Noni- Plethora Of Phytochemicals

Before I begin to write about the various phytochemicals present in noni, let me first put some light on the word Phytochemical. Phytochemicals are the non-nutritive compounds, which are biologically active and naturally occur in plants. Though not the essential nutrients, yet these are believed to have positive effects on the human health. Till date more than thousand phytochemicals have been identified.

A well known example of phytochemical is lycopene in tomatoes, red carrot, watermelon that imparts red colour to the fruits and vegetables and also rich in anti-oxidant activity. Preliminary studies have indicated lycopene has a role in minimizing the risk of cancer especially prostate cancer.

Going by the similar lines, Noni has an arsenal of phytochemicals that makes it a universal health supplement. And the health benefits are due to the synergistic effect of these phytochemicals.

Here are some of the phytochemicals present in Noni addressing some of the common health disorders.

Xeronine :

(Dr. R. Heinicke’s  pioneer research ) a cell’s best friend and one of the principle agent ,highly required by body to enhance regeneration of cells and maintaining hormonal balance.

Scopoletin :

Has analgesics and anti-inflammatory, anti-histamine, antibacterial and anti-fungal properties.

Anthraquinone :

Anti-inflammatory, anti-parasitic, anti-neoplastic and anti- bacterial

Damnacanthal :
Powerful slowing effort on the growth of tumors by inhibiting the enzymes for tumour formation and also good for heart diseases.

Terpene :

Anti-oxidants, anti-carcinogenic properties promote rejuvenation of cell and help to expel toxins out of human body.

Sterols :

Slows down intestinal absorption of cholesterol, thereby lowering total plasma and LDL cholesterol levels

Glycosides :

‘Asperuloside-used for diuresis, treating inflammation and varicose veins and phlebitis.


Soluble and insoluble fibres :

Purify blood, decreases cholesterol and balance the blood sugar and promotes colon health, regulates blood sugar and blood pressure problems.

Fatty acids :

Maintains skin, nerve cells, heart tissues and blood vessels

Amino acids :

Has all the essential amino acids required by the body.

Vitamins:

Essential for maintaining overall health

Minerals :

Rich in potassium content.

Office Yoga To Manage Your Work Stress

Prolonged sitting hours in office, increased work load and stress is having a negative impact on health, leading to a number of disorders. Not only just fatigue but remaining glued to the chair and limited movements for prolonged hours give rise to complications such as:

• Blood circulation
• Spondilysis
• obesity
• Panic attacks
• Diabetes
• Indigestion
• Hormonal imbalance

Now many multinational companies are insisting their employees to mandatorily practice office yoga or office chair exercises. These 15 minutes extra efforts not only relieves physically but also mentally and gives a boost to face the long day ahead.

There are several benefits of office yoga. It is convenient, improves energy and self esteem, strength to work for long hours without affecting the productivity. Office yoga also imparts an overall feeling of wellness and ultimately reduces healthcare expenses. The whole concept is so viral that one just needs the spark to start it and the process goes on and on.

Given below is the simple chair yoga plan for office

For neck:

• Breathe in as you bend your head in the right direction.
• Try to up to the point where your shoulder touches the ear.
• Exhale as you bring your back to the normal position.
• Repeat on the left side.
• Perform five breathing cycles on each side.

For wrist:

• Stretch your wrist and fingers and hold them up for a count of 5. 
• Make a tight fist and then bend wrist down while keeping the fist and hold it for a count of 5.
• Repeat the same with other hand.

For back:

• Sit with your back straight in a comfortable position as for meditation.
• Close your eyes and inhale and exhale
• Breathe normally.
• Repeat again.

Twists for spine and abdomen

• Inhale and hold the back of chair with feet flat on floor
• Place left palm on your right thigh and look over your right shoulder and twist.
• Exhale
• Repeat the same looking over left shoulder.

In fact it is not necessary that you limit this yoga to office chair. It works great even in long hours of travel or any time when you are seated for long.

Noni Alleviates The Debilitating Effects Of Diabetes

We constantly hear diabetes is a serious and fatal disease. How many of us really know about diabetes? The truth is mostly people don’t know what diabetes is.

