8 healthy foods every woman must eat

Essential nutrition for good health


While eating healthy is essential for both the sexes, men and women have different dietary requirements. Here are some foods that every woman must include in her diet... 

Flax seeds 

Have flax seeds daily for overall good health. They are a good source of Omega-3 fatty acids and are known to reduce the risk of heart disease and breast cancer. They also have anti-inflammatory properties that prevent arthritis, apart from digestive properties which help ease irritable bowel syndrome. 

Salmon 

Not only is salmon rich in iron, which is usually lacking in women, but it is also full of omega-3 fatty acids, known to improve your mood. Experts say that omega-3 helps treat depression and prevent mood swings. 

Cranberries 

Certain studies over the years have found a link between eatingcranberries and how it reduces the risk of breast cancer and heart disease. Also, they have the ability to prevent and cure urinary tract infections. Have a glass of cranberry juice every other day. 

Spinach 

While this might not be a much-loved food, spinach is packed with a host of vitamins, minerals and high amounts of magnesium. And magnesium is known to help reduce the physical symptoms of PMS like swelling, breast tenderness, bloating and weight gain. 

Walnuts 

Experts say that walnuts have omega-3 fatty acids, antioxidants and phytosterols — all important in reducing the risk of breast cancer. The high omega-3 content also helps bone health, arthritisand depression. Walnuts also comprise nutrients like calcium, magnesium and folic acid. 

Oats 

Oats are bursting with health-boosting nutrients, great for female health. They keep your heart healthy, are great for digestion, keep blood pressure levels in check and also contain vitamin B6, which helps prevent PMS and mood swings. Another component — folic acid — prevents birth defects in babies and is essential for women during and after pregnancy. 

Milk 

Calcium deficiency is one of the major health concerns that affects women worldwide. Milk is an absolute must for women at any age. A great source of calcium, milk, when combined with vitamin D, is one of the best ways to keep osteoporosis at bay. Milk is also helpful in preventing symptoms of the dreaded PMS. 

Tomatoes 

A carotenoid that is essential for good health is lycopene, which is a pigment found in tomatoes. And several studies have said that lycopene can help prevent breast cancer. Apart from this, there is also evidence that suggests that it reduces the risk of heart disease.

10 foods bad for your skin

With growing awareness, people have become more health as well as beauty conscious. In this aesthetic-loving age, it is very essential to let people know that what they consider 'aesthetic' is also related to their skin. 

Importantly, manifestations of your nutritional status as well as body's nutritional needs reflect on the skin's health.

That's why we have today Priya Jain, Dietician, P D Hinduja National Hospital & MRC, Mahim, Mumbai who is going yo share with us a list of 10 foods that can harm your skin.

Foods that disturb water balance
Dehydration causes drying of the skin. Wrinkling is a common side effect of lack of moisture in the skin. Dehydration and acne are interlinked because drying of skin and dead skin cells coming together cause acne.

Excess salt
Excess salt retains additional fluid in the body causing swelling and apuffy look to the skin. The skin texture is spoilt on prolonged salt abuse. Papads, pickles, salted foods, table salt, brined/canned food products are the potential sources of salt to the body.

Excess caffeine
Caffeine is a known stimulant which increase the cortisol production in the body and enhances the ageing process by thinning the skin. This dehydrates the skin and even leads to wrinkling. In addition, caffeine is a diuretic which further increases the risk of dehydration. So beware when you decide to go for an additional helping of coffee, tea or chocolates too!

Alcohol
Alcohol inhibits the Anti-Diuretic Hormone secretion thus causing dehydration. Furthermore, it also causes vasodilatation, which then leads to excess water loss through the skin. This is also known to be a contributing factor to acute phases of psoriasis as per the American Academy of Dermatology.

Foods with high glycemic load
These foods cause drastic fluctuations in the blood sugar. This leads to excess secretion of insulin and androgens during the high and low bouts respectivel. A major reason to contribute to surplus sebum production, enhanced skin cell division and aggregation of dead skin cells - leading to acne.

Excess sugar 
Not literally only sugar, but even jaggery and honey!

Aerated beverages 
Aerated drinks can be nightmarish for the skin. Exceptions are the so-called diet-cokes and the family. But their caffeine content makes them the villains for skin health.

