Author: Ahmed Ogundimu

Ahmed is a Food Scientist/Technologist first of all. A Web Developer, Seasoned Blogger, Astute Marketer, Food Enthusiast and Manchester United Lover. I read anything and everything available so I know so many useful and useless things.

Categories
Food & Body

Foods That Harm Your Singing Voice

Foods That Harm Your Singing Voice

There are food that can make a singer’s voice go bad. If you sing, these foods are bad for you because they harm your voice. Of course, you can still use your voice for talking and shouting, it may just not sound good while singing after some time of eating much of these foods. Some can add mucous to your throat while other can make your throat dry or contract.

This article will share with you some groups of foods that are not good for singers’ voices. Just like there are foods that make your voice bad for signing, there are others that help soothe and clear your voice. For example, honey/lemon/and hot water have been shown to be helpful if you have mucous in your throat. We will discuss all that in another article.

Foods That Harm Your Singing Voice

Foods You Should Avoid For Your Voice’s Sake If You Sing

Some foods dry up your throat and can make your voice break. Such foods include citrus fruits and alcohol. You should also reduce your intake of sodas and other fizzy drinks. They put lots and lots of air in your stomach.

We talked about foods that cause recurring catarrh in the past. We specifically mentioned foods that stimulate production of mucous to your throat and nose. You should watch your level of consumption of those foods. Example of such foods are milk, ice cream and other dairy products. You should stay clear of them, especially when you need to sing soon.

I believe everyone know this — Ice cold foods, water and any other thing at all. They make your throat constrict. Of course, every individual is unique. Therefore, we have different sensitivities and may need to watch which foods affect us in the ways stated above.

As a singer or aspiring singer, you have to take care of voice. That is the greatest instrument you have got. Not many people are blessed with a singing voice, if you have one, take care of it. The foods names above can have adverse effect on your vocal health. They may also cause undesirable damages to your singing voice and vocal cords.

Wishing you the very best!!!

Categories
Food & Health

Foods To Avoid If You Have Stomach Ulcer

There are foods you need to avoid as an ulcer patient and it is very important to identify those foods. Furthermore, it is not just enough to identify them, but you should endeavour to stay away from these foods. A stomach ulcer patient, you need to understand what causes ulcers and the pains that come with it. We will briefly describe them in this article before talking about foods you should stay clear of.

A Little Information On Stomach Ulcer

WebMD describes Peptic ulcer disease as painful sores or ulcers in the lining of the stomach or first part of the small intestine, called the duodenum. Yes, it can be really painful. I know because I have seen people suffer from it. You can click on the WebMD link to read more on the condition, its causes, and all symptoms.

Foods To Avoid If You Have Stomach Ulcer

This article does not intend to treat your ulcer. I suppose you must have seen a medical doctor that confirmed you have an ulcer and probably has medications for it — as well as dos and don’ts. This will help you manage your peptic ulcer. What we intend to do here is show you foods you should avoid if you are a peptic ulcer patient. Of course, and why you should avoid them.

Which Foods Should Ulcer Patients Avoid & Why?

Depending on the cause of the ulcer, the foods that bring up the symptoms may be different amongst individuals. Patients only need to be observant and watch out for the symptoms when they eat any of these foods.  The following are the foods you should limit or avoid totally if you can;

Coffee and Carbonated Beverages

A study from the “Medical Clinics of North America,” reported in July 1991 revealed that coffee (caffeinated and decaffeinated) and tea should be avoided because they stimulate acid production and can cause indigestion, especially in individuals with stomach ulcers.

Just like we said before, the food or group of foods that aggravate ulcers is different amongst individuals. Therefore, just observe when you eat any of the following foods.

Foods you should avoid as an Ulcer Patient

Alcohol

The year 2000 in the “American Journal of Gastroenterology”, confirmed that consumption of alcohol increases gastroesophageal reflux (GERD), which is known to aggravate stomach ulcers. Alcohol can irritate and erode the lining of the stomach and small intestine. Avoid alcohol.

Other foods you should avoid include,

  • Spices and seasonings such as garlic powder, black and red pepper, hot chiles and peppers, etc.
  • Dairy foods (foods made from whole or skim milk)
  • Onions and garlic
  • Tomato products; tomato paste, tomato sauce, or tomato juice

Watching the foods you eat is as important as taking your medication when you have an ulcer. This helps the healing process. You don’t want to be using drugs that heal the ulcer and still eat foods that aggravate the ulcer. This is counterproductive.

