FoodsNG

Plastic Rice In Nigerian Markets: How To Identify Them

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 1 December, 2016
No Comments on Plastic Rice In Nigerian Markets: How To Identify Them

There have been reports of people buying Plastic Rice in Nigerian markets. Is this true? Why would anyone want to sell plastic rice? What is the Nigerian government doing about it? These are some questions begging for answers and we want to attempt to answer some of them with the little information available.

What Is A Plastic Rice? Does It Even Exist?

Plastic rice has been described as rice made from plastic. It has sometimes been reported in the media to be manufactured in China and sold in the West and countries in Africa.

Please don’t confuse this with what is known as Artificial Rice. This in contrast artificial rice is a grain product made to resemble rice. It is usually made from broken rice, sometimes with the addition of other cereals.

Why Plastic Rice In Nigeria?

I first stumbled on this when I saw a photo shared on Instagram showing something that looked like tapioca in a spoon. The posted claimed this was the plastic rice bought in a market. Before I go on, let me share what a plastic rice is, with you.

I have not seen the plastic rice myself, I have only seen reports of it and many of them. The reason I am asking “why plastic rice” is because I think that plastic rice grains would easily be detected after cooking. Moreover, they would be likely more expensive to produce than real rice.

What Are Authorities Doing About It?

Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) and National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) have launched a search for alleged fake/plastic rice from China which is said to have found its way into some African countries, including Nigeria.

How Do You Identify Fake or Plastic Rice?

There are a number of ways by which you can know if you are being sold plastic rice;

1. Number one is a no-brainier but we still have to mention it again – buy popular and know brands of rice in their sacs. This way, you be sure to a high level that you are buying real rice grains. However, if you are buying smaller measures of rice from already opened bags, it becomes trickier.

2. Try setting a little bit of your rice on fire with a match or lighter. If it starts burning right away and smells like burning plastic, then you likely have plastic rice with you.

3. When you crush a few grains of rice with a mortar and pestle (the small kitchen size) they should be reduced to a fine, white, starchy powder. However, when you do the same with fake rice, you will see a light yellow discoloration.

4. Plastic rice will not get spoiled after days of cooking it. This should be a last test because it takes time to complete and some people may have eaten part of it.

Depending on the plastics used to “make” this rice, the rice may even melt when cooked. So you can easily know when that happens. Whether the claims of sales of plastic rice in Nigeria are true or not, you can use the tests above to identify plastic rice. If you also have any proof of the plastic rice (pictures or videos), please share with us.

Tags Plastic Rice

Food & Health

Foods People With Blood Group B Should Totally Avoid

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 29 November, 2016
No Comments on Foods People With Blood Group B Should Totally Avoid

Many people do not know that their Blood Type is the key that opens the door to the secrets behind their health, diseases, physical vitality, emotional strength and long life. In fact, it determines a lot of things in our life than many would believe.

I have not always known this myself too. A doctor friend of mine introduced me to a book by Dr. Peter J. D’Adamo with Catherine Whitney, titled “Eat Right 4 Your Type”. The book talks about 4 Blood Types, 4 Diets, revealing the individualized diet solution to staying healthy, living longer and achieving your ideal weight for blood types O, A, B and AB.

I cannot discuss all what the book contains because there are about 388 pages of it, in fact I think that would be illegal to do. So, I am just going to discuss some of the thing I learnt inside, and take excerpts from the books where necessary.

Food That Persons With Blood Type B Should Avoid

You blood type determines how susceptible you are to illness, foods that you should eat or stay away from and how you should exercise. Here, I will talk about those foods you should stay away from because do do more harm than good to you.

1. Corn

For people with Type B blood group, the biggest food concern when it comes to weight gain are corn, buckwheat, lentils, peanuts and sesame seeds. Each of them has it’s own type of lectin.

Each of these lectins affect the efficiency of Type Bs metabolic process, which results in fatigue, fluid retention and hypoglycemia. Hypoglycemia is characterized by severe drop in blood sugar level after eating a meal. This leads to tiredness/fatigue.

2. Wheat

Just like Type Os, Type Bs react to the gluten in wheat germ and products made from whole wheat. The gluten lectin adds to the problems caused by the other metabolism-slowing foods.

“When food is not efficiently digested and burned as fuel for the body, it gets stored as fat.”

3. Chicken

You need to give up chicken. Why? Chicken contains a Blood Type B agglutinating lectin in its muscle tissue. Yes, this may not be easy to give up because chicken is already a part and parcel of many diets in this part of the world.

The agglutinating lectin attacks the bloodstream and potentially lead to strokes and immune disorders. Now, here is a good reason to let it go.

If you are already too used to eating chicken, then you should explore other poultry options like turkey and pheasants. People have been told chicken is healthier than beef but this is not the case for Blood Type Bs.

4. Shellfish — Crab, Lobster, Shrimp, etc.

They contain lectins too. These lectins are disruptive to the type B system. This is not to say that you should run from sea foods. In fact, Type Bs thrive well on sea foods, especially fish such as cod and salmon, which are rich in nutritious oils.

Other common ones to avoid include, Anchovy, Beluga, Butterfish, Clam, Crab, Crayfish, Eel, Frog, Herring, Octopus, Lobster, Mussel, Oyster, Salmon roe, Shrimp, Snail (escargot / Helix pomatia).

5. Nuts and Seeds

People with Blood Type B should avoid consumption of most nuts and seeds. Peanuts, sesame seeds and sunflower seeds contain lectin, which interfere with Type B insulin production.

