THE HEALTH BENEFITS OF JAPANESE MUSHROOMS

http://www.livestrong.com/article/408701-the-health-benefits-of-japanese-mushrooms/

 
Photo Credit shiitake mushrooms image by Olga Shelego from Fotolia.com

Japanese mushrooms come in a variety of shapes, sizes, colors and flavors and are used in traditional cooking as well as for medicinal purposes. Mushrooms, according to dietician Leslie K. Kay of Today’s Dietician are also rich in vitamin D and fiber. Each type of mushroom is used for its specific health benefits, or combined with herbs or other foods for specific conditions. Most Japanese mushrooms are available fresh at your local grocery store or in their dehydrated form at your local health food store. Speak with your doctor before making significant dietary changes.

■Shiitake Mushrooms
Shiitake mushrooms are widely used in many Asian cultures and used in cooking in both fresh and dried forms. According to the American Cancer Society, research has shown shiitake mushrooms to be effective in treating tumors in animals. Additionally, shiitake mushrooms appear to have antiviral properties and can reduce cholesterol. Shiitake mushrooms contain substances, lentinan and 1,3-beta glucan, which are the active ingredients believed to have the health-promoting benefit.

■Maitake Mushrooms
Maitake is a native Japanese mushroom that is available fresh or in extract form. The extract, according to the American Cancer Society, has been found to have an effect on immunity and proponents claim it can help prevent the development of some types of cancer. Maitake is also used by some practitioners as a treatment for the side effects of chemotherapy, and to enhance the cancer-killing effects of it. Any research results thus far have been found in studies on laboratory animals however maitake mushrooms are considered safe for human consumption. Beta glucans, naturally occurring substances found in maitake mushrooms may cause a drop in blood glucose and blood pressure, so these mushrooms should be used under the guidance of your physician.

■Reishi Mushrooms
The Reishi mushroom, also known as the “mushroom of immortality” is used in traditional medicine as an immune system booster for individuals living with cancer or immune-suppressive diseases like AIDS. The extract of Reishi mushrooms is also used, according to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, to treat symptoms of urinary tract infections in men. Additionally, Reishi extract can stimulate the effectiveness of white blood cells and can decrease nausea caused by chemotherapy. Although the consumption of Reishi mushrooms in their raw form is considered safe, the extract may interact with medical conditions or medications such as anticoagulants.

■Enoki Mushrooms
The enoki or golden needle mushroom, is a small, thin but powerful mushroom that can help improve your immune system, according to Dr. Ching Chen, DO. Additionally, Professor Chua Kaw Yanthe of the National University of Singapore explains that enoki mushrooms can also help you fight off viruses, decrease allergies and help your immune system fight off cancer. It appears that a protein found in the stalk of the enoki mushroom works with the cells of your immune system to increase the production of cytokines, which help regulate immune response. Enoki mushrooms are available fresh or in extract form from your local health food store.

Read more here and find specific detailed information that each mushroom has!
http://www.livestrong.com/article/408701-the-health-benefits-of-japanese-mushrooms/

Edamame Healthy Food Guide

http://www.eatingwell.com/healthy_cooking/healthy_food_guide/edamame

Bright-green edamame (soybeans) have been popular for centuries, appreciated for their sweet, mild and slightly “beany” flavor. Edamame were used as a vegetable in China as early as a few hundred years B.C. In Japan, edamame are often boiled in salty water still in their pods and served as bar food (the pods are inedible, but it’s fun to pop the beans out and eat them between sips of beer).

Edamame truly fits its “Miracle Bean” nickname. Not only does it contain all of the 9 essential amino acids, making it a complete protein, but it is used in food products from soy sauce to soy milk, and in everything from animal feed to ink.

While edamame are most often associated with Asian cuisine, they’re versatile in dishes from around the globe. They add bright color to a Southern succotash and take kindly to French flavors as well.

What you get
Versatile edamame is an excellent plant source of high-quality protein. In addition, edamame delivers fiber, some iron and the phytoestrogens daidizein and genistein, which are thought to have a wide range of health benefits for immune function, cardiac health and menopausal symptoms.

