Seeds of Health
These smooth little seeds may not look like much, but eating them could give your heart the health boost it needs, as well as provide many other advantages for wellness.
How Flaxseed Helps Your Health
If you’re worried about your heart health, the plant-version omega-3 fatty acids found in flaxseed have been shown to help keep your arteries from becoming hardened or clogged. It may also help correct an irregular heartbeat and reduce cholesterol levels.
Flaxseed can also act as an anti-inflammatory agent, helping relieve symptoms of conditions like arthritis. The one-two punch of omega 3s and lignans, an antioxidant, work together to block inflammation.
Studies suggest that the omega-3s and lignans in flaxseed can help combat various types of cancer, especially breast cancer if taken during adolescence.
Additionally, this wonderful seed is famed for containing both soluble and insoluble fiber. The insoluble kind will help significantly with relieving constipation and promoting digestive health. The insoluble kind will fight high cholesterol and high blood sugar.
Facts About Eating Flaxseed
You’ll find it ground in your local supermarket. You can sprinkle it into blended drinks, cereal or yogurt. Or, you can use it when baking bread.
Ground seed is more potent than whole or oil. Your body can’t digest whole flaxseed very well, and the oil isn’t made from the entire grain. But, if you’re planning to buy in bulk, whole seed will stay fresh longer. You can always grind the seeds yourself.
If you don’t have time to creatively incorporate it into your diet, supplements are the way to go. Just be sure to check the label for ground seed, not oil.
Kelp
Greens of the Sea
Kelp and other types of seaweed are the greens of the sea. But instead of absorbing nutrients in the air and soil, they absorb all the nutrients of the ocean. It is known for being laden with a variety minerals, and the health benefits will surprise you.
How Kelp Helps Your Health
Kelp contains more trace minerals than any other natural source. We only need trace minerals in small amounts, but they are essential to overall health. Many of us are not getting enough of these trace minerals because our diets lack variety.
The most important mineral that kelp contains is iodine. By getting adequate iodine, you can improve your thyroid function, which helps to control your metabolism and gives you more energy.
Kelp is also a great source of vitamin K, and it can also help regulate your body’s pH balance, or alkalinity, making you feel more energetic.
Alginic acids in kelp can help detoxify your body by binding to unwanted substances in your intestine and carrying them out. By the same token, it can also aid digestion by getting rid of toxins in your gut.
You Don’t Have to Eat It Raw
If you squirm at the idea of consuming a slimy sea vegetable, have no fear. One of the most popular ways to consume kelp is in the form of flakes that you can sprinkle on your food or boil to make tea. A small amount can yield big benefits.
And, of course, you can get you daily dose of kelp via dietary supplements. If the supplement is made with California kelp, opt for a different one because California kelp doesn’t have as much nutritional value as the other types, such as Nova Scotia or Norwegian kelp.
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