Tag: <span>cooling food</span>

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Garlic

Garlic is actually important ingredient use in Thai Food and found in every recipe prior to fried vegetables and meat. It is also unable to be missed in soup and chili paste and as well spicy salad. This includes the pickled garlic, garlic plants and fried chopped garlic to sprinkle the food.

Benefits:

– Reduce blood pressure

– Prevent heart disease

– Antibacterial, fungal, yeast, virus

Garlic Use in Thai Food:

– Kaeng Khiao Wan Kai

– Beef Masaman

– Kai Phad Phed

– Phanaeng Kai

– Som Tum

– Phad Thai

– Khao Phad Kra Prao

– Nam Ya Pla

Ginger

Thai people use ginger to reduce the fishy smell in many dishes. Tom Som, steam fish with lemon or fry with meat and as well ingredients in Miang (tidbits), such as Miang Kum, Miang Pla Tou, Miang Som. It is also mixed with pickling, mussels, Tai Pla, Saeng Wha, etc. Chopped ginger is tasty to fry with meat and as well Yam Pla Tu, Yam Khing, Yam Pla Kra-pong and Yam Hoy Kraeng. Pickled ginger is a good supplement to boiled rice and many types of paste. Ginger juice and ginger boiled in syrup and mixed with mung bean or sweet potatoes are tasty desserts.

Benefits:

– Antihistamine

– Antibacterial, Fungal, Yeast, Virus

Ginger Use in Thai Food:

– Beef Masaman

Tamarinds

Thai people in every part eat the tamarinds, fresh leaves, flowers and the pods as vegetables and seasoning agents. The content in the ripe pods provides sour taste. People in the middle part of Thailand use the young pods as ingredient of the tamarind paste. The fresh leaves are used in soups; Tom Klong Pla Kroab and Pork and pumpkin in coconut soup.

Benefits:

– Cooling

– Laxative

– Antihistamine

Tamarind Use in Thai Food:

– Beef Masaman

– Phad Thai

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Source by Wevangti Vangra

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Personally, I am not against any mechanics, technicians or repair shops but the only thing that hurts me is when a good thing goes bad merely due to improper usage. Machines and equipment are more or less like human body, you take good care of them and they would last longer, abuse them, and they would die on you before you know it.

Refrigerators are the cool machines in your home that keep your food and beverages in the perfect eating condition, however, the human response they get is excessive manhandling from all the family members. Just think about the number of times you open that door; now multiply it with the number of users in your family.

An awful lot of usage don’t you think. Here are a few tips and things to avoid that might help in keeping the refrigerator repairperson away.

1. Plugging cooling leaks

Many a times especially with kids in the family refrigerator doors find it hard to shut themselves close completely. The result is lost cooling and motor running for longer hours. In addition to this recurring issue and mostly in cases of older refrigerators the magnetic rubber lining responsible for sealing off the air entering or escaping the refrigerator is bulged or indented causing some amount of air to seep through the rubber lining.

Contact your refrigerator repair service as soon as you see such an anomaly.

2. Keep your unit cool

Kitchen may the ideal location to place your refrigerator however make sure you keep your unit a safe distance away from heating appliances such as stoves and ovens. For kitchens with inadequate heat exhaust, it is better if you think about relocating your cooling unit to a cooler place. This definitely counts when it comes to refrigerator efficiency.

3. Give it a break

Most new models now come with a built in water dispenser so that you can help yourself to a drink without having to open the refrigerator numerous times. However if you happen to have an older model you can always go for a separate water dispenser. This will reduce the door opening remarkably.

4. Use Cooling Friendly Containers

The rate of cooling and speed of cooling depends on the type of containers you put in your refrigerator. Use containers of materials that easily cool and pass on the cooling to their contents quickly. Stuffing oversized metallic utensils in your refrigerator would just ruin its cooling efficiency.

5. Avoid storing hot food

Never, ever, store food in your refrigerator while it is still hot. At times people make the mistake of storing hot food in your refrigerator, either due to shortage of time or due to delusion that the temperature of the particular item is cold enough for placing inside the unit. Make sure that anything you place inside your refrigerator is about room temperature.

Since the summer temperatures in Virginia, Silver Spring, and Maryland average from mild to hot, you need to have your refrigerators performing at their best to beat the summer heat.

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Source by Kelly K John

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Fast food packaging and restaurant packaging businesses are really becoming popular all over the world. We all know that no one likes to compromise on the quality of food. A consumer wants to consume frozen food which is frozen, dried stuff which is dried and fresh food fresh and pickled food which is pickled. This is the reason why packaging is really important for everyone. The sophisticated concept of food packaging is gaining more and more popularity these days and if you wish to know more about principles and theories of fast food packaging then you can check out the article given below carefully.

