Breakfast Foods to Avoid

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day for people of all ages, and what you choose to eat in the morning is equally important.

A healthy breakfast is linked to many benefits, including weight control, improved performance, good metabolism, better concentration and overall good health.

A 2006 study published in the Journal of Adolescent Health reports that the trend of skipping breakfast increases as adolescents grow older and is linked to increased weight gain.

Eating an unhealthy breakfast is as bad as skipping breakfast. So, plan your breakfast menu properly and pay attention to eating healthy always.

Here are the 10 worst breakfast foods to start your day.

1. Sugary Cereals

Cereals are considered ideal breakfast foods, but you need to choose the best ones. The market is flooded with sugary cereals, which are not healthy for your body.

These cereals taste good because they have added sugar and artificial flavors. When you eat these cereals, the body converts the extra sugar calories to fat, thus increasing the risk of obesity.

Furthermore, the sugar causes blood sugar levels to spike, making you hungry again and you start craving more unhealthy, sweet and fatty foods. Plus, the food dyes used in colored cereals are not healthy.

According to a recent analysis by the Environmental Working Group of 1,556 cereals on the U.S. market, many are as sweet as cookies and should not be considered a part of a healthy breakfast.

Choose your breakfast cereals carefully. Look for those made with whole grains, as the fiber will help you stay full longer.

Plus, the vitamins, antioxidants and minerals found in whole-grain cereals can protect against problems like obesity, digestive issues, cancers and heart disease.

2. Fruit Juice

Fruit juice is another staple breakfast item. The problem lies with processed fruit juices, which contain added sugars and preservatives.

Plus, processed fruit juices are often low in nutrient value, lacking healthy fiber, enzymes, minerals, antioxidants and vitamins.

In fact, to get the most health benefits from fruits, it is recommended to opt for whole fruits rather than fruit juice. Although the juice has as much sugar as the fruit, it does not contain fruit pulp which is rich in dietary fiber.

Unlike the juice which gets absorbed faster, the whole fruit with its fiber content that can help tame hunger pangs until lunch time.

A 2013 study published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition reports that intake of whole apples or clear apple juice has contrasting effects on health.

While whole apples are rich in polyphenols and pectin, these constituents segregate differently during processing into juice form, thus the clear juice lacks these constituents.

Pick whole fruits over fruit juice for a healthy breakfast menu. Whole fruit will provide your body with all the necessary vitamins, minerals and fiber.

Some tasty, low-calorie fruit choices for breakfast include apples, grapefruits, papayas, watermelons and berries.

3. Bacon

Make sure you are not eating something rich in saturated fat like bacon as part of your most important meal of the day.

Starting your day with bacon may increase your risk of heart disease and cancer due to its saturated fat, sodium, nitrate and nitrite content.

According to the American Heart Association, eating foods high in saturated fat raises blood cholesterol levels, which in turn may increase the risk of heart disease and strokes.

The World Health Organization says that high red meat intake increases the risk of colorectal, pancreatic and prostate cancers.

A 2005 study published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute suggests an association between high intake of red meat and processed meat and an increased risk for pancreatic cancer.

Make sure to eat something nourishing and sustaining for breakfast to keep you energetic throughout the day.

4. Cereal Bars

Cereal bars, also known as breakfast bars, are often considered delicious and healthy breakfast options, but in reality some of them are a nutrition nightmare.

Most cereal bars are high in calories, sugar, unhealthy saturated fat and salt. Being loaded with added sugars, cereal bars are digested quickly and don’t satisfy hunger for long.

There also is a particular concern over the poor nutritional value in certain breakfast foods aimed at children.

A 2013 study done by the University of Hertfordshire reports that children’s ‘healthy’ foods, such as yogurts, cereal bars and ready-made meals, are higher in fat, sugar and salt than those marketed to the general population.

When it comes to breakfast bars, choose those containing whole grains that can give you the desired amount of energy-producing carbohydrates. Calcium-fortified cereal bars are also a good choice.

A 2015 study published in PLOS ONE emphasizes eating calcium-fortified cereal bars to significantly increase calcium intake, especially among women.

5. Doughnuts

Many people indulge regularly in doughnuts for breakfast, but doughnuts are one of the worst breakfast foods. These fried pastries are full of sugar, white flour and trans fat.

The high sugar content will raise your blood sugar level and can lead to significant weight gain over time. In fact, people with diabetes should avoid this sugary food as much as possible.

