Pile On the Sauerkraut! Really!
9 healthy condiments you should stock up on
Who knew heart health, brain power and cancer prevention could come out of your refrigerator and pantry?!
Ketchup: Thanks to Lycopene, this condiment has shown to slow the process of atherosclerosis. But try to stick with organic varieties since they have up to 60% more as well as Vitamin A, C, and E. Dose: 3-4 Tbs/daily
Buckwheat Honey: Like blueberries, buckwheat honey contains the most antioxidants which protect cells from free radicals and may reduce the risk of cancer, macular degeneration, heart disease, and cognitive decline. Dose: 2-4 Tbs/daily
Rosemary: Antioxidants in this herb are said to minimize, if not eliminate carcinogens formed when cooking some foods. Tell your meat-eating friends (first, stop eating meat) but if they won’t, then at least season beef with rosemary before grilling because it can reduce cancer-causing substances called heterocyclic amines by 30-100%! Scientists also found that by adding rosemary to dough reduced the affects (30-100%) of acrylamide, a potentially carcinogenic compound that forms in carb-rich foods when heated above 250 degrees. Dose: 1-2 Tbs/daily
Horseradish: It beats broccoli! Well…it contains 10 times more glucosinolates (compounds in the roots and leaves of the horseradish plant) than broccoli. These compounds can increase your liver’s ability to detoxify carcinogens and can possibly suppress the growth of existing tumors. Dose: 1/4 tsp/daily
Olive Oil: This omega-9 rich oil is converted during digestion to oleoylethanolamide (OEA), a hormone that helps keep brain cells healthy. Dose: A few Tbs/daily
Cinnamon: Just a 1/2 a tsp can help reduce stabilize blood sugar levels. It enhances insulin sensitivity, allowing you to use more of the glucose in your blood, keeping the levels stable. That’s good news for diabetics—it could mean needing less insulin. Dose: 1 tsp/daily
Hot Sauce: To curb your appetite, try a few dashes on just one meal. Capsaicin, the compound that gives hot sauce and chili peppers their heat reduces levels of hunger-causing ghrelin but also raises GLP-1, an appetite-suppressing hormone. Dose: A few dashes/daily
Sauerkraut: For those with IBS, sauerkraut can help! It contains probiotic bacteria such as Lactobacillus plantarum that can reduce gas, stomach distension, and discomfort. Dose: 1/2 C/daily
Black Pepper: Piperine, a compound in black pepper, may help interrupt the self-renewing process of cancer-initiating stem cells. Dose: To taste/daily
Source: Prevention
Find A Vegan Joint Near You!
Traveling can be tough for us vegans. In fact, there is only a small percentage of airports that offer vegan or even vegetarian options. Well. . . pack snacks. But when you get to where you going, check out Urban Spoon, a site devoted to restaurants and reviews from cities all over the country. Find the city you’re in and it’ll give you a list of vegan-friendly restaurants and directions! How cool is that?! They also have a free app for the iphone!
Check out VeganSoapBox for a list of other vegan iphone apps
“I have no doubt that it is a part of the destiny of the human race, in its gradual improvement, to leave off eating animals, as surely as the savage tribes have left off eating each other when they came in contact with the more civilized.”
-Henry David Thoreau
