Is there any other fruit that is better to eat during the scorching summers other than water melons? The refreshing juicy taste of this fruit would be mind blowing. Not just taste but intake of watermelon would provide us with many health benefits. Watermelon has many nutrients like vitamins A, C plus potassium, calcium, magnesium, antioxidant lycopene plus folate, fibres, water content etc. Several health benefits of eating watermelons in summers are Rich in vitamins and minerals: Our immune system would be strengthened by consuming vitamin C rich water melon. Our skin as well as eyes would be healthy also. Especially in the scorching summer, the nutrients would be highly beneficial to us. Refreshes and cool us down: Summer could be unbearable due to the heat and in that situation it would be superb to eat watermelons. We would feel refreshed immediately. We would get cooled down due to the presence of high water content in this fruit. Helps in digestion: It is known that water melons are full of fibres and water content is high. By intake of watermelons, we would have smooth digestion. Constipation would be avoided by us. Consuming this fruit during summers would make us feel light and refreshed. Good for eye health: The presence of lycopene in water melons would give red colour to this fruit plus would safeguard our eyes also. Our eyes would be free from age related damage and vision health would be good. By eating watermelons our eyesight would be sharp in the summers. Good for heart health Lycopene in this fruit would lower inflammation and cholesterol levels in us. By this, our heart health would get better. We would have a low risk of heart diseases. Helps in weight loss: Watermelons are low in calories and full of water and consuming this fruit would help us to lose weight. The reason is that the presence of water and fibres in this fruit would make us feel full for a long duration. We would not eat unnecessarily and would lose weight. Supports healthy skin: During hot summers, our skin would get exposed to sunlight directly. The presence of antioxidants and vitamin C would help us to fight free radicals and promote a healthy glowing skin. Good for kidney health: By consuming water melons rich in potassium and water etc, our kidneys would be kept healthy during summers. We would be free from issues like kidney stones etc due to superb functioning of kidneys.

Have you ever consumed contaminated food and found it difficult? There are high chances of us getting serious health issues like food borne illnesses, infections and other long term health problems etc if we consume unhygienic foods. We can get digestive disorders, food poisoning and even some life threatening problems if we consume contaminated foods. The reason for this is due to the fact that the contaminated foods contain harmful bacteria, viruses and parasites etc. It has been brought to light by the World Health Organisation or WHO that every year about 600 million people across the globe suffer from food borne illness. Poor sanitation practices and unsafe street foods are responsible for cases of GI infections and food poisoning etc. Various reasons or health risks of consuming unhygienic foods are Food poisoning: One important health issue we could get by intake of unhygienic foods are food poisoning. This issue is mostly caused by bacteria like E.Coli, Salmonella etc. We could get issues like nausea, vomiting, abdominal cramps and diarrhoea etc. Please take care. Gastrointestinal infections: It is possible to get affected by gastrointestinal or GI infections when we consume contaminated meat or water or spoiled dairy etc. We could get severe diarrhoea, dehydration and stomach inflammation etc. Hepatitis A and viral infections etc: By eating contaminated uncooked sea foods or by drinking contaminated water, we could get Hepatitis A etc. The person could show symptoms like inflammation, fever, fatigue, jaundice etc. Parasitic infections etc: Improperly cooked meat, fish or vegetables etc could result in parasitic infections in us. Please be careful. It is revealed that parasites like Toxoplasma gondii, Cryptosporidium etc could contaminate food and water. Chemical poisoning: It is true that when we consume unhygienic foods we could get chemical poisoning also. Various symptoms we could show are vomiting, nausea, diarrhoea etc. There are chances of chemical poisoning due to pesticides and herbicides used in agriculture, heavy meats like lead, mercury etc in the foods, chemicals in foods etc. Various sources of unhygienic food in India are Street food stalls, where the vendors opt for re-used oil, use contaminated water and function in unhygienic conditions etc. Examples of common unsafe foods are samosa, pani puri etc. Another source is local dairy products where unpasteurised milk etc could harbour harmful bacteria. Thirdly is meat and seafood markets where poor refrigeration facilities etc could result in bacterial growth on raw meats etc. Fourthly, in fast food chains where cross contamination could lead to E. coli outbreaks. Finally, pacackaged salads and pre-cut fruits could also cause contamination in us (here listeria and salmonella could lead to illnesses and food recalls etc). Please be careful.

