health | DEALSTR

The Role of Antioxidants in Anti-Aging, Skin Health and Heart Health

February 1, 2022 Comments Off

Antioxidants are helpful substances that stem the damage done by free radical molecules. These oxygen molecules are unstable. They have unpaired electrons and will steal electrons from other molecules. This will cause damage even to a cell’s DNA. This sort of injury contributes to aging and other disorders. Often, the aging caused by free radicals shows up in the skin in the form of dryness, wrinkles and age spots. Antioxidants work by giving up an electron to the free radical molecule.
Antioxidants for combating aging and maintaining healthy skin
Vitamin A
Vitamin A is also an antioxidant. Vitamin A is fat soluble, and it’s possible to take too much of it and overdose. The best way to get Vitamin A is to take it as beta carotene. Beta carotene is converted to Vitamin A in the body. People don’t overdose on Vitamin A when they take it in the beta carotene form, because the vitamin is produced when it’s needed.
Vitamin A is also a chief ingredient in drugs like tretinoin and retinoic acid which are very helpful in treating skin conditions like psoriasis and acne. The one caveat about these medications is that pregnant women or women who want to become pregnant shouldn’t use them. They’ve been implicated in birth defects.
Beta carotene is found in fruits and vegetables, especially deeply colored vegetables like carrots, butternut squash, spinach and beet greens. Vitamin A can be found in fish liver oil, milk and meat.
Vitamin C
The chief job of this antioxidant is to help the body make collagen. Collagen serves as a mattress under the layers of skin and helps keep it juicy and elastic. Vitamin C is abundant in citrus fruit and green leafy vegetables. Because it’s water soluble, the body only uses as much as it needs and excretes the rest.
Vitamin E
Most people never have to worry about a deficiency of Vitamin E, since it’s found in most normal diets. However, it’s especially abundant in vegetable and corn oil, margarine, mayonnaise, whole grains, spinach and wheat germ.
Vitamin E has been shown to help counter premature aging in skin, especially if it’s used topically. This is because it helps the body replace old cells with new ones on the top layers of the skin. It also helps heal burns, skin ulcers, abrasions and old acne scars.
Antioxidants for a healthy heart
Heart health is always something that people should be considering, especially as they begin to reach an age beyond 30. This is something that usually coincides with better dietary choices and more healthy practices that can alleviate unnecessary stress placed on the heart to perform its job correctly. However, this might not always be enough to truly give your heart what it needs to perform to the best of its ability.
Antioxidants are instrumental in the body functioning as it should, better put, they are key in the body running optimally. However, it can sometimes be challenging to know which antioxidants can specifically help your heart to perform better, and not just things like your immune system, which most antioxidants are beneficial towards. So with this in mind, there are a few key antioxidants that are very good for your heart, and some simple ways to introduce these into your everyday diet.
Vitamin C is often considered as the leading immune system builder, but it also contains active antioxidants that are key in deterring cardiovascular health concerns. Considering the widespread nature of this vitamin, you can eat a lot of different things to get your daily recommended values. Citrus fruits, berries, dark leafy vegetables, kiwi and cantaloupe are all good sources to get these antioxidants into your system.
Beta carotene is something that the jury is still undecided on. For the studies that have been performed on it, there were cases where people could significantly benefit from it while others showed little response. This is when it was taken apart from supplements, as in this form it is often discouraged by medical professionals. Good sources of beta carotene are red, orange, and yellow vegetables and fruits. Some examples of these would be sweet potatoes, carrots, yellow peppers, and apricots.
Selenium is responsible also for releasing antioxidants to fight free radicals in your body. These free radicals are often responsible for many detrimental conditions including heart disease and other similar cardiovascular concerns. Oatmeal, chicken, garlic, seafood and many vegetables are packed with selenium.
These are a few antioxidant options that can help you towards reaching a healthier heart. Remember, supplements and multivitamins are not treatments for these conditions but can be taken to supplement a healthy diet and exercise regimen.…