Categories
Food & Health

How Many Times Should You Reuse Frying Oil?

frying oils and foods

Anyone that has read our article on dangers of reusing frying oil over and over again would have asked themselves these questions — how many times should frying oil be reused? Should one just throw out frying oil after the first time of using it? I must tell you there is no specific answer to this. Don’t believe anyone that gives you a specific number.

This article will show you how to know when you should no longer use your frying oil. At that point, there are signs that you would see that makes it evident. Of course, this is for those considering the oil qualities as it affects the quality of their products.

frying oils and foods

For those considering the development of more and more trans fats, well, it is a more complex question to answer. This is because trans fats can develop in frying oils as a result of many factors. You can read more about trans fats in this article to get an idea.

So, How Many Times Should You Reuse Frying Oil?

As I said, there is no specific number of times. However, there are signs you need to look out for in your oil the next time you want to use them. These signs will tell you if it is still okay to use or if the oil has reached its limits. Also, there are measures you too should put in place to preserve the quality of the oil and retard deterioration.

What You Should Do To The Oil After Frying

If you intend to use your oil again, you should clean your oil after frying. Allow the oil to cool and remove any food crumbs that may be left in the food. They can undergo some degradation in the oil and cause spoilage. Use a sieve to scream them out and get your used oil in a plastic container with a lid.

You may want to label it to indicate the food you used it to fry. This will help you the next time you want to use it. You don’t want to use the oil you used to fry meat the last time for chin-chin. The meat flavor will definitely be transferred to the chin-chin.

Signs To Look Out For When You Want To Reuse Oil

When you want to fry your food, there is a need to bring the heat the oil to the desired temperature. This will prevent your food from smoking up oil and becoming soggy.

The first thing to look out for in the oil is foam on the surface. This is a sign of degradation but it may not necessarily be there. Therefore, use this sign, in combination with others.

Try to small the oil. If it produces a fishy aroma or any off odour, then this probably indicates the rancidity of the oil. If the oil appears dark — unless it was already dark after using the first time, in which case you should throw it away — you should not use it.

A murky appearance indicates that the oil has undergone degradation and you should get another one. Also, if the oil smokes before it gets to frying temperature, it’s well spent. Throw it out. These are some tips to help you determine when you should no longer use a previously-used oil to fry your foods.

Categories
News

iPhone To Detect Bacteria That Cause Food Poisoning?

bacteria

The next impressive medical application on the iPhone could be a be a $250 organic chemistry laboratory. Yes, that is like having a food analytical laboratory in your pocket. This is very interesting and to those who might be doubting the possibility, I have this to tell you. Applications like this have been developed in the past.

There have been medical applications used to screen for skin cancer, manage diabetes, prevent blindness, provide eye examinations. We have seen applications on iPhones used to diagnose sleep apnea and even bipolar episodes. Isn’t this cool?

bacteria

So, What’s Up With iPhone Being Able To Prevent Food Poisoning?

It will interest you to know that 6SensorLabs already has a device that can detect whether a food is truly gluten-free. This you can do using a smartphone.

The Nima from 6SensorLabs is an organic-chemistry lab small enough to carry in your pocket. Right now it is only good for one thing: detecting gluten in foods at minuscule concentrations, as little as 20 parts per million, the FDA’s threshold for declaring a food “gluten-free.”

The company says that this could be just the start, with future versions able to detect the bacteria that cause food poisoning.

In the future, says 6SensorLabs co-founder and Chief Executive Shireen Yates, it could be adapted to recognize all manner of proteins—including ones that would allow it to recognize bacterial contaminants such as E. coli and salmonella.

SCiO from Consumer Physics of Israel says that it’s possible that its camera-based technology – used to identify substances by measuring the spectrum of light they reflect – could even be built into future smartphones. Via: [9to5Mac]

So, would you pay to get this application?

Categories
Knowledgebase

Tips For Keeping Tomatoes Fresh For Longer

storing tomatoes right
Photo: seriouseats.com

Some people don’t like buying tomatoes and keeping because of the damages they are susceptible to. Yes, when you buy almost or fully ripe tomatoes, they will get spoilt in no time if you don’t keep them appropriately. So, how do you keep your tomatoes to keep them fresh for a longer period?

How To Store Tomatoes To Keep Them Fresh

At this point, I know some people would say, “just keep it in the refrigerator”. No! In fact, I would say that is one of the worst ways to store ripe tomatoes. Remember that we also mention them as one of the foods you should not keep in the freezer.

storing tomatoes right
Photo: seriouseats.com

You should only store tomatoes that are not ripe (green) in the refrigerator. When you keep tomatoes that are ripe in there, the low temperature halts tomatoes’ flavor-producing enzyme activity. Tomatoes stored in the refrigerator also end up with poor flavor development, coloration, and mealy texture.