Transportation and Bulk Packaging

The most basic function of food packaging is to keep the goods safe and protected. The complexity of distribution systems is really hard to survive and therefore you should use proper cartons which can withstand a lot of pressure and conditions experienced during storage, transportation, cooling and packing. Pillar style packaging is something that is really gaining a lot of attention worldwide. You should consider this type of packaging if you are distributing perishable food items.

Safeguarding and Preserving Fresh Food Products

Other particular food items, including meat and dairy products, must be properly sealed to safeguard them from issues arising through airborne bacteria. These types of food items are usually vacuum processed or packed. Vacuum processing is quite an inexpensive process and so you can easily opt for it if your budget is on the lower side. Whereas, vacuum packing necessitates really expensive machinery and so you should only go for it if your budget allows. Another great thing that you can consider doing is to talk to your consumers directly regarding the food items that they are looking to consume.

Staying Cool

Freezing or chilling food items together along with packaging is another great way of preservation. Every food requires to be preserved in a different way. Therefore, you should always preserve different food items carefully as per their requirements. This is how you will be able to prolong the life of fast food.

Packaging and Presentation

Everyone would agree with the fact that packaging and presentation makes the food items look appetizing. Whether, fresh or dried, frozen or pickled, you need to present every food item in a significant way. You should choose the professional method of packing the food items so that no inconvenience is caused later on.

So, these are some of the crucial things that you should remember in regard to the theories and principles of fast food packaging. You should always look out for the right options in this regard no matter what it takes. For any other assistance, you can take help from a professional expert or even surf the internet. All in all, you should maintain the freshness of the food item properly so that you are able to remain healthy all the time. Have a lot of fun while keeping your food fresh and serving it as it is. I hope this article would prove to be helpful to you.

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Source by Abhinav S Sidana

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This is basic science. Hot substances warm and cold substances cool. Herbal formulas are a combination of hot and cold remedies that are balanced to fit the energetic makeup of the individual and their condition. The categories of ‘hot’ and ‘cold’ are not absolutes but guides on the path of balance. Though they are commonly classified alone they should be considered along with the other guna qualities of dry, unctuous, light, heavy, penetrating and soft. In fact, Charaka lists the six secondary actions (Upakrama) as energetic virya. The quality of virya is always more therapeutically important than rasa and vipaka. For example, a hot remedy such as fresh ginger (zingiber officinale) can be used to heat the body to cause a sweat that has the effect of cooling the body temperature. Conversely a cooling remedy such as kutki (Picrorrhiza kurroa) can be dispensed at a low dose to stimulate the digestion via its other light and dry properties and hence increase metabolism and heat. Other external influences such as the time of year that the herb is used, the constitution and condition of the patient as well as their subjective experience will all affect the physiological heating or cooling effect of the plant.

Hot (Usna)

Heat warms, dries, invigorates and stimulates the tissues. This is Just as the sun on a hot day causes the blood to come to the surface of the body, so energetically hot herbs cause our metabolism to expand upwards and outwards causing the pores of the skin to open. Hot substances are high in the fire (tejas) element. Heat increases the metabolism, encourages circulation, cause sweating, light-head to treat cold, contracted and hypo or sluggish conditions. Beneficial to kapha and vata, it dries damp, phlegm and warms cold. As ‘like increase like’ pungent herbs encourage agni and digestive to pungent herbs encourage agni and digestion to function at optimum level. Herbs that are heating usually contains volatile oils or mustard glycosides that stimulate gastric secretions as well as assimilation of nutrients. Usna substances have a particular affinity for the heart, head, liver and lungs and are commonly used when they are imbalanced but may damage them. Pungent, sour and salty herbs tend to be heating.

Cold (shita)

Cold natured herbs cool, moisten and sedate the tissues and metabolism. Rather like the cold of a winter’s day causes you to shiver, energetically cold herbs contract the muscle and narrow the channels of circulation. They are high in the water element. Cold substances are usually used to treat ‘hot’, inflamed and hyper conditions. Cold benefits pitta while aggravating kapha and vata; cold-natured herbs soothe painful and inflammatory heat conditions. Digestion is easily damaged by cold-natured herbs and should be used cautiously when there is diarrhea and sluggish digestion from cold. Cold herbs have a affinity for the stomach, the kidneys and the bladder and can weaken them if used excessively. Bitter, astringent and sweet herbs tend to be cooling.

The classifications of hot and cold can be further separated into a hierarchy of degrees that will increase or decrease agni in the body. This emulates the vedic classification of agni representing the heating qualities of solar fire and soma representing the cooling qualities of lunar water. This is conveyed into tridosa theory with agni representing tejas and pitta, soma representing ojas and kapha with vata balanced in the middle as the regulatory prana.