Do Your Hair and Your Health a Favor, Use a Natural Shampoo

October 15, 2021 Comments Off

Although I have been using natural skin care products for many years, I have never worried too much about personal care products such as natural shampoo or natural soap that you put on and wash off straight away. I have always believed that if a product does not stay on the skin for any length of time then the risk of absorbing dangerous chemicals form that product is probably minimal.
That was until a few years ago when I found out more about the skin and its ability to absorb certain molecules instantly. In fact the skin can absorb substances within a few seconds and while you’re rubbing that gorgeous smelling shampoo into your scalp, your skin may be absorbing several chemicals you really do not want in your body.
Why do manufacturers put these chemicals into shampoos and other personal care products? There are several reasons including to make them smell nice, to preserve them so they last longer and, in the case of shampoos, to make them foam up well so that they appear to be doing a good job of cleansing your hair.
We’ll look at the two worst chemical ingredients in a typical store bought shampoo. They are Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES). Of course there are others, but this pair are potentially the most damaging to your skin and your health.
Both SLS and SLES are put into personal care products to make foam which cleans any surface it is applied to, whether it is a car engine, a garage floor or your hair and scalp. The problem is that both of these are known skin irritants which can mix with other ingredients and form deadly cancer causing dioxins and nitrates in the shampoo bottle itself. They can then be absorbed quickly through the pores of your scalp and then into your bloodstream. From there they can travel to the organs where they will stay, because these chemicals are notoriously hard to remove from the body.
SLS and SLES also cause trouble even before they are absorbed through the skin in the form of scalp irritation and even hair loss. Hair loss is really not what you are looking for in a shampoo!
So why don’t more people use a natural shampoo? Well mainly because they are not aware of the potential damage store bought shampoos can cause, and also because natural hair care had the reputation of being hard to lather and to rinse out. This has since been addressed and natural hair care can deliver the same or better results than its chemical equivalent.
Lastly a word of warning – beware of shampoos at health stores. A lot of these contain Sodium Laureth Sulphate called by another name. Always read the label carefully or use a reputable online store which sells a genuine natural shampoo instead.…

Vitamin D For Greater Health

September 8, 2021 Comments Off

Vitamin D is extremely important for a healthy body. It regulates the levels of calcium in the bloodstream, and assists in the absorption of calcium into the bones. It has even been found to help with the immune system by promoting the function of the cells that kill infections in the body.
Strong bones are an obvious necessity. Not only do they protect the vital organs against impacts, they make moving around possible. One might counter this statement by pointing out that a beak is the only bone an octopus has, but this is an invalid argument: an octopus can only get about because he is underwater. Out of water, nothing can accomplish anything unless it has a rigid frame to rely upon.
The calcium levels in the bloodstream have a somewhat less obvious value. This has largely to do with keeping calcium levels within a safe limit. However, it also provides an immediate supply for supporting killer-T cells and their cousins who target various pathogens in the body. Vitamin D has been found to increase the production of natural antibiotics produced by the body to fight infection.
Vitamin D has also been tied to a reduction in the risks of heart disease and all around mortality. Some of the more generic methods of death may only be connected co-incidentally, but the fact of health support can make that connection less obvious but no less certain. Having poor health in one area, while not itself a deadly problem, can leave one less able to deal with life threatening dangers in other areas.…

Do Your Hair and Your Health a Favor, Use a Natural Shampoo

May 13, 2021 Comments Off

Although I have been using natural skin care products for many years, I have never worried too much about personal care products such as natural shampoo or natural soap that you put on and wash off straight away. I have always believed that if a product does not stay on the skin for any length of time then the risk of absorbing dangerous chemicals form that product is probably minimal.
That was until a few years ago when I found out more about the skin and its ability to absorb certain molecules instantly. In fact the skin can absorb substances within a few seconds and while you’re rubbing that gorgeous smelling shampoo into your scalp, your skin may be absorbing several chemicals you really do not want in your body.
Why do manufacturers put these chemicals into shampoos and other personal care products? There are several reasons including to make them smell nice, to preserve them so they last longer and, in the case of shampoos, to make them foam up well so that they appear to be doing a good job of cleansing your hair.
We’ll look at the two worst chemical ingredients in a typical store bought shampoo. They are Sodium Lauryl Sulfate (SLS) and Sodium Laureth Sulfate (SLES). Of course there are others, but this pair are potentially the most damaging to your skin and your health.
Both SLS and SLES are put into personal care products to make foam which cleans any surface it is applied to, whether it is a car engine, a garage floor or your hair and scalp. The problem is that both of these are known skin irritants which can mix with other ingredients and form deadly cancer causing dioxins and nitrates in the shampoo bottle itself. They can then be absorbed quickly through the pores of your scalp and then into your bloodstream. From there they can travel to the organs where they will stay, because these chemicals are notoriously hard to remove from the body.
SLS and SLES also cause trouble even before they are absorbed through the skin in the form of scalp irritation and even hair loss. Hair loss is really not what you are looking for in a shampoo!
So why don’t more people use a natural shampoo? Well mainly because they are not aware of the potential damage store bought shampoos can cause, and also because natural hair care had the reputation of being hard to lather and to rinse out. This has since been addressed and natural hair care can deliver the same or better results than its chemical equivalent.
Lastly a word of warning – beware of shampoos at health stores. A lot of these contain Sodium Laureth Sulphate called by another name. Always read the label carefully or use a reputable online store which sells a genuine natural shampoo instead.…

