Tomatoes!

Bright red in color and round in shape, tomatoes are not only look appealing, but also very tasty to eat. Many people thought that it's in the veggie group, when it's actually a fruit.

image credit to free-extras.com

Besides its freshness, tomatoes are rich in antioxidants, which are effective in fighting those free radicals. The antioxidants in tomatoes fight them by adding an electron into the free radicals, neutralizing them and stop the chain reaction of the free radicals that disrupts the health. One of the antioxidants tomatoes is lycopene. Lycopene is an important antioxidants that can help prevent the formation of cancer cells, like prostate, rectal, stomach, and throat cancer.

Lycopene is a part of the "pigment family" called carotene. Carotene is a natural component in fruit and vegetable colors. For example, beta carotene is an orange pigment in carrots.

Our body does not produce lycopene, therefore it needs a supply of lycopene from the foods we consume. Tomatoes actually contain more lycopene than other fruits, such as carrots or watermelon.

Nutritional Content in 100 grams of Tomatoes

• 27 mg of phosphor
• 360 mg of potassium
• 0,6 mg of iron
• 11 mg of calcium
• 23 mg of vitamin C
• 0,06 mg of thiamine (vitamin B)
• 1 g of protein
• 1000 iu of vitamin A

Health Benefits from Tomatoes
Except its merit in preventing the formation of cancer cells, tomatoes also have 5 other important benefits for our health, and they are:
1. Prevent the Premature Aging
With its high content of antioxidants, tomatoes can prevent premature aging from free radicals. Tomatoes also contain citric acid, which can make our skin looks fresh and cleaner.

2. Lower the Blood Cholesterol
The nicotinic acid in tomatoes can help you lower the high blood cholesterol, therefore preventing any heart disease.

3. Maintain the Blood Sugar Level
Tomatoes also contain important mineral, chromium. Chromium is useful in maintaining the stability of the blood sugar. Therefore, tomatoes are good for diabetic people.

4. Lower the Effects of Smoking
Tomatoes are highly recommended for smokers. The chlorogenic acid and the coumaric acid in tomatoes help smokers fight carcinogens, the dangerous substance in cigarettes which can cause cancer.

5. Maintain the Bone Health
Besides chromium, tomatoes also contain other important minerals such as calcium and vitamin K. These two nutrition are important in repairing the broken bone tissues while preventing the osteoporosis.

Start consuming tomatoes today, and get ALL the health merits!

5 Best Post-Workout Meals

During a workout, our body needs enough nutrition as its fuel to create the energy. These energy will wear off eventually after the workout, right? Therefore, we need more healthy food to recharge the lost energy. If our body lost its energy for too long, it can cause muscle spasms and catabolism.

Here are 5 best post-workout meals you can consume after a workout:
1. Chicken Breast with Veggie Mix
100 grams of skinless and boneless chicken breast contain about 29 grams of protein, which can help the recovery and muscle developments after a workout. Meanwhile, a mix of vegetables contain many kinds of vitamins and minerals that are essential for our immunity.

2. Eggs and Avocado
No doubt that eggs contain enough protein, especially in its whites. Egg yolks contain phosphatidylcholine which can be useful to prevent the accumulation of fat and cholesterol in the liver. Yolks are also rich in choline, which can increase the heart, brain, and membrane cell functions. One egg contain about 300 mg of choline and 315 mg of phosphatidylcholine.

Avocado also have high nutritional value. It contain at least 11 vitamins and 14 minerals. It's also rich in protein, riboflavin (vitamin B2), niacin (vitamin B3), potassium, and vitamin C (vitamin needed for body recovery).

3. Salmon, Spinach, and Yam (Sweet Potato)
Salmon are rich in protein and Omega 3 fatty acid. The protein in a salmon is good for muscle growth, while the Omega 3 fatty acid are useful to reduce muscle damage after a workout.

Spinach are high in iron, an important mineral for muscle formation. Iron is also an important component in hemoglobin, the part in our blood that distributes the oxygen throughout the body.

Sweet potatoe (yam) is one kind of complex carbohydrate, which are also equipped with easy-to-digest vitamins and minerals. It's also a good energy source, especially after a workout.

4. Tuna and Brown Rice
Potassium and essential fats in a tuna helps control the blood pressure. The Omega 3 fatty acid can also help prevent rheumatic, while the selenium are useful in detoxifying process, especially in the liver.

Brown rice are high in fiber, which helps in indigestion and are suitable to be consumed after a workout. It won't increase the blood sugar, thus reducing the risk of diabetes.

5. Whey Protein
Besides the fact that it's good to be consumed before a workout, whey protein are also good to be consumed after a workout. Whey protein are a protein supplement in the form of a milk, making it easier to be absorbed. Research indicates that whey protein can fasten the muscle recovery process and maximizes the muscle formation after a workout.

Those are the 5 best post-workout meal that you can consume after a workout. The right meal after a workout can really get you faster to the results you've been fighting for!

Diet Soda: Better Than Regular Soda?

People often consume diet soda in order to replace the regular soda-consumption, which, as we all know, contains high sugar and calories. Consuming diet soda in a reasonable amount - say, 1 can a day - is considered safe, because the sweetener and the chemicals contained in it is still within the safe limits for most people.

image credit to thefoodfarce.com

But still, diet soda is not a healthy drink for you, especially those in diet. Even if replacing regular soda drinks with diet soda reduces significant amount of calories, but a lot of research indicates that the more soda you consume - diet soda or regular soda - your appetite will grow, heightening the risk of obesity and other related diseases such as diabetes mellitus or osteoporosis.

Other research also finds that consuming more than 1 can of carbonated drinks a day will increase the risk of metabolic syndrome as much as 40%. Metabolic syndrome is the main cause for heart disease and diabetes.

There are still a lot of healthier drinks around. The best one there is, is of course regular water, 8 glasses a day. For some variations, instead of drinking carbonated drinks, you can also consume juice, low-fat milk, of green tea. Bottoms up!