In simpler words, diabetes is a metabolic disorder that causes high blood sugar level for a prolonged period. The disorder arises due to a substance called ‘Insulin’. Insulin is a peptide hormone produced by the pancreas. It promotes the transportation and absorption of blood glucose to various cells. There are three main types of diabetes:

• Diabetes Type I:                                                                                  When the body does not produce insulin
• Diabetes Type II:                                                                                 Body cells produce insufficient insulin. Type II diabetes accounts for about 90% cases of diabetes.
• Gestational Diabetes:                                                                          Affects pregnant females, as their body is unable to produce enough insulin to transport glucose to cells resulting in high glucose levels.

 Type II diabetes or non-insulin dependent diabetes may occur due to a number of reasons and can be prevented or treated with a modification in lifestyle.

• Insulin resistance
• Defect in the pancreas cells(beta cells)
• Reduced number of beta cells

A survey conducted on 2,773 noni users for diabetic condition have highlighted the fact that more than 83% users have benefited  and experienced significant relief in their diabetic condition.

Noni is adaptogenic. It helps in normalizing the effect of sick beta cells and repair them resulting to produce more insulin. This increase in the level of insulin will consequently bring down the blood sugar level and stabilize it.

Noni also acts an imunomodulator and enhances the sluggish immune system. Thousands of testimonials and historical data have established the efficacy of noni in relieving the symptoms of
diabetes.

Understanding Enriched and Fortified Food

Many of us have come across the words ‘enriched’ or ‘fortified’ a number of times especially while buying cereals and salt from the grocery shop. We always make it a point to buy the brands which have these labels. At times we look in for these labels while purchasing junk or processed food however forgetting that these labels do not give the certification of junk food becoming healthy!

Often we think that enrichment means the process of adding extra nutrients to the food products. But the matter of fact is that there is a difference between enrichment and fortification.

Enriched foods: Enrichment is a process where the lost nutrients in food are added back. The loss of nutrients takes place during the process of manufacturing the food - milling, mixing, grinding, thawing or heating. For example, the vitamin B complex and iron get removed from flour due to milling and hence they are added back before packaging. The food companies can label flour as ‘enriched’ if it contains niacin, folic acid and iron.

Fortified foods: Fortification is a process in which extra nutrients are added by the food manufacturer.But the fortification must have some rationale behind it.These nutrients are essentially the ones that can help to meet up the defeciencies in the diet. Addition of vitamin A & D  to milk,iodine to salt,calcium to fruit juices are some of the examples of fortified foods.

There have been much of controversies surrounding the fortification of food products. Scientists have raised questions regarding the bioavailability of the nutrients as compared to the original food and if deliberate addition of the nutrients actually improves the nutritional quality of food and provide any health benefits.

Trans Fat That Wreck Havoc On Your Body

Innumerable times we end up saying “I will not eat this food as it contains fat.” But often we are unaware that not all type of fats that we eat are actually harmful or can lead to health disorders. What is more important is to choose the right fat, as good fat increases the fitness level, facilitates body to absorb nutrients, makes the food tasty and palatable and imparts good health. On the other hand, bad fat increases the chances of high cholesterol, diabetes and weight gain.

Trans fats and saturated fats are the nastiest fats. It raises the bad cholesterol (LDL) in the body. Trans fats are generally present in the processed food and it helps in increasing the shelf life and enhances the flavour of the food. Trans fats are generated through the process of hydrogenation of vegetable oils which converts it into solid and prevents it from spoiling. These fats are present in preserved food, non-dairy sweetener, fast food, butter, margarine, doughnuts etc. Similarly another culprit is the saturated fats derived from animal sources such as beef, lamb, pork and poultry.

The best way to substitute trans and saturated fat in diet is to replace it with healthy fats. The   healthy fats are the unsaturated, poly unsaturated fatty acids present in soya bean oil, flax seeds, sunflower oil and omega 3 fatty acids (fish).

To check the intake of trans fat, one should look for the nutritional facts label before buying the food products. But the trick is not only to search for the presence of trans fat but also for the presence of hydrogen or partially hydrogenated oil in the list. Since the food manufacturing companies have been exempted from mentioning the presence of trans fat upto 0.5 g per servings. So, zero trans fact may not necessarily mean that the food contains no trans fat!