Processed foods
Refined or processed foods like maida (refined flour) and its products, canned and sweetened fruits and juices are low in fiber content, thus increasing the glycemic load. Moreover the processed foods are often high in their salt/sodium content. As a by-product of processing, these also lose the nutrients of the parent food products important for skin health.

Foods that enhance free-radical production
Free radicals are known to disrupt the skin's structure by destroying collagen and elastin; the fibres that support the skin structure. They also cause damage at the cellular level by disturbing the DNA structure.

Red meat
Consumption of red meat, especially fat-laden parts can lead to inflammatory reactions. This is by the virtue of saturated fat content of meats. In excess, free radicals generated overpowers the anti-oxidation capacity of the free radical scavengers in the body.

Fried foods and hydrogenated fat
Excess heat application like during frying of foods and production of hydrogenated fat (margarine, vanaspati ghee) leads to oxidation of fatty acids and destruction of anti-oxidant nutrients like vitamin E, omega-3 fats present in the oils/fat. Generation of trans-fatty acids encourages free radical production by fueling the oxidation process. So next time you thing margarine is healthier to butter...you'll remember reading this!

Excess use of artificial sweeteners/colours/flavours
These chemicals lodge into our systems and are difficult to flush out of our body. Overuse and inability to flush them out in time could be the pre-cursor for free radical production.

Crash diets
Crash diets affect skin health through all the 3 mechanisms discussed before. Dehydration is a side effect of crash dieting. Studies suggest that consuming lot of water throughout this phase barely helps and this is because body doesn't retain water due to nutritional deprivation and lack of balanced meals.

Crash diets are known to cause dramatic fluctuations in blood sugar levels, no wonder acnes are so common amongst anorexics and bulemics. Skin requires antioxidant nutrients (Vitamins A, C, E, zinc, selenium, etc.) that scavenge the free radicals. The Journal of Investigative Dermatology (Feb, 2005) testifies that long term vitamins C and E intake is linked with reduced incidence of sunburns from exposure to UVB radiation. These antioxidant vitamins help protect against DNA damage by protecting the skin structure. Crash diets are known to cause nutrient deficiencies and thereby the lack of antioxidants too.

Fruits for your skin and hair

Beauty expert Shahnaz Husain tells you which fruits to pick for your skincare treatments

Fruits have always been considered a rich source of fibre and vitamins. In fact fruit packs are also used in high end beauty salons. You too can experience the benefits by taking heed of these tips. Read on to find out which fruits should be a part of your daily skincare
routine.

Banana
Banana is extremely nourishing for the skin, because it contains Vitamins B and C and is a rich source of potassium. In fact, potassium helps to soften the skin. It also tightens and tones the skin. Bananas can be made into a pulp and applied on the skin, or added to face
packs.

Apples
Apples are wonderful skin toners, helping to tighten the skin and stimulate blood circulation to the skin surface. Apples also have anti-oxidant properties. Raw apple pulp or apple juice can be applied on the skin daily. Apple cider vinegar has great benefits for the
hair, helping to restore the normal balance of the scalp and preventing scalp problems, including dandruff.

Papaya
Papaya contains papain, an enzyme. Papaya is useful for removing dead skin cells and may be applied on the face and body. It also helps to lighten skin colour if used regularly over a period of time. Ripe papaya pulp can be applied on the face, or can be mixed with other
ingredients like oatmeal, curd and honey to make face masks. Papaya pulp mixed with curd can be applied on the body.

Mango
The mango is rich in Vitamins A and C, which helps in toning and rejuvenating the skin. It helps to delay the visible signs of ageing of the skin, and also has a softening effect on it. Mango pulp can be applied on the face to keep the skin soft and supple. It is suited to
all skin types. It is an anti-oxidant and used regularly, it can reverse oxidation damage.

Orange
Like lemons, the orange is also rich in Vitamin C. The fruit pulp can be included in fruit masks. Orange peels can also be collected and dried in the sun, then ground into a powder and added to face masks. It has a cleansing and gradual skin lightening effect. Orange juice
can also be added to masks for the face and hands. In fact, raw orange and lemon peels can be rubbed on the nails to remove discolouration. Orange peels rubbed regularly on the hands can help to lighten skin colour and also tighten the skin.