Doughnuts are made of white flour, a simple carbohydrate that contains close to no fiber. Fiber is essential for digestive health, and it helps lower cholesterol and control blood sugar levels.

Store-bought doughnuts are made up of about 35 to 40 percent trans fat. A 2015 study published in the BMJ reports that intake of trans unsaturated fat is associated with increased risk of cardiovascular disease, coronary heart disease, ischemic stroke and Type 2 diabetes.

Just like doughnuts, muffins and other pastries are also not a good choice for breakfast. Instead of these sugary items, even a glass of plain milk is a better way to start your day.

6. Instant Noodles

When you have a busy morning schedule and need something easy to cook and tasty to eat for breakfast, instant noodles is often the answer. But instant noodles are not at all good for your health.

The two main preservatives, butylated hydroxyanisole (BHA) and t-butylhydroquinone (TBHQ), used in instant noodles can have adverse effects on your health.

A 2005 study published in Drug Metabolism and Disposition notes that long-term constant exposure to TBHQ may prove carcinogenic.

Moreover, the wax used in instant noodles is not digested easily and takes at least 3 days to flush out of your system. These noodles are also filled with empty calories and too much sodium.

A 2014 study published in The Journal of Nutrition reports that high intake of instant noodles may increase a person’s risk for cardio metabolic syndrome, especially in women.

7. White Bread

White bread is one of the worst foods that you can have for breakfast. White bread has a high glycemic index (GI) as it is made from refined grains that are rapidly absorbed during digestion.

This causes sharp spikes in blood sugar and insulin levels. High GI foods increase your risk for weight gain, Type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

Also, white bread is low in fiber content, so you will usually feel hungry again before lunch time. These breads are also low in essential nutrients and may even have an adverse effect on your health. Plus, they are packed with yeast that can make you feel bloated.

Replacing white bread with a healthier alternative is easy to do. When buying bread, opt for those made with whole grains, such as whole wheat, whole oats or whole rye.

These breads may be a little more expensive than white bread, but they are worth the money in terms of being healthier for your body.

8. Pancakes

Typical pancakes are made with white flour, sugar, sodium and butter, thus making them unhealthy. It is recommended not to start your day with this sweet, calorie-rich food.

Being low in fiber, pancakes are less filling, thus making you hungry more quickly. They also do not contain any protein that keeps you feeling full.

Plus, the sugar and syrup used in pancakes can rapidly increase your blood sugar and harmful triglyceride levels that raise your risk of heart disease.

Even the butter used in pancakes is not good for your heart. Butter is high in saturated fat, and when eaten in excess can boost blood cholesterol levels.

But you don’t have to give up the fun of a pancake breakfast. Just make them using healthy ingredients.

Make the batter with whole grains and add mashed, grated or chopped nuts, fruits or vegetables to add a punch to the taste as well as nutritional value.

9. Flavored Yogurt

Flavored yogurt is another popular and convenient breakfast item that is not healthy due to the presence of artificial colors and flavors. Plus, it contains lots of added sugar and syrup.

Flavored yogurt is low in nutrient value as compared to plain yogurt. It is low in potassium, protein, calcium and vitamin D.

Plus, the mouth-watering flavors actually don’t come from the real fruit, but rather the pureed form that is high in sugar content, which provides instant energy but no nutrition. The sugar also increases your calorie intake, thus making you gain weight.

Instead of flavored yogurt, opt for plain yogurt for breakfast. Plain yogurt is a good source of calcium, protein and gut-healthy probiotics.

You can make your plain yogurt tastier by adding chopped fruits and nuts, such as apples, pomegranates, berries, almonds and walnuts. These add-ons will promote slower digestion and increased satiety.

10. Coffee

For many, a cup of coffee is a delicious way to boost their mood and brain function in the morning. But coffee is something that you should avoid including in your breakfast menu.

A 1999 study published in Physiology & Behavior reports that when coffee and breakfast cereal is compared, caffeine increased blood pressure and pulse rate, whereas breakfast cereal only had an effect on pulse.

Plus, many add-ons like non-dairy creamers or sugar in a cup of coffee can add excessive carbohydrates or sugar in your body. This in turn is not good for your weight as well as heart health.

Instead of coffee, start your day with a cup of green tea, which is good for your overall health.

9 Reasons To Stop Drinking Any Kind of Pasteurized Milk

Pasteurization is a dangerous method of heating our foods with tragic side effects which are largely ignored bu the FDA and downplayed by the dairy industry. To accept these facts would be to surrender after a hundred-year war indiscriminately waged against all bacteria--a hundred-year war that has now turned to attack the immune systems of the public. Here are 9 reasons why pasteurization destroys the nutritional and enzymatic value of milk and why you need to avoid it.

