How to Make Homemade Sugar Scrub

With just a few minutes of time and two simple ingredients, it’s easy to make homemade sugar scrub. Bonus: It’s a perfect last-minute holiday gift for everyone left on your list!

Sugar is a great exfoliator because the small crystals start to dissolve in water, making the scrub is less abrasive on the skin, says Kally Papantoniou, M.D., with Advanced Dermatology PC. Carrier oils, like coconut oil, almond oil, or olive oil, hydrate the skin and prevent moisture loss. Papantoniou recommends coconut oil during the winter months because it maintains a barrier to protect skin from the harsh weather. Mixing in a few drops of essential oils can enhance the sensory experience, and each kind provides different benefits for the skin. Try lavender oil for a relaxing effect or tea tree oil to combat acne.

How to Make Homemade Sugar Scrub: The Recipe

Ingredients

1 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup organic virgin coconut oil

Optional: drops of your favorite essential oil

Steps

Mix sugar and oil in a bowl—if you need to melt the coconut oil to a liquid state, make sure it isn’t too warm or it will dissolve the sugar. Then, add more sugar if you desire a coarser scrub. Once you reach the desired consistency, add 10 to 20 drops of your favorite essential oil. The scrub can be used on your body 2 to 3 times per week.

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Sugar Doesn’t Just Feed Cancer Cells, It Also Produces Them

During the holiday seasons the tables are full with candies, chocolate, desserts and sweets. However, the high amount of refined sugar affects the development of cancerous cells in those patients who suffer from cancer. According to an evidence, a diet loaded with sugar can cause an onset of cancer.

In What Way Sugar Feeds Cancer Cells

Cancerous cells use from 10-12 times more sugar than healthy cells. One of the most effective tools for examining the cancer growth is the Positron Emission Tomography. According to the 1931 Nobel laureate in medicine, German Otto Warburg, the cancerous cells have a different energy metabolism in relation to healthy cells. He claims that malignant tumors display increased level of glycolysis in contrast to the healthy human cells.

How Sugar Causes Cancerous Cells

The Journal of Clinic Investigation from 2013-2014 released the results of in vitro study about increased sugar intake and the creation of cancer. The results pointed out that it’s the glucose that directly leads to the production of cancerous cells.

Another 1985 study on sugar has shown that patients with higher intakes of sugar were prone to the development of cancer in contrast to the patients with lower intakes of sugar. Certain studies claim that a high consumption of high-sugar food involves a greater risk of pancreatic cancer while other indicate similar results for breast cancer.

The cancer is promoted mainly through the mitochondrial dysfunction. Sugar burns in a different way than fat, generating free radicals. Further on, these free radicals damage the mitochondria of the cell, its nuclear DNA, cell membrane leading to protein impairment.

Cancer is made as a result of genetically mutated cells. It’s mitosis through which cells divide and enable tissue growth. When this process is ruined and apoptosis or death of cells starts, the cancer occurs.

Also, chronic overeating and obesity are important factors that influence the development and growth of cancerous cells. The Cancer Society of Canada correlates obesity with hormone levels which further causes development of uterine, colon and breast cancer.

Don’t give fruit the boot!

The study analyzes the difference between refined and natural sugars. Refined sugar includes high fructose corn syrup and table syrup that are consumed through various types of processed food, desserts or sodas. Natural sugars in fruits are not harmful despite their glycemic level.

According to Dr. Tony Jimenez, the organic sugar may not contribute to the growth of cancer cells in the way refined sugars do. The human cells take the left-spinning molecules from the vegetables and fruits while cancerous cells can take only right spinning molecules from the refined sugar.

What to Do?

Sugar does not only cause cancerous cells but a great number of other health issues including heart disease, diabetes, stroke, high level of triglycerides, high blood pressure and immobility.

These are more than convincing reasons to cut out your intake of refined sugar from processed food, soda and many other sources and prevent the onset of cancerous cells.

So, consume more fruits and vegetables, get enough iron, fiber and protein in your diet. Eliminate the juices that contain added sugar and use natural sweeteners such as stevia and honey. Avoid high-fructose corn syrup, genetically modified sugar or aspartame, a sugar replacement.