Strawberries
Strawberries are powerful anti-oxidants and therefore help to prevent oxidation damage, which leads to ageing signs, like lines, wrinkles, sagging skin, etc. In fact, they also strengthen the supportive tissues and keep the skin youthful. Apples are rich in Vitamin C and thus beneficial for the skin, as Vitamin C keeps the skin healthy. Crush them and apply on the face, for a fruit pack. Leave on for 20 minutes and then wash off with plain water. They can be mixed with other fruits too. Or, mix crushed strawberries with curd and apply on the face. It will lighten skin colour over a period of time.

Grapefruit
Like other citrus fruits, grapefruit also has a cleansing and toning effect on the skin. It is particularly good for oily and pimple prone skin. It reduces oiliness and also helps to reduce tan over a period of time. Grapefruit also helps oily skin problems like open pores and helps to tighten them. Apply the fruit or juice on the skin and wash off after 20 minutes.

Cherries
Cherries contain vitamins and minerals, which help to nourish the skin. They have anti-inflammatory effects and help to heal and soothe irritated skin. They also help in cases of sun-damage and exposure to UV rays.

Pomegranate
It has excellent benefits for skincare, as it helps to moisturise the skin and is a powerful antioxidant. It helps to improve the skin's moisture retention ability too. It is said to boost the process of cell renewal and thus helps to delay the formation of skin ageing signs. Used regularly on the face, it can remove tan, lighten skin colour and also brighten the skin.

Watermelon
Watermelon helps dry skin. It helps to seal in moisture and keeps the skin hydrated. It also helps to soothe and improve dry, scaly skin. Applying watermelon pulp or juice helps to soften and smoothen the skin.

6 alternatives to Apple's tech toys

Apple has spent more than a decade leaching its hip little tech toys into American homes and pop culture with very little pushback from the stodgy tech sector. Time's up.

A month after releasing its iPhone 5 and about a week away from debuting its iPad Mini and newest 13-inch MacBook Pro, Apple finds itself in a peculiar position. Revenue jumped 23% last quarter from the same period a year ago and the company's next year-end summary follows up a 66% annual revenue spike in its 2011 report.

As ubiquitous as the company seems, though, it's still not as big a force as it could be. Its 17% market share among mobile phones in the U.S. still trailsSamsung (25.7%) and LG (18.2%), according to market research firm ComScore.

Meanwhile, its iOS platform's 34.3% share of the U.S. smartphone market still trails Google Android's growing 52.6% stake.

That disparity is far more pronounced globally, where research firm Gartner says Nokia and Samsung's 41% mobile market share dwarfs Apple's 5%. Among global smartphone users, Apple fares somewhat better, with a 24% share of the market that's still been surpassed by Android's 50% dominance.

Among computer operating systems, Mac and iOS are still small players. According to Web metrics firm Net Applications, Microsoft Windows is the operating system of choice on 84% of all personal computers in the world. Mac operating systems are just 6.30%, or little more that Windows Vista's 6.15%.

So if Apple isn't meeting the monstrous potential its market cap and share price indicates, why is it so hard to find an Apple product that doesn't top a wish list of tech toys? The competition simply wasn't playing Apple's game ... until recently. While Apple products still hover near the top of critics lists, we and the folks at Decide.com found examples of products that either give Apple's playthings a good fight or bite into Apple's market by beating it at their own game.

These picks are going to require a few hours of comments field fury:

SMARTPHONE

(Photo courtesy of Samsung)

Apple contender: iPhone 5

Alternative: Samsung Galaxy S III 4G

How seriously are Samsung's Galaxy products threatening Apple's dominance? So seriously that Apple and Samsung remain embroiled in litigation over whether Samsung infringed on Apple iPhone and iPad patents to make its Galaxy smartphones and Nexus tablets.

Sales of both Samsung products were banned in the U.S. for a bit, but now the Galaxy S III is available to AT&T, Sprint, Verizon and even iPhone-deprived T-Mobile customers for as much as $150 less than the iPhone. The phone's Android 4.0 Ice Cream Sandwich, 4G LTE capability and quick dual-core processor are lovely, but the Galaxy SI's strong 8-megapixel camera and S Beam technology that allows users to move photos, videos, documents and other files between phones by tapping their backs together are its biggest advantages. Those earned it the same 94 out of 100 that Decide.com gave the iPhone 5.

