Natural Health Foods

Colloidal Silver is actually the tiniest type of biological matter out there. This type of natural health food has a lot of benefits. Some benefits of its small size allow this mineral to be unaffected by digestive enzymes in the body. This attribute alone allows for a very effective and potent dose every time. The silver particles bypass the digestive system and go right to work in the body to boost immune system functions and aid the bodies fight against germs and bacteria.

The way that colloidal silver does benefit your body is by eliminated disease causing organisms and bacteria. This is done by destroying the enzyme that bacteria, fungi, and viruses. Because of this attribute, these silver particles are the perfect antibiotic for all ages. This great liquid mineral is the perfect way to enhance the bodies natural defenses.

Another way that colloidal silver works is by using the negative charges of silver to cling to the positive charges on bacteria and germs. This stops bacteria from being able to reproduce. This affect reduces sickness and helps aid people who suffer from sickness and want a natural antibiotic. This natural health food mineral is researched to be able to kill over 650 micro-organisms.

Keep in mind colloidal silver is not able to cure disease but it does help in people who are suffering from acne, AIDS, allergies, arthritis, athletes foot, boils, burns, candida, cystitis, diabetes, eczema, hay fever, indigestion, parasitic infections, psoriasis, ringworm, warts, and yeast infections. These are just a few of the many things that this liquid silver can help you with.

You should realize the actual difference between organic foods in natural health food stores compared to products grown traditionally in farms. This is important because of the aspects of nourishment and safety of consumers as well as cost factors. The benefit for users is that organic food can now be purchased in big supermarkets. What should be your basis in selecting the above-mentioned products?

Organic versus Conventional Goods

The first difference is produce grown in the traditional procedure is more affordable than their organic counterparts. Is it safer or more wholesome? Check the facts before you buy. The terminology "organic" refers to the technique used by farmers in raising and processing agricultural commodities like fruits, veggies, grains, dairy goods and meat. Organic farming practices are becoming more popular to promote soil and water conservation as well as reduce pollution. Farmers, who cultivate organic crop and meat, refrain from using standard methodologies to fertilize, manage weeds or avert livestock disease. These organic employ advanced crop rotations and apply manure to keep weeds from harming plants.

Consumers are urged to check labels and read instructions before making purchases. The Department of Agriculture has institutionalized an organic certification system that mandates all organic foods to adhere to stringent government standards. These benchmarks regulate the growth, processing and handling of such products.

Certification of the DA is Important

All products classified as organic must be certified by the Department of Agriculture. However, producers who sell below the prescribed amount of $5,000 annually are considered exempt from this certification but required to follow the standards for organic commodities. If an item carries the organic seal, it indicates that the same has been produced and processed according to the department's standards.

Products that are entirely organic like fruits, vegetables and eggs or other goodies with just one ingredient are marked 100 percent organic and sport the USDA seal. On the other hand, those with several ingredients such as cereals can use the organic seal together with the description; depending on the number of organic ingredients.

Is organic food being sold in natural health food stores more nutritious? Previous studies analyzed scientific articles that came out in the last 50 years. The goal was to study the nutrient content of both organic and conventional products. The researchers concluded that these foodstuffs are analogous in their nutrient content although research is still continuing. Many factors affect the decision of consumers to opt for organic food. These are the flavor and presence of pesticides. Traditional farmers use insect killers to shield their crops from molds, diseases and insects. When farmers spray chemicals, this can leave dregs on produce. Organic crops have lesser residue and thereby regarded as less hazardous.

There are also no food preservatives in this kind of food. Organic policies control the use of additives, processing implements not added directly to food and fortifying chemicals often used in nonorganic foods. These are preservatives, non-natural sweeteners, colorings and monosodium glutamate. Some consumers pick out organic food for environmental reasons. These farming practices are meant to benefit the environment by reducing pollution and saving water.

Let us take a trip to a land where six mountain ranges meet in awesome silence. It is just 18 miles from Russia's southern border at the northern tip of Pakistan; this land, a forbidden Shangri-la is snug between rocky ramparts and peaks that reach close to 20,000 feet up into the sky. This exciting land is known is Hunza - just one mile wide and about 60 miles long. Yet here you will find the much sought after Fountain of Youth.

No, it is not a bubbling spring as Ponce de Leon thought it would be. Rather, this "fountain" consists of natural foods. But the methods may fulfill the dreams of a legendary Fountain of Youth. In Hunza, a few arable acres of land have been able to sustain its tiny population of 25,000 for nearly 2,000 years - completely free from disease!

Here is what natural health foods and natural living have done for these people:

1. Men live to be over 90. Many men become fathers when they are well up in their 60's and even 70's.

2. Some of the Hunzukuts are about 120 years of age and look no more than 60 or 70. They are not only in advanced years but are able to do the work of a youngster! For example, one Hunza mail of 73 was reported to be carrying load of 65 pounds or more on his back while traversing tortuous mountain trails for a three-day journey. His secret --- natural health foods.

3. The Hunzukuts have never suffered from such diseases as mumps, measles, chicken pox. They know nothing about high blood pressure, heart disease, arteriosclerosis, apoplexy, cancer, and impaired hearing or eyesight.

4. Oldsters up to 80 have perfect vision!

5. They enjoy peace of mind, knowing nothing of hatred, greed, envy, jealousy, or crime. Juvenile delinquency has never been heard of. Their water is pure and brimming with minerals. It has long been noted that minerals nourish one's personality and can even prevent mental derangement. My previous book on minerals has the complete story.

Experts agree that perfect pregnancy nutrition is best achieved when the mother consumes whole foods containing nutrients such as calcium and folic acid from fruits and vegetables. It is not that easy for expectant mothers to get enough folic acid or calcium from whole food sources every day, so a health food vitamin or calcium supplement may be needed. When choosing the proper supplement it is important to understand the difference between natural health food vitamins for pregnancy nutrition and isolated multi-vitamins.

