Tag Archives: Super Foods

Ikaria Lifestyle Boasts Longest Living People

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Roman Culture is Interesting Even in Vegas

Realizing the importance of super foods, clean environment, exercise, healthy lifestyle choices, work load balance, pain management benefits on overall health, etc., it is interesting to note longevity cultures are alive and well without the medical resources that are plentiful here.  How is it with all of our medical resources we can’t boast of achieving the longest living people?  Yet a small Greek island people can boast of many that live well past a hundred years in age.   Our dilemma in the land of plenty, it is difficult to discipline oneself with healthy activity and lifestyle habits when greed, power and control, control us!  I recently read an article by Dan Buettner, author of The Blue Zones: “Lessons for Living Longer” from the People Who’ve Lived the Longest (National Geographic, 08).  This article captivated my attention which I thought was important to share with you.

The Ikaria, Greek Island people’s longevity lifestyle has interesting attributes that can be duplicated within almost any culture to receive the same healthy longevity benefits.  I say, “Almost any culture” because there are third world countries that simply do not have the resources that Westernized cultures do.  Our nation, like other similar cultures have no excuse for many illnesses and disease pain placed upon ourselves because of our unwillingness to change lifestyle habits.  Much of our poor health and fitness levels occur because of our quick fix and results expectations, convenient and plentiful transportation, jet set lifestyle, fast pace society, family and value system(s) breakdown, drug and alcohol addiction, nonorganic-fast food diets, etc.  This is a very simple comparison of differences within our two cultures.  But by no means is a total list of lifestyle differences to make my point.

Following is a list of Ikaria’s habitual lifestyle differences from their culture and a testament to their long and healthy centurion lifestyle.    To get the full story on lifestyle differences Click on the Ikaria’s link above, or comment on your ideals of what you believe to be beneficial to live a long healthy life.  Actually, this would be good exercise before you read the full story.  Post your comments on this blog and compare your thoughts, or knowledge of anti-aging and longevity before you read the Ikaria’s lifestyle differences and why they are living well into their century age mark.

If active lifestyle and longevity is your goal with minimal pain and aggravation for you and your family while you age; it may be wise to consider living a Mediterranean and/or Ikaria-type lifestyle in part, or fully comparable as possible.   By simply modifying your lifestyle habits and choices a dramatic-positive effect on your overall health and fitness can be experienced?   In our fast pace environment this can be a real challenge but doable.

Author:  Marc T. Woodard, MBA, BS Exercise Science, USA Medical Services Officer, CPT, RET.  2009 Copyright, All rights reserved.  Mirror Athlete Enterprises Publishing @: www.mirrorathlete.org, Sign up for your free eNewsletter.

Lose Weight With Super Foods!

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There is a lot of information on the Internet with regard to super foods as highly nutritious, antioxidants, diet weight loss enhancers and much more.

 Super foods are great antioxidants.  They are proven to minimize oxidization within the body.  Accelerated oxidization due to free radicals in the body causes the body to age and break down internal cellular structure at an increased rate dependant on the amount of free radicals versus antioxidants one incorporates into the daily diet.  Super foods are a great free radical fighter.  The analogy here is much like an apple skinned and exposed to air.  Without a protective skin the apple begins to oxidize and it turns brown.  This is because the apple is now spoiling and dying at a cellular level.  The mineral & vitamin nutrients (much like the exposed apple) we consume can oxidize before they can optimally benefit your health at the cellular level.  The scientific data shows that oxidization at an accelerated rate has a direct relationship on your DNA and impacts on an aging body’s metabolism, weight, illness and disease manifestation, etc.  If you want to stay healthy and fit even as you age, but just don’t have the time to eat right, I highly recommend you supplement your diet with high quality super food antioxidant vitamin mineral packs daily.  See our site Wellness Company, we have all natural supplements in a convenient AM/PM packs for virtually every diet and health scenario, also 100% satisfaction guaranteed.

 I’ve listed a few items that are not only super foods, but also healthy weight loss foods you can incorporate into your diet plan.  So if you are thinking about a healthy diet and/or weight loss program, I recommend adding one or two of these super foods to your daily food intake program.

    1)  Grapefruit – Known as a fat fighter, can be purchased in capsules, contains cancer fighting compounds, red grapefruit has been shown to lower triglycerides.
    2)  Sardines – Mass protein benefit and omega-3’s which boosts cardiovascular health, boost mood and stabilizes blood sugar. They are free of contaminants such as mercury and heavy metals and very inexpensive.
    3) Pumpkin – Canned pumpkin, or fresh pumpkin is loaded with fiber, easy to prepare.  Enhance flavor with cinnamon (blood sugar reducer), it’s filling and delicious.  There are many weight loss recipes based on pumpkin.
    4). Range fed beef – Range fed Beef is a great diet food, doesn’t contain antibiotics.  It is a high protein source, protein stimulates metabolism, you feel full longer and range fed is high in omega-3’s which provide many other benefits.
    5)  Green Tea – Is rich in antioxidants, promotes healthy heart, digestion, blood sugar regulation, body temperature, raises metabolic rate, and accelerates fat burning process.  Five cups a day is said to be the ultimate fat loss solution.  Green tea is also a natural relaxer, de-stressor.

If none of these super foods look appealing to you… Go to www.mirrorathlete.org and enter super foods into our health search engine at the top of the page.  You will see convenient links for further super food research and selections to further your weight loss goals.