Raw milk contains vast amounts of nutrients including beneficial bacteria such as lactobacillus acidolphilus, vitamins and enzmes, and only a very modest source of calcium (if left unpasteurized).

To understand what heat does to a good bacteria, we need to know about its structure. A bacterium is a single-celled organism. Think of it like a studio apartment, one room containing all the things a person needs to live: food, water, air. The walls of the apartment enclose the electrical wiring and gas pipes that deliver energy, along with the sewage pipes that get rid of waste products. In contrast to the size of this single-celled organism, even an animal as small as a mouse would be like a huge city with thousands of buildings and extensive infrastructure to keep it "alive."

When the temperature gets hot enough, the enzymes in the bacterium are denatured, meaning they change shape. This change renders them useless, and they're no longer able to do their work. The cell simply ceases to function. 

Heat can also damage the bacterium's cell envelope. Proteins and fatty acids making up the envelope lose their shape, weakening it. At the same time, fluid inside the cell expands as the temperature rises, increasing the internal pressure. The expanding fluid pushes against the weakened wall and causes it to burst, spilling out the guts of the bacterium. 

Pasteurization constitutes one of the milder forms of thermal processing. Ultra-high temperature and sterilization methods kill all microorganisms in the food, while milder heat treatments like thermization and pasteurization only kill some of them. Why not use a higher temperature if it will kill more pathogens? The answer is that higher temperatures change the characteristics of the food.

At higher temperatures, as with Ultra High Temperature Pasteurization, several things happen to milk that make it less desirable to consumers: 

High-Temp Pasteurization - Milk is heated to 161F for 31 seconds in order to sterilize the milk. The problem is that this also kills enzymes, much of the healthy microorganisms, and more importantly it denatures the proteins. Essentially, high-temp pasteurization kills the milk and makes it much more difficult for your body to digest. This can typically lead to inflammatory bowel disease, among others. 

Ultra-Pasteurized - This is the majority of our milk today, what you would typically find in a grocery store. Ultra-pasteurization heats the milk to 280F for only a few seconds. The reason for using ultra-pasteurization is because it kills everything. Ultra pasteurization not only kills potentially harmful bacteria in the milk, but also damages all of the vitamins, minerals and other nutrients originally contained in the milk. This process also kills the healthy enzymes which help your body digest the milk, and drinking it without the enzymes can lead to lactose intolerance.

Low-Temp Pasteurization - Milk is only heated to 145F. This is significant because it’s below the temperature that kills most of the beneficial enzymes and the proteins remain in-tact. The main downside to low-temp pasteurization is that some of the enzymes and probiotics can be damaged. But, by culturing (fermenting it with good bacteria) this dairy and making yogurt, kefir or amasai, many of those probiotics are added back. This also improves the digestibility of the dairy. Low-temp is the closest to raw milk products most of us in the US can get. 

Most cow's milk has measurable quantities of herbicides, pesticides, dioxins (up to 200 times the safe levels), up to 52 powerful antibiotics, blood, pus, feces, bacteria and viruses. 

9 REASONS TO STOP DRINKING PASTEURIZED MILK

1) Pasteurization Used To Mask Low-Quality Milk
Heat destroys a great number of bacteria in milk and thus conceals the evidence of dirt, pus and dirty dairy practices. It’s cheaper to produce dirty milk and kill the bacteria by heat, that to maintain a clean dairy and keep cows healthy. To combat the increase in pathogens milk goes through ‘clarification’, ‘filtering’, ‘bactofugation’ and two ‘deariation’ treatments. Each of these treatments uses heat ranging from 100-175 degrees Fahrenheit. Dairies count on many heat treatments to mask their inferior sanitary conditions: milk filled with pus, manure and debris. Consumer Reports found 44% of 125 pasteurized milk samples contained as many as 2200 organisms per cubic centimeter (fecal bacteria, coliforms)

2) Pasteurization Destroys Nutrients
It destroys vitamin C, and damages water soluble B vitamins diminishing the nutrient value of milk. Calcium and other minerals are made unavailable by pasteurization. The Maillard reaction, a chemical reaction between proteins and sugars, occurs at higher heats and causes browning, discoloring the milk. 