Health and Vitality for People With Diabetes – Vitamin Supplements

March 19, 2021 Comments Off

Our bodies need the proper fuel in order to function at optimal levels. For the diabetic, this is more important since there is an imbalance present that threatens health and vitality. For any individual, a healthy well-rounded diet is the foundation When diabetes is present, this becomes even more important, as does the need to learn which foods to eat and when.
It is well known that no single food provides “all the nutrients in the amount that you need” (The 2000 Dietary Guidelines for Americans) and the meats, dairy and grain products, and many fruits and vegetables in today’s daily diet will not be adequate sources of vitamins and minerals. These are the substances found naturally in plants and animal foods that are essential in minute quantities for the normal growth and activity of the human body..
Vitamins are highly beneficial diabetes supplies. For added protection against the risks which go hand in hand with diabetes, people who live with unstable blood glucose levels may want to consider a range of supplements including vitamins to best complement their diet.
A pair of supplements that encourage health and vitality are vitamins C and E. Each of these vitamins is considered an antioxidant, a substance involved in the prevention of cellular damage caused by free radical formation. Free radicals are present in the environment thanks to pollution, ultraviolet light, X rays, cigarette smoke and even the body’s own metabolism. A diabetic patient may be prone to such damage – there is a higher risk for health concerns such as premature aging, nerve diseases, heart disease and cancer. Both these antioxidants are believed to play a role in disease prevention. Supplementing a diabetic diet with antioxidants is certainly worth discussion with your personal clinician and Health Care team.
Studies have revealed that supplementation results in an improvement in blood glucose levels and also in cholesterol and triglyceride levels. The introduction of any supplement into the diabetic diet should always be with the knowledge of the patient’s personal physician and health care team and he or she will likely be prescribed a limited/maximum dose mg per day in order to avoid any adverse side effects such as an upset stomach or kidney stones.
Vitamin C is already well known to have a substantial beneficial impact on human health. It can help healing, and boosts the immune system, increasing protection against colds and viruses.. It assists the absorption of iron from green vegetables. People with diabetes tend to have lower levels of vitamin C. Vitamin C, also known as ascorbic acid, is a water soluble vitamin found in citrus fruits and juices, strawberries, kiwifruit, cantaloupe, pineapple, tomatoes and fresh green vegetables such as kale, broccoli, spinach, cabbage, and green peppers.
Vitamin C helps keep Vitamin E in active form.
Water soluble vitamins don’t stay around in the body, they travel in cellular fluid and the bloodstream and what is not used immediately is excreted. So they need replacing often.
Vitamin E is fat soluble antioxidant and will be stored in the body until it is needed. The long term benefits of Vitamin E supplementation are not proven and less is known about its role in disease prevention. Evidence from studies in the last decade supports the belief that daily dosages of Vitamin E supplements improve insulin resistance in overweight adults who also have low levels of antioxidants and so delays the onset of Type 2 diabetes. Studies continue to explore the belief that vitamin E supplements help in the prevention of heart disease, cancer and the optimal health of kidneys and eyes.
Current recommendations are that the diabetic should take no more than a small dosage of vitamin E per day but at this level the antioxidant function may not be so effective. Further research on vitamin E supplements is ongoing, and for this reason alone the health care team or the patient’s clinician must be involved in determining the right dosage for each patient with diabetes..
Learning to manage diabetes takes time, discipline, the right fuel and information. Supplement the daily diet and those diabetes supplies with the vitamins that bolster health and vitality!…