Control your amount of sugar. Women should take no more than 6 teaspoons or 25 grams daily. Men should take no more than 9 teaspoons per or 37 grams daily. This is equal to 100 calories for women and 150 for men. On average, most of the people in America eat around 22 teaspoons a day.

Hidden sugars: glucose, lactose, fructose, dextrose, maltose and sucrose are forms of sugar that you can find of the Nutritional label on your meal.

Other natural sugars: honey, maple syrup, molasses and agave nectar are organic sugars that contain antioxidants which are anticancer agents. Make sure you use them in moderate doses because they contain high amount of calories as any other sweetener.

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Are You Taking Too Much Sugar? Here are 8 Signs

Regardless of whether you have a sweet tooth or don’t like much, sugar is in nearly every packaged food you purchase. Chances are that you are consuming more sugar unknowingly.  Any form of refined sugar and its other alternatives is partially to blame for the increasing number of medical conditions. You may not find the word “sugar” in the ingredients list of packaged food, but it may appear as:

• Dextrin
• Sorbitol
• Corn syrup/sweetener
• Glucose
• Malt syrup
• Fructose
• Evaporated cane juice
• Disaccharides
• Hydrolyzed starch
• Maltose
• Sucrose
• Rice syrup
• High fructose corn syrup
• Maltodextrin

It can be difficult to tell how much sugar is too much with all these source of sugar.

Below are some symptoms which could indicate that you need to cut down sugar in your diet.

SUGAR/CARBS CRAVINGS
Just like cocaine, sugar is addictive and the effects are the same. When you consume sugar, it triggers the release of a pleasure hormone called dopamine. Unknowingly, you may develop a craving for sweets and simple carbohydrates to get your “fix”. Similar to other addictions, your body develops tolerance for sugar and thus the more you consume, the more you want. This happens even when you are not feeling hungry.

FATIGUE AND LACK OF ENERGY

There are types of neuropeptide called orexins which form protein in the brain. These transmitters regulate the sleep/wake cycle and other things in the hypothalamus. Because they are sensitive to sugars, their responses depend upon glucose levels in your body. Even a slight increase in blood sugar inhibits the transmission of neural signals by orexins. In turn, they induce a sleep state. That means you may experience wakefulness or alertness soon after eating or drinking. When the sugar levels decline in the body, you start feeling tired or exhausted.

WEIGHT GAIN

When taken in excess, sugar can make you fat. Though other factors such as metabolic rates determine your weight, your body first converts sugar into energy. If the sugar is not needed immediately, it is stored as fat for future use. Additionally, ingesting too much sugar suppresses a hormone called leptin, which signals the body when to stop eating. Most people who become lethargic and feel tired from taking sugar are also less likely to work out.

When there is a rise in blood sugar, your body produces insulin to get it back to normal. If the sugar level fluctuates or become too low, your body craves for more energy. So you end up eating even when you are not hungry.

RECURRENT FLU AND COLD

Excessive consumption of sugar negatively impacts your immune system. This is mainly because glucose interferes with the activity of white blood cells, which fights pathogens and viruses. Ingesting too much sugar makes you susceptible to any contagious infections circulating around. This is as a result of your body’s inability to defend itself against communicable illnesses.

IMPAIRED TASTE BUDS

Nearly every person defines a sweet taste as something pleasurable. Your tongue becomes used to various flavors including sugar. A study conducted by British researchers found that people who are overweight develop dulled sensitivity to sweets and a liking for sugary foods. The same study also discovered something in healthy and fit participants who started taking 2 soft drinks daily. They developed sugar cravings and dulled taste buds after just 4 weeks.

BRAIN FOGGINESS

In reference to a study in the journal Neuroscience, mice which were fed a diet similar to typical western communities experienced a reduced brain function in just 2 months. This is because high levels of sugar impact proteins and neurotransmitters in the brain which regulates learning and memory. In other words, sugar makes your brain foggy.

SKIN ISSUES

Your skin’s ability to produce collagen defines its texture and structure. Naturally, sugar molecules bind collagen to help collagens cells circulate around. Higher levels of sugar in the body can make the collagen cells less mobile. As a result, it may cause stiffness of skin tissues. When your skin loses elasticity, wrinkles, fine lines, and other problems may surface.