3) Pasteurization Destroys Enzymes
Milk enzymes, proteins, antibodies as well as beneficial hormones are destroyed by pasteurization resulting in devitalized ‘lifeless’ milk. Milk enzymes help digest lactose and both enzymes and milk proteins help to absorb vitamins. Protective enzymes in milk are inactivated, making it more susceptible to spoilage. 

4) Causes Asthma
Pasteurized milk causes asthma, and as a result doctors prescribe a diet without pasteurized dairy products. Milk triggers asthma by destabilizing MAST cells, which release histamines that cause inflammation, mucus production and bronchial spasm. Pasteurized milk is a partial food product that is missing digestive enzymes and nearly all of its beneficial bacteria. Pasteurized milk (with rare exceptions) comes from cows fed a ration based on corn and soy rather than pasture and forage. Pasteurization warps and distorts fragile proteins, making them allergenic. Unpasteurized milk is the opposite and heals and prevents asthma by stabilizing MAST cells and reducing inflammation as shown by dramatic lowering of C-reactive protein levels. Unpasteurized milk rebuilds immunity by allowing the safe consumption of biodiversity in our diets. These bacteria then re-colonize the gut and become our immune protective and digestive ecosystem armies.

5) Allergenic and Disease Causing FoodCow's milk is the number one allergic food in this country. The milk of each of the over 4,700 mammals on earth is formulated specifically for that species. There are special lactoferrins and immunoglobulins (cow specific immunizing stuff) that in humans serve as allergens. It has been well documented as a cause in diarrhea, cramps, bloating, gas, gastrointestinal bleeding, iron-deficiency anemia, skin rashes, atherosclerosis, and acne. It is the primary cause of recurrent ear infections in children. It has also been linked to insulin dependent diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, infertility, and leukemia. The protein lactalbumin, has been identified as a key factor in diabetes (and a major reason for NOT giving cows milk to infants). 89% of America's dairy herds have the leukemia virus. Cows diagnosed with Johne's Disease have diarrhea, and heavy fecal shedding of bacteria. This bacteria becomes cultured in milk, and is not destroyed by pasteurization. Occasionally, the milk-borne bacteria will begin to grow in the human host, and the results are irritable bowel syndrome and Crohn's Disease.

6) Kills Bone Density
The dairy industry has been hard at work the last 50 years convincing people that pasteurized dairy products such as milk or cheese increases bioavailable calcium levels. This is totally false. The pasteurization process only creates calcium carbonate, which has absolutely no way of entering the cells without a chelating agent. So what the body does is pull the calcium from the bones and other tissues in order to buffer the calcium carbonate in the blood. This process actually causes osteoporosis. Pasteurized dairy contains too little magnesium needed at the proper ratio to absorb the calcium. Most would agree that a minimum amount of Cal. to Mag Ratio is 2 to 1 and preferably 1 to 1. So milk, at a Cal/Mag ratio of 10 to 1, has a problem. You may put 1200 mg of dairy calcium in your mouth, but you will be lucky to actually absorb a third of it into your system. Over 99% of the body's calcium is in the skeleton, where it provides mechanical rigidity. Pasteurized dairy forces a calcium intake lower than normal and the skeleton is used as a reserve to meet needs. Long-term use of skeletal calcium to meet these needs leads to osteoporosis. Dairy is pushed on Americans from birth yet they have one of the highes risk of osteoporosis in the world. The test for pasteurization is called the negative alpha phosphatase test. When milk has been heated to 165 degrees (higher for UHT milk) and pasteurization is complete, the enzyme phosphatase is 100 percent destroyed. Guess what? This is the enzyme that is critical for the absorption of minerals including calcium! Phosphatase is the third most abundant enzyme in raw milk and those who drink raw milk enjoy increased bone density. Several studies have documented greater bone density and longer bones in animals and humans consuming raw milk compared to pasteurized.

7) Antibiotic Effectiveness
Pasteurization killed antibiotic effectiveness for all of us. By creating a commodity dairy market system that relies heavily on antibiotics fed to heifers and dry cows at CAFO (Confined Animal Feeding Operation) mega dairies to support massive milk production, the antibiotics now used in American hospitals for humans no longer work. Tens of thousands of Americans now die each year because of superbugs created by CAFO antibiotic abuse. MRSA and VRA drug resistance is now a major cause of death and there are fewer and sometimes no antibiotics left to kill the bad bugs and save human lives. FDA has conceded antibiotic use in farm animals must be phased out but refuses an outright ban or limit of the use of antibiotics in CAFO feed and instead testifies in defense of antibiotic use by the CAFO industry.