Type Bs can eat some beans and legumes without any issue. However, beans such as lentils, pintos and black-eyed peas, contain lectins which interfere with Type B insulin production.

Some other seeds and nuts (and their products) to avoid include, Cashew, Hazelnut, Pistachio, Peanut butter, Pumpkin seed, Sesame seed, Sesame butter, Sunflower seed, Sunflower butter.

6. Tomatoes. Yes, Tomatoes!

According to Dr. Peter J. D’Adamo, author of the book, “Eat Right 4 Your Type”, Type Bs should eliminate tomatoes completely from their diet. “The tomato is are vegetable called a panhemaglutinan. This means that it contains lectins that can agglutinate every blood type.

While the tomato lectin has little effect on Type O and Type AB, both Type B and Type A suffer strong reactions, usually in form of irritations of the stomach lining.

I am not out here to spill everything in the book to you. I just noticed we in this part of the world consume these groups of food a lot. These are just some of the foods you should avoid.

Beyond the dark side, there is also a wide range of foods you can choose from to remain healthy. You may also be surprised that there are groups of food which Type Bs thrive on, but are no-go areas for other Blood groups.

If you would like to learn more about this. You should get yourself a copy of the book.

Tags Blood, Chicken, Corn, Lectin, Shellfish, Tomato, Wheat

Food & Health

Is Smoked Fish Dangerous To Your Health?

Post author By Akinrodola Owanikin
Post date 6 November, 2016
No Comments on Is Smoked Fish Dangerous To Your Health?

I have gotten this question a lot on this blog — people have asked me a lot if the smoke used for smoke fish pose any danger to their health. I plan to use this article to talk a little about the process of fish smoking and smoking of food in general. I will also answer this question to the best of my knowledge here with facts to back my answers.

Smoking remains a popular food preservation method in this part of the world. Smoking develops a lot of flavors in fish that many people have forgotten that smoking should be for preservation, they just want to get that characteristic smoked fish flavor in their mouth.

In one of my previous articles about the dangers of eating Suya, I mentioned smoking and some of the other potential dangers. You can still read that article.

What is Food Smoking?

Smoking can be simply defined as the process of flavouring, cooking, or preserving food by exposing it to smoke from burning materials. The material most commonly used is wood.

Wood contains three major components — cellulose, hemicellulose and lignin, that are broken down in the burning process to form smoke. Typical smoking of fish is either cold (28–32°C) or hot (70–80°C). Hot smoking is what is prevalent around here.

When I talk about smoking in this article, I mean the traditional, common smoking process using smokes from burning woods or wood shavings. Smoking was originally carried out on food (including fish) to preserve them. However, since the advent of freezing and other preservation methods, smoking is now mostly done to develop the unique taste and flavour imparted by the smoking process.

So, is smoking of fish dangerous to human health?

Honestly, there is no straight answer to this caution and one has to tread the line of caution when advising people. One cannot just say smoked fish is dangerous to health. No.

The main potential danger associated with smoking of fish and other foods is PAH. When wood is burned, Polycylclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH)—a class of carcinogens—are formed. These are deposited on foods and are known to cause cancer. You would recall I mentioned this in this article.

However, when people talk about whether smoking of food is dangerous or not, some forget to take the dose into consideration. Yes, PAHs are dangerous, there is no doubt about that but the dose that we take in will determine if it will lead to the onset of cancer or not.

Generally, foods smoked commercially in a manufacturing facility have been found to contain lower levels of PAHs compared to those smoked in noncommercial settings. An example of the latter is those we by in many open markets, displayed in the open and wrapped in nylons or papers when we purchase. There is no way to determine the level of PAHs in this, unless the necessary tests are carried out.

Since, we cannot test those fishes before buying them, we cannot determine if they contain low or the level of dose that has been found to be harmful to experimental animals.

If you ask me, I’d say you should enjoy your smoked fish with caution. If you are someone that only enjoys an occasional smoked fish meal—and are not a daily consumer—then PAH from smoked fish and other foods is most likely not a health concern for you.

Tags Fish, PAHs, Smoking

Food & Body

10 Common Signs You Have A Binge Eating Disorder

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 26 October, 2016
No Comments on 10 Common Signs You Have A Binge Eating Disorder

Sometimes, people have binge eating disorder and they don’t even know it. There are those who know something is wrong after eating, but they just don’t know what it is. This article will share with you, what a binge eating disorder is and the common signs to look out for.

What is Binge Eating Disorder?

One could have an idea of what this is from the name alone. Binge eating disorder involves frequent episodes of uncontrollable binge eating. Feeling extremely distressed or upset during or after such episodes (bingeing).

We all have a way of coping with negative emotions when they set in. Unfortunately, it is food for some people — when the emotions come, they just think about food. They think about food all the time and feel guilty, ashamed, or depressed after eating.

10 Signs/Symptoms of Binge Eating Disorder

We have all at one point in our lives had too much to eat at parties and festivities. This is not what we are talking about here. Below are some 10 signs that may show you have binge eating problem.

1. Frequent episodes of eating what others would consider an abnormally large amount of food

2. Frequent feelings of being unable to control what or how much is being eaten

3. Eating much more rapidly than usual

4. Eating until uncomfortably full

5. Eating large amounts of food, even when not physically hungry

6. Eating alone out of embarrassment at the quantity of food being eaten

7. Feelings of disgust, depression, or guilt after overeating

8. Fluctuations in weight

9. Feelings of low self-esteem

10. Frequent dieting

Of course, some of these symptoms can manifest singly without it necessarily it being that of binge eating problem. However, most people with serious binge eating disorder would normally have some of the following symptoms occurring at least once a week for at least three months.

