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Of course, we know there are more than just 10 “super foods.” In fact, just about every brightly colored fruit and vegetable fits the category of a super food, as does cold water fish, nuts, beans and seeds and aromatic and brightly colored herbs and spices. The ten categories listed here are a [...]

Here is a list of 10 Superfood groups to support a healthy weight loss and management program.
Super Food Groups
Each group is followed by a list of its primary functions in fighting weight gain, and the “STAR” and “Runners Up” foods in it.

Rich Cold-Water Fish: Anti-inflammatory Omega-3 Fats
TOP CHOICE:  Wild Alaskan Salmon
Runners up:  Sablefish, Sardines, Anchovies, [...]

Key nutrients taken in the right combinations not only prevent bone loss, they can actually stimulate new bone growth. New bone growth brings significant anti-aging benefits.

Age-related loss of bone mass known as osteoporosis, a disorder characterized by porous, fragile bones, is a serious public health problem for more than 10 million Americans, 80 percent of whom are women. Another 34 million Americans have osteopenia, or low bone mass, which precedes osteoporosis. But while bone formation—the acquisition of bone mineral density (BMD)—peaks between the ages of 20 to 30, new research shows that cellular rejuvenation of bone tissue and muscle mass is now a very powerful new reality. Through a process known as “remodeling,” old bone is constantly replaced with new.

Rebuilding bone
Lactoferrin: Lactoferrin found in foods such as yogurt and kefir will stimulate new bone growth while preventing further breakdown of existing bone tissue, lactoferrin enhances both the growth and the activity of osteoblasts (the cells that build bone), and reduces the rate of bone cell death by 50 to 70 percent and decreases the development of osteoclasts, the cells responsible for breaking down bone.
The New News about Vitamin D: When the body is exposed to the sun’s ultraviolet light, it produces its own vitamin D—and only 10 minute a day in the summer, and about fifteen in winter is adequate. Vitamin D may also improve muscle strength, thereby reducing fracture risk through falls and high blood levels of vitamin D prevent the loss of calcium from bones.
Vitamin K2 good for the bones and heart: Studies have shown that vitamin K2 may act directly act on bone metabolism. In bone tissue, K2 promotes calcium uptake in bone tissue. The exciting synergy of K2 is that K2 adds calcium to the bones, where it belongs, and removes it from the arteries, where is should not be. K2 stays in the blood for an extended period and when eating natto or taking K2 as a supplement, it continues to build up in the body, accruing superior, long-term protection from thinning bones, fractures and other bone-related problems.
Omega-3’s Build Better Bones: Most Westerner’s diets are high in omega-6s (found in most vegetable oils, grains and grain-fed beef) and low in omega-3s (found in salmon, sardines, nuts, omega-3 eggs, grass-fed beef and dairy products, etc.) However, new studies show that omega-3 fatty acids help promote bone formation and higher intakes of omega-6 fatty acids lead to an increased production of compounds associated with bone loss.
Magnesium: Increasing magnesium intake can inrease bone density in the elderly and reduce the risk of osteoporosis. Higher magnesium intake through diet and supplements was positively associated with total-body bone mineral density in older men and women.
Boron: Boron is now being recognized as an extremely important nutrient for supporting healthy bone mass and preventing osteoporosis.
Silicon: Bone Builder and Wrinkle Smoother: Silicon, in the form of choline-stabilized orthosilicic acid (ch-OSA™), improves the bone health benefits of both calcium and vitamin D, helps build and maintain bone by regulating bone mineralization, helping to trigger the deposition of calcium and phosphate, reduces the number of osteoclasts (bone destroying cells) and increasing the number of osteoblasts (bone building cells). Higher dietary silicon intake is associated with greater BMD in both men and pre-menopausal women.

