How Healthy Is Your Food?

You may be familiar with the old saying "you are what you eat", but it holds some serious truth. The foods that you enjoy each day can pack a powerful punch if you choose them properly, so find out the best foods to prevent disease and fight age in your diet!TomatoesEating more tomatoes in your salad at lunch will naturally boost the health of your skin. In a recent study, people who ate 5 tablespoons of high lycopene tomato paste each day for three months had a 25% higher protection against sunburn. Additionally, their skin had a higher content of collagen, which is the substance that keeps your skin firm and free from sagging.

Higher levels of lycopene in the skin provide antioxidant benefits to reduce the risk of deep wrinkles and fine lines so that you will look younger!

Coffee

There have been rumors that coffee is bad for you, but recent research has shown that is far from the truth. Coffee is a valid source of daily antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins, especially since Americans drink so darn much of it. Research has proved that drinking coffee will not cause heart disease or cancer, and if you have good health, it will also lower the risk of cirrhosis of the liver, developing type II diabetes, and boost your athletic performance. Still, it is necessary to monitor your caffeine intake if you have high blood pressure, suffer from anxiety, or are pregnant, but overall, physicians recommend to drink up to 3 cups of coffee each day. Thank goodness!

Honey

Including dark honey, like blueberry or buckwheat, within your diet will give you the antioxidants you need to fight aging, according to researchers from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. They studied more than 19 varieties of honey to find that its antioxidant content neutralizes free radical damage within the body to prevent cognitive decline, heart disease, macular degeneration, and cancer. Since honey has such a strong flavor, use a small amount in your plain yogurt, oatmeal, and tea instead of refined sugar.

Dark Chocolate

This is exciting news for many chocolate lovers because dark chocolate that contains over 70% cocoa has a number of healthy antioxidants and polyphenols. One square of dark chocolate has twice as many antioxidants as a glass of red wine and almost as much as a cup of green tea that is steeped properly. These antioxidan