Tips
Shopping TipLook for fresh edamame at farmers’ markets or natural-foods stores. Edamame are most commonly found frozen in the natural-foods section of large supermarkets and natural-foods stores, sold both in and out of the “pods.” One 10-ounce bag of shelled beans contains about 2 cups.Storage TipStore fresh and cooked edamame in the refrigerator or freezer.

Fun Fact
The United States produces half of the world’s soybeans

The Original Article:
http://www.eatingwell.com/healthy_cooking/healthy_food_guide/edamame

New dose of old Chinese medicine keeps Hong Kong residents healthy

Posted in “The Japan Times” on July 14, 2013
Fine dining: An elderly woman in southern China’s Hainan province eats freshly prepared vegetables for her lunch, while at the same time keeping illnesses at bay. | AFP-JIJI

HONG KONG – The young woman pours a pack of brown powder into a glass of hot water, stirs it well and downs the murky mixture, hoping the traditional Chinese medicine will cure her feverish cold.

Sofie Lau may work as a pediatric nurse and she may live in the modern, fast-paced city of Hong Kong — but when it comes to treating her own ill-health, she prefers ancient remedies.

Despite the age of its recipes, Chinese medicine — which has continued to thrive among Hong Kong’s 7 million residents — is not standing still.

A growing number of young university-trained practitioners are pioneering changes within the industry, providing traditional remedies with modern efficiency.

Lau, 25, says it feels more natural to turn to Chinese medicine.

“I’ve tried Western medicine, but usually I feel very tired after I take it. Even though I can recover very fast, I will become sick again afterwards,” she explains at the Chinese medicine center where she has come for treatment.

“But I can’t just sit in front of the stove and watch herbs boiling for eight hours. I’m busy with work, if we had to boil the herbal soup like we did in the past, perhaps I wouldn’t consider Chinese medicine as an option.”

While Chinese medicine masters used to issue instructions for the tedious hours-long process of mixing, soaking, brewing and distilling herbs, nowadays practitioners prescribe ready-made powders.

The complicated brewing process is even outsourced, with orders made over the Internet for doorstep delivery.

It is the latest development for a practice that is thousands of years old and was traditionally passed down through the generations but was regulated in 1999 as the city eyed becoming a Chinese medicine trading hub.

The Health Department said the regulatory framework has helped “boost public confidence”.

Its popularity is growing, with imports of Chinese herbal medicines having reached 2.3 billion Hong Kong dollars ($303 million) in 2011, up 37 percent from 2009. Health insurance plans often cover consultation costs at Chinese medicine centers.

In the late 1990s, universities began offering courses, attracting fresh thinking to the industry, which now has about 6,500 practitioners, about half the number of regular doctors in the city.

Dennis Au, 31, opened his first clinic in 2008 after a five-year undergraduate course and now has four more branches with a network of 20 colleagues.

Most of his patients are between 20 and 40, and many are surprised by how young the practitioners are, but he says it is important to keep the industry moving forward.

He offers instant medication rather than a list of boiling instructions, wears a white coat, and stores patient records on a computer.

“We didn’t change the philosophy or the concept of Chinese medicine, we just changed the image of Chinese medicine,” he says in a break between consultations.

“It’s necessary to have this revolution. If the old trend continues, Chinese medicine will die.”

Critics accuse the industry of being unscientific.

And although most cures are plant-based, in the West the image of Chinese medicine has been tarnished by its association with the use of animal parts such as rhino horn — which has continued despite a Chinese ban in 1993.

Other traditional Chinese remedies also raise eyebrows, such as lizard-on-a-stick, dried sea horses and deer antlers, which can apparently cure ailments from acne to colds to impotence.

But international studies have at least given credence to certain herbal concoctions, including U.S. research last year that said a flowering plant called blue evergreen hydrangea could treat fever and ease malaria.

The Chinese have kept the faith, with the recent outbreak of bird flu on the mainland leading to a run on banlangen, a traditional Chinese medicine for colds made from the roots of the woad plant.

Hong Kong’s Health Department is now working with the World Health Organization on a system of classification.

The industry is also obtaining a gloss of professionalism when it comes to made-to-order remedies.

David Tang set up the Hong Kong Chinese Medicine Service Center in an industrial area six months ago, with a team of 10 staff members taking orders online, boiling the herbs, packaging them and providing next-day delivery.