Tags Disorders

Knowledgebase

How To Distinguish Between Crayfish, Prawn and Shrimp

Post author By Oluwafemi Ajayi
Post date 3 October, 2016
No Comments on How To Distinguish Between Crayfish, Prawn and Shrimp

In many parts of the world, people find it quite difficult to distinguish between crayfish, prawn and shrimp. A large population of people don’t care what they are called and they don’t feel the need to go the extra mile to find out. They all look alike, so they use those names interchangeably. It doesn’t matter to some whether they are calling shrimps as prawns, they just want to eat it.

Generally in America, both shrimps and prawns are called shrimps while they are referred to as prawns by Brits and Australians. This has further confused so many people, including natives of those countries.

What Is The Difference Between Prawn, Shrimp & Crayfish

In this short article, I will try my best to highlight what and what set these crustaceans apart. In some cases, it is quite easy to notice, especially for crayfish. The major confusion usually arises when it comes to differentiate between prawn and shrimp.

Crayfish

When comparing their physique, crayfish can be easily distinguished from prawns and shrimps. Crayfish are bigger than prawns. Even a 6-year old can differentiate between the two. It only gets tricky when it comes to prawn and shrimps; they look very much alike.

Differences Between Prawns and Shrimps

Here is where it can get confusing because prawn and shrimp look very much alike. If you ask some people how they distinguish between the two, they can tell you that one is bigger in size than the other. This is actually wrong. They belong to the same family and therefore look very much alike.

Body Structure/Shape of Shrimp VS Prawn

When you look at the body structure of the two, you would notice some differences. Prawns have claws on three of their five pairs of legs while shrimp have claws on two of their five pairs of legs.

Also, you will observe a marked bend on on the shrimp as against the prawn, which has its bend in form of a curve. There is no marked or sharp bend on prawn (see illustration below).

Generally, they are easier to distinguish in live form or freshly after being cut. After they are cooked and processed, it is very difficult to separate prawns from shrimps.

If you have any other contribution to make to help us all, please drop a comment. Thank you.

Food & Body

Foods to Avoid If You Have Fibroids Or Prevent Its Growth

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 10 September, 2016
No Comments on Foods to Avoid If You Have Fibroids Or Prevent Its Growth

Fibroids or Uterine fibroids are benign tumors that can invade and start growing in the female reproductive system. Often times, fibroids occur during the middle to late childbearing years while there have also been cases in those in their early childbearing years. I have read that five out of six Nigerian women have fibroids growth; many don’t just know.

Fibroids usually don’t show any symptoms but they could cause pains in some women as the tumors grow bigger and bigger. The major reason why uterine fibroids— although asymptomatic— is of great concern is that they can (and do) hinder fertility in many women.

In those women that see symptoms, it could be any of the following;

Heavy menstrual bleeding
Prolonged menstrual periods — seven
days or more of menstrual bleeding
Pelvic pressure or pain
Frequent urination
Difficulty emptying your bladder
Constipation
Backache or leg pains

The cure for fibroids know by many women is surgery and many go through that procedure to get the tumors removed. However, I can inform you that you can treat this condition using natural methods by managing your diet/nutrition properly.

Foods To Avoid With Uterine Fibroids

In the opening statement, fibroids were referred to as “tumor”. Let me make it clear at this point that fibroids are noncancerous tumors that develop within the uterus. They are not the same as cancerous tumor growths.

Below are foods you should avoid when you have fibroid growth;

Red Meat:

We have talked about red meat a lot in the past. If you don’t know much about red meat, you can read this piece about ‘differences between red meat and white meat with examples’.

Women with fibroids growth should stay away from red meat from mammals and ducks. These sources of meat protein are likely to be high in added hormones, including estrogen. Eat lean white meat for a protein source.

Caffeine

When we talk about caffeine, what usually comes to people’s mind is coffee. It is not only coffee that contains caffeine. Therefore, if you have uterine fibroids and need to stay away from caffeine, there are more foods to watch out for, including caffeinated sodas, tea, and chocolate.

William E. Richardson of the Atlanta Clinic of Preventative Medicine warns against drinking these beverages due to their high level of methylxanthines which, in turn, cause a high level of biochemicals in the body that can form tumors.

Saturated Fats

A lot of foods can fall under this category depending on how they are processed but common ones could include egg yolk, sausage, avocado, fast foods, etc.

Saturated fats can raise the estrogen level, which allows fibroids to grow larger. These foods are also hard on the liver, making it difficult for the body to break down and rid itself of the excess hormones

Whole milk, Cream, and Butter

These are high-fat dairy foods. Whole milk, in contrast to skimmed milk, is milk that has not had its fat removed. If you can’t really distinguish between skim and whole milk, you can click here to read more.

The other foods mentioned (cream and butter) are foods derived from milk.

Instead of refined grains, women should generally eat whole grains such as brown rice, millet, and oats, all of which are high in B vitamins that help process estrogen.

Food & Body

Powerful Ways You Should Be Using Coconut Oil

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 31 August, 2016
No Comments on Powerful Ways You Should Be Using Coconut Oil

One thing clearly stands out in life, irrespective of the category it belongs to. Most oils with saturated fats, such as butter, palm oil, coconut oil and among others are categorized as bad oil compared to oils with unsaturated fat, such as olive oil, safflower oil, canola oil, etc. Among these oils containing saturated fat, one stands out, competes with unsaturated fats and remains among the best if not the very best. This is because of its amazing power.