Author:  Marc T. Woodard, MBA, BS Exercise Science, USA Medical Services Officer, CPT, RET.  2008 Copyright, All rights reserved.  Mirror Athlete Enterprises Publishing @: www.mirrorathlete.org, Sign up for your free monthly eNewsletter.

Why We Need Super Foods

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I was asked, just exactly what are super foods and why do we need them?  There seems to be a huge craze out there to understand how the right types of foods in our diet can greatly improve our health condition(s) and incorporate these foods into our preventative health, wellness and nutrition program.

What’s the deal?  Could this be the anti-aging or fountain of youth formulae?   Or could this just be another way to get money out of your wallet?   Well I’ve done a little research for you and here’s what I came up with.   There currently is no official or legal definition of super foods.  Also there is a common denominator of discussion amongst dieticians and nutritional scientists.  Mostly, the claims made regarding specific food items and benefits toward health.  The problem is marketing companies now are using the term “super foods” as a catch all tool to sell more product.  We understand science has come up with some very good data on select foods that provide extreme nutrient and health benefits.  After all, God provides natural good foods (super foods) as everything we need on this earth to be healthy and fit.

Only because of man’s greed have many consumer foods now become a blend of additives and chemically preserved and altered foods.  The chemical food companies, FDA, FTC, lobbyists, politicians, special interest groups and others control and back much of the processed food and chemical industries.   The food and chemical industries are worth billions of dollars to investors and keep millions of workers employed, much like our health, pharmaceutical and petroleum industries.  Money rules the roost regardless of whether these processed foods knowingly make our families sick.   If food is not in its natural form and/or man-processed (some with carcinogenic chemical additives) be suspicious and read the ingredients on the label prior to purchasing, for many additives are known to cause cancer.  If you can’t pronounce the ingredient(s) on the label, or understand what the ingredients are… Chances are it’s one of thousands of addictive chemicals used to addict you to a product, much like nicotine keeps smokers addicted to cigarettes that can have an ill-health effect on you.

The food industry is now saturating our retail food markets with chemically induced additives to our foods that not only get you addicted to a product but are creating a whole generation of unhealthy children and adults through fast food chains.  Products such as diet sodas, candy, desserts, etc., use artificial sweetener (Aspartame – Also known as splendid, spoonful and a whole lot of other brand labels).  Read my articles, “Aspartame the Silent Killer,” “Can You Prevent Cancer?” Also “Is Cancer in Your Tub?  Located within Mirror Athlete Corp., Mirror Athlete Fitness Secrets Blog. 

On the forefront of best supper foods you can consume here they are:  Blueberries, apples, avocado, bananas, beans, bee pollen, broccoli, flax seed, oats, oranges, papaya, raspberries, soy, spinach, green tea, walnuts, yogurt… and many more.   Some benefits of super foods boast of longer healthier living, less wrinkles, better skin, lower blood pressure, healthy heart, cancer prevention, etc.  Each super food listed above has high concentrations of antioxidants, vitamin C, manganese, fiber and anthocyanins [provides the concentrated pigment in berries where consumption has health benefits per scientific studies:  Cancer, aging, neurological disease, inflammation, diabetes and bacterial infection]. Because these specifically identified foods are highly nutritious and beneficial to health and well-being they have been coined “super foods.”

I believe there are many benefits to consuming super foods.  You’ll need to do a little homework to determine what is backed by scientific research versus which foods are backed by marketing sales hype.  I will not do this for you because; everybody’s bodies and health requirements are so different.  Our bodies are like cars that perform better or worse dependant on the fuels, oils and additives for longer lasting maintenance free operations.  However, our bodies do not perform as simplistically as our car fuel analogy would depict.  This is because the human body is a zillion times more complicated than any car on the road.   Another good analogy is when you go to your primary physician for whatever ails you…  They may perform a combination of various exams; send you for an MRI, x-ray, or blood work for example to determine which specialist to refer you to if required.  Hence, to endorse a super food combination that would be “just right” for all that would read this article is not possible, because our health needs vary across the board for each one of us.

To customize your super food requirements, just go to any search engine on the world wide web and research “super foods,” look for food combinations that make sense for your medical or health prevention benefits, type in “super food and/or health condition.” 

For example, some super foods work better for high blood pressure, or cholesterol reduction, you get the point.  If you have no idea what would work best for your body, just start incorporating some of the super foods I listed into your diet.  You will most likely start feeling better, have more energy, lose weight, etc.   Or see your primary care physician and request an Annual physical with blood work so you can see your base line blood pressure, triglycerides, cholesterol, glucose levels etc., then you have a foundation to base your customized super food needs.

I highly recommend all adults over the age of 35, or younger (dependant on health) supplement their diet with a high quality absorbable mineral-vitamin complex, antioxidant, flora (good bacteria) daily supplements as an insurance program for good health.  Of course you should make every attempt to eat as nutritiously as possible by eating fresh fruits and vegetables, fiber, reduce animal fat and reduce sugar in the diet.

The most important advice I could add as a bonus… Stay away from diet sodas and aspartame laced desert-candy products (an additive in thousands of our processed and packaged foods).  Also read “Lose Weight with Super Foods.”

Author:  Marc T. Woodard, MBA, BS Exercise Science, USA Medical Services Officer, CPT, RET.  2008 Copyright, All rights reserved.  Mirror Athlete Enterprises Publishing @: www.mirrorathlete.org, Sign up for your free eNewsletter.