“We helped simplify the logistical issues. We’re a modern herb store, although we continue to use the traditional prescription,” says Tang.

“We’re just like the old wine in a new bottle.”

The Original Article:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/news/2013/07/14/asia-pacific/new-dose-of-old-chinese-medicine-keeps-hong-kong-residents-healthy/

Western influence on Gion Festival/ Popular Kyoto event has crosscultural element

Posted on July 2, 2013 on The Japan News
http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0000335405

Yuji Washio / Yomiuri Shimbun Staff WriterKYOTO–Kon kon chiki chin, kon chiki chin–When the quaint sounds of little gongs begin to be heard in central Kyoto, it’s time for the Gion Festival, one of the most popular summer events in Japan.

Amid the festive atmosphere, the festival’s climax on July 17 is marked by 32 gorgeously decorated floats parading through central Kyoto. In some cases, the floats’ elaborate ornamentation includes apparently Western tapestries hanging from their sides.

Kyoto is a center of the nation’s weaving industry. Artisans in the Nishijin district have manufactured many tapestries for the festival.

So, why are there Western tapestries at the festival?

The festival started as a ceremony at Yasaka Shrine in 869, when Kyoto was the capital of Japan. As plagues and natural disasters were prevalent in the country that year, 66 pikes symbolizing the 66 provinces of Japan at that time were put on display to wish for peace. These pikes later became larger and more decorated until they evolved into the floats seen today.

The floats are called moving museums, as they are painstakingly made craftwork pieces. Due to their high profile, they are often regarded as the festival’s centerpiece, but they are actually meant to herald the festival’s sacred palanquin, which travels around the area where the shrine’s worshippers reside.

The 32 floats are called either yama, which means mountain, or hoko (or boko), which means pike. Of them, five use Western woven tapestries: Kanko-boko, Niwatori-hoko, Hakurakuten-yama, Koi-yama and Araretenjin-yama, that were brought to Japan during the Edo period (1603-1867).

The Kanko-boko’s tapestry, 273 centimeters by 220 centimeters, bears two different scenes on its upper and lower parts, one depicting a man receiving a large jug from a woman and the other depicting a man giving a bracelet to a woman. It is said that the scenes depict a story of the search for a wife for Isaac in the Old Testament.

Slide 1 of 1
The Yomiuri Shimbun

Floats with Western tapestries will be on display at the Kyoto locations shown in the map for several days before being used in the parade. Other floats will also be displayed in the area.

 

 

According to old documents, the tapestry was donated by a local wealthy merchant in 1718, at a time when Christianity was outlawed. Yet an artwork depicting a Bible story traveled around the town–how was it possible?

“The jug is so big that it looked like a sake container. So people of the time probably thought the patterns were very suitable for the festival,” said Masutaro Matsumiya, vice director of the organization maintaining the float.

The tapestries for the four other floats are themed on the Trojan War.

Local pride

Shigeharu Sugita, director of the organization maintaining Koi-yama, said that the use of these tapestries signified the pride and power of machishu, or local citizens, mainly wealthy businesspeople who were community leaders.

“As towns holding floats were getting more and more wealthy and began competing with each other, they collected novel items [to add to their floats],” Sugita said.

Susumu Shirai, an adviser to Tatsumura Textile Co. in Nakagyo Ward, which made reproductions of tapestries of the Kanko-boko and Niwatori-hoko, said: “The originals are very elaborately made. The weavers used silk threads to give glossy texture to the patterns of clothing worn by people in the tapestry. They are expensive masterworks. I felt they represented local people’s enthusiasm for the festival.”

It is also said that the tapestries depicting the Trojan War were a gift from the pope to Hasekura Tsunenaga, who was dispatched as an envoy to Spain and Rome about 400 years ago by Date Masamune, lord of the Sendai domain.

Meanwhile, the tapestry used on the Kanko-boko was reportedly one of the gifts from the Dutch Empire to Tokugawa Iemitsu (1604-1651), the third shogun of the Edo government, requesting the start of diplomatic relations. The piece is said to be the one recorded in a list of gifts as a “Dutch-made carpet.”

Although there is no definite evidence to support these stories, these tapestries are regarded as highly valuable.