This oil is endowed with numerous benefits. It’s uniqueness lies in its ability to be easily metabolized by everybody, irrespective of our ages. This particular oil that receives a standing ovation even in the crowd of many competitors is COCONUT OIL.

The Many Powerful Ways of Using Coconut Oil For Men, Women & Children

It took me so many years to understand the secret of the beauty and long shiny hair possessed by the majority of the people living/residing in countries such as Indonesia, Philippines, India, Brazil and among others. After concerted effort in information gathering and worthwhile research, it obviously appeared to me that the power behind their beauty lies in the daily usage of coconut oil as part of their diets and also for body care.

The power of feminine gender lies in their beauty. This is the main reason females go extra length to dedicate their precious time and money to the enhancement and maintenance of their beauty. The use of questionable and substandard synthetic cosmetic products has become a trend globally. Most females use these products ignorantly. They are oblivious of the dangers involved with the use of these dangerous artificial cosmetic products. Conversely, coconut oil is the best natural beautifying agent without any negative effects on health.

Coconut oil has a wonderful effect on the human hair and skin. It could be rubbed into the scalp daily to stimulate healthy growth of hair and gives hair a shiny quality. It also ensures that scalp is free from dandruff, lice, and lice eggs. In addition, it serves as antibacterial, antifungal and antiviral agent. It is also helpful for the treatment of various skin problems including dermatitis, eczema, and other skin infections.

Among so many numerous benefits of coconut oil to the body systems, just to mention few, these are: it helps to aid digestion and boost metabolism, it is an immediate source of energy which could serve as energy booster for athletes, it’s a good source of vitamin A, D, and K.

It is my pleasure also to let you know that coconut oil could be used in weight management. It helps to burn excessive fat and turn fatty acids into ketones, which can reduce seizures among Children with Special Needs e.g. Children with cerebral palsy.

Coconut oil also improves antioxidant levels and can also delay aging. Its anti-inflammatory properties can help to loosen arthritis. It is also highly effective on bruises because it speeds up the healing process of damaged tissues. In addition, it can also reduce the itch of mosquito bite and is also a natural diaper cream.

Coconut oil is a natural shave cream and after shave lotion. It is also an excellent makeup cleanser.

At this end, it will be disastrous to provide the information on numerous benefits of coconut oil without letting you know that; not all the coconut oils in the market are edible and usable. Some coconut oil are made from deteriorated coconuts because they possess more oils than adequately mature coconuts while some products have been diluted and adulterated. Also, some are not produced in a hygienic environment. All these reduce its potential benefits. Therefore, my advice to you is to search for pure coconut oil from a reliable source.

Go Natural! Go Healthy! Live Long !! God bless you.

If you are in need of unadulterated virgin coconut oil,

Please, get in touch with the contacts below,

Cell phone: 08059059653
WhatsApp: 07035431332
e-mail: distinctkae@gmail.com

Tags Coconut, Coconut Oil, Hair, Oil

Food & Health

What Is Celiac Disease? The Symptoms and Treatment?

Post author By Akinrodola Owanikin
Post date 5 August, 2016
No Comments on What Is Celiac Disease? The Symptoms and Treatment?

In our last article, we outlined the steps for making gluten-free bread for people with Celiac disease. When I published the article and read it over again, it occurred to me that people would really want to know more about this celiac disease, especially the symptoms and how to treat this condition.

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, rye and barley. When people that have celiac disease eat foods that contain gluten, their body mounts an immune response that attacks the small intestine. These lead to damage on the small fingerlike projections or structures that line the small intestine — the villi. The villi (singular villus) promote nutrient absorption in the small intestine. When the villi get damaged, nutrients can no longer be absorbed properly into the body.

What Are The Symptoms of Celiac Disease

Digestive problems (abdominal bloating, pain, gas, diarrhea, pale stools, and weight loss)
A severe skin rash called dermatitis herpetiformis
Iron deficiency anemia (low blood count)
Musculoskeletal problems (muscle cramps, joint and bone pain)
Growth problems and failure to thrive (in children)
Seizures
Tingling sensation in the legs (caused by nerve damage and low calcium)
Aphthous ulcers (sores in the mouth)
Missed menstrual periods

Since people with Celiac disease have deficiencies in absorbing nutrients, there are diseases that often accompany this condition. Some of these diseases are listed below;

Osteoporosis, a disease that causes weakness of bones and leads to fractures. This is due to the fact that the person has trouble absorbing enough calcium and vitamin D.
Miscarriage or infertility.
Birth defects, such as neural tube defects (improper formation of the spine) caused by poor absorption of such nutrients as folic acid.
Seizures.
Growth problems in children because they don’t absorb enough nutrients.
In rare cases, Cancer of the intestine [Source: WebMD.com]

Is There Treatment For Celiac Disease? How Do You Treat Celiac Disease?

Yes, you can manage this condition with a gluten-free diet. Doctors normally treat celiac disease through prescription of a gluten-free diet. For most people, symptoms significantly improve with celiac disease who follow a gluten-free diet [niddk.nih.gov].

Alternatively, a dietitian can create a diet for you and teach you how to avoid gluten while following a healthy and nutritious diet.