Additionally, sugar triggers cellular inflammation, which makes your skin susceptible to acne and dermatitis. Pimples can also form when there is an increase in insulin and androgen production.  Androgens stimulate the production of extra oils, which clogs pores and cause pimples.

CANCER

Eventually, an increased insulin production and internal inflammation can trigger abnormal and rapid production of cells in the body. Cancer cells usually thrive in sugar. That’s another major reason why you should quit the sugar habit.

THE SOLUTION

The best sources of sugar include those that naturally occur in fruits. They are also loaded with minerals, vitamins, and phytochemicals. Your daily recommended amounts depend on your age, activity level, and body size.

Here are some tips on how to overcome sugar craving:

• Avoid sugary snacks and artificial sweeteners.
• Gradually cut down your sugar intake.
• Switch sweet treats with healthy foods.
• Drink plenty of water regularly to flush out toxins and excess sugar
• Graze on healthy foods to maintain stable sugar levels.
• Try some probiotics to improve your digestive system ability to process sugar and rebalance intestinal flora.
• Exercise regularly to burn sugar before it is stored as fat.

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This Leaf Is A Blessing From Nature: Combat Insomnia, High Blood Pressure, Sugar And Fat In The Blood

Laurel properties are not used only in the culinary world to flavor our meals. It is also used as a key ingredient in Natural Medicine, for the treatment of numerous conditions.

Benefits and uses of laurel leaf:

The laurel, whose scientific name is “Laurus nobilis” is a leafy tree that grows in humid and fresh climates. Originally from the Mediterranean, it is characterized by its dark green leaves and a brownish gray bark.

In gastronomy, the bay leaves are used as a condiment to highlight and flavor meat, stews and sauces. In addition, we can take advantage of its benefits in the development of natural remedies and treatments to combat multiple conditions.

The laurel helps in cases of:

-Lack of energy, exhaustion or cases of chronic fatigue
-Fatigue or blackouts
-Cystitis
-Muscle cramps
-Premenstrual symptoms
-Headaches and migraines
-Arthritis
-Depression
-Problems of the sciatic nerve
-Infections in the skin
-Muscular weakness
-Urethritis
-Bloating and flatulence
-Fluid retention
-Snoring and sleep apnea
-Otitis
-Muscle and nerve contractures

Laurel is known to be a great stimulant of the digestive system. It is carminative and hepatic. In turn, it is excellent for the respiratory system and helps to fight the flu. In addition, it improves blood circulation, is diuretic, antirheumatic and antibiotic.

Remedies with laurel

Aromatherapy:
The deep and intense aroma of laurel can be used in aromatherapy. In addition to purifying the environment and repelling insects, this plant helps to relax the mind and overcome difficult emotions such as anguish, depression or fears. In addition, it helps to improve blood circulation so it provides a lot of vitality.

Laurel oil:
As we mentioned, laurel facilitates blood circulation. Therefore, this oil can be applied when performing lymphatic drainage massages. It is excellent for combating fluid retention and heaviness.

Another very common use is in the treatment of nervous tics or muscle stiffness. In addition, applying a few drops of laurel oil to the chest, before sleeping, helps control snoring.

Laurel for children:
Apply about 3 drops of laurel oil in a flavoring or diffuser to set the room. This helps fight panic attacks, fears, crying and vomiting in children.

Infusion:
Infusion is the easiest way to take advantage of all the properties of laurel. Put 2 laurel leaves in 200 ml of water. When it boils, turn off the heat, cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Finally remove the leaves and drink.

HOW TO PREPARE LAUREL OIL?

Ingredients:

-250 ml almond oil.
-30 gr of dried bay leaves.
-Hermetic container with lid (it is necessary that it has an amber color so that the essence does not degrade with light).

Preparation:

Place the leaves inside the container. Cover with almond oil. It is important that the leaves are completely submerged. Cover very well and let stand for 30 days in a cool and dry place, away from sunlight. Periodically, shake the container.

If you liked this article, share it with your friends and family.

source: http://healthyrecipesandideas.com

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Too Much Sugar In Your Body Can Kill You. Watch Out For These Signs Before It’ s Too Late

Different kinds of sugar exist and can be found in processed foods. This makes sugar hard to avoid. However, the nutritionist JJ Virgin offers some tips on how to avoid this ingredient and lead a healthy lifestyle.

