Wednesday, March 12, 2014


What exactly is Dietary Fiber ?



We have often come across the word " Fiber " whenever we read an article on heart health or general well being. But do we exactly know why the right kind of fiber is necessary in our daily diet ?

Here, lets take a look at some of the basic facts on fiber :

As we all must have read in our Biology books in school, dietary fiber is mostly known as roughage or bulk. It mainly forms the part of the plant body that human body can not absorb or digest. Hence, it is the "extra" bulk. All other food categories like fats, carbohydrates, proteins are digested by our body but the fiber moves out of our body. Hence, it is essential for our bowel movement.

There are two kinds of fiber: Soluble and insoluble fibers

Soluble fiber dissolves in water to form a gel like material and mainly helps in lowering blood cholesterol. They are mainly found in oats, apples, citrus fruits,peas etc

Insoluble fiber helps in the movement of undigested food through our systems and relieves constipation. It is mainly found in Whole-wheat flour, wheat bran, nuts, beans and vegetables, such as cauliflower, green beans and potatoes.

Apart from ensuring good bowel movement and bowel health, it plays a major role in lowering cholesterol as the bad cholesterol gets dissolved.

 It is also proven that they help lower blood pressure and contributes majorly to maintain a healthy weight as it makes you feel full for a longer time.

So be sure to include lots of fresh fruits, vegetables and whole grain food stuff in your diet.







Saturday, March 1, 2014

Coriander Chutney / Dhaniya ki Chutney

For a healthy lifestyle these days, we often avoid oily food.


However, sometimes we miss the extra spice of pickles alongside our main course.However, we cant always give in to our temptations as pickles contain a lot of oil.

So, here is some healthy & quick alternative that will definitely add that extra zing and is no less in taste as compared to pickes.
Coriander Chutney

Things you need: 

1.Coriander leaves - 1 bowl finely chopped
2. Lemon juice - 3tbsp
3. Green chillies - 2
4. Sugar - a pinch
5. Salt - to taste

Process:

1. Grind the coriander & green chillies together
2. To the paste, add the lemon juice, sugar and salt.


Mix well and your spicy chutney is ready to be served.


Coriander not only adds a great flavour to all your dishes, it also has numerous health benefits. It also lowers LDL(bad cholesterol) cholesterol and increases HDL(good cholesterol) cholesterol levels apart from aiding in digestion, curing intestinal gas, preventing nausea & urinary tract infection. It lowers the blood glucose levels in diabetics and prevents skin problems too.