Food & Body

Foods That Help To Clear Acne, Pimples, Blackheads

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 15 July, 2016
No Comments on Foods That Help To Clear Acne, Pimples, Blackheads

In one of our previous articles, we talked about food that could contribute to development of acne and pimples. We mentioned that different foods could lead to pimples for different people. With that said, did you know that there are foods that can help you fight and get rid of pimples too? If you didn’t know, let me tell you there are foods that do help.

Acne is a very common skin disease characterized by pimples on the face, check and back. We cannot overstate the importance of healthy diet. It may interest you that good and healthy diet is also the key to acne-free skin.

Some Foods That Will Help Clear Acne, Pimples, Blackheads

Okay, here are some foods (and supplements) that can help you to get rid of pimples on your face;

Stay Hydrated — Drink a lot Water

This might appear like, who doesn’t know that? Yes, but did you know it could help in getting rid of your acne? Water is regarded as the foundation of healthy and clear skin, so aim for 8 glasses of water every day.

Water will keep your skin hydrated and will help in flushing out acne-causing chemicals.

Drink Green Tea To Clear Acne

Catechins is a type of natural phenol and antioxidant. These substances help get rid of free radicals and also act as anti-inflammatory. Green tea is a great source of these anti-oxidants.

Drinking a cup of green tea every day will go a long way in clearing your face of acne. It will help with the redness, puffiness, and soreness of acne.

Foods Rich In Selenium

In one of our previously published article, we mentioned how selenium really helps in improving sex drive. We also mentioned foods that contain them. Well, that’s not the only thing it does — Selenium can also help clear out acne.

Whole grains like rice, corn and foods with whole grains, like cereals, breads, and pastas, are good sources of selenium. As well as helping to clear acne, Selenium also helps prevent it.

Fish, Walnut, Flaxseed Help With Acne

In short, we are talking about foods that are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids. Eating more omega-3 fatty acids, such as those found in fatty fish, walnuts, flaxseed, and the like, can help suppress the development inflammation and improve acne breakouts.

Food Supplements

Sticking to a diet plan is usually difficult for many people. That is why food supplements come in for people who cannot stick to the plan and desire faster results compared to when using diet.

There are supplements made from fruits, foods and herbs that can help get rid of acne. If you however, already have pimples on your face and will like to get rid of those fast, using some external skin care products is very important. A lot of people, all over the world have made use of these supplements with great success.

If you are interested in getting these supplements, you can easily send an email to foodsng2015@gmail.com and you will be pointed to the right direction. You can also call this number 08183430780 but you will get a better and detailed response via email.

It is important to note that you cannot use supplements and eat whatever you like. It doesn’t work that way. You need to observe and identify the foods that cause acne on your face and eliminate them.

ALSO SEE: Does Chocolate Cause Acne (Pimples Breakout)?

Tags Fish, Food Supplements, Green Tea, Omega-3, Selenium, Water

Supplements

5 Common Foods and Fruits To Supercharge Your Sex Drive

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 13 July, 2016
No Comments on 5 Common Foods and Fruits To Supercharge Your Sex Drive

Like it or not, you need to something about your sex drive if you are not feeling the urge at least once in every two days. Someone has even said that you need to have more drive to have sex than to go to sleep everyday. I don’t know about that, everyone with his own different body.

Often, when you need to improve libido (sex drive), we do know but sometimes, some don’t even know that their sex drive is not enough. If you recognize this issue with yourself, you are very lucky as this kind of thing breaks relationships. This is especially true if you have a partner whose libido is much more higher than yours.

When people discover that they have libido problem, they are usually shy to talk about it. Some are afraid they can become object of ridicule. Some people don’t even know that there is a solution. In fact, doing a little adjustment in the foods you eat can help improve your sex drive.

5 Foods That Boost Your Libido By Simply Consuming Them

Here are 5 foods you can get around to rev up your sex life. Some supplements will also be mentioned at end so that you can have more choices.

Watermelon hasViagra-like effects

I am wondering how many times I’ve mentioned watermelon in articles myself too. Yes, this wonderful fruit is majorly water (about 92 percent), but if you really want a sweet libido-booster, get a slice of watermelon every day.

Researchers at the Texas A&M Fruit and Vegetable Improvement Center reported finding in 2008 that watermelon has ingredients that delivered Viagra-like effects to the human body’s blood vessels and could even aid in increasing libido.

Ginseng significantly increased libido in a month

Ginseng is now being sold in grocery stores around. Even if you can’t find it in its original form, they are available in form of supplements and now even added to tea and some other drinks.

A group of researchers at the University of Hawaii found that women who took a ginseng supplement significantly upped their libido in a month, and 68 percent also said their overall sex life improved dramatically.

Lettuce Contains Opiate that helps to activate sex hormones

Apart from the abundance of minerals in this vegetable called Lettuce, it also contains an opiate that helps to activate sex hormones. So, why not make it a habit to add this vegetables to your salad and sometimes slice it fresh on foods such as rice, pasta and beans.

Pepper helps stimulate endorphins

In my last article I talked about how pepper could help us have a long life. Now, let me tell you that hot peppers increase metabolism and stimulate endorphins, makes you sweat, plumping your lips, and speeding up your heart rate. That gets the blood flowing to all the essential areas that end up in better sex.

Bananas are top sources of potassium

In the past, we have mentioned the side effects of consuming too much sodium. We also list some foods that have high hidden amount of sodium. Aside from the side effects we listed there, foods high in Sodium (generally salty foods) diminish blood flood to the genitals, which can make it more difficult to reach orgasm.