Most people think that the natural sugar that comes from raw cane, natural fruit juices, and agave is fine for consumption, but they can have a negative impact on the health, too. Added sugar is not the issue, but the main problem is that there is a lot of our food we do not recognize as sugar. Having apple juice might be worse than having a soda, or yogurt sweetened with fruit juice concentrate. This nutritionist created a structured program that is helping people break free of the sugar cravings, reduce weight, and then do a food challenge.

Burn fat as a primary fuel in order to end sugar cravings

No matter from which source it comes, sugar is the same thing to the body. Once you break free from the need of sugar, you will feel greater energy and clarity of mind. Your body has to switch to burn fat instead of burning sugar in order to end those carvings.

There should be a transition period and you’ll need to taper down with the Sneaky Sugar Inventory (the starting point), things that you’ll never talk about (things like marinara sauce and sundried tomatoes). These things contain much more sugar that add to our food, and we are not aware of this.

The impact of sugar

You will need to weight yourself and also measure your waist-to-hip ratio. Do a complete list of hidden sugars in your diet, i.e. carefully read the labels on the foods that you consume, as well as those you would never expect to contain it (sauces, marinades, pickles, etc.). Fructose and glycemic load are bad, while nutrient density and fiber are good. The food can be low, medium, or high in sugar impact. This makes things like agave sweetener or milk look great. People think that fructose is low in glycemic index, thus go for it.

Fructose does not trigger the whole insulin response and it does not trigger insulin, leptin, or ghrelin. This does not tell the body that you have consumed anything, but the food goes directly to the liver. If there is no room for it to become glycogen, then it will start becoming fat.

Sugar feeds fungi, yeast, and bacteria in the gut, and the symptoms of having an impact of high-sugar can include gas and bloating. There are also rare symptoms such as headaches, fatigue, inability to lose weight, and sugar cravings.

There are 3 cycles of the sugar impact diet

•  First cycle – it lasts for 1-2 weeks and involves swapping high to medium sugar impact foods. If you consume pasta on regular basis, then replace it with quinoa pasta. In order to prevent insulin spikes, eat each two hours.
• Second cycle – when you notice improvements in your symptoms you will be ready to go into cycle two that includes reclaiming your sugar sensitivity. You will need to reset your taste buds and reclaim the ability to taste food. You will have to get rid of all the fructose and get down to 5 gr or less (per day). Take fructose as low as possible because you do not want your body be good at processing it. If you eat it more, your body will become much better in handling it, thus the faster it goes into your liver, the faster your body builds fat. You go down to all low-sugar impact foods, and still consume great things like wild salmon, grass-fed beef, avocado, kale, seeds, nuts, lentils, legumes, and a little quinoa. A lot of people will be able to move from burning sugar to burning fat real quick. Make sure not to skip phase 1, as if you skip it, you are most likely to fail.
• Third cycle – you are going to reintroduce some medium or high sugar impact foods. In this way you will feel overwhelmed by the sweetness, thus the psychological grip of sweet food will lessen. You will be able to notice how eating sour food will help you reduce sweet cravings that produce additional benefits. Eating fermented foods will improve your gut health.

Healthy alternatives for snacks

One of the healthiest snack alternatives are nuts, particularly macadamia and pecans. They are low in protein and high in fat. Consume them in moderation because of their high calorie content. You can also try dehydrated kale chips and roasted Brussels sprouts.

The last maintenance phase

People burn sugar as their main fuel nowadays, and in order to see if yu fall into this category, you will need to observe the frequency of your meals. If you feel hungry and consume foods each two hours, then you are burning sugar. When you switch to burning fat you will feel hungry each 6 hours because burning fat is much slower process.

This phase differs from the weight loss phase. During the maintenance phase, you will have to set new goals and do different fitness activities. Connect the dots between what you eat and how you feel. You will need to lose the sweet tooth and reclaim your sugar sensitivity.

Mix up your exercise and food. Allow the food tell your body to burn fat, and not sugar, keep steady energy, great focus, and reduce inflammation. The same things go with exercise. It can be therapeutic or destructive. Opt for high-intensity interval exercises in order to create metabolic changes which boost fat burning and promote health and muscle growth. Exercise in a fasted state so that you can restore and rejuvenate the muscle tissues. Experiment and see what will work best for you.