RECOMMENDED : How Deteriorating Tomatoes Can Land You In The Hospital

Tomatoes need to stay at room temperature (even the almost ripe ones), out of direct sunlight. It is also advised that you should store them stem side down while for a number of reasons.

Why Should You Store Tomatoes Stem End Down?

Simple, to make them last longer. Storing a tomato stem-end down (room temperature is best) prevents air from entering and moisture from exiting its scar, prolonging shelf life. So, now you know. Share this with your friends on Social Media.

ALSO SEE:  How To Make A Delicious / Nutritious Tomato Bread

Categories
Who Dished It Best

Cooked Spaghetti: Who Dished It Best?

Cooked Spaghetti by @binemut
Cooked Spaghetti by @binemut

Spaghetti is a long, thin, cylindrical, solid pasta. Just like other pasta, spaghetti is made of milled wheat and water. Italian spaghetti is made from durum wheat semolina, but elsewhere it may be made with other kinds of flour.

Cooked Spaghetti: Who Dished It Best?

So here are some pictures of prepared and dished Spaghetti by @helenaoflydia , @nurarifah_asuan, @insta__sai and @binemut.

Cooked-Spaghetti-by-@helenaoflydia
Cooked Spaghetti by @helenaoflydia
« ‹ of 4 › »

Who dished it best? Which one would you like to eat?

Categories
Knowledgebase

4 Foods You Should Not Keep In The Freezer

frozen tomatoes
Photo: pbs.org

There are just some foods you should not keep in the freezer. I have friends that think the only way to keep the leftover of foods is by putting them in the freezer. God, this always makes me sick and I try every time to correct them but it just keeps repeating itself.

From bread to fruits, vegetables, and soups, they keep anything that remains of those foods in the freezer. Yes, I know cold storage is an effective way to keep and preserve foods to last longer but I can tell you it is not suitable for every type of food.

do not freeze

In this article, you will see some food materials you should not freeze or even refrigerate. You will also get to know the reasons why you should not freeze them.

Foods You Should Not Keep In The Freezer And Why

Onions:

Placing uncut onions in the refrigerator makes them mushy and soggy by the time you take them out. When you remove the peel, you see that there is only one thing such onion is good for — bleeding with other types of foods.

You can no longer slice and dice such onions into foods because they would have lost their traditional colour (they have different colours). So, it’s best to keep your onions in an open, cool and dry place.

Watermelon:

It’s really an unpleasant sight when you bring a frozen watermelon out of the freezer. Apart from the fact that it no longer looks good, the flesh becomes fibrous and not easy to bite.

If you have ever tried eating a frozen watermelon that was thawed, you would know that such watermelon loses its kind of crunchy texture. They become fibrous and tough in the mouth. Also, research has shown that keeping them at room temperature might even help preserve the antioxidants present.

Tomatoes:

One of the things freezing does to your tomatoes is to damage its tissues — just like it does to many other foods. The only way most foods can be kept frozen is by using a rapid and uninterrupted freezing process.

frozen tomatoes
Photo: pbs.org

When you freeze your whole tomatoes and bring it outside, what you have is nothing more than the juice and flesh of the tomatoes with the skin peeling off. You can no longer slice this kind of tomatoes. All you can now do is to blend with other foods.

Potatoes:

You cannot put potatoes in the freezer for more than one reason. You should not even refrigerate your potatoes because the cold temperature makes them develop a sweet taste to the level that it becomes unpleasant.

This happens due to the conversion of starch in the potatoes to sugar. This increase in sugar will cause potatoes to darken when cooked. It is usually recommended to let your refrigerated potatoes cool totally — if you refrigerate them before you cook them. This will help reduce the level of discolouration.

Even though freezing damages some food materials, its benefits outweighs those damages caused. If you still want your food to remain safe to eat over a long period, then freezing is a very good option.

Categories
Food & Nutrition

Unbelievable Nutritional Benefits Of Eating Tiger Nuts (Ofio)

tiger nut ofio

Popularly called ‘Ofio’ by the Yorubas,  ‘Aya’ by the Hausas; and Imumu by the Igbos, this Nigerian snack has not been seen as a highly nutritious food item and so had been abandoned only to be consumed by the locals. In fact, in my societies in Nigeria, tiger nut is only seen as snacks for the northerners, they do not have any believe that the small round shape tuber could be loaded with health benefits.

