Yes, You Can Prevent Cancer With the Right Foods

Good Food Good Health – Elderflower

Antioxidants in Elderflower drinks are great for you.

The elderflower has been well known through the centuries for its high vitamin C content, anti oxidant and healing properties, and because of this is today one of the top selling natural summer cordials.

Drinking a glass of cordial daily is very refreshing and will help to improve your health, and it is not just the flowers that are good for you but also the berries when made into wine have equal beneficial properties.

We are all well aware now just how important anti oxidants and vitamin C are, and I do not mean only the ladies thinking about their skin and premature aging, but then maybe that is why through the ages women have always made and drank elderflower cordials and tea ritually, and is a staple product of the Women’s Institute along with jams.

Antioxidants are needed to help reduce the production of ‘free radicals’ (highly re-active and unstable molecules which contain atoms with unpaired electrons) in the body, high fat diets attribute to ‘free radicals’, but they are also produced naturally and especially in people who exercise heavily, attacking cells leading to long term damage and a higher risk of cancer.

Studies have shown that taking antioxidants such as vitamin C before eating high fat foods, reduces the damage greatly to the arteries.

The elderflower is well in bloom now and can be found in most hedgerows and roadsides, scrubland and gardens alike, and to many gardeners is a nuisance as it grows almost anywhere in a very short time to a considerable size.

The elder has acquired the nickname of ‘Nature’s Medicine Chest’, as its healing properties have been used for a very wide and varied range of problems from Rheumatism, hay fever, coughs and colds, asthma and influenza.

The elderflower is only in bloom for about six weeks, from the end of May to the beginning of July, but it is best picked now while the flowers are fresh and white and before they turn creamy brown.

I remember making this with my grandma every year, from collecting the flowers and berries to all the smells associated with this. I still have the hand written recipe of this and other by grandma, although I think some of these recipes are probably illegal to make at home now, like the marrow rum, I will have to check up on this at a later date.

The recipe to make 1.5 litres of Elderflower cordial is below, which you dilute to taste, is easy and inexpensive, and is great served with fizzy water and ice. Perfect for the summer.

Ingredients you need – 20 heads of elderflower, 1.8kg granulated sugar, 1.2 litres of water, 2 lemons and 75g citric acid.

Preparation time takes 20 minutes, plus overnight infusing and 5 minutes cooking.Method. Shake the flowers to expel any insects and place in large bowl.Put sugar in pan with water and bring to boil, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Pare zest off lemons in wide strips and place in bowl with elderflowers. Slice lemons discarding ends and add slices to bowl. Pour over boiling syrup and stir in citric acid. Cover with cloth and leave for 24 hours at room temperature. The next day strain cordial through a muslin (or a new boil washed J cloth or similar) and pour into thoroughly cleaned plastic or glass bottles with screw on lids, and that’s it.

The elder is also used as a natural garden insecticide, by crushing up and bruising the foul smelling leaves you can leave them around young plants to deter aphids and caterpillars. Obviously as they dry out and the smell disappears they need to be replaced.

Farmers used to hang bunches of elderflower above their horses before insecticides were used to rid flies, and dairy farmers used it as they thought it had properties to stop the milk from turning sour. People used to wear a small sprig to keep midges away. The elder has been closely entwined with pagans through the years to summon spirits, with twigs woven into head-dresses to enable the wearer to see spirits and undo evil spells! The mind boggles.

On the Isle of Man, every cottage has an elder growing outside its front door to ward off witches even to this day. In other parts of the country, people would never burn elder wood as it was said a member of the family would die. It was truly a revered plant.

The great thing about elderflower is that it tastes delicious, is highly refreshing and a good provider of vitamin C – an antioxidant, so why not try making your own or buy a good reputable manufactured cordial and start getting the benefits for good health now.

Happy drinking Sandra & Ted

http://www.goodfoodgoodhealth.com

http://www.thetalkingbooksite.com

http://www.quantum-mind-power.com

Good Food Good Health- Colds

Hi everyone

Here we are facing the ‘cold’ season yet again and no matter who or where you are, we are all going to come into contact with the virus.

Commuting to work is one of the worst places for contracting a cold; a nice packed underground train or bus with people sneezing is a haven for spreading viruses.

I absolutely dread getting a cold in case it turns into a nasty cough as I have COPD, (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease) and for the last four years have had the flu jab because of this, even though I have never had the flu.

Having this condition really makes you aware how we take our body and organs for granted. I have never smoked, not even tried and yet the first thing anybody says when finding out I have COPD is that I must have been a heavy smoker.

Unfortunately the damage was initially done to my lungs at the age of seventeen when I had pluracy that turned into bronchial pneumonia, and then contracting a nasty chest infection again when I was in my early forties caused further problems.

I know many people think the flu jab is a waste of time and money, and that with the flu virus being able to mutate every year – how can they get the right vaccine? I am still very happy to receive it, as I know that even with the vaccine being only 80% protective, if I did contract flu it should not be so devastating to my body.

That is why ‘good food good health’ is so important to me, not only for my own well being but of course my family and friends.

The most important thing to help fight colds and flu and most illnesses is to have a healthy immune system, and of course eating a healthy nutritionally balanced diet goes a long way in achieving this.

Some people seem to go from one cold to the next, I know we cannot hide from these viruses but we really can help ourselves to reduce the risk by implementing good hygiene, washing our hands thoroughly and not touching our nose, eyes or mouth.

Catching a cold is usually from close personal contact, but viruses do lurk on household surfaces as well as skin, so an anti-bacterial cleaner and hand wash is recommended.

Many people believe that eating a hot curry can help to flush the virus out through your system by making the nose and eyes stream! Well it’s worth a try.

A sore throat is one of the first signs that generally make you aware your body is fighting a cold virus, followed by sneezing and a runny nose and sometimes a cough.

Symptoms are always worst for the first couple of days and then should trail off over the next day or so but some unlucky people are likely to suffer badly for up to two weeks.

The body releases infection-fighting chemicals in its wage on the virus, which gives us the loss of appetite, high temperature and tiredness, telling us that we need to slow down and save energy allowing the body to go about its task.

If you suffer colds regularly you really do need to look at your diet to keep your body is working in tip top condition or take a supplement to help and ensure a healthy immune system, especially as there are more than 200 different viruses that can cause a cold.

Once you have contracted a cold your body is busy making anti-bodies to that virus, ensuring that you should not catch it again or at least only have slight symptoms. The most common way an adult catches a cold is through rhinovirus – entering the body through the nose.

Coughs of which I dread are different, they develop from a cold virus or other infection and result in inflamed airways. A chesty cough shows that the lower airways are inflamed and a dry tickly cough if the upper airways are inflamed.

So even though I always eat a nutritionally well balanced diet I do take a garlic supplement for added benefits. I do love garlic and use it regularly in our meals; but our children are concerned about the ‘smell’ factor in the house and on them so I have to tone down meals and boost it with the supplement.

So do not forget ‘good food good health’ to help beat the rotten winter colds and help your immune system to stay in tip-top condition.

There are some great vegetables in season this time of the year and you can easily make a really healthy chunky vegetable soup or stew that are really easy to cook and lovely and filling in the cold weather.

Also smoking and alcohol intake does have a bearing on your immune system, so if you are often run down and do drink or smoke regularly taking a look at this aspect of your lifestyle can help to.

Good Food is Good Health

Sandra & Ted

http://www.goodfoodgoodhealth.com

http://www.thetalkingbooksite.com

http://www.quantum-mind-power.com