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Source by Dr Ram Mani Bhandari

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Sweating is the main mechanism for cooling the body. Evaporation of sweat cools the body and maintains body temperature that may not exceed 37 degrees, so that they could be different vital processes occurring in our body proteins that regulate them. Sweat, which is composed of water, salts and debris, passes under conditions of increased quantity of hot weather or during strenuous physical activity.

Excessive sweating

In contrast, hyperhidrosis is not related to physical activity or outdoor temperature. There are two sub-groups of hyperhidrosis:

• General Hyperhidrosis: Perspiration felt by the whole body. Other reason could be due to various skin diseases, neurological diseases, hormonal disorders and even overweight. General sweating treatment is felt throughout the body which is by addressing the source of the problem.

• Focused Hyperhidrosis: often appears in context to some organ or number of organs in the body. Sweating occurs mostly in the armpits, hands and feet and face. Other common cases are when you sweat in the buttocks, groin, between the breasts in women and along the back.

Focused hyperhidrosis, is more common in general, and it is estimated that about 5% to 10% of the population are suffering, women and men alike. Other causes of excessive sweating is hereditary in 40% of cases pertains to over-active sweat glands in the body and the sympathetic nervous system, that responsible for operating and controlling the sweat glands, sweating amount and timing. Increased sweating in hands and feet usually appears the second decade of life and in early childhood. In the armpits it starts towards the end of teenage years, facial hyperhidrosis usually begins somewhere about the age of 40 and older.

Stress & shame

Hyperhidrosis severe at moments of stress and excitement in the summer, is caused by excessive activation of sweat glands in particular parts of the body by the nervous system. Then the nervous system increases it’s activity in the states of stress and sufferer from the phenomenon sweats much more in these situations. Unfortunately, the early concern with the phenomenon of hyperhidrosis stresses the mechanism and causing increased sweat.

Hyperhidrosis causes damage to the quality of life of suffering from it. Injury manifested by social problems, discomfort, and avoidance of certain activities. Limbs of sufferers and their clothes are wet all the time, they are embarrassed to shake hands and objects slipping from their hands. Feet hyperhidrosis makes it difficult to walk with shoes because of the slipperiness that it causes. Excessive sweating may cause those who suffer from it to avoid social activities and occupational damage (lack of desire to work in representative professions).

In addition, functional problems might occur at work, such as destruction of a computer keyboard or wetting pages when you write. We recommend that you remove all food from the triggers stimulating the nervous system and contain caffeine, including coffee, tea and chocolate. It is also advised to avoid foods that are considered as increasing body heat, such as cinnamon, pepper and cloves, and the food which secrete smell in sweat (garlic, fenugreek and curry). Instead, recommended for cooling foods (lettuce, cucumber, etc.) And soothing foods, like oatmeal.

Surgery or paste?

According to experts and specialists there are several treatment options:

1. Sympactomy surgery is the oldest treatment with the sympathetic nerve severed the chest cavity. This treatment is especially effective for palms hyperhidrosis.

2. Injection of Botulinum toxin type A (Botox, Dysport) – A toxin that has been exploited for several years when he distilled in small doses as a safe remedy by injection, among other things, for excessive sweating. This treatment ensures complete elimination of sweat glands in the organ. Treatment need to be repeated every 6-12 months.

3. Treatment with an electric current – induced organs during the sweating process in aqueous solution containing ions, to dry the sweat (especially for hands and feet). In most cases the treatment is abandoned by patients because of its inconvenience and side effects.

4. Surgery of sweat glands extraction- a relatively new treatment performed only in the armpits.

5. Local therapy using ointments or deodorant – aluminum salts concentration neutralizes the sweat, but usually not enough to eradicate the phenomenon (unless you sweat normal level) and the aluminum may cause irritation, burning a blockage of the glands.

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Source by Ilus Vinos

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The Ayurveda lays great emphasis on nutrient rich meals for optimum health, ie to keep the three doshas in a state of equilibrium within yourself and between you and your environment.

An individual’s personal diet is based on that person’s own unique dosha. In the Ayurveda, all is personalised.

The most nourishing ayurvedic foods

The most nourishing foods in an Ayurvedic diet include:

Spices… such as black pepper, cardamom, cinnamon, clove,coriander, cumin,fennel, ginger, mint, oregano, rock salt and turmeric

Beans and legumes… that are soaked such as adzuki beans, black beans, chickpeas, kidney beans, lentils, andmung beans

Fermented foods… such as amasi (fermented milk), miso, and yogurt

Fruits… in season, such as apples, dates, figs, grapefruit, guavas, lemon, lime, mandarins, mango, oranges, pears, plums, pomegranate, and tangerine

Grains… that are soaked or spouted including barley, millet, oats, quinoa, and rice

Healthy fats… such as buttermilk, coconut oil, cream, ghee, milk, olive oil, and yogurt

