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Wolves in sheep’s clothing don’t only happen in fables or in people figuratively. They also happen in the grocery store. As a matter of fact, the supermarket is stocked with them. I found a site that gave tips to help us steer clear of hidden toxins that masquerade as safe products.

1. Stay away from processed meats like bacon, hot dogs, and sausage. Sodium nitrate can also cause the formation of nitrosamines in your system, which can lead to cancer.

2. Reduce the amount of canned food you consume. Cans are commonly lined with bisphenol-A, an organic compound that may be associated with diabetes and heart disease.

3. Skip the diet soda and artificial sweeteners. Prolonged exposure to aspartame, a neurotoxic chemical additive in these products, can lead to nerve cell damage, dizziness, and headaches.

4. Opt for organic chicken. The Institute for Agriculture and Trade Policy discovered traces of arsenic in non-organic chickens. Exposure to this dangerous chemical can lead to cancer, diabetes and heart disease. Another study also found numerous antibiotic-resistant bacteria in conventional poultry.

5. Avoid manufactured snacks. Hydrogenated oils are used to lengthen the shelf life of products like crackers and cookies, but they are also associated with diabetes and heart disease. Snack foods are also generally loaded with salt, corn syrup and other unhealthy ingredients.

6. Stay away from artificially-colored foods like candy, maraschino cherries, and gelatin. Mice and rats exposed to blue 1 and 2, red 3 and yellow 6 suffered from brain, adrenal gland, thyroid, and kidney tumors.

7. Always buy organic produce. Lingering pesticides can lead to nervous and reproductive system damage, not to mention cancer.

8. Avoid Teflon cookware. The Teflon used to create nonstick surfaces can release noxious gases when exposed to high temperatures, which puts you at risk for a large variety of diseases, many of which are not even well documented at this time.

9. Never microwave food in plastic bowls, containers, or dishes. Exposure to heat causes the bisphenol-A found in plastics to break down and potentially contaminate your food.

One of the things that leads to stressful, unhealthy living is when people gobble down their meals. Because lots of us have hectic lives and have things that need to be done within the day, we tend to hustle all the time. What people don’t know, though, is that eating slower have plenty of benefits.

A growing number of studies confirm that eating slower can make us consume fewer calories - enough to lose 20 pounds a year, actually. It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to register that you’re full, and if you eat fast, you can continue eating past the point where you’re actually full.

Enjoying your food can be hard if it goes down your stomach right away. Take time to chew and let your taste buds savor the moment for a while; make your meals a gastronomic pleasure instead of rushing between stressful events. If you eat slower, you’ll chew your food better and this can lead to better digestion. Digestion starts in the mouth, so the more time you take in chewing, the less you work there’ll be in your stomach.

Eating slowly and paying attention to our eating can be a great form of mindfulness exercise. Be in the moment rather than rushing through a meal thinking about other things you need to do after.
Rebelling against fast food and fast life can do more good than you thought. A hectic, fast paced and chaotic life leads to eating in fast food restaurants. We all know that this can be very unhealthy (think of what happened to the guy in Supersize Me.)

Some baby foods contain as much sugar and saturated fats as cheeseburgers or chocolate cookies. A survey of more than 100 foods for babies and toddlers found examples that were 29 percent sugar and others that contained trans fats which have been linked to heart disease.

The Children’s Food Campaign examined the nutritional content of 107 baby and toddler foods. Only half the products were low in saturated fat, salt and sugar. Organic baby food isn’t even your safest choice. Katharine Wroth was curious about her organic baby food options and took a look at several types of baby food.

She found that Earth’s Best had an extensive selection but also had high sodium levels. Gerber Organic was easy to find but came in plastic containers. Organic Baby was hard to find although it came from a good company.

Plum Organics had BPA-free packaging but a high price and limited flavor options. Happy Baby had the same problems and advantages. Other brands she found came from companies that uses local ingredients and does not ship outside the region it was manufactured in.

In the final analysis, the frozen baby foods tasted better than the jarred ones. They also noted that the only affordable, tasty and healthy option was making your own at home.

Honey is very effective in killing bacteria in all its forms, especially the drug-resistant biofilms that often make treating chronic rhinosinusitis difficult.

A study found that in eleven isolates of three separate biofilms, honey was significantly more effective than commonly-used antibiotics in killing both planktonic and biofilm-grown forms of the bacteria.

The findings may hold important clinical implications in the treatment of refractory chronic rhinosinusitis, which affects 31 million people each year in the United States alone, and is among the three most common chronic diseases in North America.

Before you rush to the drugstore to buy an over-the-counter sleep medication, try one of the following natural sleep remedies. They are safer and have fewer side effects. Many of these can not only help you fall asleep and stay asleep, but they can also promote muscle relaxation.

Magnesium and calcium

Valerian is one of the most common sleep remedies for insomnia. Numerous studies have found that valerian improves deep sleep, speed of falling asleep, and overall quality of sleep. However, it’s most effective when used over a longer period of time. Keep in mind that about 10 percent of the people who use it actually feel energized, which may keep them awake. If that happens to you, take valerian during the day. Otherwise, take 200 to 800 milligrams before bed.