10 Healthy Foods for Less #4

Berries of any type are good healthy foods. Look for those in season and locally grown. If they are in season, often time stores will have a big sale on them and you can buy extras and freeze them for later use.

Berries are rich in antioxidants and can be added to things like salads or be made a dessert in and of themselves. You can use them in smoothies which just adds to the nutrient value of the smoothie.

Berries contain lutein, and a substance which can help decrease the risk of bladder infections. They make a great dessert and are very healthy for you.Heal

10 Healthy Foods for Less #3

One of my favorite healthy foods is spinach because of the variety of ways in which it can be used. Again, locally grown in season is best and usually the least expensive. This food is really a nutritional powerhouse.

Spinach is rich in antioxidants and is a real boost to your immune system. One cup of it raw is one serving. You can use it in salads, sandwiches, eggs, soups, or other side dishes.

Spinach is rich in iron, carotenoids, lutein, bioflavanoids, calcium, folic acid, Vitamin K, fiber and Vitamin C. The lutein specifically targets eye health. You can read more about lutein by going to the other posts about lutein in this blog.

Eggs - Should I Just Eat The Whites?

I mentioned before that eggs have gotten a bad rap for many years and many reasons. Again, you want to read those labels because you're looking for free range chickens to be laying the eggs that you eat. The whites are the best part, however, you should also know the benefits of the yolks and there is one very specific one.

The yolk of the egg contains lutein and xeazanthin both of which are important for eye health and helping to prevent macular degeneration. But both of these need fats to be absorbed and that is also contained in the yolk of the egg. There is another reason to eat the yolk. It also contains phosphatidylcholine which is an important nutrient for good brain health.

Eggs - Good Food

Eggs contain many nutrients that can helps us be healthier. They are an excellent source of Vitamin B12 and also the antioxidant lutein. Lutein is very important in terms of our eye health.

The hype has always been that eggs are have too much cholesterol in them. Here is the facts from research. The effects of the cholesterol in 1 large egg eaten daily has shown to have no effect on the person developing heart disease.

The other things about eggs is to look at the free range eggs, which includes a diet of natural nutrients for the chickens, as well as meal which is enhance to provide more Omega 3. These can actually be very beneficial for the heart healthy or for someone who already has heart disease.

Popeye Had It Right, Spinach Is Good for You

Yes, spinach is a super food. It contains powerful antioxidants which can help our bodies be healthy in many ways, not the least of which is to prevent many medical problems. Some of the nutrients in spinach are choline and inositol. These substances help prevent thickening of the arterial walls (atherosclerosis), thereby helping to control or decrease heart disease.

Spinach also contains lutein which is a powerful antioxidant that helps prevent cataracts and age related macular degeneration (the leading cause of blindness in people over age 65). And while we're speaking of those over 65, spinach is also an excellent source of fiber. Much better than taking metamucil every day, try spinach either cooked or raw. Not only will you get the benefits of the fiber, but also all of the vitamins and minerals spinach contains.

While it is a good source of calcium, most of the calcium is not available for our bodies to absorb. The oxalic acid in spinach combines with the calcium rendering it unavailable for absorption by our body.