Top 10 Super-Foods

Welcome to this site dedicated to helping you live a healthier, happier and disease-free life!

Super foods are healthy foods that are low in calories, but extremely high in nutrients and anti-oxidants. Superfoods are guaranteed to improve your health and nutrition. Super Foods are produced by nature, and if eaten regularly will keep your body working like it should. Rules for super-foods vary, but a general rule of thumb is that the darker in color something is, the better is it for you (think blueberries, or spinach). It really is easy and delicious to eat well!

Blueberries are not only delicious, but they are also full of antioxidants and phytoflavinoids, potassium and vitamin C. They can lower your risk of heart disease and cancer, as well as being anti-inflammatory. Inflammation is a cause of all chronic diseases, so reducing by choosing foods high in anti-oxidants is the key to your health. The more color a food has, the more health benefit for you.

Fresh, frozen and dried are all equally good, but be wary of added sugar. Always read the labels.

I add blueberries to muffins, pancakes or waffles. So delicious! Or, heat up some berries in the microwave or stove-top with a small dash of sugar for a healthy pancake, waffle, or Sponge Cake topping. Of course, mixing them in a fruit salad is probably the best thing you can do for your health!

We all hear those stories of people from China or Japan who are over 100 years old and when they are interviewed about their secret for living so long, often give credit to drinking green tea everyday. It's convinced me enough to start drinking a pot every morning. It's not only healthy, but also delicious, once you get used to the taste. Give it a try for a week, and I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

Black and green tea both contain anti-oxidants, but green tea does have a special one, ECGC that black tea doesn't. ECGC has been shown to inhibit cancer cell growth. Anti-oxidants are powerful disease inhibitors. Also, drinking green tea has been shown to reduce cholesterol, a major factor in preventing heart disease. Another benefit of green tea over black is that you usually drink green tea minus the sugar and milk which goes along with black teas.

Just drink a glass of green tea straight up, hot, or make a big pot and put it in the fridge to cool. Serve it over ice for a nice summer-time, calorie-free treat. You can also add it to smoothies instead of water or milk. Be careful when you're brewing to not use boiling water, as this kills some of the valuable properties of the tea. Instead, brew your tea at 80 or 90 degrees Celsius instead.

Plain yogurt has a natural tart taste that is perfect to balance the sweetness of berries, bananas, or breakfast cereal. It has lots of protein, potassium, calcium, zinc, and vitamins B-6 and B-12. It also helps keep your body in balance by providing it with good bacteria in your digestive system.

Eat it in place of milk on your cereal. Or, put some on top of fruit salad with granola. You can also use it to replace some of the oil or butter when you're baking.

You can buy plain yogurt from the store, which is full of sugar so it's better to make your own. The yogurt maker that I use is below.

Kiwis are a very nutritionally dense fruits, full of antioxidants, which help prevent disease and cancer. One large kiwi supplies your daily requirement for vitamin C, as well as being a good source of potassium, fiber, and a source of Vitamin A and E.

They are delicious eaten alone, or in a fruit salad. Or, slice them up on a green salad.

Deep red vegetables are packed with cancer fighting carotenoids. They are also rich in fiber; B-vitamins; vitamin A, Vitamin C and Vitamin E; and copper.

You can roast or microwave them in the oven. Peel, and eat. Or, you can mash with some butter, milk, salt and pepper in place of white potatoes. There are also plenty of salad recipes that use sweet potatoes. Look online for some ideas, or check out the cookbook below for even more.

Berries have an amazing amount of antioxidants, phytonutrients, and fiber, as well as being low in calories. Raspberries and blackberries are delicious in fruit salad, or in baked goods, waffles or pancakes. You can also eat them just by themselves as an amazing snack.

And, did you know that it's very easy to grow your own? When I was a kid, my parents planted some raspberry bushes in our backyard. It started small, with a few berries harvested the first couple summers, but after 5 years or so, they expanded so much that we had more berries than we knew what to do with. Organic, delicious and free! What could be better?

It's a great source of vitamin A, vitamin C, and bone-building vitamin K, as well as having plenty of fiber. It's also an excellent source of beta-carotene. It's low in calories, easy to prepare and tastes delicious.

Eat it raw in salad, or just by itself. You can also steam it, or put it in a stir-fry.

Flaxseeds contain more phytochemicals called lignans, which helps prevent cancer, especially breast cancer. They are also rich in Omega-3 Fatty Acids, which are key in reducing inflammation to prevent heart disease.

Sprinkle a few on your breakfast cereal or oatmeal, or smoothie in the morning. You can also put it in any baked goods, or on your green salad.

My favorite place to buy flaxseeds and other nuts and grains is Iherb. It's cheap, often has free shipping and they deliver straight to your door in under a week.

Apples are full of phytochemicals like quercetin, which can prevent Parkinson's or Alzheimer's diseases. They also contain flavonoids-antioxidants which can prevent prostate and breast cancer, heart disease and stroke. However, you must eat the peel to get these benefits.

Dried, or fresh apples are the perfect snack. Or, put them in baked goods or pancakes.

Garlic helps to lower total cholesterol and triglyceride (blood fat) levels,. Two to three cloves a day reduces the risk for heart attacks substantially. Whole baked garlic helps detoxify the body of heavy metals like mercury (from fish) and cadmium. If that's not enough, it also acts as an antibacterial and antiviral, which is perfect for increasing resistance to colds and flu.

You can put garlic into almost any savory dish that you make. Soups, stews, sauces, stir-fries, and egg dishes.