The consumption of this tuber is not only peculiar to Nigeria or West Africa. Tiger nuts tubers constitute diets of many people in North Africa and Spain. It is know to be eaten in its natural form in North Africa while the tubers are consumed as a drink called chufa in Spain.

tiger nut ofio

Nutritional Benefits Of Tiger Nuts

Very few snacks are loaded with higher amount of fibre as much as tiger nuts. The nutritional benefits of tiger nut include a higher fibre content than even that of carrots, oat bran, cabbage and Chia seeds. You all know why we need to include a good and healthy amount of fibre in our daily diet. In serious cases of constipation, fibre helps on easing up stooling. Also, because fibre helps in filling one’s stomach quickly, this snack can be used in weight management.

There is wide spread believe and some forms of evidence that the consumption of tiger nuts by nursing mothers can actually boost the production of breast milk which can help in feeding their babies. In some communities, the tiger nut is used in the production of a local drink called kunun Aya, which can be enjoyed by everyone regardless of your age bracket including nursing mums. The milk-like drink also contains Vitamin E which is critical for improved fertility in both Men and Women. The vitamin is also used in cosmetic industry has it has the capacity to prevent ageing.

More Health & Nutritional Benefits of Tiger Nut

Bananas and potatoes had always been seen as the almighty foods in the supply of high amount of potassium to the body. It will surprise you to know that tiger nuts supply more potassium than banana. Consuming about 25 pieces of the nuts gives the body 139 mg of potassium which is at the same level as a potato or an avocado.

The tuber also play an important role in the lives of the Chinese. Tiger nut milk is used as a liver tonic, heart stimulant. The milk is consumed to heal serious stomach pain, to promote normal menstruation, to heal mouth and gum ulcer and is a powerful aphrodisiac (s£xual stimulant).

Protein is usually known to be high in animal food sources. However, tiger nuts supply an impressive non animal protein which can be used as a good substitute particularly for those who do not have access to animal protein. Protein is essential for the proper growth, repair and development of the entire body. It is also important to note that the tubers contains numerous antioxidants that help fight free radicals

We can keep on enumerating the numerous nutritional benefits of this tiger nut tuber. Tiger nuts are healthy to consume.

Categories
How To

How To Make Crystal-Clear Ice Cubes At Home

make clear ice cubes

Making ice cubes that are crystal clear is just a matter of fun. There is nothing wrong with cloudy or opaque ice cubes and they both achieve the same purposes. This post is just for your information and if you run a bar and use ice cubes, you could use this to mesmerize your customers.

This article is not going to be long because the process is not long and there is no big deal in making clear ice cubes. We will only explain why some ice cubes are clear and why many are usually cloudy. Then we share with you the steps for making clear Ice cubes.

make clear ice cubes

I’ve been at some expensive bars where they use clear ice cubes. I once asked one of them and they told me they use an ice-making machine. I knew this machine works using a principle and this might be applicable. I started asking questions and I got this very simple answer.

Why Many Ice Cubes Are Cloudy And Whitish

When you make ice cubes from tap water, they come out opaque. This is because you are using water that contains dissolved gases and minerals. When you use bottled water that had been purified using reverse osmosis or distillation, you can get clear ice cubes.

But it doesn’t have to be this complicated. Simple boiling can help achieve that.

Trick For Making Clear Ice Cubes

To make crystal-clear ice cubes with tap water, boil the water to remove most of the dissolved air. Let the water cool in the boiler and then heat it over again to boiling point.

After boiling the second time, let the water cool slightly, then pour it into your ice cube tray and put it in my freezer. Allow it to freeze.

You should get your ice cubes clear, just the way you want it.

You can try it out and share your them with us in pictures.

Categories
Kitchen

5 Must-Have Kitchen Appliances And Utensils

modern kitchen

I called this kitchen utensils and appliances must-have because I believe your kitchen is not complete and modern without them. There are several unit operations we perform in the kitchen that waste our time in the kitchen and also make the cooking process tedious and monotonous. This is the reason many people often run away from cooking.

Imagine that you feel like eating fresh fries or potato chips with tomato ketchup after a hard day’s work. The thought of having to peel and slice tomatoes into fingers alone can put you off and settle for garri and groundnut. This does not have to be so, having a kitchen “tool” like this Potato Chipper (pictured below) can make life easier.

potato chipper

It gives you the chips from a potato root all at once. You don’t have to use your knife to start slicing. This will take a lot of your time. You will see utensils and appliances like this in this article.

modern kitchen

Kitchen Appliances And Utensils You Must Have

Here are all the appliances and utensils I believe every kitchen should have. If your kitchen is missing one, you should find a way to get it.