The festival has been interrupted many times by wars, including the Onin civil war from 1467 to 1477. It was also affected by a fire in the Kinmon no Hen civil war in 1864. Only two floats, Hashibenkei-yama and Ennogyoja-yama, paraded at the following year’s festival. Nevertheless, some more floats joined the festival the next year and the number increased over the years that followed. In 1988, with the rejoining of the Shijo-kasahoko, the current festival with 32 floats was established. The Ofune-hoko, which was destroyed in the 1864 civil war, is scheduled to rejoin the festival parade in 2014.
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Original article available here: The Japan News
http://the-japan-news.com/news/article/0000335405

Scientists suspect eating more fish may help to curb anxiety

Posted on Jun. 27, 2013 on JAPAN TODAY
http://www.japantoday.com/category/health/view/scientists-suspect-eating-more-fish-may-help-to-curb-anxiety

TOKYO —
There’s a lot of talk about omega-3 fatty acids and their controversial health benefits ranging from cancer to joint pain and even mental disorders. And now it looks as if a team led by Masayuki Sekiguchi at the National Center of Neurology and Psychiatry (NCNP) in Tokyo have found another thing omega-3 possibly cures: lingering fear.

The omega-3 fatty acid, docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) in particular was what the scientists were interested in. DHA can be found in blue ocean fish such as mackerel and sardines.

The team fed several mice diets containing both omega-3 fatty acids and omega-6 fatty acids such as linoleic acid. Omega-6 acids have an equally controversial but opposite reputation to omega-3 in that many believe they lead to negative health effects.

One group of mice was fed a diet of omega-3 and omega-6 acids in a ratio of about one to seven respectively. Another group of mice was given and equal ratio of omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids.

The groups of mice were each then given mild electric shocks to startle them and the time was measured until they got back to their normal behavior.

Of the mice fed a 1/7 mix of fatty acids, the average time to overcome their fear was 80 seconds. However, the mice fed a balance of omega-3 and omega-6 were back to normal after only 42 seconds on average.

The findings were presented at a neurological association conference held in Kyoto this month. While this experiment was still far from conclusive, the team hopes that this knowledge may develop into a prevention for anxiety disorders.

However, Dr. Sekiguchi stated far more directly; “By eating a lot of fish you can increase the amount of omega-3 fatty acids which may help to suppress the onset of anxiety disorders.”

This could be great news for most of us, but for those who have lost loved ones to a ferocious pack of sardines it’s a viciously tragic Catch-22.

Sources: NCNP, Yomiuri Online
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Original article available here: JAPAN TODAY
http://www.japantoday.com/category/health/view/scientists-suspect-eating-more-fish-may-help-to-curb-anxiety

How Ancient Japanese Botanicals Can Improve Hair Health

http://www.howlifeworks.com/health_beauty/
Youre_Destroying_Your_Hair_How_to_Stop_the_Cycle_and_Love_Your_Locks_931

Posted on How life Works

Most people long for the gorgeous, flowing hair they see in magazine ads and TV commercials. Sadly, reality rarely lives up to those images—and not simply because they feature good lighting, photo retouching or even genetically perfect models.

It’s because we destroy our own hair.

Between years of blow drying, straightening, curling, and coloring, as well as exposure to smog and sunlight, our hair becomes a fried, thinning mess. Shampoos and hair care products rarely help. In fact, they usually cause more damage because they’re loaded with synthetic chemicals, cleaners and perfumes. Even products and treatments from high-end hair salons can sometimes be suspect, only masking the damage rather than healing the hair itself.

The result? Women buy more products, pay for more salon visits, and invariable end up cutting off the damaged ends in hopes of starting fresh.

Well, that all may change thanks to OOKISA, a new hair treatment that blends long-held Asian beauty secrets with cutting-edge hair care innovations.

OOKISA combines natural Japanese botanicals like white peony tea, rooibos red tea, Japanese citrus, water lily, and camellia oil to condition hair, enhance scalp and follicle health, and increase both shine and volume. It also uses state-of-the-art ingredients like Keravis, a blend of highly concentrated vegetable proteins that enhances hair strength, and the antioxidant-rich Pyrus Maus, which promotes optimum hair thickness and softness. Combined, OOKISA leaves hair stronger, shinier, and healthier than ever before.

