Fighting Cancer With Green Tea

green-teaWe’ve all seen the ads. We’ve all been exposed to the marketing (mumbo jumbo), and by now we should all know of the many health benefits of drinking green tea. But did we know that it could slow the development and onset of prostate cancer? According to a study published in the journal of the American Association for Cancer Research, men with prostate cancer who consumed the active compounds in green tea demonstrated a significant reduction in serum markers associated with the progression of prostate cancer.

So considering green tea is the world’s second most popular drink (any guesses as to what drink is the most popular?), this is good news right? Well…yes and no. Read more

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Sweet Substitutes: The Alternatives To Sugar

sugarSugar. It’s sweet, tasty, and everywhere. It occurs naturally in many foods, and is often added to processed foods, in a variety of forms. Unfortunately, too much sugar can contribute to many health problems: tooth decay, obesity, and related medical conditions such as diabetes and heart disease. Artificial sugar substitutes are often added to foods to replicate the sweetness of sugar, without the added energy or calories. Most are suitable for people with diabetes or hypoglycemia, and are usually much friendlier to your teeth.

However, artificial sweeteners have been the subject of much controversy. Some people claim they have experienced negative health effects after consuming sweeteners, while others question the political motives behind the approval process and labeling protocols for each additive. Many dietitians recommend you avoid some artificial sweeteners, or that you avoid large amounts of sugar substitutes at any one time. (Larsen – Ask the dietitian, 2009)

Before you can decide which additives you want to consume or avoid, you need to know some basic facts about each sugar substitute. Read more

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Sweeteners Exposed: Aspartame

picturesAlternative names: E-951, APM, sweetener (951), market names (e.g. Equal, NutraSweet, Canderel).

Use in food: Aspartame is an artificial sweetener, often used to replace sugar in food and drinks. About 180 times sweeter than sugar, aspartame only needs to be added in very small amounts to obtain desired sweetness. Its taste is only similar to the sweetness of sugar, and is often blended with other sweeteners (e.g. acesulfame potassium or saccharin) to achieve a more “sugar-y” taste.

As it is non-carbohydrate based and only used in very small amounts, aspartame contributes very few calories to food, and is mainly used in “diet” products. These include many carbonated soda drinks (diet and non-diet), ice cream, yogurts, cereals, chewing gum/ breath mints, ice teas, juices, instant milk drinks, confectionery, pharmaceutical drugs, vitamin supplements and as tabletop sweeteners for tea and coffee. (Aspartame information centre, 2006) Read more

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Top 10 Food Facts – May Week 1

istock_000005323967smallHello foodessentialists!

One of the most powerful attributes of the FoodEssential database is the ability to produce nutritional comparison lists of ‘actual’ branded products that can be found in local supermarket – Enabling one to compare brands at a glance, and choose the most suited product to their dietary requirements. Whether you are counting calories, topping up on protein or simply trying to avoid products that contain artificial or controversial ingredients like artificial colors yellow 5 and 6 or even aspartame and sodium benzoate, the Top 10 Food Facts is where it’s at!

This week we place the magnifying glass over hot dogs, brats, candy and canned salmon, comparing them for HFCS, calories, protein, MSG, saturated fat, plus much, much more – Enjoy! Read more

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