My Online Health Articles and Healthy Recipes

Our eyesight is one of our most precious commodities. The vitamins in this Coleslaw Recipe and our Eye-Happy Salad might be just what you need to protect your vision and avoid eye problems.

Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know junk food isn’t good for you. But did you know it may also cause eye problems? It’s recently been shown that fatty snack foods may lead to macular degeneration, which causes vision impairment for many seniors.

To protect your eyes, you need to find healthy alternatives to the foods you love that don’t love you back. Thankfully, many healthy foods contain vitamins that actually promote eye health. Foods rich in beta-carotene (vitamin A) have been proven to positively affect both night vision and day-to-day eyesight and helps prevent cataract and macular degeneration. Foods that contain thiamine (vitamin B1) and vitamin E prevent lens deterioration, and foods rich in vitamin C provide antioxidants help prevent glaucoma.

Other nutrients also support healthy vision. There may be evidence that lutein could reduce eye problems, according to the National Eye Institute. Their researchers have even gone out on a limb and said that zinc, found in shellfish, eggs, legumes, herring, liver and milk, reduces the risk of advanced age-related macular degeneration and vision loss. The also believe that fish, such as salmon and sardines, contains omega-3 fatty acids that promote retina health.

It just takes a little extra effort to add more eye-healthy foods to your daily routine. The following healthy recipes will help you do just that:

Coleslaw with Visionary Power
Makes 8 servings

• 2 6-oz. containers of low-fat pineapple yogurt
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 2 T. low-fat mayonnaise
• 1 head of cabbage, thinly sliced
• 4 carrots, shredded
• 1 small sweet bell pepper, finely chopped
• 1 small onion, finely chopped

1. Whisk yogurt, mayonnaise and salt together in a large bowl.

2. Chop the cabbage, sweet bell pepper and onion; scrub and then shred the carrots. Don’t peel them so you preserve the vitamins and minerals near the surface. Add these ingerdients to the yogurt mixture bowl and mix well.

Eye-Happy Salad
Makes 8 servings

• 2 heads romaine lettuce
• 2 C. carrots, shredded
• 2 C. sweet bell peppers, diced
• 2 C. seedless cucumber, diced
• 2 C. tomatoes, diced
• 4 scallions, thinly sliced
• 2 ripe avocados
• 1-1/2 T. lime juice
• Salt and pepper, to taste

1. Cut the tough ribs from the Romaine, chop the remaining leaves into small pieces and place them in a large bowl.

2. Wash and chop the tomatoes, bell pepper, cucumber and scallions, and then scrub and shred the carrots. Place them in the salad bowl.

3. Cut the avocados into 1/4- to 1/2-inch cubes. Place the cubes into a separate bowl and cover with a thin coating of lime juice to prevent discoloration. Toss well until coated and add the avocados to the salad bowl.

4. Add a low-fat dressing and toss the salad.

We hope you enjoy making these healthy recipes that are good for your vision.

You might also be interested in these other recipes:

• Blueberry Recipes with Antioxidant Power
• Broccoli Recipes
• Asparagus Recipes
• Garlic Recipes with Antiviral Power
• Pasta Recipes to Boost Your Immune System
• Recipes to Control Blood Sugar
• Recipes to Keep Anemia at Bay

Please see the rest of our site for more health articles.

Image by docbaty via Flickr

Love tomatoes and pasta?

The Spicy Pasta and Mexican Pasta recipes below combine them to benefit your immune system.

Every day, your immune system battles the millions of bacteria, microbes, toxins and viruses that try to invade your body. From colds and flu to allergies, from gastric conditions to infection to depression, a strong immune system is your first line of defense. But this complex and highly interactive network of organs and specialized cells can help keep you healthy only if it’s healthy itself.

So how do you make sure your immune system stays strong? Along with getting enough sleep and exercise, and keeping your stress level down, eating right is a key component to having lifelong good health. A low-fat, high-fiber, nutrient-rich diet will keep your immune system in top-notch condition. Research suggests that the following vitamins and minerals, in particular, regulate a wide variety of immune system functions:

• Vitamin A
• B vitamins
• Vitamin C
• Zinc
• Selenium
• Magnesium

While it’s a good idea to take a vitamin and mineral supplement to ensure you’re getting the nutrients your body needs, you can get immunity-boosting nutrients from a number of different foods. The following recipes, rich in the vitamins and minerals listed above, offer a delicious way to keep your immune system strong:

Spicy Pasta

Serves 4

• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 3/4 pound spicy sausage, sliced into pieces
• 1 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon oregano
• 3 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 large onion, diced
• 1/4 cup water
• 1 large red bell pepper, diced
• 1 large green bell pepper, diced
• 1 can (14½ oz) stewed tomatoes, chopped
• 1 can (8 oz) tomato sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon hot pepper sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
• 8 oz package vermicelli or angel hair pasta

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain well and set aside.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage pieces and cook five minutes or until browned all over. With a slotted spoon, transfer sausage to a plate and cover loosely to keep warm.
3. Add minced garlic, chili powder and oregano to skillet. Stir and cook about 1 minute.
4. Add onion to skillet. Stir to coat with spices.
5. Add water. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion has softened (5-7 minutes).
6. Stir in red and green bell peppers. Cook 4-5 minutes, or until crisp-tender.
7. Stir in stewed tomatoes and their juices, tomato sauce, hot pepper sauce, salt and pepper.
8. Add sausages and bring to a boil; then reduce to a simmer.
9. Cover and cook until sausage is thoroughly cooked (about 5 minutes).
10. Serve over pasta.

Mexican Pasta

Serves 4

• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 green onions, thinly sliced
• 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
• 1/2 lb lean ground beef or ground turkey
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 can (14½ oz) stewed tomatoes, chopped
• 1 jalapeño pepper, finely chopped
• 1/3 cup shredded Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped cilantro
• 8 oz package bow- or corkscrew-shaped whole wheat pasta

1. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain well and place in a large bowl.
2. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add green onions and garlic and cook 30 seconds.
3. Crumble in ground beef. Sprinkle with chili powder and salt. Cook, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes, or until beef is no longer pink.
4. Add tomatoes and their juices, and jalapeño. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium; cover and cook 5 minutes.
5. Pour sauce over pasta.
6. Sprinkle with cheese and cilantro. Toss to mix.

These pasta dishes use canned stewed tomatoes, but you can also substitute fresh tomatoes for the canned variety in either dish. It’s easy to stew them yourself:

Stewed tomatoes

1. Peel and core tomatoes.
2. Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large saucepan.
3. Add tomatoes and stir over medium heat for 1 minute.
4. Cover and simmer for 20-25 minutes.

You might also be interested in these other recipes:

• Blueberry Recipes with Antioxidant Power
• Broccoli Recipes
• Asparagus Recipes
• Garlic Recipes with Antiviral Power
• Recipes to Control Blood Sugar
• Recipes to Help Your Vision
• Recipes to Keep Anemia at Bay