1. Cutting/Dicing Board

In one of our articles in the past, we gave reasons why we feel you should stop slicing your vegetables in the market. Apart from the fact that it is unhygienic, you lose some of the nutrients before you get home. Getting your own cutting board is the best practice.

I did a search on JUMIA and KONGA looking for cutting boards that I can recommend but The prices I saw was surprising. I saw boards costing N4,500 upwards. I kept searching and eventually got a relatively very cheap wooden one. You can check it out right here. Plastic ones are cheaper.

2. Rice Cooker

Rice cooker is a must-have for every modern kitchen. With a rice cooker, you can cook rice in minutes lesser than that you would normally spend using a stove and pot. I don’t know if my next point is applicable to all rice cookers but I know of a Phillips Rice Cooker that switches automatically to a “keep warm” mode to keep your rice warm for another 12 hours. isn’t that cool?

The Phillips Rice Cooker I mentioned above can be found here. You can check it out there. It is more expensive than brands such as Binatone and AKAI Rice Cooker. You can click on their respective links to check them out. Check their volume to know the quantity of rice they will contain before buying them. Don’t just look at price alone.

3. Digital Air Fryer

I spoke to some people about this recently and I was surprised many had not heard about the Air Fryer until that point. What does this kitchen appliance do? Simple! It uses 80% less oil compared to normal  and deep-fat frying, thereby producing a healthier fried food.

If you have read our article on dangers of Trans Fats and foods you would find trans fats in, we mentioned deep-fat fried foods. Apart from the fact that you use way less oil every time you need to fry, it also provides you with healthy fried foods.

You can check out some of the popular brands of Air Food Fryers below;

ARSHIA | BINATONE | NEXUS | YOUJIA | BELLINI | AIRWAVE | VISICOOK

4. Food Processors

One cannot overemphasize the importance the importance of Food Processors in a modern kitchen. I followed the instructions in an article on how to use blender to make Poudo yam at home and got a nice Poudo yam. I got an even better Poudo yam when a Food Processor was used.

You can use food processors for several foods and to prepare several ingredients in your kitchen. For example, if you want to make Kuli-kuli, you need a processor to make the groundnuts into paste. Food processors are also used to grind meat, make flour from whole grains and many more.

You can get some of the cheapest food processors by clicking here.

5. Microwave Oven

Someone argued with me that he could always reheat or warm his foods the old way of using a pot and a stove and enjoy it. he even said the like the flavor that comes with it because the bottom of the food gets burnt. Well, making food burn has health implications.

After he said this, I asked him asked him a question he was never able to answer. What if one needs to make his bread hot or warm to make margarine or butter melt on it? Do you use your conventional pot and stove?

What if you bought a food in a pack and it gets cold before you got home? Some of us don’t like food turned inside a pot and mix everything together while heating it. A microwave lets you heat your food in the microwavable plastic container.

You can get some good deals on microwave ovens here. You can get really cheap ones. I bought my microwave oven last year on Black Friday on Jumia. Konga.com also has launched their page for the 2015 Black Friday Yakata Sales. You can get up to 90% discount on various products (not just kitchen appliances) on that day.

Make your kitchen modern and make life easier for yourself by getting some of these appliances and utensils if you don’t have them in your kitchen.

Categories
Knowledgebase

6 Food Ingredients That Will Never Get Spoilt

Whiskey
whiskey on the rocks, vibrant colors

I am one of those people that always say “Never Say Never”. So, let me do a little adjustment to the title of that post right here. Let’s just call it a list of foods that almost never get spoilt. Many of them will last forever if you leave for that long. The list contains some obvious ones to some that you will find unbelievable.

6 Food Ingredients That Almost Never Get Spoilt

Okay now, let us get to business and share some of these with you. Of course, the list is not exhaustive, so you can share anyone you know with us using the comment box below.

Whiskey

1. White Rice

We cook white rice as it is and eat with several sauces and stews. We also cook food such as Jollof Rice, Fried Rice and many more, using white rice as the major ingredient. It might interest you to know that this white rice might never ever get spoilt.

If you keep white rice in an in a sealed container kept in a cool, dry place, it will not get spoilt. This is unlike brown rice that can go rancid because of the fat content.

2. Vinegar

When the idea of Vinegar came to my mind, I did some search about it and I saw an article that wrote about Vinegar. Somewhere on the page, the author wrote — Vinegar Expiry Date: Never.

Well, this is true because it has been reported that white distilled vinegar won’t taste any different on the first day of production or 7-10 years from now. Other kinds of Vinegar last a long long time too but often lose some of their taste after a few years.

