Have a Daily Dose of Omega-3s

"I like to call them the anti-aging fat," say Forberg. Getting the recommended amount can help lower cholesterol, keep cells functioning properly, and combat inflammation, which reduces your risk of cancer, stroke, and heart attack. Flaxseed, walnuts, and some leafy greens contain omega-3s, but seafood is the best source. Research published in the December 2008 Journal of Nutrition found that DHA, an omega-3 found in cold-water, fatty fish, helps keep aging brains healthy.

Add it: Have two 3-ounce servings of salmon, herring, lake trout, or other fatty fish a week; and a daily serving of ground flaxseed, walnuts, soybean oil, spinach, or kale.

2. Eat Antioxidants Every 4 Hours
These nutrients slow the aging process by protecting our cells from harmful free radicals. But some, such as vitamin C, are water soluble. "That means they only remain in our body for 4 to 6 hours, so you have to replenish regularly," explains Forberg. Vibrantly colored fruits and vegetables are loaded with these disease-fighting substances.

Add it: Have a fruit or veggie at every meal and snack--and aim for three to five different colors a day.

3. Double Your Fiber
It may help protect against cancer and can keep blood sugar levels steady and promote heart health. In fact, according to research published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, every additional 10 g of dietary fiber consumed daily reduces the risk of death from coronary heart disease by 17%. The daily recommendation is 25 to 35 g per day; most Americans eat half or less.

Add it: Boost your intake with star sources: cooked lentils (8 g per 1/2 cup), cooked chickpeas (6 g per 1/2 cup), barley (16 g per 1/2 cup), apples (4 g in one medium), and raspberries (8 g per cup).



4. Stop Before You're Full
Centenarians in Okinawa, Japan, practice this eating ritual; they also consistently consume a lower-calorie diet--which researchers hypothesize is a key component to longevity. Eating slowly can automatically help control calories: A recent study found that women who ate at slower rates felt fuller and ate fewer calories than those who ate more quickly.

Fix it: The key is to stop when you're satisfied, not stuffed, says Forberg. A reminder: "You shouldn't have to unbutton or unzip anything."

5. Eat Enough Healthy Fats
The good-for-you variety--like monounsaturated fatty acids--can lower bad LDL cholesterol, raise cardio-protective HDL cholesterol, and decrease your risk of atherosclerosis. Plus, studies suggest that a higher intake of these fats may also contribute to longer life expectancy. Ideally, you should get about 25% of your daily calories (or 44 g based on a 1,600-calorie diet) from healthy fats.

Add it: Healthy fats include 1/4 cup of pistachios (7 g), 1/4 cup of almonds (11 g), 1 tablespoon of olive oil (10 g) or 1/4 cup of avocado (3.5 g).

source: prevention.com

Glazed Gammon Steaks with Nutty Apples

Yield: 4 servings

 4    6 to 8 oz Gammon Steaks
    2 tb Clear Honey
    1 ts Ground Ginger
    4    Apples, cored
    1 oz Butter
  1/2 oz Hazelnuts or almonds,
         -Chopped
    1 oz Wholemeal Breadcrumbs
    1    Egg Yolk
         Salt and Pepper

TO SERVE

Vegetables

Snip fat around edge of gammon. Place steaks on a grill rack. Warm
 honey and stir in ginger. Baste steaks with honey glaze. Cook under a
 medium grill for about 8 minutes each side, basting occasionally with
 glaze.

 Score apples around the centre. Melt butter, and saute seeds and
 nuts. Stir in crumbs, yolk and seasoning, then pack into apples.
 Microwave on HIGH for 2 minutes. Serve steaks with apples and
 vegetables.

ABALONE STUFFED WITH CRABMEAT

Serving Size : 4

Amount  Measure       Ingredient -- Preparation Method
--------  ------------  --------------------------------
                     -----WHITE SAUCE-----
2       tb           Butter or margarine
2       tb           Flour
                     Salt, pepper
1       c            Warm milk
                     -----ABALONE-----
                     Butter or margarine
2                    Shallots -- minced
1       c            Cooked crabmeat
                     Salt, white pepper
1       d            Red pepper
  1/2   ts           Dry mustard
  1/2   ts           Worcestershire sauce
  1/2                Lemon (juice only)
4                    Large abalone steaks
2                    Eggs -- beaten
                     Flour

