Tag: Different Kinds

Why They Say Chocolate Has Health Benefits

Does chocolate have health benefits at all? Few studies and researches made not too long ago suggested it has. In fact, a lot of chemicals containing chocolate were found to be beneficial to the people’s health. So, it does contradict the old myth and half-truths surrounding the saying that anything that looks and tastes good is bad.

The health benefits are particularly true to cocoa, dark chocolate, and minimally-processed chocolate foods. Aside from the copper and magnesium, which aids in regulating blood pressure and heartbeat, they contain flavonoids, the ones that you also found in high-antioxidant green tea. As you probably know it already, antioxidants are good for the health as they accomplish a number of health benefits, such as the following:

-Improve circulation
-Lower blood pressure
-Stimulate kidneys, improve digestion
-Can help patients with poor appetite, kidney stones, and anemia
-Improve endothelial functions
-Guard against free radicals and other destructive molecules, which are known to trigger stroke and heart disease.
-Lower heart disease-related deaths

Flavonoids have two different kinds, the epicatechins and catechin. The catechin has been found to be rich in minimally processed chocolate foods and cocoa. This is known to aid in preventing heart disease illnesses and possibly cancer problems. It is also aid to boosting an individual’s immune system, this one also was recently discovered by the experts. Catechins can be found triple in amount in chocolates as compared to those found in teas.

But despite the discovered health benefits of chocolate, you have to be cautious at what type and amount of chocolate food you consume. As anything excessive can be bad to health, and that applies to chocolate too. Eating high quantities of chocolate can still cause weight and eventually trigger illness especially if you consume the less healthy type of chocolate.

In order to avoid the unpleasant consequences, you have to choose the right type of chocolate when consuming as not all kinds are good. For example, highly-processed chocolate food kind such as those in candy and bar forms have high calories, sugar, and fat contents, therefore, must be avoided at all cost. Healthy kinds are dark chocolate, cocoa, and any other minimally-processed chocolate food.

This is in relation to studies demonstrating possible effects by eating chocolates done by the experts to groups of participants. In a particular study, half of the group ate dark chocolate while the other white chocolate. One ones who ate white chocolate, showed no change in blood pressure, while the other who ate dark chocolate, significantly lowered their systolic blood pressure.

At another conducted Pennsylvania State University study,a different group of participants received low fat diet, except that the half got high-carb snack and the other consumed low fat chocolate bar for a certain length of time. The two split groups didn’t show difference in levels of bad or LDL cholesterol afterwards. However, those that ate chocolate bars did show increase in triglycerides, a type of heart-risk blood fat, and good or HDL cholesterols.

From these studies, it showed how chocolate can actually be a good diet food. However, note that the participants were only fed in minimal quantities of chocolates, therefore it is still not advised to consume this sweet treat more than what is required for you to take. Also, remember to avoid chocolate foods that are high in artificial flavorings, with dairy products, and sugars. Remember this: the less that it is processed, the more that health benefits you will get from chocolate.

Laying Out And Planting Vegetable Gardens

Laying Out and Planting Vegetable Gardens

As you start planting vegetable gardens its important to know how the garden will be laid out. The layout of your own garden will depend on what vegetable you want to grow, the planting space and if you would like to opt for companion planting. Here are some helpful tips on how to layout your own garden and start planting vegetables.

Sit Down and Plan

Before choosing a layout you need to decide on what type of vegetable you would like to grow and where you would like to plant them. Here are other factors you need to consider for your garden layout:

* Garden Space * Amount of Light in the Space * Drainage System * Soil Amendments * Type of Vegetable * Additional Space (if needed)

You should also think about whether you want to grow one type of vegetable like lettuce and tomatoes or if you want one type of vegetable with different kinds. Researching about the amount of light a certain vegetable needs and the amount of space that each need to be planted are both helpful facts to find out.

Make a list of vegetables you want to plant and find out the plant requirements of each and compare it with the garden space you have. This should give you an idea of where you want to plant certain vegetables in your space.

