Succeed With Healthy Meals

Sunday, April 26, 2009

The biggest excuse I hear when it comes to eating healthy, is it's much easier to eat unhealthy. Well having a quick healthy meal is just as easy to come by then having a quick unhealthy meal. Lets take a look at some of the main reasons people have this negative thought engraved into their mind. At then end I will share a quick healthy recipe I have used for ages.

Fast food restaurants and advertising are the worst factors when trying to eat better, healthier meals. Turning on your television or computer to see advertisement after advertisement from the hundreds of eat quick and unhealthy franchises makes it hard to focus on choosing healthier foods. In order to kick the notion that eating healthy is hard, a number of factors can come into play. Everyone should realize it is just as easy to create a quick healthy meal.

Knowing what healthy food is, is usually up in the air. Getting a basic knowledge of what is and isn't healthy can quickly change your eating patterns. A quick healthy meal is something that may take a bit to learn but when it is learnt, can make all the difference in the world. There are many different sources for finding out healthy alternatives, so take a look around and learn what is good for you to eat.

Being organized is another big thing for seeing success in eating better. You are probably thinking, how can being organized help me eat better? Well, it has been known for years that having foods planned in advance will help you stay on track and succeed. By this, I mean, wright out what you are going to have each day.Even do it for a week at a time. The only way to make this work though, is being organized, and have all the food available to you when it comes time to cook. It's to easy to mess up and not have the right food at home, next thing you know, you will be sitting in the nearest fast food drive thru.

A trick I use to help make it even easier on myself not to fail at this, is do everything all at once. What that means is, usually I will choose a day where I have a bit of free time and do a big batch of something for the whole week. This makes it easier to whip up a quick heathy meal on the go. An example is, I will take out 10 chicken breasts, season and cut them, and then fry them up in a pan. After all the chicken is cooked, I throw it into a container and toss it in the fridge. Now, I have chicken to make a quick healthy meal all week. I usually will cook something that will work for many different meals. It is easy to use chicken in any type of meal.

Now for the free recipe. This to me is a simple quick healthy meal that anyone can create and enjoy. What I will do is just explain how I put it all together. I won't say how much of the ingredients I use because it will be different for each individual that makes it. Make your portion as big or as little as you want. So, the meal is going to be a Chicken Caesar in a Pita. I take a chicken breast out of the freezer; put it into the microwave for a minute to let it thaw out. Cut it into little chunks of your desired size. I use some olive oil, granulated garlic powder, and some hot sauce to season the meat. Throw the meat into a medium heat frying pan. I stir the meat regularly, after about 5 or so minutes the chicken should be done. From there, I cut up some roman lettuce and grate some cheese. I will mix the chicken, cheese and lettuce in a bowl and add some caesar dressing on top. Put a lid on the bowl and shake it up until fully mixed. Once mixed, I fill up a pita with the contents of the bowl. And there you have it, one quick healthy meal. The total time for all this is about 10 - 15 minutes at the most.

What Is Herbal Medicine | Is It Safe?

Saturday, April 4, 2009

Herbal medicine is the use of plant and herb extracts for their therapeutic value. Most plants contain and produce chemical substances that aid in healing and other physical treatments.

Herbal medicine is the oldest form of healthcare and constitutes a key role in the development of modern medicine as we know it today. Back when technology was still unheard of, primitive men utilised the vast flora around them to the fullest extent, observing both plant and animal life and their components, eventually giving birth to herbal medicine. In a study by the World Health Organization on herbal medicine use, about 80% of the world's populace still rely on herbal medicine to cure certain ailments and about 74% of the drugs we use today contain at least one botanical element. For instance, Chinese Herbal Medicine's use of ephedrine to cure respiratory conditions still exists in the present time. Ephedrine remains an active ingredient in most of the commercial drugs that are being prescribed to relieve asthma symptoms.

Herbal medicine is defined by three schools of thought: Ayurvedic Herbalism, Traditional Chinese Herbalism and Western Herbal Medicine. While both Ayurvedic and Chinese herbal medicine have moved on to advanced forms, western herbal medicine remains a part of folk treatments. Herbal medicine is, first and foremost, holistic. It aims to address not just a particular symptom, but also to help the whole body rejuventate strengthen itself. And while there is no scientific evidence that all herbal medicines claiming to have healing powers are actually effective, the number the herbal medicines that have been placed under clinical testing have proved their worth. The list of known kinds includes echinacea, which is used to temper colds, St John's wort, used to treat mild depression (without using Prozac), and hawthorne berries, which help in the recovery process from mild heart failures.