3. Wine & Alcohol

Yeah, that sounds a bit more like repetition because wine contains alcohol. I did this just to separate them because the foods people add the wine and pure alcohol to are different. There are several soups people add wine to just to improve the taste.

Most strong alcohol like vodka, gin, rum, whiskey, tequila will remain drinkable forever, even after they have been opened. I found a bottle of Vodka that has been in my apartment for over 5 years when packing out of the apartment. Those that tasted it said it tasted just like new.

4. Pure Vanilla Extract

This is a very common baking ingredient. Pure vanilla is a baking ingredient that does not get spoilt. The secret to the longevity of pure Vanilla extract is that it contains a considerable amount of alcohol. And did I mention why alcohol is used as preservatives for foods? No!

Alcohol makes any environment inhabitable for most spoilage microorganisms and many microorganisms in general. Often, it kills them. It’s the reason the nurse wipes the area they want to inject before injecting you — to get rid of microbes around.

5. Honey

Yes, the same honey that you are thinking about. So honey doesn’t get spoilt? Experts say even thousands-of-years-old honey found in ancient Egyptian ruins is still edible.

If honey is left somewhere untouched, after a while, it dries out and crystallizes. When you need to eat this honey or use it as an ingredient in a food, all you have to do is reheat to restore its viscous liquid consistency.

Finally, let us share this note of caution. This post is just for your information and does not recommend that you consume a product after years of keeping it. You might think you have a similar pure product but the manufacturers might have added some other ingredients. 

For example, your honey might be fake or adulterated. See how to detect fake and adulterated honey here.

So, the best thing to do is to check the expire date printed on the label by the manufacturer. They probably already added something and also considered that you might not store those food ingredients properly. These factors and more con contribute to food spoilage.

ALSO SEE: Differences Between Expiry Date and Best Before Date

Categories
General

Trans Fats, Foods High In Them And Their Dangers

trans fats in oils

Trans fatty acids (TFA) commonly called trans fats, are fats present in small amounts in a considerable wide range of foods. There are a lot of concerns on the adverse effect they have on the health of human begins. It is however, quite not straightforward to know which foods contain trans fats.

There are artificial and natural trans fats. This means that some trans fats occur naturally in foods but in small amounts. Naturally-occurring trans fats are found in small amounts in dairy products such as example cheese and cream but often in amounts that are not significantly harmful to the body.

trans fats in oils

Artificial trans fats are produced when vegetable oils are hydrogenated. This is the process that produces margarine and increased awareness on the dangers of TFAs has prompted manufacturers of margarine to improve processing methods to reduce level of trans fats.

Dangers of Trans Fats And How To Know Which Food Has It

Trans fats raise the blood cholesterol levels, especially the levels of ‘bad’ LDL cholesterol. They also reduce the level of the good cholesterol in the blood. These adverse effects of trans fats in the blood can increase the risk of coronary heart disease.

If you fry food a lot or buy fried foods, you are exposed to trans fats. Trans fats are usually produced when ordinary vegetable oils are heated to fry foods at very high temperatures. Using the oil over and over again increases the level of trans fats and that is why we advised using frying oil many times in this post.

Also, margarines that contain hydrogenated vegetable oil as an ingredient will normally contain some trans fats. So, if you want to know if hydrogenated fats are present in a particular food, here is what you need to do to check.

Take a look at the ingredient list on the food label and check if hydrogenated fats or hydrogenated vegetable oils are present. Since there are no regulatory requirement that manufacturers must declare the presence of trans fats in their foods, it will not be present on the food package or label.

Here are some foods you should watch out for trans fats in them – animal fat, microwave popcorn, crackers, biscuits, creamy frozen drinks, deep-fried foods, shortenings and margarines.

Categories
Food & Body

List of Some High-Antioxidant Healthy Foods

Free radical and antioxidants
Photo: wellandcompany.com

If you care about your health and watch what you eat, you definitely must have heard about Antioxidant-rich foods before. If you have never hear about this, you will know what Antioxidant foods are by the time you are done reading this article.

What Is Antioxidant?

Antioxidants help our body by protecting against the damage caused by harmful molecules called free radicals. Free radicals enter our body every day as by-products of normal metabolic processes in our body, through pollutants from the environment and when the body breaks down some drugs in our body.

Free radical and antioxidants
Photo: wellandcompany.com

The damages cause by these free radicals are believed to lead to the development of such conditions as blood vessel disease (atherosclerosis), cancer, and some other conditions.

Now that you know what antioxidant is, how our body gets free radicals every day and the dangers of free radicals, doesn’t it make sense for you to want to know about “antioxidant foods” and add them to your diet?