Honey… from bees

Liquids… teas, water, and wine

Meats… such as chicken, deer, fish, goat, pig, rabbit, and turkey

Nuts and seeds… such as almonds, cashews, macadamia nuts, pecans, pine nuts, pistachios, sesame, and walnuts

Root vegetables… including butternut, sweet potatoes, turnips, winter melon, and winter squash

Vegetables… that are in season such as asparagus, beets, cabbage, carrots, cilantro, eggplant, fennel root (anise), garlic, green beans, green peas, leeks, okra, onions (cooked), parsnips, pumpkin, radish, rutabaga, spaghetti squash and spinach

Caveat… as you can see, some of these foods, eg healthy fats and honey, are not recommended if you are following the Beating diabetes diet. Indeed some aspects of the ayurvedic diet need to be treated with caution by diabetics.

Depending on your unique dosha, your ayurvedic consultant will advise you which combination of these foods you should concentrate on. He will already know that you are diabetic so he is likely to eliminate any he or she considers harmful for people with that particular condition. His view may not, however, accord with the Beating Diabetes diet.

Key points about an ayurvedic diet

The Ayurveda contains certain broad guidelines on what to eat according to the season.

Winter… as you spend energy keeping warm, your appetite will increase. You need to reduce warm weather foods such as raw vegetables, salads and smoothies, as well as sour, pungent and bitter foods, and ramp up your intake of complex carbs such as cooked grains, soups and stews, and sweet, sour and salty flavoured foods. To boost you immunity, use ghee, spices that warm you up and raw honey.

Things for a diabetic to avoid here are salt and ghee (clarified butter).

Spring … instead of sweet, sour and salty foods, eat bitter, astringent and pungent foods. Emphasize lighter, drier and warmer foods over heavy, fatty foods. Eat only a little meat and fruit but more green plants and keep eating warming spices. Eat smaller portions and increase your exercise.

Summer … is the time toeat naturally sweet foods, and minimize spicy, pungent, sour, salty, astringent dry foods. Consume lighter, cool, moist and less fatty foods. Eat less-hot foods, and go for fresh fruits and vegetables, more freshly made juices, yogurt, smoothies, coconut products, and cooling plants like cucumber, melons and berries.

Again, diabetics should note that coconut products may be very sweet.

Autumn… eat sweet and slightly bitter and astringent foods instead of pungent, sour, salty foods. Find a balance between cooling and hot foods and light and heavy foods. Eat more soups, warming spices, pomegranates and seasonal fruits, as well more bitter, green vegetables and spices.

Diatary instructions for persons with different doshas

In Ayurveda, the optimal diet depends on your dosha and the season. The generic instructions vary from person depending which of the three doshas is predominant in any one person:

Vata persons:

Foods… vata types should concentrate on eating avocado, cooked grains, cooked root vegetables, stewed fruits, nuts, seeds, foods produced using coconut or olive oil, full-fat dairy, ghee, and drink spiced milks and warm beverages… avoid frozen or very cold foods… eat mostly cooked foods, including cooked vegetables and cooked or dried fruit… go for sweet, sour and salty tastes rather than bitter, pungent or astringent tastes… use spices that help warm the body

Liquids… drink warm water or tea… avoid too much juice, drinking too much water

Mealtimes… to help the digestion, they should eat at predictable, regular times… don’t fast or skip meals… space your meals so you digest one meal fully before eating the next… avoid staying up late at night and eating just prior to bed

If you are a predominantly vata person, you will notice that ‘forbidden’ foods are recommended… oil, full-fat dairy, milks and so on.

Pitta persons:

Foods… pitta types should concentrate on eating seasonal cooling fruits and vegetables, beans (except for tempeh), rice, barley, quinoa, oats, kamut, pumpkin seeds, sesame, almonds, organic cane sugar, cilantro, coriander, mint, chicken, turkey, goat, ghee, olive oil, and coconut oil… avoid spicy foods, fried foods, sour foods, tomatoes, yogurt, vinegar, artificial sweeteners and alcoholic drinks… avoid too much spicy or sour foods, instead going for sweet, bitter and astringent foods… spice their food lightly at the most… eat cooled foods rather than very hot foods… not eat very oily foods or anything deep-fried… cook at only a medium heat… avoid eating a lot of raw food

Mealtimes… eat smaller meals during the day instead of two to three big meals… space out meals by a minimum of three hours to avoid heartburn.

Here again are foods that diabetics need to watch out for… nuts, ghee, oils, and so on.

Kapha persons:

Food… kapha types should concentrate on eating low-fat dairy products, light fruits, honey, all beans (except tofu), all grains (especially barley and millet), seasonal vegetables, and spices… not eat lots of sweet, very fat or salty foods… go for pungent, bitter and astringent tasting food instead of sweet, sour and salty food… eat slowly to avoid overeating

Liquids… avoid beverages with too much salt and water.

