Vitamin Information Center

Pollutants , drugs, food preservatives and additives, artificial sweeteners, colourants, essences and hydrogenators, all assault the human body. These, along with the processed and refined foods, not only deprive us of the essential nutrients, but also overload the body with toxins and metabolic wastes. This unhealthy diet makes for a strong case in favour of ‘natural foods’ . The ancient sages of India stressed on the benefits of raw natural food. In fact, the first step of detoxifying the body to cure any disease was to feed on fresh fruits and vegetable juices. Here are few interesting tips:

A combination of honey and ginger soothes sore throat and prevents cold and cough

Take honey if you are feeling nervous and tense

If you are having trouble sleeping, take a tablespoon of honey in warm milk at bedtime. Honey has a mild, natural sedative effect and aids in relaxation

Yogurt is nature’s own antibiotic. It destroys harmful bacteria in our digestive system, helps strengthen the body, and is as nutritious as milk, but easier to digest. Add a few spoons of wheatgerm to milk, orange juice, or the dough that is mixed to make chapattis. Wheatgerm is the richest sources of Vitamin E and plays a significant role in preventing many conditions like, diabetes, hardened arteries, loss of muscle tone, loss of skin elasticity and loss of vitality Carrot juice, a rich source of vitamin A, when combined with cabbage juice has an alkaline effect and gives protection from the effects of acid forming foods

Citrus fruits are rich in vitamin C

Take a high fibre diet. As you take long to chew fibrous foods it satisfies the appetite High fibre foods also make you feel full and discourage you from eating more Take small helpings. Never over fill your plate, especially when you are eating out Avoid rich salad dressings. Use lemon juice, herbs, chaat masala, for adding flavour and spice to raw vegetables

Real men should eat liver (or carrot juice, or sweet potatoes), not vitamin supplements. That’s because yet another study has come out questioning the value of megadoses of vitamins. The BBC, ABC, and Science Daily have versions of the story. The advice, as I suggested in an earlier post on this topic, is to get your vitamins and antioxidants from real food instead of pills when possible. Forgotten where vitamins naturally come from? Here’s a quick refresher (foods are listed in order of decreasing vitamin richness):

Vitamin A
Organ meat (liver, giblets), carrot juice, sweet potato (with peel), pumpkins, carrots, spinach, collards, kale

Vitamin B -6
Potato, banana, garbanzo beans, chicken breast, oatmeal, pork loin, roast beef

Vitamin B -12
Mollusks, liver, trout, salmon, beef, yogurt, haddock

Vitamin C
Guava, red sweet pepper, kiwi, orange juice, green peppers, grapefruit juice, strawberries

Vitamin D
Cod liver oil, salmon, mackerel, tuna, sardines, milk

Vitamin E
Sunflower seeds, almonds, cottonseed oil, safflower oil, hazelnuts, turnip greens, tomato paste