List of Foods High In Antioxidant

A research carried out by USDA scientists analyzed the antioxidant levels in more than 100 different foods. The foods under consideration were tested for antioxidant concentration and their antioxidant capacity per serving size. They foods were then ranked in the order of antioxidant capacity per serving size as follows.

Rank Food item Serving size Total antioxidant capacity
per serving size
1 Small Red Bean (dried) Half cup 13,727
2 Wild blueberry 1 cup 13,427
3 Red kidney bean (dried) Half cup 13,259
4 Pinto bean Half cup 11,864
5 Blueberry (cultivated) 1 cup 9,019
6 Cranberry 1 cup (whole) 8,983
7 Artichoke (cooked) 1 cup (hearts) 7,904
8 Blackberry 1 cup 7,701
9 Prune Half cup 7,291
10 Raspberry 1 cup 6,058
11 Strawberry 1 cup 5,938
12 Red Delicious apple 1 whole 5,900
13 Granny Smith apple 1 whole 5,381
14 Pecan 1 ounce 5,095
15 Sweet cherry 1 cup 4,873
16 Black plum 1 whole 4,844
17 Russet potato (cooked) 1 whole 4,649
18 Black bean (dried) Half cup 4,181
19 Plum 1 whole 4,118
20 Gala apple 1 whole 3,903 
Table Source: WebMD

The result of the research also correlates with the work of Researchers at the University of Oslo, which tested 1,113 common foods for their antioxidant concentrations. They basically have about the same foods in their top 20.  In their own result, One cup of blackberries contained the most antioxidants of all the berries tested.

This table does not necessarily mean that you will get the most antioxidants from dried Small Red Bean and the least from Gala Apple. No. This is because, the amount of the antioxidants useful to your body depends on how the food’s antioxidants are absorbed by the body.

Conclusively, this table will be very useful for anyone who wants to increase their antioxidant intake. Adding any or some of these high-antioxidant foods on the list to your diet will help you achieve that.

Categories
Food & Body

Lemon Water And How It Is Used To Lose Weight

lemon water

Most of the emails I get on a daily basis are usually about how weight loss can be achieved quickly. Excessive weight gain is fast becoming a serious medical condition that our health professionals should pay attention to as many clients I get to meet are more than 100kg in weight while at the edge of been obese.

I am not writing to say that you should consume lemon water excessively as a means to lose weight. It is to help you compliment some deficiencies during your weight loss therapy. For some of the clients I have had in the past, the use of lemon water had helped in initiating proper fat loss. However, lemon water alone is not advisable for weight loss.

lemon water

How To Use Lemon Water To Lose Weight

There was a research that showed that the vitamin C content in lemon may be particularly beneficial for weight loss. A study published in the “Journal of the American College of Nutrition” in June 2005 found that people who do not consume enough vitamin C may have more trouble losing body fat than those who get sufficient amounts of vitamin C. There are some potential risks to drinking lemon water.

ALSO SEE: HOW TO LOSE WEIGHT AND GET FIT IN 4 WEEKS NATURALLY

During weight loss therapy, it is usually very difficult to delete certain foods or meals from the diet of any client without intentionally including a substitute. In a situation where a client is used to consuming high-calorie beverages, one such ways to help is to introduce lemon water to such a person. The client can still enjoy some liquid portions that are not plain water but yet had reduced his or her calorie intake because lemon is low calorie

Some individuals have subjected themselves to few days of lemon juice or lemon water diet therapy. For a few people, it works very effectively helping them loose 7kg in about 10 days while others lose about 2kg. The reality is that the best way to lose body fat is a combined effort of nutrition and activities. It is very certain that you would gain back the weight lost during only lemon juice intake. It is only a matter of time.

It is professionally advised not to drink lemon juice directly. You should dilute the juice in water before drinking. The reason for this is that lemon juice is highly acidic and continued and excessive exposure to acidic foods and beverages can erode your tooth enamel.

ALSO SEE: HOW TO LOSE WEIGHT AND GET FIT IN 4 WEEKS NATURALLY

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Food & Body

Do Eggs Truly Help Men Perform Better In S£x?

Eggs boiled

A few days ago, I was listening to the evening news in one of the major TV stations here in Nigeria and deep into the news, the reporter who visited an egg production poultry farm was advising listeners, particularly men to eat eggs for better s£x performance among other nutritional benefits. Shortly after I heard this, I wondered if this was just another myth or a fact? Could there be a scientific connection between the eggs you consume and how well you perform in bed? In this write-up, foodsng.com shall establish or debunk the claim.