Sources of calcium
Milk, cheese, yogurt, kefir, dark leafy greens, broccoli, canned sardines and salmon with bones, dried beans and peas, tofu and sea vegetables (seaweed). Vitamin D, Vitamin K2 Natto (Japanese fermented soy product) nattokinase supplement, Vitamin or K2 supplement, Silicon in the form of choline-stabilized orthosilicic acid, Omega 3 fish oil, Magnesium, Ch-OSA Silicon, Boron

Kefir is also an excellent source of Vitamin K, calcium, magnesium and Vitamin B12, Vitamin B 1 and Biotin, the B vitamin that enhances the body’s ability to absorb the B vitamins. It is also a rich source of phosphorus, the mineral that helps utilize carbohydrates, fats and proteins for cell growth, maintenance and energy.

Boosting the Immune System

A number of studies conducted to date have documented kefir’s ability to stimulate the immune system, enhance lactose digestion, and inhibit tumors, fungi, and pathogens— including the bacteria that cause most ulcers. This makes a lot of sense as scientists have since discovered that most ulcers are caused by an infection with the bacterium, Helicobacter pylori and not spicy food, stomach acid or stress, as physicians erroneously believed for years.

Scientists are now discovering that a great many inflammatory diseases (including certain types of heart disease) can be triggered by a bacterium. And that provides all the more reason to enjoy kefir, yogurt and other forms of probiotics as part of your daily diet.

Wonderful ways to incorporate yogurt into your diet is to use it in place of sour cream – this won’t work with kefir as its consistency is more like milk. To ensure a wide variety of all of the different probiotics, enjoy both.

Here’s a perfect way to start the day

Pour a glass of whole milk kefir
Add to it two tablespoons of super berry powder
POM Wonderful (pure pomegranate extract) and/or fresh fruit.

I stir it up and it looks and tastes like a rich and beautiful berry smoothie.

With the first day of winter rapidly approaching as well as the onset of flu season, it is heartening to know that there are natural ways to boost our immune system, protect our health and increase the health and beauty of our skin.

One of my favorite ways to do all three is with a glass of unsweetened whole milk kefir and add to it two tablespoons of super berry powder, POM Wonderful (pure pomegranate extract) and/or fresh fruit. I stir it up and it looks and tastes like a rich and beautiful berry smoothie. It is the perfect way to start the day.

Kefir (kee-fer) is a fermented, probiotic milk drink from the Caucasus Mountains in the former Soviet Union. The name kefir loosely translated means “pleasure” or “good feeling.” Due to its health-promoting properties, kefir was once considered a gift from the gods. Fortunately it is being rediscovered and recognized for its many health and beauty benefits.

Kefir can best be described as a sort of liquid, sparkling yogurt, with its own distinct and deliciously mild, naturally sweet, yet tangy flavor—with a refreshing hint of natural carbonation. Its unique taste and almost mystical reputation as a longevity elixir explains why people all over Europe are making kefir (along with similar fermented drinks) their beverage of choice.

Kefir is important for many reasons, including its content of active probiotics. Probiotics, which are also found in yogurt, are live, naturally-occurring microorganisms that function internally to promote healthy digestion, boost the immune system, and contribute to overall health and well being. Probiotics have many benefits, not the least of which is this: because they are a key part of the digestive tract, the healthy bacteria of probiotics aids in the digestions of food and absorption of nutrients and minerals—all of which benefit skin health and beauty.

Probiotics also provide protection from allergens, which can be a cause of skin problems such as eczema, while also protecting the body from negative forms of bacteria, environmental toxins such as pollutants, and inflammation-inducing free radicals. Probiotics keeps down the production of pro-inflammatory chemicals by the intestinal cells. Since this is a huge surface area, inflammation produced in the gut would flood the body with pro-inflammatory chemicals; therefore a healthy gut will is anti-inflammatory and translate immediately into healthy and glowing skin, elimination of digestive problems and overall better health.

Many physicians believe that death begins in the colon. By keeping the digestive system functioning at optimum levels with high levels of the good bacteria we reduce the ‘bad’ bacteria in the colon as well, key to preventing toxic disease-causing bacteria.

Wishing you a peaceful and prosperous holiday season.

Nicholas Perricone, MD