| Eat
one or two Brazil nuts a day. The
average Brazil nut contains more
than the Daily Value of the
antioxidant mineral selenium--70
micrograms.
Eat
a handful of sunflower seeds a
day, along with a sprinkling of
other nuts. Among nuts and seeds,
sunflower seeds are one of the
better sources of vitamin E.
They're also cheap. One
caution, however: If you're
watching your waistline, don't eat
more than an ounce of nuts a day.
Nuts are high in fat.
Eat
at least one broccoli spear,
carrot and celery stalk a
day. They're all high in
fiber. Broccoli and carrots
are also high in beta-carotene,
the powerful antioxidant that the
body transforms into vitamin
A. Celery is high in
apigenin, a chemical that expands
(dilates) the blood vessels and
may help prevent high blood
pressure. |
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Whole Mixed Nuts in Bark Tray
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Whole
shell almonds, cashews,
Brazil nuts, Pecans,
filberts and macadamia nuts
fill this rustic bark lined
wooden basket. From
iGourmet.com
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Drink
a fruit smoothie every day.
Take any fruits that appeal to
you--apples, oranges, bananas,
grapefruit, melons or berries--and
run them through a blender.
Don't use a juicer, which extracts
just the juice by separating it
from the fiber. Leave the
fiber in there; it's great for the
digestive tract. If you
like, add some nonfat yogurt and
cinnamon.
Replace
one meat course a day with a
vegetarian dish. A favorite
here is guacamole--mashed
avocado. You can lace your
guacamole with onion, hot chili
peppers, garlic and lemon juice
and sprinkle it with chopped nuts
such as hazelnuts, macadamias,
pistachios, cashews, peanuts or
Brazil nuts. All of these
nuts are rich in monounsaturated
fatty acids, beneficial fats that
are good for your heart, among
other things. |
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| Use
olive oil. Corn oil and
other vegetable oils are
polyunsaturated oils. Olive
oil is a monounsaturated
oil. There is a complex
chemical explanation for how these
differ, but all you really need to
know is that there's good reason
to believe that monounsaturated
oils are a lot better for
you. In salad dressings,
replace polyunsaturated oils with
olive oil.
Eat
a wide variety of fruits and
vegetables. Also eat a good
selection of herbs, legumes, nuts
and spices. These are the
foods that our ancestors consumed
back in the days before the
invention of burgers, hot dogs,
pizza, ice cream and all the junk
we eat today. They ate more
nutritiously than we do. |
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Make
love regularly with someone you
love. There's no explanation
needed here except that it's good
for you.
Go
for a walk every day.
Weather permitting, get outdoors
and take a vigorous half-hour
walk, well-protected from sunlight
(ultraviolet radiation). Use
the time to unwind and commune
with the natural world.
Contemplate the miraculous
ecosystem around you and consider
what it is that makes you--and
it--tick. Respect, don't
fear, the mystery of it all. |
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Don't
smoke. This goes without saying.
Don't
drink alcohol. If you do imbibe,
don't have more than two drinks a
day, and don't drink every day.
Give your liver a sabbatical every
now and then. A few weeks out of
every year, don't drink any
alcohol or take any medications
(other than those your doctor
tells you are absolutely
necessary). Your liver has to work
hard to clear alcohol, medications
and environmental pollutants from
your body; it will appreciate
getting a breather.
Don't
sunbathe. You probably
get enough sun to produce a
healthy amount of vitamin D with
moderate outdoor activities that
don't involve actively seeking the
sun.
Don't
take life or death too
seriously. That can age or
kill you.
Don't
be a dietary faddist. It's
never a good idea to base your
diet on just a couple of foods,
even fruits or carrots. Vary your
diet, your food sources, your mode
of preparation and even the
company you keep when you dine.
Don't
let industry outvote the
environmentalists. If you
do, we'll all pay the price
eventually. |
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Drink two antioxidant herb teas a day.
Antioxidants are substances that neutralize free
radicals, naturally occurring oxygen molecules that
damage the body and are thought to play a
significant role in the aging process. Most
fruits and vegetables contain significant amounts of
Antioxidants, as do many herbs. If you're a
heavy coffee drinker, you might consider replacing
two cups of coffee a day with herb tea. Good
research suggests that oregano, rosemary, bee balm,
lemon balm (also known as melissa), peppermint,
sage, spearmint, savory and thyme contain
significant levels of Antioxidants.