Is herbal medicine a direct substitute to modern medication? It depends. While herbal medicines are extracted naturally from plants, not all are safe to use; particularly if they are taken with other types of treatments that may not be complementary. Also, herbal medicine is often used only for mild ailments. If the symptoms are more serious, it is best to consult a trained practitioner of herbal medicine who can tell you which ones are appropriate and recommend dosage levels and frequency. Presently, most of the recommended herbal medicines fall outside of standard drug regulations, thus, not all of their claims to fame are guaranteed and true. And even as common sense tells us that herbal medicine has been around for thousand of years, giving an impression that it is quite an authority, it is not recommended to self-diagnose.

Always keep in mind that herbal medicines are still medicines and, therefore, share the likelihood of having side effects as regular commercial drugs. Some of us have this misconception that because herbal medicines are natural, they are 100% safe. This is not true all the time. The best defense against the possible side effects herbal medicines might give is to educate ourselves with the basics on the herbal medicine in question and to use it with caution.

Alternative Medicine | Herbal Preparations

Thursday, April 2, 2009

Alternative medicine is gaining more attention every day. The idea that one can heal their body, prevent physical symptoms and even treat them - naturally - is very appealing. It is especially appealing in the wake of some alarming findings on popular prescription medications which resulted in them being pulled from shelves due to health hazards.

While one should still approach alternative medicine with caution and thorough research, natural cures, remedies and herbal preparations still should be considered when researching the best options for treating various physical ailments that impact your quality of life.

Still regarded with some skepticism in the medical community, there are undeniably some truly remarkable and tangible benefits to be garnered from herbal preparations, as testified by many users of the array of natural health products available today. Herbal remedies and alternative medicines can help treat and alleviate symptoms ranging from pain and menopause to acne and depression.

Users of these herbal preparations and remedies most commonly are those who are health conscious, have had adverse reactions to traditional medications, or just have a holistic mindset and approach to their mental and physical health, longevity and proactivity in prevention.

With it's increasing popularity and recognition, you are likely to see a rising number of new product offerings and also an increase in companies willing to put more money into research and development of new natural health products as their demand increases.

Aromatherapy | Oils

Aromatherapy is a method of using the aromatic oils which have been distilled from plant sources to engender a feeling of well being both physically and psychologically. Safe and correct use has been shown to benefit the physical and mental well being.

There are many aromatherapy oils which are used in the art of aromatherapy and these are too lengthy to list here. However, there are many benefits to be had from aromatherapy oils but you need to understand that there can be some drawbacks for use in aromatherapy although many people say there are greater benefits.

There are two ways in which essential oils are used in aromatherapy. These are by inhalation and by application to your skin.

Inhaling aromatherapy oils is where the vapor given off by the oil is inhaled into the lungs. This is thought to incite the brain and cause it to trigger a reaction to the oil. It is also thought that there is a physical well being by breathing the vapors directly into the lungs. Remember that safety is of the utmost importance and always follow the manufacturer's instructions as otherwise a reaction, possibly very severe can take place. It is important to remember to consult a trained specialist before using aromatherapy oils.

The other method of using aromatherapy oils in is by application to the skin. It is thought that when oil is applied to the skin it is absorbed into the blood stream and is useful for many health, beauty and hygiene conditions. Again, I must stress the safety aspect as aromatherapy oils are usually very strong and it is important that they are always diluted before you use them. To dilute them a carrier oil is needed and these are oils such as grape seed oil, sweet almond oil and apricot kernel oil.

Another way that aromatherapy oils can be used is to act as an insect repellent. We are all familiar with the use of citronella in candles. I find these excellent as a way of keeping bugs at bay.

Aromatherapy oils can also be blended together and this can be done with a carrier base but not always. Combination oils can have even more benefits in aromatherapy as they then offer a combination of uses. The Internet has many sites where you will be able to find recipes for blending together different oils with their uses listed as well.

The term aromatherapy is a fairly recent phrase first thought to have been used in the 20th century but the practice of aromatherapy has been around for well over 1000 years.

The Egyptians are thought to have developed a way of distilling oil from cedar wood and the Chinese have used plant and herbal incense from a very long time which they burned to give a feeling of well being.

René-Maurice Gattefossé, A Frenchman, is first thought to have used the term aromatherapy after he supposedly treated a nasty burn with the nearest liquid to hand which turned out to be oil distilled from lavender. This wound healed quickly and it left no scaring. This started his in-depth research into essential oils.

We are now becoming more aware of natural products after we have relied on synthetic drugs for many years and aromatherapy is growing in popularity. Most of us prefer to use natural products, such as aromatherapy oils, to sooth and heal our minds and bodies. Gattefossé would have said, Long Live Aromatherapy, but he would have said it in his native French. Using essential oils for aromatherapy is natural and is an excellent way to help calm and sooth our troubled 21st century lives.