Again, warnings for diabetics on the Beating Diabetes diet about eating dairy products even if low fat.

The number of times you should eat in a day depends on your dosha. Vata types should eat more often to feel more confident and avoid anxiety. The other two doshas may not need to snack as much as the vata types and can go longer between meals. Kapha types should space out their meals to avoid overeating at just one or two meals.

Overview of the ayurvedic diet

• Your ayurvedic diet is a personalized diet based on your unique dosha.
• It promotes a fresh organic local diet that by its nature is seasonal.
• The diet promoted by the Ayurveda is not focused on disease, ie its purpose is not just to treat symptoms but rather their source and to emphasise their prevention and the quality of your life.
• An ayurvedic diet is an essential part of a lifestyle that promotes balance and harmony between body and mind. Rather than being used as a short-term fix for your weight, it is to be followed for a lifetime. The unique detailed ayurvedic diet your ayurvedic dietician will prescribe will change as you get older and pass through the different stages of your life.
• The goal of the Ayurveda if to boost well-being and resilience. It does so by promoting a pure, fresh diet and the adoption of daily and seasonal rituals.
• The Ayurveda is effective because it limits physical and mental stress which can take a serious toll on your body and quality of life, especially if you are diabetic.

Caution

Ayurvedic diets and herbs are meant to complement other treatments, including the use of Western medicine as required. Therefore…

• don’t stop taking your prescribed drugs when you begin an Ayurvedic diet, and
• ask your doctor whether any herbs you’ll be consuming can interfere with your medicines.

Benefits

An ayurvedic diet is an extremely healthy diet provided diabetics eliminate the ‘forbidden’ foods, those that are high sugar, high fat or high salt. Here are some of the benefits of this diet:

Seasonal foods… their consumption is encouraged. This is important because we need different sources of nourishment at different times of the year. This seasonality in our diet becomes almost automatic as we eat organic and locally grown food.

Highly nutritious… there is no doubt that this diet is highly nutritious as it has been designed to be nutrient-dense. However, a diabetic needs to eliminate the ‘no-no’ foods.

Weight-loss… a study published in 2009 in the US Library of Medicine, National Institutes of Health, concluded that diets based on the Ayurveda may prove useful in promoting weight-loss.

Glucose levels… according to a study published in 2016 in the Lancet, ayurvedic diets improve insulin sensitivity and have been successful in treating diabetes in India.

Improves digestion … ayurvedic diets contain foods that are nutrient-dense, easily digested and can improve the health of your gut. Its cooking methods makes nutrients easier to digest, so digestive discomfort is relieved.

Improves gastrointestinal system… ayurvedic diets limit the consumption of processed inflammatory foods that can damage the health of the microbiota in your gut. This helps overcome conditions such as irritable bowel syndrome, haemorrhoids, diarrhoea, constipation, acid reflux and hyperacidity. In other words, the efficiency and pleasure of excretion is improved.

Better movement… limiting the consumption of inflammatory foods also improves the functionality and range of movement of your limbs.

Improved fertility… an ayurvedic diet improves you sexuality or reproductive health and so improves your fertility.

Detoxification… an ayurvedic diet enhances detoxification and so generates less anxiety and allows you to enjoy better inner calm.

The main focus of an ayurvedic diet is to limit ‘incompatibles’, ie foods that are not tolerated well. Factors that might cause certain foods to be omitted from an individual’s unique personalised include how the food is processed, the combination of ingredients it contains, the season and so on.

Summary of the Ayurvedic Diet

• Ayurveda is a natural system of healing wisdom that originated in India more than 5,000 years ago. Ayurvedic diets are based on ancient practices that promote a “holistic” balance in body and mind.
• Ayurvedic diets are personalized and based on your dosha, aka constitution. This determines which types are foods are best suited for your personality, lifestyle and tendencies.
• Benefits of the Ayurvedic diet include improving gut health, digestion, moods, sleep, fertility and body weight.
• Foods included in an Ayurvedic diet include spices, healthy fats like coconut or ghee, quality animal products, fermented dairy, seasonal vegetables and fruit, beans, legumes, and nuts.
• The inclusion in the diet of foodstuffs such as dairy, fats, honey and so on that infringe best practices for beating your diabetes means that diabetics must treat the diet with caution and winnow out the foods that are not suitable for controlling their blood glucose levels.

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Source by Paul D Kennedy

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The nice people at Kids Konserve keep on having cool ideas! Their beautiful-looking and extremely practical insulated food jars add an extra exciting dimension to packed lunches, picnics and snacking on the go. Now you can take a piping hot or tasty chilled meal to school, to work, on days out and adventures of every kind. Perfect when the British winter weather has taken yet another turn for the worse and signs of spring are few and far between, ideal for yummy snacks whatever the weather.