While its S Voice is a pale replica of the iPhone's Siri and drains an already weak battery, the Galaxy S III is already beating the iPhone in an area where Apple was once thought invincible: apps. Say what you will about Google Play's selection compared with the App Store, but Google execs never had to offer an embarrassed apology for the quality of Google Maps.

MP3 PLAYER

(Photo courtesy of Samsung)

Apple contender: iPod Touch

Alternative: Samsung Galaxy Player 4.2

Apple's played this game with users for years, so why shouldn't Samsung?

You take all of the elements people really like about your popular smartphone, yank out the phone element for folks who don't want to pay for airtime or parents who don't want the cost of their kid's toy added to their monthly phone bill and watch the money trickle in.

This was the exact thinking behind the Galaxy Player, a 4-inch handheld that blazes past the Kindle Fire or Nook Tablet with its front and rear cameras, GPS, Bluetooth and support for Google's suite of official mobile apps, including Gmail, Google Talk and the Android Market. The iPod Touch clearly has the better camera of the two and a smoother display, but the Galaxy supports more video formats, high-quality YouTube and Netflix streaming, better sound quality for audio files with Samsung's SoundAlive audio enhancement settings and an FM tuner for old folks who still care to listen to the radio.

The latest Galaxy Player is competing with an Apple afterthought in a dying electronics segment, but Samsung's still taking the time to get it right. While not as impressive as the Galaxy S III, the Galaxy Player earned the same 90 rating from Decide as the latest iPod while selling for less. If price is the deciding factor, the Galaxy Player wins the day easily.

TABLET

(Photo courtesy of Google)

Apple contender: iPad 2

Alternative: Google Nexus 7

It's not often that the competition makes Apple move first, but how else do you explain the Nexus 7 beating the iPad Mini to the market by about six months?

The Nexus 7 is a whole lot smaller than the iPad 2 at 7 inches and comes in at about half the price of its big competitor. Starting at $200, it's also less than half the price. It has a fantastic HD display that lends itself well to games and movies thanks to a quad-core Tegra 3 processor delivers fast performance and a beautiful and responsive screen.

It's been getting some early competition from the $160 Amazon Kindle Fire HD, but the Amazon mini tablet gives buyers a bit more size and bulk than the Nexus 7. Google's also given its tablet a fighting chance by adding TV shows and buyable movies, welcoming Google Play to compete with Amazon Prime and iTunes offerings.

Right now the little tablet is the winner by default, but even if Apple gives the iPad mini the built-in expandable storage and back camera the Nexus 7 lacks, that lightweight design and low price are going to be tough to beat.

LAPTOP

(Photo courtesy of Lenovo)

Apple contender: MacBook Pro

Alternative: Lenovo ThinkPad

Apple is supposedly tacking the introduction of its 13-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display onto the end of its iPad Mini presentation, which tells you about as much as you need to know about where the company thinks Macs fit in these days.

If iPads are doubling the sales and revenue of Mac laptops and Apple is pouring much of its efforts into its tablets and smartphones, what's the point of paying a premium for a Mac if its security is no longer uncrackable and integration is its only draw? Dell and HP may be hurting, but Lenovo just signed a sponsorship and supply deal with the NFL and wants folks to take a chance on its Windows-based laptops.

Decide loved the company's older 11.6-inch models and rated them second only to MacBook products among laptops. Its nearly 16-inch models are monsters by today's 13-to-15-inch standards, but Decide's given them an 88 out of 100.

The business community gives a whole lot of love to Lenovo models such as the X1 Carbon and X230 ultrabooks for their rugged style, keyboard setups that put the MacBook Air to shame and the familiar trackpad and trackpoint bump that the folks in blue shirts love so well. Their goal was to slim down, compete with new MacBooks on price and give their users a familiar experience the Macs still can't match. While the ThinkPads may win the race with MacBooks to laptop extinction, they're pulling in as many mourners as possible along the way.