8) Cancer Fuel 
Of the almost 60 hormones, one is a powerful GROWTH hormone called Insulin- like Growth Factor ONE (IGF-1). By a freak of nature it is identical in cows and humans. Consider this hormone to be a "fuel cell" for any cancer... (the medical world says IGF-1 is a key factor in the rapid growth and proliferation of breast, prostate and colon cancers, and we suspect that most likely it will be found to promote ALL cancers). IGF-1 is a normal part of ALL milk... the newborn is SUPPOSED to grow quickly! What makes the 50% of obese American consumers think they need MORE growth? Consumers don't think anything about it because they do not have a clue to the problem... nor do most of our doctors. 

9) Forces Cows Out Of Green Pastures And Into Diseased World
Pasteurization kills cows on green pastures. Seventy-five years ago there were friendly cows on green pastures all over America. Pasteurization has effectively paved the pastures and now forces the cows to be fed soy protein concentrates and forty pounds of grain per day, along with antibiotics and hormones. These CAFO dairy feeds increase milk production to numbers never seen before in the history of earth. It is not uncommon for some CAFO dairy cows to produce twenty gallons of milk per day and be crowded into pens deep in manure with thousands of other cows. The stress of being milked up to four times per day and lying on artificial rubber beds shortens their lives to just forty months. A cow on pasture will produce much less milk (four to five gallons per day) and easily live ten years or more in true happiness and health. 

Try Coconut Milk
Compared to cow’s milk coconut milk is easier to digest because the body uses 3 less enzymes for its digestion as opposed to cow’s milk. It also contains a high level of omega 3, 6 and 9 fats along with high amounts of amino acids. This excellent combination of fats and amino acids make it a complete meal in and of itself.

The high level of omega 3, 6 and 9 fats and protein in this milk are more bio-available to humans compared to all other animal fats and most vegetable fats. This bio-availability results in the body’s ability to assimilate all its nutrients.

It’s very healing to the digestive tract and even heals damage done to the system in cases of IBS, Crohn’s disease and severe malnutrition.

Coconut milk also helps maintain balanced blood sugar levels by being a good source of manganese. This mineral is usually deficient in people with blood sugar issues. 

Why one must QUIT SMOKING?

ENOUGH reasons to quit smoking – NOW!!

Some might fancy their favorite stars on the big screen, smoking and puffing away those silver rings in the air and find it “oh-so-cool”. But in reality, do you have any idea about the havoc it creates within your body and how it brings you closer to be several life threatening diseases?

Smoking statistics

• Around 90,000 Indians die of tobacco related disease every year 
• 56.6% of cancer in men and 44.8% cancers in women are caused by tobacco 
• Smokers are thrice more likely to develop tuberculosis than non smokers 
• Tobacco users are twice at risk for developing heart diseases and paralysis 

Still not convinced? Hang on! Now go through the reasons why you should think 1000 times before lighting a cigarette:

Cancers of all sorts: Lung, mouth, cheeks, oral, pharynx, larynx, stomach, kidney, penis, urinary and gall bladder cancers are more mostly because of the ill effects of tobacco.

Heart diseases: Heart attack, angina (chest pain), sudden cardiac death, stroke, peripheral vascular disease (gangrene of legs), and paralysis hits people who are used to nicotine consumption. It reduces flow of blood to heart and increases blood pressure. A smoker has a weak heart and is prone to develop plaque around the coronary arteries and narrows them eventually.


Range of lung diseases: Chronic bronchitis, tuberculosis, emphysema and several other respiratory tract diseases develops in smokers.


Lower stamina: Smoking decreases stamina and power for physical activity. Smokers tend to get tired and drained easily while doing any strenuous activity.


Sexual dysfunction: Impotence, early menopause and decreased oestrogen levels comes along free with heavy smoking. When combined with birth control pills, chance of stroke for women increases.


Accelerates ageing: Smoking can make you age faster than nature does.


Aesthetic turn off: Stained teeth, darkened lips, wrinkled skin, less hair on scalp, bad breath, and smelly clothes – oh what a put off!!


Passing illnesses to loved ones: A smoker unintentionally and unknowingly passes on grave illnesses to others nearby him. Being a passive smoker, anyone around a smoking person is bound to inhale the harmful chemical that comes out of the exhaled smoke.


Pinch your pocket: Isn’t it amusing that we spend so much money on something that can is killing us internally? Smoking not only is exceedingly damaging for health but also dents the pocket severely.

Article taken from:
http://articles.indushealthplus.com/smoking-kick-the-butt-why/

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