Safe, clean, sturdy containers for hot and cold food

The fab Kids Konserve hot food container is made from a sturdy double layer of lovely, clean stainless steel and features a leak-proof screw top. All you do is heat your food, pop it in and it’ll stay nice and hot for at least four hours.

To maximise the heating or cooling properties of the jar, either pre-heat it with hot water before adding hot food or pre-chill in the freezer for a few minutes if you’re carrying cold food. This is the fun bit… when the jar is full of piping hot food it feels cool on the outside. When it’s packed with scrummy chilled snacks there’s no damp or condensation.

Beautiful colours, impeccable FDA credentials

Available in a beautiful lime green, deep ocean blue and pretty ‘sky’ turquoise colour-ways, the containers are made from food-standard stainless steel, with lids made from clean, safe, non toxic PP #5 plastic. Unlike some food containers there’s absolutely no nasty BPA, phthalates, PVC or lead.

Like all Kids Konserve products these beautiful jars meet the strict standards of the USA’s famously fussy Food and Drug Administration, which takes responsibility for food packaging and food contact safety through their specialist department, the Centre for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition.

Made with love by independently audited manufacturers

Kids Konserve products are made with love, care and attention to detail in China, India and Taiwan, by manufacturers who are working towards green best practice and support the company’s mission to cut food packaging waste to the absolute minimum. The factories are independently audited and dedicated to safe, fair working practices and good environmental standards.

Plus: fab leak-proof stainless steel food containers

If that sounds good you’ll love the company’s popular leak-proof stainless steel food containers too, which fit neatly inside one another for space-saving storage. A cool way to complement the hot and cold insulated food jars, they’re ideal for yogurt, fruit salads, pasta salads… you name it. Made from food grade stainless steel with leak proof, recyclable lids, they’re playing their part in the anti-food packaging waste revolution, which is gathering pace by the month.

Help make your world a sustainable place

With more and more of us wanting to play our part in making the world a better, more sustainable place for future generations, the entire Kids Konserve range is proving very popular indeed. Good looks, practicality, functionality and ethics are placed right at the heart of the products from start to finish, making them excellent ethical presents for anyone, of any age, who loves good food on the go.

If you prefer to buy goods made with as much recycled and recyclable material as possible and want to do your bit to reduce the millions of tons of waste associated with single-serving packaged foods and plastic bottles, buy from Kids Konserve and support the ethical revolution!

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Source by David Robert Bowen

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I’m sure by now everyone has noticed, the heat has officially set in this summer. It’s time to cool off with some delicious fruits and vegetables that actually help lower your bodies temperature and keep you nice and hydrated. The raw food diet is probably the most ideal diet for summer time as everything yummy is in season, lower in price, and there is no need to turn on that hot stove or oven to whip up a delicious meal. Nature provides an abundance of foods this time of year to help keep us cool and nourished. Many fruits and veggies that have a shorter season like summer squashes, cucumbers, and melons come into their full glory during the hottest months, and have the most cooling effect. Some cooling vegetables include crunchy lettuces, mixed baby greens, celery, crisp sunflower greens and sprouts, and broccoli which make great salad fixings. Chop up some fresh corn into your summer salads as well, I have certainly been enjoying that lately. For a light dressing try a high quality extra virgin olive oil like bariani, and our brand new coconut vinegar and coconut aminos. Combine with minced fresh herbs and a pinch of salt and our salad will be rawkin and ready to go.

Aim for high levels of juicy fruits during the summer. Melons of all kinds are amazing, watermelon being especially cooling to the system. Try also different varieties like galia, crenshaw, canary, Tucson cantaloupe, and casaba. Some of these melons are so sweet and delicately flavored and textured that they nearly melt in your mouth. Keep your melons in the fridge once ripe to avoid spoilage and to heighten their cooling effect on the body. Make sure to load up on lots of tomatoes, fresh bell peppers, cucumbers, zucchini, and yellow summer squashes too, as these are cooling fruits that will make great bases for savory meals when fruit isn’t hitting the spot. You can make veggie chips out of the summer squashes by simply marinating in a little olive oil, salt and herbs and dehydrating until crisp. Also, one of my ultimate summer meals is zucchini pasta, which is so light and flavorful, even your cooked food friends will be amazed that it is raw and so easy to make. Great for summer potlucks and family meals.

Here are just a few of my favorite summertime recipes:

Cilantro-Lime Watermelon Juice- (Brrr…this juice is SURE to cool you off quickly)

1/3-1/2 of an organic seeded watermelon- chilled in the fridge. Rinse outer rind thoroughly because you will be juicing the rind as well. The rind of the watermelon is very mild in flavor and packs a punch of minerals, and will help balance the sweetness of the flesh.

