Thursday, April 03, 2008
Newsletter Archive
HFL October 2007
Here is the latest HFL news:
Customers that shop at HealthFitLabs.com for the first time get a 20% one-time discount! Just enter FIRST as the coupon code at checkout to redeem your coupon.
Any returning customer can use this 10% discount every time they shop on our site. Enter REORDER to redeem this coupon at checkout every time you shop at HealthFitLabs.com.
Free shipping on orders over $75. No coupon needed, just fill up those shopping carts. Order larger sizes to gain an even larger savings.
Become an affiliate today! Visit our affiliate page and fill out the form. Be sure to enter your correct email address. Please contact rmartin@HealthFitLabs.com or call 630-563-0199 if you have any questions.
Our Mission: At HealthFitLabs we sell only the highest-quality natural vitamins and nutritional supplements, as well as bath and personal care products. We're passionate about customer service and dedicated to helping our customers and affiliates meet their personal health goals.
As always, please forward this on to your friends and family (they can subscribe at the bottom of the newsletter and get a $5 coupon for a future purchase!). Thank you for your support!
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The Skinny on Red Wine and Magnesium
By DALE ROBERTSON
Houston Chronicle
Red wine
Basics: Most scientists have come to believe that many human diseases, from congestive heart failure to cancer, are caused by free radicals, vile chemicals that attack healthy cell membranes through oxidation. What protects us are antioxidants. Red wine contains a wide range of flavonoids, which give each its special taste and character and act similarly to antioxidants. The so-called "French Paradox" resulted from research into why people in southern France, despite their high-fat diets have some of the lowest rates of heart disease in the world.
A cautionary note: Excessive alcohol consumption causes liver disease as well as obesity, the latter because wine is, alas, high in calories. Also, drinking excessively will raise the level of fats (triglycerides) in the blood.
Expert advice: The American Heart Association's own guidelines suggest no more than two four-ounce glasses per day. That can vary, depending on a person's body weight. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration warns against mixing alcohol with aspirin when the latter is prescribed to help remedy a heart condition.
Our two-cents worth: At the end of the day, quitting smoking, maintaining a balanced diet and exercising regularly are the best ways to take care of your heart. Do all that and then toast yourself with a glass of cabernet.
Magnesium
The basics: Magnesium is, plain and simple, good stuff. It's said be necessary for more than 300 biochemical reactions in the body, helping to maintain normal muscle and nerve function, keep heart rhythm steady and support a healthy immune system. Magnesium also assists in regulating blood sugar levels and promoting normal blood pressure, as well as being involved in energy metabolism and protein synthesis. The consumption of alcohol, however, depletes the body's magnesium reserve primarily through its dehydrating effects and this, as much as anything, causes hangovers.
A cautionary note: While, it's hard to find evidence that too much magnesium in the body is a problem, people with kidney disease or severe heart disease should take magnesium supplements only under the direction of a physician.
Our two-cents worth: Magnesium deficiency is rarely due to insufficient intake, but rather the result of factors that increase excretion or reduce absorption. So, if too much booze or lots of coffee are part of your routine, you should eat more whole grains, nuts and green leafy vegetables, or take magnesium supplements daily.
*Find Magnesium Supplements on our site! Search here!*
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Cooking Low Carb with Pumpkin
by Laura Dolson
Did You Know that pumpkin is one of the vegetables allowed during Atkins' Induction phase?
Did You Know that pumpkin is chock full of vitamins, minerals, fiber, and antioxidants?
Did You Know that pie is not the only way to cook pumpkin?
Pumpkin is one of those vegetables that is almost emblematic of fall -- it makes us think of harvest, of holidays, of frost, of lengthening nights and the oncoming winter. And yet, the only way it usually gets to the table is in a store-bought pie, or perhaps a can of pie filling that goes in a pie we made ourselves. But pumpkin can be so much more - and since pumpkin keeps for 6 months whole or for years in a can, it can be a year-round addition to our diets.
Pumpkin is chock full 'o goodness. You can tell by its bright color that it's going to be going to be good for you! Not only is pumpkin loaded with Vitamin A and antioxidant carotenoids, particularly alpha and beta-carotenes, it's a good source of Vitamins C, K, and E, and lots of minerals, including magnesium, potassium, and iron.
Half a cup of canned pumpkin has 6.5 grams of effective carbohydrate and 3.5 grams of fiber.
The seeds are also worth latching on to. Pumpkin seeds, also called pepitas, are loaded with minerals, seem to have an anti-inflammatory effect, and may even help protect against prostate cancer and osteoporosis. A quarter cup has about 5 grams of effective carb and 1.5 grams of fiber.
Selection
For cooking, you want a pumpkin that is heavy for its size. The lighter ones are drier, with a bigger open space in the middle. For the most part, stay away from the large pumpkins when selecting a pumpkin for eating -- 2-5 lbs is about right.
Storage
Pumpkins can keep for a long time in a cool (ideally 50-60 degrees) dry place. Put newspapers underneath just in case though! Once the pumpkin is cut open, you need to use it within a couple of days (or freeze it) as it can mold quickly. Cooked, it's fine in the refrigerator for 4-5 days.
Basic Easy Cooking Techniques
For pumpkin puree: Remember, you heard it here first: you don't need to cut the pumpkin open before you roast it. I'm not kidding. Just jab it with a knife once or twice to vent the steam, put the whole darned thing on a baking sheet, and pop it in the oven at 350 F for an hour or so, until you can easily stick a knife into it. (Once I had to leave in the middle of this, so I turned off the oven after 20 minutes, and when I came back several hours later it was perfectly cooked.) Cool, then scoop out the seeds and stringy stuff with a spoon, or pull it out with tongs. It is SO MUCH EASIER than when it is raw!
If you want chunks, you'll have to cut into it raw (though I have wondered if "par-roasting" would work to make the skin easier to hack into). Or find a store where you can buy it already in chunks. Or beg the produce guy at your local market to do it. Explain that people (e.g. you) would gladly pay more if someone else had done the wrestling.
For the seeds, let them dry on paper towels, then oil and salt them (and any other seasonings you want) and slow roast them in a 250 F oven until they smell good -- about 45-60 minutes. Stir them every 15 minutes or so.
*Find other recipes in our Healthy Library*
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Healthy Humor
Why is it dangerous to go in the jungle after 5 p.m?
Because elephants jump out of trees after 5 p.m.
Why do beavers have flat tails?
Because they go in the jungle after 5 p.m!
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My Aching Head
by Dr. Daniel Gerwig
I have people ask me all of the time if Chiropractic Care can help with migraine headaches and the answer is yes, after we find out what is causing the migraines. Migraines headaches can be a severe and debilitating problem that can incapacitate you for days at a time. The cause of your migraine headache can often be difficult to diagnose and therefore treat. The current theories on migraines find that they are caused by either a neurological (nerves), vascular (arteries and veins) dysfunction, or a combination of the two. Once you start to have migraines they tend to come more frequent and more painful. This is because your body, specifically your neck, becomes very tight and stiff. This tension creates more headaches and perpetuates the problem. Chiropractic care has been found helpful in relief of both migraine headaches and the stress headaches that are created by them.
If you or someone you know suffers from a migraine headaches, call Dr. Gerwig at his office today to set up a consultation (630) 790-1422.