Hollywood has already come calling for OOKISA’s benefits. Among a long list of credits, it’s been featured on The Doctors, The Talk and Extra, and mentioned in magazines like Vogue and US Weekly, which also reported that such celebrities as Tori Spelling and Rachel Bilson love it.

This isn’t just hype—the facts back up that devoted following. In independent clinical testing, OOKISA products were shown to:
•Increase hair volume by 53%*
•Reduce static by 39%*
•Reduce hair breakage by 78% after a single application**

Plus, a European study demonstrated that conditioners incorporating Keravis improved bleached hair strength by 175% when compared to hair treated with no conditioner. That means OOKISA can not only make hair look and feel better, but it can help repair years of damage— and do it using more natural ingredients.

An easy and inexpensive introduction to OOKISA is with the Deluxe Hair Revitalizing System. The online offer is only $19.95 and includes the Fortifying Shampoo to purify and strengthen hair, Revitalizing Conditioner for immediate and rich hydration, and Nighttime Follicle Renewing Serum for intensive hair repair while you sleep. Used together, they promote full, glossy, healthy-looking hair.

Having beautiful hair doesn’t mean spending more money on products and procedures; it just means getting the right natural treatment to do the job.
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Original article available here:
http://www.howlifeworks.com/health_beauty/
Youre_Destroying_Your_Hair_How_to_Stop_the_Cycle_and_Love_Your_Locks_931

Watch your summer food pairings

Posted on The Japan Times
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2013/06/28/food/watch-your-summer-food-pairings/

Energy boost: Though it’s traditionally believed that you shouldn’t eat grilled eel with pickled plums, there’s actually no scientific evidence that it will give you indigestion. | MAKIKO ITOH

I’ll never forget that day during the summer when I was 14. I’d been away in the Yatsugatake Mountains of Honshu with my schoolmates for a rinkan gakkō (a multi-day school trip to the countryside), and on the way back we’d stopped for lunch at a large roadside diner. On the menu was tempura, followed by slices of watermelon. The breakfast at the inn we were staying at was pretty awful, so I dug into my one shrimp and mound of fried vegetables, as well as the sweet, chilled watermelon. But that evening, my body started to complain very emphatically. My stomach felt like it was being twisted around inside. I rolled around on the floor, groaning in pain, for what felt like hours. By the morning the pain was finally gone, but I was weak and worn out for days.

As it turns out, I’d indulged in a classic bad food combination, or tabeawase. Called gasshokukin or shokugōkin, these are foods that are not supposed to be eaten with each other for health reasons, especially during the summer when the grueling heat and humidity take a toll on our bodies. It’s a way of thinking about food with roots in traditional Chinese medicine combined with old-school common sense.

The best-known bad food pairing is unagi (grilled eel) with umeboshi (salt-cured ume plums), both of which are classic summertime foods. Oil-rich unagi give you lots of energy, and the sourness and saltiness of umeboshi help to awaken a lagging appetite. But we’re warned never to eat them together, since the sourness of the umeboshi will clash with the oiliness of the unagi, causing digestive problems.

According to current medical knowledge, however, there’s no scientific basis for this belief. On the contrary, the sourness of the umeboshi should actually help our bodies deal better with the fatty unagi. One reason this pairing may have become a “no-no” is as a warning against gluttony: Unagi has always been a luxury food, and if you have it with salty-sour umeboshi you might be inclined to eat more than you should.

Most of the other bad food pairings that we’re encouraged to avoid are combinations of not so easily digested foods with something that’s cold and watery. The combination that caused me so much grief as a teenager is a classic example. Deep fried food such as tempura puts a burden on the stomach, so topping it with ice water and cold watermelon is not the best idea. Other bad combinations involve foods that aren’t that easy to digest on their own, such as tokoroten (agar-agar noodles) with raw eggs, or crabmeat and persimmons.

What you should try very hard to avoid as the weather gets really hot and humid, however, is relying on too much cold or cooling food. If you are only eating salads, hiyayakko (chilled tofu), cold somen noodles and ice cream every day, then downing iced drinks and cold beer — you may think you’re keeping cool. But, paradoxically, too much cold and watery food prevents your body from activating its best cooling system: perspiration.

