Diet Or Medicine - Which Really Allows You To Live Longer And Healthier?

Everyone is out to find ways to live healthier and longer

. Over the years, medicine has strived to bring you just that a longer and healthier life. A new day, a new miracle pill appears that promises you just that, but wait Did you read the fine print?

Although medicine has come a long way in helping to cure many diseases and heal many types of wounds, it also comes with many costs. Every new medicine comes with several, sometime worse, side effects that can be worse for the patient. So can a healthy diet give you what medicine keeps trying to achieve? Lets take a look

Residents of Okinawa these pacific islanders have an average life expectancy of 81 years, where here in the United States it is only 78, and the world average is only 67 The residents of San Blas islands very rarely suffer from high blood pressure or heart disease, while here in the United States being on blood pressure medications and by-pass surgery is getting to be the norm among a younger and younger group of our society.

So why is it that these lucky people enjoy such a long and healthy life? They dont have the medical advances or access to the medications that we have in the United States, so what could it be? It is the foods that they have within their diets Yes a good diet can not only allow you to lose weight, but also give you the long, healthy life that all of us strive to achieve!

So what is in these individuals diets that give them these long and healthy lives?

Plenty of Fruits and Vegetables All of these plant based foods offer a high amount of fiber and vitamins. They are full of nutrients, but low in calories. Many studies have shown that diets containing fruits and vegetables help people maintain a healthy weight and protect against cardiovascular diseases.

Whole Grains are also full of many nutrients and contain a few calories. Grains and oats have also been proven to have a long list of compounds that fight off diseases. Studies have also shown that diets containing whole grains hinder type 2 diabetes, thus limiting a leading factor of heart disesase.

Nuts nuts have always been banished from many diets because of their high levels of fats, but the fats that they contain are mostly unsaturated fats which help in preventing heart disease.

Dark Chocolates Yes you heard me right, dark chocolates. It has been found that dark chocolates contain polyphenols which are believe to lower high blood pressure and improve the flexibility within blood vessels. At the University of Aquila, they conducted a study giving their participants 100 grams of dark chocolate daily, which led to significantly lower blood pressure levels within 15 days!

Blueberries and other antioxidant-rich fruits At Tufts University, they concluded studies that showed antioxidant fruits, such as blueberries, grape juice, and walnuts, protect us from age related changes. Of these age related changes that they fight against are memory loss and dementia.

Fish High in omega-3 fats, fish and shellfish can protect against irregular heart rhythms that could lead to heart failure. New evidence suggests these fatty acids ( DHA and EPA) may offer a defense against depression and age-related memory loss.

Low Salt Foods Researchers have known for years that less salt in the diet means lower blood pressure. Now new evidence suggests that keeping blood pressure down may also protect brain cells and decrease the risk of age-related memory loss and even dementia.

So why is it that these lucky people enjoy such a long and healthy life? It is not they rely on medicines and pills to try and fill in the gaps in their diets. It is that they eat Plenty of Foods the right foods that prevent many diseases, fight off many of the age related illnesses and allow them to maintain a healthy weight. Another important factor in their lives is that they are very active, so they not only eat the right foods but also maintain a higher level of activity! So it is not about the next diet pill coming out, it is about eating what your body wants, and staying active within our lives!

by: Cole Patrick

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