HEALTH/NUTRITIONAL/MEDICINAL BENEFITS OF MORINGA PLANT

Moringa Plant

I am ending year 2013 with an article on Moringa. Moringa is my dad’s latest craze and in the past few days, I’ve been adding powdered Moringa leaves to my stews and soups. There are currently two Moringa plants in the compound, the leaves are plucked off, dried and then made into powder. As usual, I had to research to find out what Moringa is and what health benefits it has. Surprisingly, Moringa is quite a popular plant and is considered a healing plant/a miracle tree.

Moringa has a number of medicinal uses with high nutritional value. According to research, most of the plant is used: its leaves, bark, flowers, fruit, seeds and root are medicinal and each part contains a profile of important minerals, and are a good source of protein, vitamins like Vitamin A (Beta Carotene), Vitamin B1 (Thiamine), Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin), Vitamin B3 (Niacin), Vitamin B6 (Pyrodixine), Vitamin B7 (Biotin), Vitamin C (Ascorbic Acid), Vitamin D (Cholecalciferol), Vitamin E (Tocopherol) and Vitamin K, amino acids and various phenolics. Moringa is considered a complete food as it contains all of the essential Amino Acids required for a healthy body. Amino Acids help maintain fluid balance and acid and base balance. They also transport substances such as oxygen, vitamins and minerals to target cells throughout the body.

Powdered Moringa Leaves

Research shows that Moringa has the following health benefits: Increases the natural defenses of the body, provides nourishment to the eyes and the brain, promotes healthy digestion, provides natural anti-aging benefits, beautifies the skin, promotes energy, acts as an antioxidant, and regulates blood glucose level. Studies show that Moringa is being used to prevent childhood blindness, a condition that can develop from vitamin A and retinol deficiencies. Moringa contains sufficient amounts of these nutrients to eliminate this condition. Dried and powdered Moringa leaves are great for nourishing the skin. Studies show that more and more cosmetic companies are starting to include Moringa extracts in their products.

Moringa is also notable for its medicinal value. Various parts of the Moringa plant act as cardiac and circulatory stimulants. There is an anti-bacterial and anti-inflammatory effect when Moringa leaves is applied to wounds or insect bites. Moringa leaf extracts can be used against bacterial or fungal skin complaints. Moringa leaf tea treats gastric ulcers and diarrhea. Eating Moringa food products is good for those suffering from malnutrition due to the high protein and fibre content. Research shows that the Moringa seed purifies dirty water.

Happy Year 2014 Everyone!!! Make Your Dreams a Reality!

HEALING POWER OF CELERY

I bought a green smoothie some months back which had celery as one of its ingredients. While placing my order, I was a bit skeptical about how a celery smoothie would taste, but my oh my did I enjoy it. Now, I am busy making celery smoothies and even cooking celery soup. I know I tend to go overboard with new discoveries. Well, all of this made me wonder what my body was benefiting from my new found love. After all, it is a vegetable, so it should have loads of nutritional and health benefits right?

NUTRITIONAL BENEFITS OF ZOBO/SORREL DRINK

z obo/sorrel was a must have during family gatherings. As children, we loved drinking it, not only because of how nice it tasted, but also because it coloured our lips and tongues red. Zobo (Nigerian) or Sorrel (Jamaican) is a red coloured drink made from a flower called Hibiscus sabdariffa. The sorrel plant contains a wide range of vitamins and minerals including vitamin C, calcium, niacin, riboflavin and a group of compounds called flavonoids. Flavanoids not only gives the sorrel plant its deep red colour, but, are also rich in antioxidants which rids the body of toxins. The sorrel plant also contains nutraceleuticals, which are said to be helpful to the health. Nutraceleuticals can help prevent and treat several diseases including diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and cancer.

SOME OF YOUR EXERCISE IN PREGNANCY QUESTIONS ANSWERED

I t’s been a long time I wrote, but trust me I have not been idle. I recently had a baby and I am glad I have some pregnancy fitness experiences to share with you. After my marriage union with my lovely husband, I began to get advice from some concerned colleagues and family about slowing down on my exercising and focusing on building a family and making babies. I wondered how exercising interfered with me achieving any of that, to my surprise some people believed that exercising was going to prevent me from conceiving. In fact, a particular ex-colleague of mine really scared me when she told me that I could just keep having miscarriages and not even know it. I did not let any of this bother me as I believed that pregnancy would happen at Gods time. Besides I had only been married for a month and still looking forward to our honeymoon. Pregnancy was certainly not on my mind at this time. To answer your first question can I conceive while exercising?

Fabila's Fitness Club

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