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A handful of pistachio nuts twice a day protects the heart and arteries from harm caused by stress in diabetics, scientists found.
Just 150 of the nuts or three ounces a day resulted in people with Type 2 diabetes having more ‘relaxed’ and less narrower blood vessels, lower blood pressure especially when asleep and less strain on the heart after just four weeks.
The study by Pennsylvania State University said the nuts could reduce risk of heart disease but warned the nuts were not a cure for daily stress.
Professor of biobehavioural health and nutritional sciences Sheila West said: ‘In adults with diabetes, two servings of pistachios per day lowered vascular constriction during stress and improved neural control of the heart.
‘Although nuts are high in fat, they contain good fats, fibre, potassium and antioxidants. Given the high risk of heart disease in people with diabetes, nuts are an important component of a heart healthy diet in this population.’
The study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association involved two diets with the same number of calories.
After two weeks on the typical American diet – containing 36 per cent fat and 12 per cent saturated fats – participants were randomised to one of two test diets for the next four weeks.
One included a standard heart-healthy diet – 27 per cent fat and 7 per cent saturated fat – and a diet containing two servings per day of pistachios – about 3 ounces or 20 per cent of calories from pistachio nuts.
The pistachio diet contained 33 per cent fat and 7 per cent saturated fat with equal portions of salted and unsalted nuts.
Blood pressure and total peripheral vascular resistance at rest and during two stress tests – a cold water challenge by immersing one hand into icy water for two minutes and a confusing mental arithmetic test were then measured.
Prof West said: ‘After the pistachio diet, blood vessels remained more relaxed and open during the stress tests.’
Researcher Katherine Sauder added: ‘We found that systolic blood pressure during sleep was particularly affected by pistachios. Average sleep blood pressure was reduced by about 4 points and this would be expected to lower workload on the heart.’
But Prof West said: ‘Our participants still felt frustrated and angry during the math test. The pistachio diet reduced their bodies’ responses to stress, but nuts are not a cure for the emotional distress that we feel in our daily lives.’
The researchers also recorded improvements in heart rate variability, a measure of how well the nervous system controls heart function.
These data indicated that pistachios increased the activity of the vagus nerve, an important part of the parasympathetic nervous system that can be damaged with diabetes.
Prof West said: ‘If sustained with longer term treatment, these improvements in sleep blood pressure, vascular response to stress and vagal control of the heart could reduce risk of heart disease in this high risk group.’
Blood pressure and total peripheral vascular resistance at rest and during two stress tests – a cold water challenge by immersing one hand into icy water for two minutes and a confusing mental arithmetic test were then measured.
Prof West said: ‘After the pistachio diet, blood vessels remained more relaxed and open during the stress tests.’
Researcher Katherine Sauder added: ‘We found that systolic blood pressure during sleep was particularly affected by pistachios. Average sleep blood pressure was reduced by about 4 points and this would be expected to lower workload on the heart.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2718507/Pistachios-protect-hearts-diabetics-Handful-twice-day-reduce-strain-organ-lower-blood-pressure.html#ixzz39gNY1Hk1
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Honey is the only food on the planet that will not spoil or rot. What it will do is what some call ‘turning to sugar’. In reality, honey is always honey. However, when left in a cool dark place for a long time it will “crystallize”. When this happensloosen the lid, boil some water and sit the honey container in the hot water, but turn off the heat and let it liquefy naturally. It is then as good as it ever was. Never boil honey or put it in a microwave. This will kill the enzymes in the honey.
Cinnamon and Honey Bet the drug companies won’t like this one getting around. Facts on Honey and Cinnamon:
It is found that a mixture of honey and Cinnamon cures most diseases. Honey is produced in most of the countries of the world. Scientists of today also accept honey as a ‘Ram Ban’ (very effective) medicine for all kinds of diseases. Honey can be used without side effects for any kind of diseases.
Today’s science says that even though honey is sweet, when it is taken in the right dosage as a medicine, it does not harm even diabetic patients. Weekly World News, a magazine in Canada , in its issue dated 17 J anu ary,1995 has given the following list of diseases that can be cured by honey and cinnamon, as researched by western scientists:
HEART DISEASES:
Make a paste of honey and cinnamon powder, apply it on bread instead of jelly and jam and eat it regularly for breakfast. It reduces the cholesterol in the arteries and saves the patient from heart attack. Also, those who have already had an attack, when they do this process daily, they are kept miles away from the next attack. Regular use of the above process relieves loss of breath and strengthens the heart beat. In America and Canada , various nursing homes have treated patients successfully and have found that as one ages the arteries and veins lose their flexibility and get clogged; honey and cinnamon revitalize the arteries and the veins.
ARTHRITIS:
Arthritis patients may take daily (morning and night) one cup of hot water with two tablespoons of honey and one small teaspoon of cinnamon powder. When taken regularly even chronic arthritis can be cured. In a recent research conducted at the Copenhagen University, it was found that when the doctors treated their patients with a mixture of one tablespoon Honey and half teaspoon Cinnamon powder before breakfast, they found that within a week (out of the 200 people so treated) practically 73 patients were totally relieved of pain — and within a month, most all the patients who could not walk or move around because of arthritis now started walking without pain.
BLADDER INFECTIONS:
Take two tablespoons of cinnamon powder and one teaspoon of honey in a glass of lukewarm water and drink it. It destroys the germs in the bladder..