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in skillet and stir in flour. Season to taste
with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, over medium heat about 1 minute but
do not allow flour to brown. Add milk and cook and stir 1 or 2 minutes
until mixture comes to boil and thickens. Set aside.
For abalone, melt 1 tablespoon butter in small saucepan, add shallots and
cook until tender but not browned. Add crabmeat and heat thoroughly. Add
enough white sauce to bind, about 1/2 cup. Season to taste with salt and
white pepper and add red pepper, mustard, Worcestershire and lemon juice.
Carefully pound abalone steaks between 2 sheets of waxed paper until very
thin (unless purchased already pounded). Dip abalone in eggs seasoned to
taste with salt and white pepper. Coat with flour and set aside. Melt 2
tablespoons butter in heavy skillet. Add abalone and brown quickly on one
side. Turn and brown other side. Do not overcook as abalone will toughen.
Place abalone steaks on platter and spoon crabmeat stuffing on each. Roll
and arrange on serving platter, seam down. If desired, serve with any
remaining sauce.

Mediterranean diet cuts depression risk

Eating plenty of fish, veggies and whole grains may brighten your outlook



People who follow a Mediterranean-style diet rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains and fish are less likely to become depressed, scientists said on Monday, but the reasons are unclear.

Spanish researchers studied 11,000 people and found that those who followed the Mediterranean diet most closely had a more than 30 percent reduction in the risk of depression than those whose diet had few of the crucial Mediterranean elements.

"The specific mechanisms by which a better adherence to the Mediterranean dietary pattern could help to prevent the occurrence of depression are not well known," said Almudena Sanchez-Villegas and colleagues at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and the University of Navarra, Spain.

But the researchers suggested that elements of the diet may improve blood vessel function, fight inflammation and repair oxygen-related cell damage — all of which could reduce the chances of developing depression.

The study, published in the Archives of General Psychiatry journal, adds to an existing body of evidence showing the health benefits of a Mediterranean diet, including reduced risks of health disease, diabetes, asthma and cancer.

The study used data from Spanish people who reported their dietary intake on a food frequency questionnaire.

The researchers worked out how close their eating habits were to the Mediterranean diet based on nine components: A high ratio of monounsaturated fatty acids to saturated fatty acids; moderate intake of alcohol and dairy foods; low intake of meat; and high intake of legumes, fruit and nuts, cereals, vegetables and fish.

"Individuals who followed the Mediterranean diet most closely had a greater than 30 percent reduction in the risk of depression than whose who had the lowest Mediterranean diet scores," they wrote.

source: msnbc.msn

Health news: How vodka could benefit your health and an iron implant to tackle anaemia

Health stories from around the world this week include a trial to test whether vodka can prevent heart disease, a new implant which may help anaemia sufferers and a drug which can boost the success of corneal transplants.

A shot of vodka may help heart disease

Could drinking vodka and orange tackle furred up arteries?

It is increasingly recognised that conditions such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease are linked to inflammation in the arteries. This can lead to a build-up of cholesterol, as well as high blood pressure.

Moderate amounts of alcohol have long been thought to have an anti-inflammatory effect - and, in the case of heart disease, boosting the levels of 'good' HDL cholesterol.

Now, in a new trial in Holland, healthy men aged between 20 and 40 are being given 100ml of vodka a day, mixed with orange juice, to test its benefits. Another group are being given a placebo.

At the end of the year-long trial, researchers will measure the amount of inflammation in the men's arteries.

Iron implant to tackle anaemia

An implant the size of a toothpick could help thousands who suffer with anaemia, or iron deficiency.

The condition is caused by a lack of red blood cells. Often this is because the kidneys are not producing a protein that kickstarts their production.

Mild sufferers take iron pills to address this. But some people, especially those with kidney disease, need regular jabs of the protein erythropoietin.

The new implant works by releasing erythropoietin around the clock. It is made from the patient's skin tissue, which has had the gene that controls the protein's production added to it.

Over a year into the trial, the implant, which was developed by Israeli firm Medgenics, is still working for some patients.

Without it, they would need protein injections at least three times a week.
Your new cornea now lasts longer

A new drug has been shown to help boost the success of corneal transplants.

The operation is performed on patients with fading eyesight.

Though the surgery itself is usually successful, the patient's eyesight may deteriorate as a result of neovascularisation, where tissues in the eye produce too many new blood vessels around the new cornea, leading to blurred vision.

Until now, there has been no treatment for this. But a Swiss company, Gene Signal, has developed a drug in the form of eye drops that can halt blood vessel growth.

The drug, GS-101, blocks the genetic signals that tell cells to produce new vessels.

Recent trial data showed the drug also partly reversed the condition in some patients.

The drug could be available in Britain within 18 months.

source: dailymail