You can go ahead and play with both, if you eat a bit prior workout, you will work much harder. If you do resistance training take some food before. If you do burst training, then do it first thing in the morning, it won’t take much long (15 minutes at the most). You can exercise a couple of mornings weekly. Do the resistance training 2 times a week and have some food before it. Afterwards, take something really good.

If you follow up these tips you will be able to switch from burning sugar to burning fat as its main and primary fuel, putting an end to sugar cravings. You will also manage to lose weight.


source: http://supertastyrecipes.com

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How to Do 3-Day Complete Body Sugar Detox, Lose Weight and Improve Your Health

The adding a few pounds to your weight isn’t caused only from carbohydrates and fats. Sugar is a great culprit as well.

If you consume sugar in moderation, you are not at risk, but people consume plenty of sugar without even knowing it. Sugar is added in many foods and drinks, such as sodas, breakfast cereals, pouch juices, salad dressings, yogurts and candy.

Sugar is part of some foods, such as honey, pure fruit juice, raisins, mangos, and bananas, which are simple carbohydrates.

When your body has a sugar overdose, many symptoms occur, like hyperactivity, consequent fatigue, yeast infections, depression, headaches, colds or sinus problems, mental disorientation and sleepiness.

Another problems sugar can trigger are higher diabetes risk, heart disease, cancer development, especially breast cancer.

How sugar consumption and weight gain are related?

When we consume too much sugar, the body uses as much as it needs to boost energy, while the rest that is not needed is stored as fat.

Added sugar is not like natural sugar. It gets to the intestines and the body reacts to it as intestinal bacteria and increases the levels of blood sugar. At the end, this becomes fat which is visible in the waist, hips and thighs.

Say NO to Sugar

Although it seems impossible, quitting sugar can be done. If you do so, you will go through classic withdrawal symptoms of any addiction, such as sadness, headaches, queasiness, fatigue and cravings.

Sugar cravings occur after a meal is digested and your body sends signals to the brain that it is hungry again. This is when you reach for that sweet dessert.

You need to stay away from it and don’t consume any added sugar. Try a little at the beginning, not all at once because you will want it more. Cut out one added sugar product at time.

At first you will feel bad and experience cravings, but you will feel better and improve your health after some period.

This article gives you a 3 day diet plan that does miracles:

1st day:

Breakfast: 1 cup of oats with berries and almonds/seeds/or 3 eggs (scrambled or boiled).

Morning snack: 1 bowl of nuts.

Lunch: Chicken breast with cooked butternut squash, carrots, beets, parsnips, turnips, beans and almonds.

Dinner: Broiled fish with a bowl of green beans or salmon with fried broccoli and mushrooms.

2nd day

Breakfast: A cup of steel cut oats with berries and seeds or almonds/3 scrambled eggs with spinach.

Mid-morning snack: a small bowl of nuts.

Lunch: Grilled zucchini with red and yellow peppers and a lemon, vinegar and thyme dressing/a shredded green and red cabbage salad tossed with shredded carrots with olive oil, lemon, salt dressing, garnished with chopped parsley.

Dinner: steamed green vegetables with a vegetable casserole and bean soup/baked cod with stir-fried bok choy and roasted Brussels sprouts and turnips.

3rd day

Breakfast: A cup of steel cut oats with berries and seeds or almonds/a 3 egg omelette with shrimp and a sautéed kale, radish and walnut salad.

Mid-morning snack: 1 small bowl of nuts.

Lunch: Roasted chicken thighs with rosemary, sage and lemon/oven roasted chicken with onion, black olives, and thyme.

Dinner: mushrooms with garlic broth, onion, carrots, celery, thyme and bay leaves/penne pasta (with brown rice) with a mushroom, basil, and tomato meat sauce.

Sugar Detox Drinks

Instead sugary drinks, have these detox waters and hot drink alternatives. They will help you boost your metabolism.

Detox water: chop one of these: grapefruits, blueberries, strawberries, or oranges, including some fresh rosemary or mint. Add them to a jar with water. Store and drink it every day.

Tea: consume unsweetened herbal or green tea 3 times on a daily basis.