DESKTOP

(Photo courtesy of HP)

Apple contender: iMac

Alternative: HP Pavilion Phoenix Desktop

Yet another category that tech companies seem to care about less and less.

iMac sales make up roughly a fifth of all Mac sales and were down almost 20% in the third quarter from the same time last year. In all of 2011, iMac desktop sales grew just 1% from 2010. The decline is speeding up and the sector is dying.

Still, there are offices that need workstations and desk space that needs filling. Decide gives a slight edge to the 27-inch iMacs and their all-in-one screen design, but is similarly taken with HP Pavilion Phoenix towers that come in at roughly half the price but offer 10 gigabytes of memory and a two-terabyte hard drive.

For gamers, that means no lag, great graphics and ridiculous sound from Beats Audio. For business folks, that means a smooth transition to Windows 8. For the average joe, it means having to find a monitor instead of having a nice, compact, minimally fanned all-in-one, but it also means having more speed and storage than you could ever hope to use.

STREAMING BOX

Photo courtesy of Roku

Apple contender: Apple TV

Alternative: Roku 2 HD

Apple TV is great for Apple fans who want to integrate all their media and have access to all their iTunes files via their living room or use their Apple mobile device as a remote. Beyond that the perks stop at Netflix, Hulu, Major League MLB.tv, NBA League Pass, Vimeo, YouTube and Flickr and NHL Game Center.

That's wonderful and all, but if you're less keen on mirroring your Mac screen on your television and more concerned with cutting the cable cord, the similarly priced Roku 2 HD holds far more value.

For one, it gives Amazon Prime customers access to their Amazon Instant Video shows and movies and gives Wal-Mart's Vudu customers a link to their television and film content. It also pipes in music from Pandora and Rdio, content from Crackle, NBC News, Crackle, Disney.com, and CBSSports.com and gives viewers their pick of video games.

If you're looking to link up Apple devices, there's really no other streaming box choice. If you care more about the content than making all your toys communicate, though, the Roku 2 is really worth considering.

License to drive: Best cars from James Bond films

Over the last half century Ian Fleming’s iconic cinematic secret agent has piloted just about every manner of vehicle ever conceived in the long-running series of James Bond films, from a helicopter, fire engine and jet pack to a snowmobile, Russian tank and even a lunar rover. Still, it’s agent 007’s seemingly endless fleet of exotic cars – in some instances they’re virtually disposable within the context of the storylines – that are the movies’ un-credited co-stars.

To help celebrate the golden anniversary of the franchise – the first James Bond film Dr. No premiered 50 years ago – we’re revisiting our fan-crazed selections from earlier this year for what are arguably the best 007 vehicles of all time.

Note: Car nuts and 007 aficionados alike can still check out the “Bond in Motion” exhibit at the National Motor Museum in Beaulieu, England (about 87 miles southwest of London). This exhaustive aggregation of 50 of the most recognized 007 vehicles – including ones from the 23rd film in the series, Skyfall –runs through January 6, 2013.

Aston Martin DB5

First seen in the 1964 film Goldfinger, the venerable DB5 is arguably the car that’s inexorably associated with James Bond. A luxury grand touring car produced between 1963 and 1965 that came powered by a 282-horsepower 4.0-liter engine, the DB5 packed such then-upscale amenities as reclining seats, wool pile carpets, electric windows, chrome wire wheels, full leather upholstery and even a fire extinguisher. The DB part of the car’s name stands for David Brown, who owned Aston Martin throughout much of its post-WWII glory days.

Bond’s version featured such essential secret-agent accessories as a front-firing machine gun, passenger-ejection seat, smoke screen, oil slick dispensers, a bulletproof barrier, revolving multinational license plates and front and rear retractable ramming arms. It also came with extendable wheel hubs that could disable an adjacent vehicle by slashing its tires. The durable DB5 also saw duty in Thunderball (1965), GoldenEye (1995), Tomorrow Never Dies (1997) and Casino Royale (2006); it was even used as the basis for the spy character Finn McMissile in the 2011 animated film Cars 2. 

Lotus Esprit

As seen in 1977’s The Spy Who Loved Me, the low-slung Lotus Esprit served double duty as an on-road sports coupe and a compact submarine. Roger Moore’s 007 takes the Esprit deep below the surface to engage in a reconnaissance of the villain’s underwater facilities. As if that’s not enough, the Esprit was also handily equipped with anti-aircraft missiles, which Bond subsequently uses to blow a helicopter out of the sky. For its submerged skills the cinematic version of the vehicle earned the nickname “Wet Nellie.”