Belonging to the family Anacardiaceae, pistachios are small sized super foods with several important ingredients in them. It is 100% true that consuming pistachios could be highly beneficial for our health. In Tamil language, pistachios are known as pistas. There are several nutrients like healthy fat, protein, fibres, minerals and vitamins etc in pistachios. Eating pistachios would help us to manage several deficiencies like Managing iron deficiency: When there is a lack of iron in us then we could get iron deficiency. Decent amount of iron is present in pistachios. It is known that iron is essential for carrying oxygen throughout the body. It is superb to mention that eating pistachios regularly would help us to avoid iron deficiency and anaemia etc. Managing vitamin B6 deficiency: It is known that vitamin B6 plays an important role in brain development. Hence, when we consume pistachios that are a superb source of vitamin B6 then we would not have the deficiency of vitamin B6and our brain development would get boosted. Managing magnesium deficiency: In our body, more than 3000 biochemical reactions are supported by the mineral magnesium. Truth is that pistachios are high in magnesium content. It is worthy to note that magnesium deficiency would lead to muscle weakness, fatigue and heart abnormalities etc. Consuming a handful of pistachios would help us to overcome these issues. Managing zinc deficiency: For healing and for recovering from many infections, zinc is essential for us. Hence, pistachios having zinc and other minerals etc would help us to avoid zinc deficiency. Our recovery from infections would become faster. Managing vitamin E deficiency: There is a powerful antioxidant vitamin E present in pistachios and this would protect our cells against damage due to free radicals. Vitamin E deficiencies in us would be overcome by adding pistachios to our diet.

How will you react if you come to know about a simple ritual that not only provides relaxation but also several other health benefits?  Sound’s fantastic right!! In this fast paced world, many of us do not have time to take care of ourselves as the work pressure is extremely high. In such a scenario, there are more chances of getting health issues like muscle tension, pain in the feet etc in us.  For these persons, this rosemary infused water treatment would be tremendous. This article is all about soaking foot in rosemary infused water and the health benefits it could provide us. Here, the therapeutic properties of rosemary play a huge role. How to prepare rosemary water? In the first step, water is taken and boiled to which is added fresh or dried rosemary. In the next step, the combo is simmered for 15 to 20 minutes and allowed to cool. Finally, strain the rosemary water and store it. Several health benefits of soaking our feet in rosemary water are Improved blood circulation: Here, feet are kept in warm rosemary water and by this blood flow would become better. It is worthy to note that the heat from the water would dilate the blood vessels and rosemary essential oils would stimulate circulation. Swelling in the feet would get reduced. Eases muscle tension and foot pain etc: Cineole and camphor present in rosemary are known for their muscle relaxing properties. Muscle tension is us would be relieved and aching feet would get soothed. This would be superb especially after a long tiring day at work. Provides anti-inflammatory benefits: Inflammation in our feet and joints would be reduced due to anti-inflammatory properties of rosemary. Truth is that discomfort due to Issues such as plantar fasciitis and arthritis etc would get reduced by rosemary water with therapeutic benefits. Acts as natural microbial agent: It is noteworthy that rosemary processes both antifungal and antimicrobial properties. Foot odour could be overcome with the help of rosemary water. Infections such as athlete foot etc can be avoided in us. Relaxation and stress relief: By soaking our feet in rosemary water we could feel calm and relaxed. This is due to the aromatic scent of rosemary. Our stress would go away quickly. Our overall well being would get boosted. Good for skin: Irritated skin would get soothed by rosemary water and by this redness would bebe reduced. Skin elasticity would get better.

How many are aware of what TB is? It is worth noting that TB stands for tuberculosis and it is a serious bacterial based infectious disease. Mycobacterium tuberculosis is the main cause for TB is known. Not only lungs but even other parts of us get affected due to TB. How does TB spread? It can spread from one person to another through coughing, sneezing or talking etc. There are 2 types of TB infection namely latent TB infection (TB is present in the person but the person is not sick and cannot spread TB) and second is active TB infection (person is sick with TB and would spread the disease to others). Various symptoms associated with TB are: Cough lasting for 3 or more weeks, chest pain, coughing of phlegm or blood, fatigue, weight loss and fever etc. Deficiency of which vitamin causes TB: It has been published in the journal Clinical infectious Diseases that those who have vitamin A deficiency would get affected with tuberculosis. Point is that vitamin A supplements are essential for preventing the spread of TB.  It was brought out that persons who are family members of a TB affected person must consume vitamin A rich foods to prevent TB in them. Various foods a person affected with TB must include in their diet are Foods rich in micro and macronutrients: It is worthy to mention that a person affected by TB must consume a diet rich in both micro and macronutrients. Intake of proteins is a must and they must consume foods like soy products, tofu, dairy products, eggs, lean meat etc. Foods rich in calories and nutrient dense: The recovery would be faster if the TB affected person consumes foods rich in calories and nutrients dense etc. Foods like bananas, cereal lentils soup, peanut chikki, wheat etc. It is good for the TB affected persons to eat seeds like sunflower seeds, flax seeds etc also. Foods rich in carbs and vitamins: Those with TB must eat foods rich in carbohydrates but low calories They must consume foods rich in minerals and vitamins like A,C and e etc. Foods rich in antioxidants: To prevent free radicals and activate the immune system the person with TB must eat foods rich in antioxidants. This would help the person to recover faster. Important note: It is noteworthy that TB can be preventable and curable. Fact is that early detection and treatment are crucial.