Coffee: you should not consume more than 1 cup of unsweetened black coffee daily.

This diet plan is proved to calm sugar cravings, so don’t hesitate to try it.

source: myilifestyle.com

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A Complete 3 Day Detox That Will Cleanse Your Body From Sugar, Help You Lose Weight And Boost Your Health

Adding several pounds to your weight is mostly caused by carbohydrates and fats, but you may not know that sugar is a great culprit, too.

You are not at risk if you consume sugar in moderate amounts, but people consume plenty of sugar without even knowing it. Nowadays, sugar is added in many foods and drinks, such as sodas, breakfast cereals, pouch juices, salad dressings, yogurts and candy.

Sugar is part of some foods, such as honey, pure fruit juice, raisins, mangos, and bananas, which are classified as simple carbohydrates.

Many symptoms occur when your body has a sugar overdose: hyperactivity, consequent fatigue, yeast infections, depression, headaches, colds or sinus problems, mental disorientation and sleepiness.

Another problems sugar can trigger are higher diabetes risk, heart disease, cancer development, especially breast cancer.

How sugar consumption and weight gain are related?

When we consume too much sugar, our body uses as much as it needs to boost energy, while the rest that is not needed is stored as fat.

Added sugar is not like natural sugar. It gets inside the intestines and our body reacts to it as intestinal bacteria and increases the levels of blood sugar. At the end, this becomes fat which is visible in the waist, hips and thighs.

Say NO to Sugar

Although it seems impossible, you can quit sugar. If you do so, you will go through classic withdrawal symptoms of any addiction, such as sadness, headaches, queasiness, fatigue and cravings.

Sugar cravings occur after a meal is digested and your body sends signals to the brain that it is hungry again. This is when you reach for that sweet dessert.

You need to stay away from it and don’t consume any added sugar. Try a little at the beginning, not all at once because you will want it more. Cut out one added sugar product at time.

At first you will feel bad and experience cravings, but you will feel better and improve your health after some period.

This article will present you a 3 day diet plan that does miracles!

1st day:

Breakfast: 1 cup of oats with berries and almonds/seeds/or 3 eggs (scrambled or boiled).

Morning snack: 1 bowl of nuts.

Lunch: Chicken breast with cooked butternut squash, carrots, beets, parsnips, turnips, beans and almonds.

Dinner: Broiled fish with a bowl of green beans or salmon with fried broccoli and mushrooms.

2nd day

Breakfast: A cup of steel cut oats with berries and seeds or almonds/3 scrambled eggs with spinach.

Mid-morning snack: a small bowl of nuts.

Lunch: Grilled zucchini with red and yellow peppers and a lemon, vinegar and thyme dressing/a shredded green and red cabbage salad tossed with shredded carrots with olive oil, lemon, salt dressing, garnished with chopped parsley.

Dinner: steamed green vegetables with a vegetable casserole and bean soup/baked cod with stir-fried bok choy and roasted Brussels sprouts and turnips.

3rd day

Breakfast: A cup of steel cut oats with berries and seeds or almonds/a 3 egg omelette with shrimp and a sautéed kale, radish and walnut salad.

Mid-morning snack: 1 small bowl of nuts.

Lunch: Roasted chicken thighs with rosemary, sage and lemon/oven roasted chicken with onion, black olives, and thyme.

Dinner: mushrooms with garlic broth, onion, carrots, celery, thyme and bay leaves/penne pasta (with brown rice) with a mushroom, basil, and tomato meat sauce.

Sugar Detox Drinks

There are many detox waters and hot drink alternatives that you can use instead of sugary drinks. They will help you boost your metabolism.

Detox water: chop one of these: grapefruits, blueberries, strawberries, or oranges, including some fresh rosemary or mint. Add them to a jar with water. Store and drink it every day.

Tea: consume unsweetened herbal or green tea 3 times on a daily basis.

Coffee: you should not consume more than 1 cup of unsweetened black coffee daily.

This diet plan is proved to calm sugar cravings, so don’t hesitate to try it and enjoy its benefits!

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7 Ways to Use Coconut to Kick Your Sugar Habit

Sugar is responsible for a lot of the ills that we face these days, from weight gain, to skin problems to diabetes. It damages teeth, it’s addictive and it spikes your blood sugar leading to a release of insulin. Problem is though… it also tastes really good and gives us that great boost of energy when we’re feeling low.