Have some hot food or a spicy dish every once in a while. That will get your system revved up. And enjoy some grilled unagi for a classic Japanese energy boost at least once this summer — with or without umeboshi.
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Original article available here:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/life/2013/06/28/food/watch-your-summer-food-pairings/

Iyashirochi and Kegarechi

Have you heard about iyashiroshi and kegarechi? These are the words that distinguish where you would want to live from where you wouldn’t. The words have been used from about a thousand years ago, perhaps much earlier, as far back as the Jomon period. Iyashiroshi is the place where you feel relaxed, surrounded by alpha waves, where plants and crops are densely growing and houses are dry and long-lasting, and where there are no bad smells, things decay at a slow rate and have a long shelf life, and people are healthy.

Kegarechi, on the other hand, is the place where everything decays quickly due to a greater amount of humidity, which encourages molds and bad bacteria. Those who live in such places become unhealthy, prone to illness.

The shrines and temples in Japan were built in the realms of iyashiroshi, which were selected by the wisdom of people in ancient times. That’s why those buildings have survived through periods in which no one knew how to combat termites. Measuring ion density will tell you whether or not, scientifically, a piece of land is iyashirochi. There are more negative ions than positive ones in iyashiroshi. Actually, I measured the ion density in Yakushiji-temple in Nara in one September, on which the ambient temperature was 20℃ and the humidity was 50%. The ion counter indicated 1,000 negative ions and 500 positive ions.

However, even in iyashiroshi areas, pine trees near shrines and temples have been dying recently, which has become a problem all over Japan. Because of exposure to chemicals and acid rain in the past few decades, the environment of those areas has been oxidized; therefore, the trees have been losing antioxidative properties that they allegedly used to have. Pine needles, which contain a lot of antioxidants, have been dying as acid rain blocked pores, and the old, massive pine trees have also been dying because they absorb acid substance from the land.

Pine trees in shrines in the areas facing the Sea of Japan, such as Izumo-taisha, have experienced serious damage from exhaust fumes and acid rain originating in China. It is painful to see those pine trees treated with direct injections of nutrients; it looks as if they were sick patients. Antioxidant technologies restore those dying trees to life. One method of restoration consists of digging a hole 1 meter in diameter to a depth of 1.5 meters near the dying pine tree, then putting 150 kilograms of fine coal into the hole and covering it with soil. Negative ions (electrons) emitted from the coal will have an antioxidative effect on the pine tree. In this way, the pine tree will get its green back in a few months.

Another method, at Todaiji Temple and Miwa Shrine in Nara, has succeeded in preventing damage to old-growth pines by spraying EM (Effective Microorganisms) at the foot of the trees. It is said that in Mount Miwa, an aerial spraying of EM above the mountaintop made it possible to spread antioxidants throughout the mountain, bringing the area back to life every time it has rain.

Every year in February, in mountainous areas all over Japan, a huge amount of cedar pollen is dispersed into the air, as if in a sandstorm. Maybe this is because the whole environment has been oxidized; the cedar trees disperse more pollen than necessary to produce offspring, as well as to give a warning message that their life is at stake. If we read the message accurately and treat the trees by dispersing antioxidative microorganisms like EM from above the mountaintop, in an effort to cover the whole mountain, I suppose we can even control hay fever, which is thought to be uncontrollable.

In order to refresh the earth in the future, I think we must know science on a macro level; in other words, we must fully understand and put into practice a science based on complexity, rather than the conventional science with a simple matrix that has been only effective in the laboratory.

Top 5 Reasons to Eat (at Least) an Apple a Day

Beyond its fabulous flavor and perfect portability, this fruit packs major health benefits. Here, the lowdown on why you should be getting a daily dose

Posted on Good Housekeeping By Delia A. Hammock, M.S., R.D.
http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/health/nutrition/apple-health-benefits


Photo by Plush Studios/Getty

1. They’re Slow Food
Firm and packed with fiber (5 grams, or 20 percent of your daily value), they demand a chewing commitment, giving your body time to register itself “full” before you scarf down too many calories. And the natural sweeteners in apples enter the bloodstream gradually, helping keep your blood sugar and insulin levels steady so you feel full longer — the opposite of many sugary snacks, which produce a quick rush followed by a hunger-inducing crash.