Eggs boiled

I have always jokingly communicated to some of my female friends who are married, that men love good foods and s£x. One of the effective ways to improve the s£x performance of their husband, if they must, is to change the constituent of his diet. That is quite an unusual advice but you never can tell. Putting that in mind, is egg one of such food items that could unleash a better s£x? Maybe, maybe not.

The argument on this topic by Farm Owners

One factor that has caused many men to perform poorly during s£x is stress which is usually from the mind. Having said that, marketers of vitamin supplementation have claimed that vitamin B is a major micronutrient that will help reduce mental stress.

The argument that many farm owners have also put to the table is that egg is rich in B vitamins and as such can help reduce stress which sometimes causes poor s£x performance. In fact, the proponents of this claim say, with a plateful of eggs whether scramble or boiled eggs on the morning of your deal date, the available B vitamins will keep you calm and prevent premature £jacuIation due to anxiety. Can this be true?

Eggs Helping Men Perform Better In S£x? Myth or Truth?

Truly, Egg is a wonder food that everyone should include in their diets at recommended intake levels regardless of their age provided it does not trigger any reaction in their body. I have also argued that in as much as the B vitamins are key to ensure a healthy heart, blood production, improved energy to mention a few, it could be a fallacy to categorically claim that consumption of eggs due to the richness in B vitamins will lead to better s£x performance.

In my days of digging the web to find research work (relating to egg and s£x performance) done by any credible institution, I could not find an established fact on it. However, certainly, healthy nutrition which is usually based on a combination of many food items from different food groups including egg protein will definitely aid or improve your chances of performing better in bed provided all other external factors which could inhibit a man’s performance during s£x is not in play.

If you have heard such information that eggs could help you perform better in bed, it is not necessarily true and based on the information you should not unnecessarily indulge in egg consumption before s£x as this could make you become prone to disease conditions that are associated with excessive egg consumption. A combination of a healthy diet can help, however, speaking to a general practitioner on your peculiar poor performance during s£x might also be helpful.

ALSO SEE: 5 Common Foods and Fruits To Supercharge Your Sex Drive

Categories
Food & Nutrition

You Think Skimmed Milk Is Healthier Than Whole Milk? Read This

cereal and milk

The publicity given to skim milk is really mind blowing as the product is gradually becoming viral. Some years ago, this purportedly healthy product was quite uncommon in this part of the world until the sudden marketing strategies that has brought it on our food shelves.

The question is; What is skim milk? According to wikipedia, skim milk is made when all the cream (also called milk fat) is removed from whole milk. Sometimes, only half the cream is removed, resulting in semi-skimmed milk instead. In other words skimmed milk is defatted whole milk.

cereal and milk

Is Skim Milk Healthier Than Whole Milk?

In this period when there is so much noise about deleting fat from the diets of many people, a milk product with no fat or a reduced amount of fat became quite attractive to a lot of people seeking a healthy lifestyle. In fact, many hospitals and clinics have been marketing outfits for this product.

Technically, skim milk should be a healthy product based on the definition given above but – have you ever questioned how the fats are removed and what other ingredients are added to make the product more stable? Have you also questioned what happens to the availability of fat-soluble vitamins in the whole milk?

In my little understanding of food science and technology, I do know that in processing, once a constituent is removed, usually another one must be added to help the product. In the case of skim milk production, once the fat is removed, the product becomes tasteless and the manufacturer adds some amount of sugar to make it a bit sweeter which makes the sugar level in skim milk more than that in whole milk.

Vitamins You Are Missing On With Skim Milk

Another reason I have been careful about including skim milk in the diets of my patients is that it deprives them of fat-soluble vitamins which had been lost due to the removal of fats from the whole milk. These essential vitamins are vitamin A, D, E, and K. You should note that calcium absorption is enhanced by the availability of Vitamin D, but the Vitamin D  is in the fat of the whole milk, so the removal of the cream makes the process of absorption of fats impossible.

According to Dr. Frank Lipman’s blog; he stated in one of his articles that because skim milk is a highly processed, “altered” food, it can leave you feeling unsatisfied and experiencing cravings for something more. Our bodies thrive on whole foods, the way they are found in nature. Eating a diet full of high-quality protein and healthy fats from whole foods can prevent the ups and downs and cravings that come from eating fat-free foods that are “missing something.

I do understand that the calorie value in skim milk is much lower than that in whole milk due to the loss of fat and this make it more attractive. However, in my own opinion, if you are supposed to reduce your calorie intake because of health reasons, it is better to choose whole milk with full nutrients while adhering to portion control than consume skim milk.

The fuss about a “NO FAT DIET” is a scam…….please, wake up. Fats should always be included in our diet but at a calculated amount.