1 handful fresh cilantro

juice of 1 whole lime

3 handfuls fresh sunflower greens

Optional- 3 large lacinto kale leafs (black dino kale)

Juice together and serve right away.

Cool Cucumber Dill Soup

3 cucumbers peeled

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

1 whole avocado

2 tbs fresh dill

2-3 tbs bariani olive oil or Ruth’s hemp seed Oil

a few pinches Bali sea salt to taste

Simply blend above ingredients until very smooth, garnish with a bit of fresh dill and chunks of avocado. This soup is amazingly light, refreshing, and yet filling Great with flax crackers for a light evening meal.

No Heat Pasta

*Spiralize both green zucchini and yellow summer squash for a nice color variation

Summer Noodles:

2 zucchini, 1 yellow summer squash spiralized

sun dried tomato Sauce:

2 medium heirloom tomatoes

1 cup sun dried tomatoes- soak for a few hours to soften

1/4 cup bariani olive oil

1/3 cup chopped fresh basil

fresh herbs to taste such as oregano, sage, and thyme

A few pinches of Bali sea salt

-Optional- 1 clove garlic (will increase the heat element of this dish)

hemp seed Pesto:

1/4 cup hemp seeds

1/2 cup walnuts

1/4 cup bariani olive oil, hemp oil, or pumpkin seed oil.

1 cup packed basil

1/8 cup lemon juice

A few pinches of Bali sea salt to taste

Optional- 1 clove of garlic.

Both of these sauces can be blended until smooth or left a bit chunky in a food processor depending on your preference. spoon onto zucchini noodles, garnish with fresh basil leaves

Follow your bodies natural gravitation towards light, refreshing raw foods this summer to stay balanced and active. Also remember to drink plenty of fresh, pure water along with your fruits and vegetables to ensure our body is perfectly hydrated even as the temperatures rise.

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Source by Alex Malinsky

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During pregnancy, the baby is like a parasite and will take all the nutrients that he requires from you. If your diet is sufficient in nutrients for both, it does not cause any problems. If on the other hand your diet is insufficient for both, then your recovery after the birth will take longer and if you still do not replenish your body stores during the confinement period, you may remain weak for a long time. This is probably why our elders make such a lot of fuss about eating well during the confinement period.

Wherever you are in the world, everyone will try and tell you what to eat and if possible how to eat it. The most important thing to do is follow your own body’s needs. Whatever you eat, do make sure that you have a good balance of proteins, vitamins, minerals, fats, carbohydrates, and water in every meal.

Just remember the following pointers:

1. If you are breast feeding whatever you eat will be transferred to your baby via your breast milk therefore it is important that you eat a balanced diet so that your baby will get the right nutrients for optimum growth and development.

2. Some food does cause the baby to become ‘windy’ or have loose stools. If you find that your baby is suddenly quite unsettled, try and think of what you ate during the last 12 hours. Avoid that food for a few days and then try again. If the same happens again, then you should avoid that particular food for a while and re-introduce it into your diet by taking a very small amount and see how baby reacts then slowly increase the amount so that baby gets used to the food.

3. You may find that your appetite is slightly low especially during the first week. This is normal as your body is readjusting to its non-pregnant state both physically and mentally therefore it is better to have small frequent meals instead of the normal 3 big meals a day.

4. You need to drink plenty of fluids in order to make sufficient breast milk and if you are forbidden to drink water, you can get the amount of fluid from other sources such as soup.

So what should you eat?

Most Eastern cultures believe that your body is cold after delivery therefore you should avoid cooling or cold food but eat a lot of yang or ‘heaty’ food to warm the body up. However, if you are normally a yang person, eating too much ‘heaty’ food may cause rashes and fever. In this case it would be better to reduce the amount of ‘heaty’ food and eat more neutral food. If you are normally a Yin person, you should not have any problems eating ‘heaty’ food (lucky devils). The following table gives you a quick review of the types of food to eat or avoid.

Types of food to avoid

‘Cooling food’ for example: banana, cabbage, cucumber, coconut and Chinese cabbage

Contribute to mother’s poor blood circulation and stomach ache in the baby if you are breastfeeding. Salt as a condiment and salty foods in general are to be rejected, too, in the belief that use reduces breast milk production

‘Acidic food’ for example: pineapple, mango, lemon, lime

Contribute to excessive lochia in the mother and diarrhea in the baby.

Too much ‘Heaty food’ for example: chilli, pepper, spices, tonics, spirits and medicines.

Contribute to diarrhea in the baby and maternal headaches

‘Windy food’ for example: jackfruit, tapioca, pumpkin, onions.

Contribute to baby being colicky and may cause indigestion for mother and baby.