2. They Help You Breathe Easy
Kids of women who ate the most apples while pregnant were less likely to wheeze or develop asthma by age 5, researchers from the United Kingdom found recently. The fruit may also protect the lungs of adults, lowering the risk of asthma, lung cancer, and other diseases.

3. They Zap Cholesterol
Thanks to two key components, pectin (a type of fiber) and polyphenols (powerful antioxidants), apples can take a bite out of blood cholesterol levels and prevent the oxidation of LDL (“bad”) cholesterol — the chemical process that turns it into artery-clogging plaque. The trick to maximizing the benefit: Don’t toss the peel; apple skin has two to six times the antioxidant compounds as the flesh.

4. They Fight Cancer
Lab studies have shown that several compounds in this juicy fruit curb the growth of cancer cells — but they’re most potent when the apple is eaten whole (minus the stem and seeds, of course). People who munch more than one a day lower their risk for several cancers (oral, esophageal, colon, breast, ovarian, prostate, and others) by 9 to 42 percent, Italian researchers found.

5. They Make You Smarter
Possibly because they boost the production of acetylcholine, a chemical that transmits messages between nerve cells, apples are now thought to keep your brain sharp as you age, enhance memory, and potentially lessen the odds of getting Alzheimer’s disease, suggests one recent animal study from the University of Massachusetts at Lowell. With this sort of nutritious nosh at your disposal, it might be time to rethink the idea of a “smart cookie.”

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“An apple a day keeps the doctor away.”
This is so true! Find more health benefits of apple here!
GoodHouseKeeping.com

University of Darma Persada ②

Students at my lecture were very attentive, had so many questions that designated time of 30 minutes passed away quickly. They got interested in my topic of the relationship of carbohydrates and blood sugar levels. Even though rice, bread, and sugar dissolved water have the same amount of calories, the level of blood sugar rises differently; the faster the calories are absorbed into the body, the steeper of a curb up-and-down indicating the level of blood sugar becomes. White and brown rice containing much fiber shows gentle curve. This means that it takes time to feel hungry and our concentration will be maintained for a longer time. Also, blood sugar level maintaining a gentle curve means less insulin is used and one is less likely to become diabetes.

However, the excessive insulin sometimes leads to ineffectiveness of insulin, resulting into becoming diabetes in the end. In fact, this is the most serious health problem in Indonesia and I was questioned about it a lot. Nearly 90% of the population is in the Islam religion in this country. People do not drink alcohol; instead, they drink juice or tea with a considerable amount of sugar. Indonesia imports a large quantity of sugar. This also affects children because they drink sweet tea customarily from childhood. In the end, child diabetes have been in increase year after year.

Currently in Indonesia, GDP have achieved an economic growth over 6% annually. More and more people have shifted classes from low to middle. The growth rate of an average salary by the end of last year was 40%. Such rapid economic growth tends to connect directly to a trend in which junk foods are treated like fashion. This is also an indication that obesity and diabetes will increase as well. I strongly emphasized this point. High growth of economy usually set a passionate target toward investing into education for children in the populace. Children will eventually lose the opportunity to play around like they used to do. They will soon be obsessed with a handy video game that they play between classes. This may lead to increase the number of obese children. It was so impressive that I saw signboards of KUMON many places in Jakarta and Bali.

Students asked questions very actively. They were very curious about many things. I think this is what is lacking in Japanese college students. I had a thought that such pro-Japanese young Indonesian people would join in companies or educational facilities related to Japan in the future and provide us vigor and smile.

President Oroan has announced and started a new curriculum that all students are required to master English and Japanese in 2 years. Students in junior and senior years must take at least 2 classes of their specialized courses in foreign languages. Each term exams are of course in those languages and without passing the exams, they cannot graduate. This curriculum is to keep students at the forefront of globalizations. If this applies in Japanese universities, students will be required to master English and Chinese and take classes of their major fields in foreign languages before graduation.

There will be the times that we need to be able to survive through such severe circumstances if we want to work at the front line in the future societies. In Australia, the Japanese language is now a compulsory subject from elementary to high school. I am sure University of Darma Persada has a lot to offer Japanese universities to learn.