Bananas are one of the top sources of potassium, which helps to counteract the effects of foods high in sodium. Eat more of Banana. They are not even expensive.

Food Supplements

If you are someone that finds it difficult to add all these to your diet for a number of reasons, you have the option of supplements. For example, it may not be easy to keep fruits for a long time and you cannot go to the market or grocery stores every day to get fruits.

People with low libido have seen great improvements and results from just using these supplements as recommended daily. These are not drugs but food supplements. They are made from foods, fruits and herbs and they even produce faster results that foods.

ALSO SEE: List Of Foods That Help Remedy Low Sperm Count

Tags Banana, Food Supplements, Ginseng, Lettuce, Libido, Pepper, Watermelon

Food & Health

Spicy Food May Help You Live Longer — Research

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 12 July, 2016
No Comments on Spicy Food May Help You Live Longer — Research

I saw the meme below about the popularity of pepper and consequently spicy food amongst the Yoruba tribe in Nigeria. Someone even tweeted about it and got a lot of retweets. This is a tribe of people that will put pepper in any food to make it spicy. They even have a saying about people that eat really spicy food and here it goes.

They say, “emi yepere ni emi ti ko je ata.” This loosely translates as, “the life which does not eat pepper is a fragile one”. Well, they appear to be right, if anything about this research I read about is anything to go by. It now looks that a life that eats pepper if a strong and durable one.

Research Shows People Who Eat Spicy Foods Have Long Life

If you eat spicy foods, you will be happy to see this.

Lu Qi, an associate professor at Harvard School of Public Health had previously said that “there is accumulating evidence from mostly experimental research to show the benefit of spices or their active components on human health”.

After this, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences conducted a study in order to collect data from 2004 to 2008 as part of the China Kadoorie Biobank. The researchers used self-reported questionnaires and what they found out is amazing.

The researchers analyzed the spicy food consumption of nearly half a million people age 30 to 70 across 10 regions in China, excluding those with cancer, heart disease and stroke.

Finally, the reviewed the records of 20,224 people who died over a seven-year followup period and found that those who ate spicy foods six or seven times a week had a 14% lower risk of premature death for all causes than people who ate spicy foods less than once a week.

It was also found among the study subjects that people who frequently consumed spicy food showed a lower risk of death from cancer or ischemic heart and respiratory system diseases.

Thinking of grabbing the next available spicy food? Wait, there is a word of caution. Certain foods, of which spicy foods are part, are triggers for people with incontinence or overactive bladders. Doctors have identified as common irritants for women. We also have to think about the whole food and not just the spicy component of it.

Bio-psychologist John E. Hayes said on CNN, “You have to consider that when we talk about spicy food, we can mean vastly different things, with different health implications,” Hayes said. “That spicy food could be low-energy-density vegetables, like kimchee. Or it could be a high-energy-density food like barbecue spare ribs.”

In conclusion, even though this research has shown that spicy foods may help people live longer, an association between death and spicy foods has not been established. This is just an indication that there just, just might be a connection between the two.

Tags Chili Pepper, Pepper, Spicy Foods

General

Some Interesting & Creative Cake Ideas You’d Like To Share

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 12 June, 2016
No Comments on Some Interesting & Creative Cake Ideas You’d Like To Share

Below are some very nice and creative cakes that I believe only creative minds can come up with. Forget about the idea conceptualization and let’s talk about the execution of these ideas; these are wonderfully made cakes. I have shown it to some people that make cakes, and even though they said they could make those cakes too, they still said “Wow”.

It’s not like I did extensive research before I came up with these photos, so I know there would be some more awesome cakes out there. I only stumbled upon these cake photos and I was like, “wow, nice and creative”. So, I decided to share it with you guys to know what you think.

Cake 1: Ajase Cooking Pot

Anyone that has been involved in one party or the other would know what this “Abase Pot” is. They are commonly used to cook food meant to be served in parties. This cake could be for someone who does that kind of catering on their birthday or to celebrate the anniversary of a catering business.

What do you think?

Cake 2: Video Game With Pepsi Can

This is one creative cake idea that I really like. Yes, maybe because I was once a game addict and could relate with the arrangement of the items there. You play your game, have your phone beside you and take chilled drinks. Sometimes you move abruptly and knock the can drink over, spilling some of it.

This is a very good cake present for someone who loves to play video games.

Cake 3: Sleeping Baby Covered With Cloth

I have thought about this a lot and couldn’t come up with anything. Whom do you think makes this kind of cake? And for what occasion? I thought about it and I feel it might be a cake made to welcome a new baby into a family.

In fact that is the only thing I thought made sense. You think there is another one? Share it.

Cake 4: Very Creative Cake Depicting A Sewing Machine

This would be a perfect cake for a fashion designer on their birthday. One could also make this creative cake to celebrate the completion of a fashion design training.

A Sewing Machine Cake — Photo: art-spire.com

More interesting stuffs on the machine cake are the threads and needles depicted on it. I also like this one a lot. What about you?

Cake 5: Nikon Camera Creative Cake

I think that is a red velvet cake made in the form of a Nikon Camera. This is a fine cake for a photographer on their birthday.

If you have any other creative cake Idea to share with us, you can use our contact form to send to us. We will definitely add them to this list.

Which of the cakes listed here do you like most? Share in the comment section!

Tags Cakes

Food & Body

Foods That Help You Build Body Muscles

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 12 June, 2016
No Comments on Foods That Help You Build Body Muscles

If you have placed yourself on weight training and various form of exercises in order to build muscle, be informed that there are a number of foods that can propel you towards your goal. These foods have been known to help muscle builders achieve their target. These muscle-building foods can help you add mass as you desire.