Poisonous food such as prawns, shellfish, crab, eel, ginger

Delay healing of the mother’s wound and may cause allergies and eczema in the baby. These foods may cause stomach upsets and vomiting

Type of food recommended

To improve milk production

Chicken, squid, clams (small varieties), fish (especially carp), millet, mutton, pork, rice wine, sea slug, soybean milk mixed with powdered walnuts, wheat cakes, wheat noodles with egg, green papaya

To provide strength to the mother so she recovers quickly from the exertion of labor.

Chicken, frog, Panax ginseng, licorice extract and razor clam

What you eat also depends on what you believe in and who cooks for you. If it is your mother or MIL you may not have many choices. I have seen women quarrelling and not talking to each other because of this issue. Try and work out a compromise which is acceptable to both parties. Use a persuasive and logical approach instead of confrontation.

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Source by Cecilia Koh

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Eczema can make life a misery for children as well as adults with red, dry, thick and scaly skin that is constantly itching. For many people, eczema is triggered off by an allergic reaction to specific foods and avoiding these foods can relieve the symptoms. Chinese dietary therapy is a holistic system of treatment, part of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), which looks at diet in a completely different way from our western diets. Here I will give you my Seven Chinese Foods secrets that will help your eczema and change your life.

1. Avoid cow’s milk

Often eczema can be triggered off by cow’s milk which is a common food fed to children. Cow’s milk is very damp in nature and if your child’s digestive system is compromised can cause itchy skin, rashes and oozing and weeping lesions. Milk is not a common ingredient in a Chinese diet and is used sparingly. However, in the West we tend to over consume milk which is why more and more people are experiencing an allergic reaction to it. If your baby is suffering with eczema then you really should look for an alternative. Possible replacements are soy or goat’s milk which are less damp forming.

2. Avoid damp forming foods

Not only is cow’s milk damp forming, but other foods can be extremely damp forming as well. Interestingly, some of these foods are common triggers for eczema such as wheat and peanuts. Other damp forming foods include orange juice, bananas, sugar, cheese and other dairy products.

3. Stop the greasy food

Fried, greasy foods are extremely damp forming and warm in nature. Eczema is Yang (warm) in nature which means that if there is an excess of heat in the body it will cause symptoms such as redness, inflammation and thirst. Cooking methods such as roasting, grilling, baking, deep frying, stir frying and sautéing are all yang cooking methods. It’s preferable to boil, simmer, stew, braise or steam your food as these cooking methods are more yin in nature. Foods cooked in this way are cooler in nature and more nourishing to the body and skin.

4. Eat more cooling and nourishing foods

To treat eczema, you need to reduce redness, inflammation and itching of the skin by clearing heat. As well you should moisten dryness and strengthen the qi (vital energy) and blood. Cooling and moistening foods include grapefruit, lettuce, seaweed, watermelon, cucumber, celery, barley, beancurd (tofu), pears, strawberry, broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini and tomatoes.

Excellent foods to strengthen qi and blood are dark, leafy green vegetables, dark red fruits and vegetables such as beetroot, kidney, aduki beans and blueberries. Meats such as liver, kidneys and chicken are all qi and blood strengtheners. A fantastic start to the day would be to have a bowl of oat porridge sprinkled with a few dates.

5. Avoid raw and ice cold foods

Too many raw and chilled foods (as opposed to cooling foods) can damage the digestive system. The digestive system requires warmth or digestive fire to function and a prolonged and excessive use of raw or ice-cold foods will eventually weaken this digestive fire. You may have noticed that the Chinese do not eat many raw or ice-cold foods for this reason.

6. Balance your flavors

We have often heard that too much of one thing is bad for you and this is true in a Chinese diet. In most Chinese recipes you will find a balance of flavors – salty, sour, bitter, sweet and pungent. For example, salty foods (seaweed, pork, fish) regulate moisture balance, drain excess moisture and stimulate digestion. Too much salt, however, will dehydrate the body and cause dryness. Sweet foods (sugar, bananas, milk), mildly stimulate the circulation of qi and blood, moistening and benefiting dryness. However, eating an excess of sweet foods will lead to the formation of damp and heat which can cause eczema. Therefore, a balanced diet including all the flavors is beneficial. You can increase or decrease a particular flavor according to your needs.

7. Chew slowly and enjoy your food

Quite often eczema is caused by emotional stress. When we are stressed we tend overeat, under-eat or not enjoy what we are eating. Do not eat when angry because this affects the movement of qi and can cause it to stagnate. Qi stagnation over time can cause a build up of heat which can manifest as skin rashes and inflammation.

The Chinese know the benefit of chewing slowly and with concentration, so forget the television or reading while you’re eating – just focus on your food. Every mouthful should be chewed thoroughly since this helps our digestive system to work more efficiently.

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Source by Vicky Massey