Choose your Garden Layout

There are three basic vegetable garden layouts and they are: rows, beds and potager style.

The most popular rows style of layout requires planting seeds in a row which could either mean planting one type of seed in a row or different seeds in a row.

The bed type of layout is similar the rows style but in a smaller level. This layout allows access to the plant beds from the exterior of the garden or as you walk through the garden path instead of coming from inside of the plant bed. This is particularly convenient to avoid stepping on the beds which tends to pack in the soil and makes it difficult to dig and aerate in the spring or fall. Plant beds are great ways to maximize a garden space and you can even use raised beds for easy gardening.

The most decorative style of layout is the potager which means kitchen garden in French. This layout is described as geometric which allows you to layout your garden in circles or arrange plants by color or even food type.

Consider Companion Planting

The idea behind companion planting involves planting different kinds of plants together so that they help each other grow. A perfect example of this is planting beans, corn and squash together which were commonly done by Native Americans. While the corn gives the beans a place to climb, the beans gives its three companions nutrients in the soil and the squash serves as a shade to the roots of the plants beside it. This not only prevents weeds from growing, it also saves up on water.

Other great plants for companion planting are onions, which scares slugs and aphids away, tomatoes, which grow well with carrots and basil, which improves the taste of tomatoes. Another example is horseradish and potatoes which when planted together give your potatoes protection from disease.

In planting vegetable gardens, this concept is certainly worth considering and if you want to get more information about it, you can do some research online or in your local library.

Shopping for Thanksgiving Party Supplies

What do you plan on doing this Thanksgiving holiday? While a large number of individuals just have dinner with their family and then return home, you may be looking for something more. If so, you may be interested in hosting a Thanksgiving party. If and when you make the decision to host a Thanksgiving party, you will likely need to buy supplies for your party. Do you know where you can get those supplies from?

When it comes to shopping for Thanksgiving party supplies, you will find that you literally have an unlimited number of options. Honestly, your options will all depend on what you are looking for. For instance, you may find that you cannot buy food from the same places that you can buy Thanksgiving party decorations. That is why it may be a good idea to examine all of the locations that you may need or want to shop and then develop a shopping plan. A shopping plan is one of the best ways to ensure that you get exactly what you need to have to make your next Thanksgiving party a success.

Whether you are hosting a Thanksgiving party that includes a Thanksgiving dinner or just snacks, you will need to purchase some food. While it is possible to purchase food and decorations from some department stores, you may prefer to shop at one of your local grocery stores. Around Thanksgiving time, many grocery stores place their food items on sale, whereas not all department stores do. By looking out for great sales, you should be able to find all of the food, snacks, and drinks that you wanted, but at an affordable price.

It was previously stated that you should be able to purchase Thanksgiving decorations from traditional department stores. Of course, you can and for a relatively affordable price, but you may also want to look elsewhere. If you are shopping for last minute Thanksgiving party decorations or you are looking for the largest selection of decorations, it may be a good idea to visit a party supply store. When it comes to all different kinds of parties, including Thanksgiving parties, party stores tend to have a larger selection of decorations to choose from. While you may have to pay a little bit more money, you are almost always guaranteed to find what you are looking for at a party supply store.

In addition to shopping locally, in storefront retail locations, it may be a good idea to give online shopping some thought. In fact, online shopping may give you, hands down, the largest selection of Thanksgiving decorations to choose from. Online, you will, literally, find hundreds of individuals and retailers who are selling everything from Thanksgiving placemats to Thanksgiving centerpieces. You will also find that online retailers do not have to worry about floor space. That is why most online retailers tend to have a much larger selection of Thanksgiving decorations, when compared to most storefront retail locations.

As previously mentioned, a large number of retailers, especially those in storefront retail locations, are limited on the number of Thanksgiving supplies that they carry, particularly Thanksgiving decorations. That is why it may be a good idea to start buying your Thanksgiving party supplies early. In fact, the earlier you shop, the larger selection of party supplies you are likely to have access to.

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