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Special Energy Foods. What Foods Will Decrease Your Fatigue?
Special Energy Foods
What Foods Will Decrease Your Fatigue? In this age of pharmaceuticals, where drug companies spend millions on new pills to take care of our ills, you might be surprised to learn that there are still people who swear by deceptively simple remedies that can be found in anyone's kitchen cabinet. Some of these are: apple cider vinegar, baking soda, lemons, salt, honey, seeds and nuts. The next time someone tells you "I take a glass of water with apple cider vinegar every morning and I've never felt better", don't dismiss them as being just a bit cracked, or as very suggestible to what seems to you to be merely a placebo. (And by the way, what's wrong with placebos, if they work, and according to many controlled experiments, they do work about thirty percent of the time.) Some of these foods work by establishing a better acid-alkaline balance in the body. When we eat too many acid-forming foods, our bodies end up being too acidic, and that spells low energy, at the least. Convenience Foods Causing Fatigue Unfortunately, many of the foods we love are in the acid-forming category: sugars, pastries, a lot of fast foods. They're called convenience foods, but they're not so convenient in the long run, because our bodies do not always find them convenient for furnishing energy. We know baking soda is alkaline, but it may come as a surprise that apple cider vinegar and citrus fruits, including lemons, have an alkalizing effect in the body. Most fruits and vegetables are in this category too. You may also be surprised to find salt on this list, since it is a favorite no-no in a lot of the literature on nutrition. Many of the convenience foods are overloaded with salt, so we can get too much of it, but we must not forget that salt is absolutely necessary to our bodies. It also can be used therapeutically, for example, to clear out the nasal passages, because it is a powerful germ-killer. Seeds and nuts are known for being very concentrated food sources. They contain everything that is needed to develop into a full-blown plant. Some people avoid them because of their high calorie content, and this is unfortunate. It's all a matter of balance, and including them regularly in a balanced diet can really boost your energy levels.
Also, they are so, well, convenient, that they are a much better choice for a snack food than, say, potato chips. In addition to the more well-known ones, such as walnuts, pecans and sesame seeds, do get acquainted with the sunflower seed. Good roasted, but even more nutritious raw, they can also be included in breads, cookies and other dishes. Another seed that is getting some well-deserved attention these days is linseeds. They are packed with omega-3 oils, and are an important addition to an energy-building diet. Once ground or pressed into oil they easily spoil, though, so it's better to buy them whole and grind them as needed an electric coffee grinder works perfectly for that. And all of the above foods (well, maybe not the baking soda) are really good-tasting. Even the apple cider vinegar can be quite pleasant to taste if you put two teaspoons of it in a glass of warm water and add a teaspoon of honey.
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