So kicking that sugar habit isn’t as easy as it should be. And as such, to do it effectively you need some kind of surrogate. That surrogate? Coconut oil.

What is Coconut Oil?

Coconut oil is… oil from coconut. That much is pretty obvious. What it also is though, is made from medium-chain fatty acids (MCFAs). Medium-chain fatty acids are a type of fat that that get absorbed more rapidly by the body.

They head straight to the liver to stimulate the production of ketones (because they don’t require particular enzymes to be broken down) and are able to permeate cell membranes easily.Ketones are a different type of energy source (distinct from carbs) that’s preferred by the glial cells of the brain.

MCT oil is highly satiating, it encourages thermogenesis (study) and it gives you a sudden burst of energy.The best part of all this? The unique digestion prevents MCT oil from being stores as fat.

7 Ways to Use the Coconut and Coconut Oil

While coconut oil has many amazing benefits, a delicious taste and texture are not among them. Eat coconut oil off of a spoon and it will probably make you gag.

Here then are seven ways you can enjoy the coconut and coconut oil to get the full benefits…

1. Bulletproof Coffee

Bulletproof Coffee is a coffee recipe from Dave Asprey which includes coconut oil (or MCT oil straight) along with butter. Some people use it as a meal replacement for breakfast. You can find the full recipe from the official source here.

2. Coconut Water

Coconut water is reportedly three times more hydrating than regular water and it’s satiating.

3. Coconut Milk

You can also enjoy coconut milk on its own. It’s a little thicker and creamier, though it can be a little sour. An acquired taste but once you get used to it it’s comforting like ice cream.

4. Coconut Ice Cream

Speaking of which… why not make your own coconut ice cream? Just take some coconut cream and put it in the fridge. It will soften and in a few hours it will be like eating delicious coconut ice cream.

5. Coconut Smoothies

Okay, so there’s a lot of sugar in smoothies – but make a vegetable smoothie and add in some coconut oil with milk and you have something creamy, filling and energizing.



6. Rice Pudding

Just as you can make ice cream, so can you make rice pudding. Just heat some rice and put some coconut milk over it until it’s creamy. Add cinnamon to sweeten.



7. Use it to Cook

Finally, you can also use coconut oil to cook with – just like vegetable oil or sunflower oil. It’s more filling, more nutritious and less fattening!


source: healthyfoodhouse

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Sugar and Your Immune System

Human body is able to protect itself from outside “invaders” like viruses, bacteria, fungi, etc. The most important function of this defensive mechanism is its ability to identify and eliminate invaders.

Many of you probably do not know this fact about your immune system: Every kind of sugar can reduce your body’s defensive power by 75% or more within 4-6 hours.


This is nothing new. In 1970s, Dr. Linus Pauling, one of the most extraordinary researchers in microbiology, found that vitamin C stimulates body’s ability to fight cold. In the same research, Dr. Pauling also found that sugar greatly slows this process.

It is quite important to know this, because this information can help you prevent diseases and speed up the healing process. The idea that sugar is bad for your health is quite controversial, so you may want to check the following points regarding your immune system, and eventually understand what Dr. Pauling found.

1. How the body disposes of invaders

Special cells called “phagocytes” swallow bacteria, viruses, and other invaders. These cells engulf and absorb waste material, dangerous microorganisms, and foreign bodies in blood and tissues.

2. Vitamin C

Dr. Pauling found that white blood cells need vitamin C in order to engulf and absorb viruses and bacteria. Actually, a single white blood cell needs to contain 50 times the concentration of vitamin C as it is normally found in blood around it.

This is how Dr. Pauling invented the “take a vitamin C for a cold” theory. White blood cells need more vitamin C to maintain the 50-times concentration and to keep destroying bacteria and viruses. Vitamin C moves through the membranes into the white blood cells all the time. Now you know why it is important to increase the intake of vitamin C.

3. Sugar

Glucose is sugar in the simplest form found in blood. It has the same chemical structure as vitamin C. It is so similar that when a white blood cell pulls more vitamin C from the blood, glucose is often substituted by mistake.