This article will be listing some foods (generally protein-rich) that help you build muscle. The general rule is to get about 200g of protein a day. A lot of people have claimed that you need whey protein supplements in order to just sell products but I can tell you that you don’t need whey protein supplements. All you need to do is just eat a whole source of protein with each meal every day up to a mass of 200g and you are doing it right.

The List of Muscle-Building Foods You Can Add To Meals

In order to build and maintain muscle, the body requires nine essential amino acids. They are the building blocks of proteins and they help the recovery and repair of muscle fibers after workouts sessions. Also, they allow the creation of more muscle cells.

Egg Help Build Muscles:

In the past, egg has been implicated in the development of cardiovascular diseases because of the Cholesterol content. As of today more and more research has revealed that dietary cholesterol and heart diseases are not connected for many people.

The cholesterol found in eggs yolks serves at the scaffolding for steroid hormones. It has also been shown that ½ a gram of leucine found in each egg is like can act as a fuel for your muscle-building fire.

Build Muscle Mass With Nuts

It has been found that eating nuts (and other protein sources) immediately after your workout or exercises enables muscle growth. When you consume them with exercises that task your muscles, e.g. weightlifting or pushups, you muscle-building goals can be achieved faster.

However, it should be noted that consuming extra protein will not lead to increased gains. You should only consume that which is required daily. Also, you should note that nuts are not complete proteins because they lack some essential amino acids. Research have shown that consuming them with legumes at the same time or on the same day makes them complete.

Care should be taken when eating nuts because they are majorly fat. Consuming them in excess to help build muscle can lead to weight gain.

Lean Beef, Yes Beef Helps In Muscle Building

I believe everyone should know that lean beef is high up there on the list of foods that help build body muscles. Lean beef contains a combination of protein with essential amino acids, B-vitamins, and creatine that work together to help muscle-building.

Rick Hall, a registered dietitian and nutrition lecturer at Arizona State University (Tempe) said, ”Protein is the most obvious nutrient in beef that can benefit anyone who is training.”

He further explained that beef doesn’t contain just any run-of-the-mill protein. It boasts an impressive collection of the nine essential amino acids and has a high biological value, which means it’s very digestible and usable by the body. In fact, studies show that foods with a high biological value are what you should hunt for to repair those muscles post-workout.

Brown Rice For Building Muscles

This is especially a very good option for vegetarians trying to build muscle. Since they would normally want to avoid foods from animal sources, cooked brown rice can serve as part of their protein source for mass building.

Since cooked brown rice contains about five grams of protein per cup and a relatively high amount of branched-chain amino acids, it automatically becomes a good vegetarian muscle-building food option.

Cooked brown rice has five grams of protein per cup. It also has a relatively high amount of branched-chain amino acids, making it a good vegetarian muscle-building food.

Beans and Peas Provide Some Protein

Plant proteins generally don’t contain complete essential amino acids. They are therefore best eaten with whole-wheat grains for the right amino acids profile for the body.

Even though they are not a complete protein, beans have a good amount of amino acids and have the benefit of being low in fat, full of fibre and relatively cheap.

There are numerous other food types like Salmon, Kefir, Scallops, Bison, Lentils and more like that. I only talked about these few because they are the muscle-building foods that you can get easily in this part of the world.

Now that you that foods can help help you build muscle as you exercise. You should find ways to include them in your diet to achieve your muscle-building goals faster.

Tags Beans, Body Building, Brown Rice, Eggs, Muscles, Nuts, Peas

Food Preservation

Keeping Bread In Refrigerator Makes It Stale Faster

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 8 June, 2016
No Comments on Keeping Bread In Refrigerator Makes It Stale Faster

Why do you keep bread in the refrigerator? To preserve it? Well, this may come as a shock to a lot of people because I have seen many keep their breads in the refrigerator.

I know people that will keep anything that is left over in the refrigerator, including bread. They just microwave the bread whenever they want to eat it again. Some would even microwave the bread with the nylon wrap, not knowing this may pose some danger to their health. Of course, this can help the bread get back to near its initial form but microwaving food in that nylon may not be too safe; well, unless clearly marked “safe for microwaving”.

What Causes Bread Staling?

Bread actually starts becoming stale almost immediately it comes out of the baking oven. To fully understand how bread become stale, one has to describe what happens during bread baking.

During baking of bread, the starch molecules in the raw bread dough begin to for a gel-like structure (gelatinization), they absorb moisture, swell, and then become semi-firm. Immediately the bread is removed from the oven, the process starts to reverse itself, a process know as retrogradation. The starch molecules begin to “dry out” or crystallize and harden again.

So How Is Refrigeration Implicated In Staling of Bread?

You may be wondering, why do fruits, vegetables and many other foods keep longer and breads become stale easily in the fridge. Well, the answer is not far fetched, that would be the last statement in this article.

There are so many research and finding about staling of bread. Although some don’t quite understand or clearly explain the real process, one thing is sure. The one thing that is sure is that the cause of the staleness is the same — water molecules detach themselves from the starch molecules and the starch molecules begin to take their original shape before oven baking and harden again.

Findings have shown that refrigeration accelerates staling of bread. Interestingly, the rate at which bread becomes stale could be made six (6) times faster by keeping it in the refrigerator. If you don’t have a microwave oven, don’t keep your bread in the fridge and for those that want to use microwave, note that bread can get to a point microwave won’t be able to help.

