Healthy Spices

Antioxidants are those nutrients in whole foods that keep  diseases like heart disease, diabetes and cancer away. When you think  about antioxidants, fruits and vegetables usually come to mind. But  those aren't the only foods where these health boosting nutrients are  hiding.

New research shows that herbs and spices also pack a powerful punch when it comes to antioxidants. A USDA study looked at nearly 40  common herbs and spices to test their antioxidant activity. Oregano  emerged as the leader of the pack.

Researchers found that oregano has 3 to 20 times more  antioxidant activity than the other herbs studied. In fact, it has more  than many fruits and vegetables. Oregano has 42 times more antioxidant  activity than apples, 30 times more than potatoes, 12 times more than  oranges and 4 times more than blueberries. But that's not the only herb  or spice that can improve your health. Dill, thyme, sage, rosemary,  ginger and even peppermint have high antioxidant levels too.

The main ingredient in curry is Turmeric, from which a spice  called Curcumin is derived. Sally Frautschy, Ph.D., is a researcher from UCLA who has done extensive testing on Curcumin. She says that "we  accidentally found out that it blocks every single step in Alzheimer's  pathogenesis and it kills nearly every cancer cell in the lab." In  India, curry is part of the staple diet; they also have the lowest rates of Alzheimer's disease in the world.

Marcia Herrin, R.D., a nutritionist at the Dartmouth Medical  School says "practically every herb and spice that's been studied has  some health benefit," herbs and spices are loaded with antioxidants, but we may not be getting those benefits as much as we could. Herrin says  Americans don't use many herbs and spices compared to the rest of the  world.

Researchers also say that many of these herbs are only  absorbed by the body when they're eaten with fat, so recipes that  include healthy fats, like those found in Heart of Gold, a delicious  plant oil blend available only from The Wholefood Farmacy.

Heart of Gold
Heart Of Gold contains only heart healthy fats from 5 plant oils, blended to  perfection and compounded with edible 23 Carat Gold. Gold, when absorbed into the blood stream has wonderful nutritional effects on the body.  Fat soluble vitamins like A, D, E, & K are worthless without fat. Good  fats are gifts of nature for life. Add our Raw Salt, herbs, or spices to Heart Of Gold and use it as a sop for whole grain breads, make your own salad dressings, and pour it on raw or steamed veggies. Feel the peace, joy, and restful sleep that gold sop invokes.

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Almonds & Vitamin E

Almonds are a wonderful Whole Food and science has discovered the benefits of eating them in their whole form. Research reveals that  the flavonoids in almond skin works synergistically the vitamin E found  in almonds. This synergistic combination creates more than 200% the  antioxidant power of the almonds and almond skins when separated. "We  have identified a unique combination of flavonoids in almonds," said  Jeffrey Blumberg, Ph.D., senior scientist and director of the Antioxidants Research Laboratory at Tufts University. "Further blood tests demonstrated that eating almonds with their skins significantly  increases both flavonoids and vitamin E in the body. This could have  significant health implications, especially as people age."

Blumberg's team tested the effects of almond skin's  flavonoids alone and then in combination with the vitamin E found in  almonds. The tests were done on blood samples containing LDL  cholesterol. While almond skin flavonoids alone enhanced LDL's  resistance to oxidation by 18%, when the almond’s vitamin E was added,  LDL's resistance to oxidation was extended by 52.5%!

"The synergy between the flavonoids and vitamin E in almonds  demonstrates how the nutrients in whole foods such as almonds can impact health," says Dr. Blumberg.

You can find almonds in many of your favorite Wholefood  Farmacy foods such as Phi Plus, Cranberry Phi, Coco Cherry Phi as well  as all seven Wholefood Farmacy Farinas!