When searching for the best pregnancy nutrition, be aware that it is better to consume vitamins, minerals and other nutrients that are attached to whole foods, not isolated. Whole food nutrients are much easier for the body to absorb, whereas isolated vitamins and minerals are often flushed out before the body can break them down to use for fuel. There are some excellent all natural, low carb, high fiber foods that provide perfect pregnancy nutrition, but you will need to search the Internet. Many of the best concentrated formulas are not sold in typical grocery stores or even health food stores.

First, it is important to know some of the most valuable elements of perfect pregnancy nutrition.

Here are the essential minerals that a pregnant woman needs on a daily basis:

* calcium

* protein

* phosphorus

* potassium

* folic acid (folate) Folic acid is the synthetic form of folate that is found in supplements

* Vitamins A, D, C, E and the entire B complex.

It is a nutrition fact that calcium is an important mineral for everyone, especially children, adolescents, nursing mothers and expectant mothers who need perfect pregnancy nutrition. It is not easy for all pregnant mothers to consume enough calcium every day without a health food vitamin or calcium supplement of some kind. It is especially challenging to get enough calcium from whole foods, like fruits and vegetables.

Some of the more familiar sources of calcium in whole foods are:

* Broccoli

* Yogurt

* Cheese

* Milk

* Beans

Dandelion is a natural source of calcium from whole food and alfalfa has a high level of calcium with natural enzymes and chlorophyll, but these are a little harder to include in a daily diet for proper pregnancy nutrition. However, you can find a concentrated whole food calcium supplement that includes dandelion and alfalfa along with other whole food calcium sources.

If you are inclined to take a calcium supplement, not only is it important for proper pregnancy nutrition that the calcium originates from whole food sources, it is equally important that Vitamin D2 is present. Vitamin D2 is crucial to aid the body in absorbing calcium. Vitamin D2 is a necessary component to work with the calcium for improved bone strength and density. In one particular natural whole food calcium supplement, 3 types of calcium are included with different absorption characteristics, and Vitamin D2 is present to enhance the absorption of calcium.

Folate, also called Folic Acid and Vitamin B9 is another essential nutrient for perfect pregnancy nutrition. Folic acid is a B vitamin that helps the body create healthy new cells. That is why folate is very important for pregnancy nutrition as hopeful mothers create new life. Moms who include sufficient folic acid in their diets are taking positive steps toward preventing birth defects, especially of the baby's brain or spine.

Everyone has heard the stories about pregnant women who can't control their mood swings. Plenty of medical research points to a deficiency of folic acid for fostering depression and other psychiatric disorders. In the book, "Food, Your Miracle Medicine" (Copyright 1993), Jean Carper states, "That folic acid can act as an antidepressant is no secret among scientists". The book goes on to point out McGill University's Dr. Young found, "accumulating evidence that folic acid deficiency can contribute to depressed mood", and that eliminating the deficiency often cures the depression.

For proper pregnancy nutrition, a woman needs about 800 mcg of folic acid daily. Nursing mothers can back that down to about 500 mcg. This level may not be easy for some to reach, as it requires up to six servings of foods such as spinach, beans or asparagus, every day. If a pregnant woman is not getting enough folate from whole foods, then a natural health food vitamin should be investigated.

People always look for quality products. When it comes to food, the choice is a variety of nourishing items and what is popularly known as natural dietary supplements. Natural health food stores have proliferated and are selling food products free from gluten (protein found in wheat); weight-loss solutions; supplements; vitamins; baby-care items; and other supposedly organic products.

Popularity of "Natural" Health Food

The reputation of natural health foods has grown rapidly as more people are becoming more receptive to foods with nourishing substances needed by people to sustain their dynamic lifestyles and healthy. This development underscores the importance of good nourishment and the probable detrimental effects of unhealthy food intake and non-natural ingredients.

A consumer reports survey in 2010 pointed out that 90% of American people are convinced that the food they consume are healthy; nearly 60 percent are obese; and, another 65 percent fail to eat the necessary five portions of fruits and vegetables daily. Manufacturers and dealers of natural food have taken advantage of these conditions to further promote their products. At least, these natural foods are much better than what millions of Americans love to eat - junk food. Being organic, health foods contain little or no chemical additions. Most of this organic fare contains low cholesterol and saturated fats.

If you consume healthy foods from natural health food stores, which have low fat content, your craving for hunger goes down as well because you will obtain all nourishing substances from less food eventually. It is also a fact that by eating nutritious food, there will be changes in your mental faculties. You will learn to eat healthier food and lose more weight.

Reasons to Buy Natural or Organic Food

When you purchase organic products from natural health food stores, you will find out that these meet rigorous standards. In other words, this organic certification proves that these products have been grown without toxic chemical inputs. If a product has been certified organic by Quality Assurance International, you can be assured that the product, its ingredients and the manufacturer has passed through an extensive scrutiny.

Beside, organic food tastes very well. In a recent academic study, researchers gauged the effects of an organic and integrated apple production system on the sustainability values of horticultural performance, soil quality, orchard productivity, environmental attributes and energy efficiency. Taste was measured in three ways. Fruit firmness during harvest and after a storage period of half a year was higher for organic products. Aside from these, organic farms respect water sources which mean that pollutants are eliminated and protect water resources. This kind of farming minimizes toxic farming overflow and poisonous waste that infect water, soil and air. Organic farmers have been at the forefront of the campaign in introducing innovative farming research meant to reduce the use of pesticides and cushion the impact of agriculture on the environment. Thus, organic farming works for the environment and enterprise. It is more energy efficient and makes delectable produce compared to the yields of traditional farming methods.