to retain the nutrition of the bran within the rice grain. Parboiling rice was mostly practiced in Asian countries, especially the South of India, and it caught favor with western countries when the nutritional benefits, of this type of rice processing, was realized. In this article we will discuss how healthy parboiled rice is, detailing its nutritional benefits while drawing comparison with brown rice and unconverted white rice.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Tennis Elbow Injury


Tennis Elbow (Lateral Epicondylitis) is a common cause of elbow pain, which can radiate down the forearm from the outer side of the elbow. Tennis Elbow tends to be caused by prolonged gripping activities. There is also elbow pain if the elbow is straight and the hand is moved forward and back at the wrist. Despite the name, Tennis Elbow doesn't just affect tennis players.

A severe episode of Tennis Elbow usually requires a course of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs ( NSAIDs ) prescribed by a doctor and a period of rest from activities that may aggravate the injury.

Monday, April 2, 2012

THE CONTROVERSIAL USE OF PPD IN HAIR COLOR DYES


Also known as paraphenylenediamine, 1,4-diaminobenzene or 1,4-phenylenediamine, PPD is an aromatic amine used as a component of polymers , hair dyes, rubber chemicals, fibers, textile dyes, and pigments.
PPD is used in almost every hair dye on the market, regardless of brand; the darker the color, usually, the higher the concentrations. Even some of the so-called "natural" and "herbal" hair colors, while ammonia-free, contain PPD. Some products sold as henna have PPD added, particularly "black henna."
Unfortunately PPD is known to cause allergic reactions; and as a result its use in hair dyes is controversial.
• The Harvard School of Public Health's epidemiology department discovered that women who use hair coloring five times or more annually are twice as likely to develop ovarian cancer as women who never use hair dye.
• According to a study published by The American Journal of Epidemiology, hair stylists who worked with hair dyes for five years or more had tripled their risk of developing breast cancer.
• According to the American Cancer Society, people who used dark hair dye for two decades or more had a four times greater risk of dying from cancers of the immune system.
However, due to the inconsistency of the findings, the EPA has yet to classify PPD as a potential carcinogen and no warning labels are required on hair dye packages.

Thursday, March 29, 2012

Spices With Super-Healing Power

Have you checked your spice rack lately? Spices and herbs can do a lot more than add pizzazz to your cooking -- they can also promote heart health, fight cancer, reduce inflammation and much more.Below are the 3 Spices With Super-Healing Power,
1-Turmeric

Turmeric has been used in Indian Ayurvedic medicine for millennia, and Western science is starting to catch on. Its active ingredient, curcumin, is a strong antioxidant that's been shown in test tube and animal studies to fend off cancer growth, amyloid plaque development, and more.
Turmeric might also boost heart health -- a 2012 study showed that adding turmeric and other high-antioxidant spices to high-fat meals could help regulate triglyceride and insulin levels and protect the cardiovascular system.
Turmeric is also a powerful COX-2 inhibitor -- like a nonsteroidal anti-inflammtory but without the nasty side effects. A human study in 2009 found a daily dose of curcumin just as effective as ibuprofen for osteoarthritis in the knee.
Like all herbs and spices, however, too much turmeric might not be a good thing -- it can inhibit blood clotting in large doses and may exacerbate gallbladder issues, so check with your doctor before using more than a typical culinary amount.