Tag: vitamins

Have you and your partner decided you’re ready to be parents—or have another baby?

According to Baby Center, 85 percent of couples who actively try to get pregnant will conceive within about one year, or 12 menstrual cycles. If they are not able to conceive after one year, it is recommended at that time that they may want to consult a fertility expert. (This time period is reduced to six months before seeing an expert if the woman is over 35 years old.)

Regardless of whether you’re in the early stages of trying to conceive or have been trying for a while, here are a few science-backed tips that may help get your body primed for fertility success.

Being sick is the pits. All it takes is one bad cold or one rough bout with the flu to make you start wishing you were anywhere else but stuck in bed. Even the commute to work is better than that.

Fortunately, there are ways to armor your immune system that allow you to better stave off illness and crush those germs before they put you down for the count. The following four recommendations will have you feeling stronger, healthier, and out of bed all year long.

Have you heard about the benefits of medicinal mushrooms? In my never-ending search for whole foods that boost health, fight disease, and make me feel great, what I’ve found in regards to mushrooms has absolutely blown my mind.

First, these delicious foods are not actually vegetables. They belong to the fungi classification. The American Journal of Botany estimates there are as many as 5.1 million species of fungi on our planet and that they outnumber other plants by an incredible 6-to-1 ratio.

Poor sleep not only makes us grumpy, hungry and lethargic, it can be deadly. A study by researchers in Australia showed that being awake for 18 hours produced an impairment equal to a blood alcohol concentration of .05, and .10 after 24 hours. In most states, .08 is considered legally drunk. Consider that roughly 86% of Americans commute by automobile to and from work, according to 2013 U.S. Census Data, and you realize that's a lot of people on the road potentially impaired from poor sleep.

Whole grains are exactly what their name implies. The grain is left in its whole, originally harvested state. It is not cracked, crushed, rolled or cooked down; otherwise known as processed or refined. A whole grain is more nutritious than a processed grain because the processing removes some of the nutrients. Research shows that people who regularly choose whole grains over processed grains are less prone to obesity, heart disease, stroke, cancer, and diabetes. Whole grains are a good source for fiber, magnesium, Vitamin B and Vitamin E. Making the small change from processed white bread to whole grain bread is an easy way to improve your diet.

To have healthy and glowing skin it is crucial to pay attention to what we eat every day. Foods that are high in trans fatty acids, such as meat, dairy products, processed, and fast foods can dehydrate the skin. This is because trans fats in animal-based foods increase the free radical load (charged chemical particles of oxygen that enter into destructive chemical bonds with proteins) and lead to premature aging of the skin.

Whole plant-based foods such as fruits, vegetables, greens, legumes, nuts, and seeds are storehouses of the vital nutrients needed for healthy skin.

Recognized in the literary world with stories such as "Cinderella," "The Legend of Sleepy Hollow," and "Peter, Peter, Pumpkin Eater," the pumpkin is no stranger to the spotlight. Each year in the U.S., thousands of pumpkins are carved into jack 'o lanterns and many pumpkin pies are eaten at holiday celebrations.

Pumpkin is excellent for you. It has no cholesterol and is low in fat and sodium and rich in vitamins. The bright orange color of pumpkin is a dead giveaway that it is loaded with the antioxidant, beta-carotene.