Meanwhile, the road-going version of the wedge-shaped Esprit was manufactured from 1976-2004, with the first generation, dubbed S1, being the model featured in the film. It came powered by a rear-mounted 2.0-liter engine that generated a modest 140 horsepower in its U.S. configuration. While it wasn’t a particularly fast car, the lithe and lightweight Esprit made up for a lack of power with its tenacious handling abilities.

Ford Mustang Mach 1

Diamonds are Forever (1971) marked Sean Connery’s return to the Bond series after a one-film hiatus. Here, the vehicular star of the show was a 1971 Ford Mustang Mach 1 owned by diamond smuggler Tiffany Case (1970’s bombshell Jill St. John) In the process of preventing the villainous Blofeld from controlling the world, Bond pilots the Mach 1 to out-maneuver pursuing police cars down the Las Vegas Strip that leaves assorted collisions in its wake. The sequence’s signature maneuver is an extended escape down an otherwise too-narrow alleyway with the Mustang somehow squeezing through on only two wheels.

While Ford may not have recommended drivers try that trick at home with the stock Mustang Mach 1, the sports coupe was an impressive performer in its own right. In production from 1969-1978 and available as a dramatically styled fastback model, the Mach 1 offered a choice of no less than four V8 engines, with the top powerplant being a 429 Cobra Jet Ram Air version that was a mammoth (even by classic muscle-car standards) 7.0 liters large.

BMW Z8

Noted automotive stylist Henrik Fisker designed this sleek high-performance roadster that had a brief production run from 1999 to 2003. This is the same Henrik Fisker who would later form his own automotive company and create the Karma plug-in luxury hybrid. In the real world, the Z8’s chassis and body were fabricated from lightweight aluminum and it came powered by a blazing 400-horsepower V8 engine. Unique features included novel neon exterior lighting touches.

In The World is Not Enough (1999), Pierce Brosnan’s Bond gets his Z8 equipped with unique features like radar-guided stinger missiles and remote control pads on the keyfob. In the film it winds up being sliced in half in Azerbaijan by a helicopter that was fitted with tree-cutting saws. Apparently Q couldn’t think of everything.

Aston Martin DBS

Another old-school British-club-like car, the original DBS was featured in 1969’s On Her Majesty’s Secret Service – the only film in which George Lazenby portrays 007. The latest iteration was Daniel Craig’s ride of choice as Bond in the 2006 version of Casino Royale and the subsequent 2008 installment, Quantum of Solace. Unlike the gadget-laden DB5 above, the Aston Martin DBS featured in either film stands on its own merits without being retrofitted with assorted armaments.

Both elegant and aggressive, the current DBS (pictured here) is Aston Martin’s flagship model and offers a stunningly modern take on its predecessor’s old-money British sports car styling. Available as a closed-roof coupe or Volante convertible, the DBS packs a hand-assembled mid-mounted 6.0-liter V12 engine that brings a full 510 horsepower to the pavement. In Casino Royale, the car performed a record-breaking seven-roll stunt maneuver after which it was cannoned into the air. Three models were reportedly destroyed during the filming.

BMW 750iL

Perhaps Bond was beginning to feel his age in the 1997 release Tomorrow Never Dies with Pierce Brosnan’s 007 taking to the wheel of BMW’s flagship 750iL sedan, which, then as now, is more typically seen populating country club parking lots than it is traversing the globe on the secret agent circuit. And at that, in the movie’s signature chase scene Bond isn’t behind the wheel at all, but rather is driving the car while hunched in the back seat – not to mention engaging all manner of weaponry including flash grenades, tear gas, rockets and a metal spike dispenser – using his specially modified Ericsson cell phone as a remote controller.

The cinematic chase ends with the BMW sailing off the roof of the building (with 007 leaping from the car in the proverbial nick of time) and crashing into a rental car facility across the street as an onboard system voice says, “Congratulations on a safe journey.” Fifteen BMW 750is were reportedly destroyed in the making of the film.