Avocado, a gift from God

Most of us like fruit salad. Whether we are having dinner or taking a break in the afternoon, we would like to share some salads with family or friends. Personally, I prefer the avocado salad, which I can get it from the grocery store just close to my office. Well, I am not talk about the taste, although it is important, I am referring to its high nutritional value.

Avocado is a good substitute to food cause it contains a large volume of calories, 75% of which come from fat, mainly monounsaturated fat. From the statistics data from USDA, in each 100g avocado, there is 160kcal or 670kj energy. Besides, there are 8.53g carbohydrate, 14.66g fat, 2g protein, 6.7g fiber, which is the highest of all fruit. Avocado also has many minerals, from the same source, 100g avocado has 485mg Potassium, almost 60% more than banana does, 52mg Phosphorus, 29mg Magnesium, 12mg Calcium, 7mg Sodium, and others as well. Definitely, avocado is rich in vitamins. each 100g avocado has 10mg vitamin C, 81mcg folate, 14.2mcg choline, 62 mcg carotene beta, 24mcg carotene alpha, 146 IU vitamin A, 2.07mg vitamin E, 21mcg vitamin K, and many vitamin Bs.

As for RDI (recommended daily intake), 100g avocado satisfy an adult daily nutrients demands as follows, Vitamin B1 5%, B2 9%, B3 12%, B5 28%, B6 20%, B9 20%, Vitamin C 17%, Calcium 1%, Iron 4%, Magnesium 8%, Phosphorus 7%, Potassium 10%, Zinc 6%.

It is quite convincing that avocado is an valuable nutrients intaking fruit. Actually, many people from tropical areas, where avocados grow up, have avocado as food instead of fruit. In America, most grocery stores sell avocados. Although its price is a bit higher than others, I still consider it is worthy as its high nutritional value. By the way, avocado is not only for salad, It is also available to sandwiches or hamburg. There are tons of recipes on the web telling you how to make delicious and healthy food with avocado.

Last but not least, rumors come that avocado is noxious to some animals. But I have not confirmed that. My suggestion is that do not leave avocado or its remains to your pets.

Enjoy a healthy BBQ

Finally, June is coming. For north residents and Canadians, lovely summer arrives. I bet most Canadians enjoy Barbecue. Juicy sausages, sweet smelling steaks plus spicy barbecue sauce, ennn... Yummy. I used to live in Vancouver for a couple of years. One of the most interesting activities is having BBQ at Jericho beach with my family and friends. With beautiful ocean scenery, we share laugh and delicious foods. It is a fantastic memory!

Here are some BBQ tips for barbecue preparation. When we plan a BBQ, the first thing jumping into our mind is definitely steak, sausage, pork chops, chicken breasts and legs. However, these foods are full of calorie and fat. The less we eat them, the slimmer and the healthier we would be. But what else we can choose if BBQ comes?

As for me, I prefer some vegetables and fish instead of meat. When I make kebabs, I will select alternatives instead of regular beef or pork.

Most vegetables are fine to be a part of BBQ menu, such as bell peppers, onion, mushrooms, cauliflower, tomatoes and tofu. I highly recommend to take some fruits when planning a BBQ. After the greasy BBQ, fruit is the best choice to refresh your mouth and bring your tongue a fresh flavor.

Well, salmon is another good choice. No need to worry about the hi-calorie or fat from the meat. Salmon is a great substitute of beef and pork if you are addicted to meat. Actually, there are tons of BBQ recipes on the internet. Move your mouse to find your favorite BBQ and grilling recipes and enjoy your summer with a healthy BBQ.

Introduction of Multivitamin

There is no doubt that vitamin plays an important role in our body. The vitamin family consists of many members. Most of them are necessary for our body’s metabolism. Normally, they do not take part into the chemical reaction in our body. But they are important to help or improve the production of critical materials, such as protein.

Generally, our body can not produce vitamins. Natural vitamins are rare in our food recipe. Fortunately, our body only needs a small quantity of different vitamins. Lack of enough vitamins will result in some sickness. Lack of vitamin A leads to night blindness and/or dry skin. However, too many vitamins will have severe negative effects. Too much vitamin A will be poisonous.

So here is the main problem, how to reach the right quantity and balance each vitamin? Nutrition specialist will suggest you to have various foods. However, because of the fast step of our life and mass produced fast food store chain, our food can not satisfy our needs. Plus there are other reasons, such as price, geographic location, taste preference, etc. But do need to be panic, most of pharmacy stores have multivitamin productions for customers to select. There are tons of brands and formulas for customer to choose. Most popular is Centrum multivitamins. But it still offers more than ten formulas for different age or gender. Here comes another question, which one is best?

Basically, people’s multivitamins demand are various according to their age, profession and physiological conditions. Each multivitamin manufacturer develops its specific formula for different people. Usually, customers can find the composition on the labels. For example, I have two formulas of centrum multivitamins, Materna is for pregnant women, Forte is for normal people. Materna has more Folic Acid Forte, 1 mcg against 0.6 mcg, which is much important for baby’s growth. Vitamin B12 in forte is almost eight times of that in maternal. Vitamin B12 is necessary for body to generate blood.

Actually, there are many formulas designed for different people groups classified by gender, age and needs. Multivitamins producers reach each niche market, such as children, pregnant women, older women and men, and young working people. If carefully checking the formulas, consumers can find the some difference in each composition. The formulas are designed according to the research result of each people group. Generally, consumers can choose their group formulas, which can almost satisfy their needs. If consumers are in specific condition and need special formula, it is better to consult the pharmacist.

Omega 369, an important supplement

American lifestyle brings us convenience and efficiency. We are surrounded by McDonalds and Coca Cola culture. Everyday we are boomed by Big Mac or Carbonated Drinks. What they give us? FAT and Sugar. More and more people are suffering heart disease and cardiovascular disease. Too much fat is the main reason.

A way to decrease the risk of these diseases from too much fat is Omega 369, pure natural groups of fatty acids, which are necessary for good health. Omega 3 family has two essential fatty acids, EPA and DHA, which are hardly found in our food sources, except little quantities in oily fish or its supplements. Omega3 has many functions, such as preventing of heart disease and the complications of heart attack, lowering blood pressure, improving glucose metabolism and so on. Omega 6 is regarded as pro-inflammatory, GLA. However, if it is intaken dietetically, it has the function of anti-inflammatory. It is helpful to maintain healthy skin, hair and nails. And it helps to balance the hormone and emotion. Most important, Omega 3 and omega 6 interact each other. Therefore the balance between each other is quite critical. With the two fatty acids, the production of eicosanoids in human body can be greatly influenced. The eicosandoids has an important role on inflammation and all functions of at a cellular level. Omega 9, the main component, is Oleic acid, which is helpful to decrease the risk of cardiovascular disease, stroke, and arteriosclerosis. Omega 9 oil can be found in olive oil.

Omega fatty acids are polyunsaturated fat, much better than saturated fats, and have a lot of metabolic functions. Both Omega 3 and Omega 6 are essential fatty acids, called EFA's, can not be produced by our body, have to be intaken from our food sources. Omega 9 is not essential, but our body can make it.

Having an Omega 369 supplement, which has balanced ratio of different oils, can ensure you intake essential nutrients to maintain good health.