CHOLESTEROL:
Two tablespoons of honey and three teaspoons of Cinnamon Powder mixed in 16 ounces of tea water given to a cholesterol patient was found to reduce the level of cholesterol in the blood by 10 percent within two hours. As mentioned for arthritic patients, when taken three times a day, any chronic cholesterol is cured. According to information received in the said Journal, pure honey taken with food daily relieves complaints of cholesterol.
COLDS:
Those suffering from common or severe colds should take one tablespoon lukewarm honey with 1/4 spoon cinnamon powder daily for three days. This process will cure most chronic cough, cold, and, clear the sinuses.
UPSET STOMACH:
Honey taken with cinnamon powder cures stomach ache and also clears stomach ulcers from its root.
GAS:
According to the studies done in India and Japan , it is revealed that when Honey is taken with cinnamon powder the stomach is relieved of gas.
IMMUNE SYSTEM:
Daily use of honey and cinnamon powder strengthens the immune system and protects the body from bacterial and viral attacks. Scientists have found that honey has various vitamins and iron in large amounts. Constant use of Honey strengthens the white blood corpuscles (where DNA is contained) to fight bacterial and viral diseases.
INDIGESTION:
Cinnamon powder sprinkled on two tablespoons of honey taken before food is eaten relieves acidity and digests the heaviest of meals.
INFLUENZA:
A scientist in Spain has proved that honey contains a natural ‘Ingredient’ which kills the influenza germs and saves the patient from flu.
LONGEVITY:
Tea made with honey and cinnamon powder, when taken regularly, arrests the ravages of old age. Use four teaspoons of honey, one teaspoon of cinnamon powder, and three cups of water and boil to make a tea. Drink 1/4 cup, three to four times a day. It keeps the skin fresh and soft and arrests old age. Life spans increase and even a 100 year old will start performing the chores of a 20-year-old..
RASPY OR SORE THROAT:
When throat has a tickle or is raspy, take one tablespoon of honey and sip until gone. Repeat every three hours until throat is without symptoms.
PIMPLES:
Three tablespoons of honey and one teaspoon of cinnamon powder paste. Apply this paste on the pimples before sleeping and wash it off the next morning with warm water. When done daily for two weeks, it removes all pimples from the root.
SKIN INFECTIONS:
Applying honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts on the affected parts cures eczema, ringworm and all types of skin infections.
WEIGHT LOSS:
Daily in the morning one half hour before breakfast and on an empty stomach, and at night before sleeping, drink honey and cinnamon powder boiled in one cup of water. When taken regularly, it reduces the weight of even the most obese person. Also, drinking this mixture regularly does not allow the fat to accumulate in the body even though the person may eat a high calorie diet.
CANCER:
Recent research in Japan and Australia has revealed that advanced cancer of the stomach and bones have been cured successfully. Patients suffering from these kinds of cancer should daily take one tablespoon of honey with one teaspoon of cinnamon powder three times a day for one month.
FATIGUE:
Recent studies have shown that the sugar content of honey is more helpful rather than being detrimental to the strength of the body. Senior citizens who take honey and cinnamon powder in equal parts are more alert and flexible. Dr. Milton, who has done research, says that a half tablespoon of honey taken in a glass of water and sprinkled with cinnamon powder, even when the vitality of the body starts to decrease, when taken daily after brushing and in the afternoon at about 3:00 P.M., the vitality of the body increases within a week.
BAD BREATH:
People of South America, gargle with one teaspoon of honey and cinnamon powder mixed in hot water first thing in the morning so their breath stays fresh throughout the day.
HEARING LOSS:
Daily morning and night honey and cinnamon powder, taken in equal parts restores hearing. Remember when we were kids? We had toast with real butter and cinnamon sprinkled on it!
Heart-healthy eating plan that wasn’t even designed for weight-loss beats Jenny Craig and Slim Fast in 2012 ranking of the best diets
It is the time of year when workout DVD sales soar and diet books sell in their millions.
But there are some tried-and-true ways to lose weight, some far more effective than others.
So in what is a timely release, the U.S. News and World Report has issued its 2012 ranking of its best diets.
The league, based on assessment of each regime from a panel of experts, was topped for the second year in a row by the DASH Diet, which delivered the best results in terms of nutritional value, safety, weight-loss, and in preventing diabetes and heart disease.
An acronym for Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension, it advocates fresh produce, whole grains, lean protein and is low in fat and salt.
The site’s verdict read: ‘Though obscure, it beat out a field full of better-known diets.
‘A healthy eating pattern is key to deflating high blood pressure – and it may not hurt your waistline, either.’
Also ranking highly was the cholesterol-cutting TLC Diet, which came second, and the Mayo Clinic Diet, which came third with 3.9 out of 5 stars.
Generally it was the most balanced regimes that won the highest scores, with realistic goals and effective weight-loss a positive side-effect to a healthy-eating plan.
Carb-cutting plans, such as the Zone and Glycemic-Index diets, achieved the lowest scores because the panel felt they lacked key food groups and essential nutrients.
But it was the super-strict Macrobiotic Diet, branded ‘a mix of sound dietary guidance, mysticism, folklore, and nonsense’ by the experts, that claimed last place.
Chronicles of a Diabetic 