If blood glucose goes beyond a certain concentration, the 50-times vitamin C concentration in white blood cells may drop because of the large amount of glucose it pulls in as a substitute for vitamin C.

If the blood sugar level is 120, white blood cells have 75% lower ability to absorb and destroy viruses and bacteria. Such blood sugar level is easily obtained by every normal person who eats sugary foods -- cakes, cookies, candies, soda, and even fruit juice. The vitamin C concentration in white blood cells takes 4-6 hours to reach the optimum 50-times concentration again.

Conclusion

It is not that wise to eat sugar if you suffer from a disease, including the often-recommended orange juice. Juices contain vitamin C, but white blood cells cannot get past the sugar and use the vitamin.

If you are on a health improvement program, sugar is your worst enemy. Same goes for injuries. White blood cells and other phagocytes remove dead cells and waste that are associated with the healing of the wound.

Learn how to avoid sugar and which substitutes you can use. And before you buy a cough syrup and notice it contains sugar, you will probably wonder what has happened to this eye-opening research that no one seems to be aware of.

source: undergroundhealth.com

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How to Make Fantastic Homemade Scrubs with Coconut Oil and Sugar

We all know that exfoliating our skin is an important part of both facials and body treatments. When we exfoliate, we remove the old dead skin cells that cling to the outer layer of the skin, called epidermis.  Exfoliation is an important technique that leaves your skin healthy, smooth, fresh and glowing. Exfoliation also makes it easier for expensive facial products like serums to penetrate to the skin. It is recommended to do light exfoliation once or twice a week.


Of course you can buy fancy scrubs in stores, but often they are expensive and contain unnecessary ingredients, preservatives, artificial colors and scents, and some of them can irritate our delicate skin. If you choose to make your own sugar scrubs at home, it will cost you much cheaper and you will be able to control what ingredients go into them.

Therefore today I would like to share with you three recipes of coconut oil and sugar scrubs that I’ve found in CoconutOil.com website which contains all sorts of information about the health benefits of coconut oil. You can also read my article about the health benefits of coconut oil. These scrubs are fast and easy to make and can be used on the hands, feet, body and face. An added bonus is that they also make great gifts for family and friends:

Citrus Sugar Scrub

• 1 cup organic cane sugar
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
• ¼ cup jojoba oil
• 10 drops each of lemon, lime, and tangerine (or orange) essential oils

Mix all ingredients together and store in an airtight container.

Coffee Cinnamon Sugar Scrub

• ½ cup organic cane sugar
• ½ cup organic coffee grounds
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
• ¼ cup jojoba oil
• 15 drops cinnamon and/or vanilla essential oil

Mix all ingredients together and store in an airtight container.

Honey Vanilla and Chamomile Sugar Scrub

• 1 cup organic cane sugar
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
• ¼ cup jojoba oil
• ¼ cup raw honey, liquefied
• 10-15 drops each of vanilla and chamomile essential oils

Mix all ingredients together and store in an airtight container.



source: healthyandnaturalworld

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This Is How Sugar Affects A Healthy Breast!

Only three sugary drinks a week can increase the density of the breast tissue and increase the risk of breast cancer, a new study done from scientists from Canada says, whose results were published in the Journal BMC Public Health.

The study included 776 women just before menopause and 779 women who have gone through menopause. Scientists have measured the density of each woman breasts, and they also filled out a questionnaire that included questions about the frequency of consumption of sweet foods (chocolate, cakes, ice cream), sugary drinks and how many teaspoon of sugar is their average daily intake.

“We found that there is a correlation between the consumption of sugar and density of the breast tissue,” said lead researcher Professor Caroline Diorio, adding that “women who have gone through menopause had an increased density of their breasts if they consumed excessive amount of fat, while women who are just before menopause, have an increased density of their breasts if they consumed excessive amount of sugar.”

The researchers note that most women did not consume excessive amounts of sugar. Each of them had  about 3 sugary drinks per week. This is why scientists say that it is very important to keep an eye on the amount of sugar we eat, and point out that sugar may be present in foods that don’t taste sweet.

The increased density of the breast tissue increases the risk of breast cancer, and also makes it more difficult to diagnose cancer.

The researchers note that it is necessary to continue this research, but also pointed out the importance of consuming sugar in very small quantities.

source healthylifetricks

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