Finally, to the answer posed about why fruits, vegetables and many other foods keep longer in the fridge. The answer to this is that, unlike bread, fruits and vegetables need their moisture removed to keep longer while this makes bread stale.

ALSO SEE: 4 Foods You Should Not Keep In The Freezer

Food & Health

You Think Fresh Fish Is Better Than Frozen Fish, See This

Post author By Oluwafemi Ajayi
Post date 5 June, 2016
1 Comment on You Think Fresh Fish Is Better Than Frozen Fish, See This

Fresh Fish vs Frozen Fish: Which Is The Healthier Option? — People have always asked which is better between fresh fish and frozen fish. There is this general belief that fresh foods are always healthier than their preserved form. This is also true for sea foods like fish. A lot of people I asked this question before writing this article believed that fresh fish is always healthier than frozen fish.

I am going to discuss in this post, why fresh fish may not always be healthier than frozen fish.

Caught fish begins to spoil and deteriorate in quality immediately after death. This process is a gradual one that starts from development of undesirable flavors to softening of the flesh and eventually substantial losses of fluid containing protein and fat. At this point, the fish may start to smell. Therefore, one could say it’s safer to start preservation of fish immediately.

How Freezing Is Used To Preserve Fish?

Before I go into details of this, let me explain how freezing is used to preserve fish. About 60-80 percent of fish is water depending on the species. By reducing the temperature of the dead fish (refrigeration or freezing), deterioration can be slowed down.

If the temperature can lowered and maintained low enough, spoilage can be almost stopped. Fast freezing is used to preserve fish immediately they are captured and therefore, the water composition of the fish is made into fine ice crystals. This preserves the fish as well as protect the tissues from damages.

So, Is Fresh Fish Healthier Than Frozen Fish?

I wouldn’t say yes to that. Unless you are absolutely sure it’s high-quality and fresh fish, your best option is to go for frozen fish. Because fish is flash-frozen immediately after being caught, little or no spoilage occurs and the nutrients in the fish are preserved. After thawing the fish, the fish should still have quality and be as near as healthy as when they were caught.

Fresh fish that was never frozen may have spent a number of days on fishing ships. Their qualities would have reduced during this period and they would no longer be as healthy. If I have to answer the question of which is better or healthier between fresh and frozen fish, i would say that you should only trust fresh fish that you killed yourself.

We should strive to eat healthy fish for a number reasons — It lowers blood pressure, cuts the risk of irregular heartbeats, and drops the risk of fatal heart disease by 36%.

ALSO SEE: Is Catfish Truly Toxic To Your Health?

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Tags Fish, Frozen Foods

General

The Cause of Risen Cost of Tomato In Nigeria (Tomato Ebola)

Post author By Ahmed Ogundimu
Post date 26 May, 2016
No Comments on The Cause of Risen Cost of Tomato In Nigeria (Tomato Ebola)

If I say the cost of tomato has risen in Nigeria, I would be lying because that is not even close to what happened. The price of tomatoes all over markets in every part of Nigeria has skyrocketed and keeps increasing at what looks like an exponential rate. Even if you don’t cook, you would have felt the effect of the rising cost of tomatoes when you buy any food they use tomato to cook.

A small basket of tomatoes that used to cost around N500 about three months ago now goes for like N12,000 in the market. A lot of people have lamented this problem but trust Nigerians, the happy people that we are, a lot of Nigerians are already making humour out of this.

What Is The Cost Of Increased Tomato Price In Nigeria?

For a lot of Nigerians, the Government is really making life hard in Nigeria. A lot of people I spoke to believed that the high cost of tomatoes was a resultant effect of the increase in pump price of petrol (PMS). Only a “handful” cared to investigate what the real problem was. The cost of tomatoes in Nigeria today has nothing to do with the removal of subsidy, deregulation of the downstream sector, fuel price increase or whatever you call it.

What Is the Cause of The Problem?

A moth called the Tomato Leaf Miner, or Tuta Absoluta, has ravaged 80% of tomato farms, Commissioner of Agriculture, Kaduna State, Daniel Manzo Maigar said. He said 200 farmers together lost at least 1billion Naira (about $5.1m; £3.5m) over the past month.

The seriousness of this condition has made Nigerians to liken it to the Ebola Virus outbreak. They now call it Tomato Ebola. The causative agent of this condition is Tuta absoluta.

Tuta absoluta is a devastating pest of Tomato which originated from South America. Recently Tuta absoluta considered to be a serious threat to tomato production in Mediterranean region. The pest is now finding the shores of the Mediterranean a perfect new home where it can breed between 10-12 generations a year. Each female can lay 250-300 eggs in her life time.

The Damage Caused by Tuta absoluta on Tomatoes

The larvae of Tuta absoluta mine the leaves producing large galleries and burrow into the fruit, causing a substantial loss of tomato production in protected and open filed cultivations.

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Audu Ogbeh, has said that his office had commissioned experts to look at the issue as “ordinary pesticides cannot tackle the disease because the tomato moth multiplies so fast.”

With this development and increase in the cost of tomatoes, a lot of Nigerians are now switching to the use of imported packaged tomato paste and purees in sachets and tins. Nigerians should however be cautious when choosing the tomato paste they want to buy. NAFDAC, recently told us in this report that “Imported Tomato Paste brands in retail packs (tins or sachets) from a particular country and sold everywhere in Nigeria falls far below National Food Safety Standards.

Tags Tomato