Oct 12, 2019

Posted by | Comments Off on Everything You Need to Know About Milk

Everything You Need to Know About Milk

Everyone knows about milk – it’s rich in calcium and protein, which helps build strong bones and lower blood pressure. But because it’s so universal, it’s easy to ignore that this is a crucial part that adds to an overall healthy diet and lifestyle.

Aside from adding to a nutrient-rich meal with lots of fruits and vegetables, a glass of milk is also a great way to start and end a day. It can even be a sports drink for an athletes looking to replenish lost electrolytes.

Why You Need Milk

While you might think you know enough about milk, there are more things you don’t probably already know about its other benefits for your body:  

  • It ‘s rich in Vitamin D – Sunlight isn’t the only way you can get your daily source of vitamin D, which is needed like calcium and phosphorus to keep bones healthy. You can also find it in a tall, cool glass of milk.
  • It’s loaded in other nutrients – Riboflavin, Vitamin B12, potassium, phosphorus, and selenium can all be found in milk in addition to a healthy dose of eight grams of protein.
  • It neutralizes spiciness – It contains a compound called casein, which is great at neutralizing the burn on spicy foods. If it gets a little too hot, grab that tall glass of whole milk!
  • It may help with weight loss – The added protein in every glass of milk is a great way to help you with your fitness routine. It can even help with weight loss if you drink it after every meal since it can make you feel full.

Myths About Milk

There are also quite a few myths and misconceptions about milk you need to stop believing, such as the following:

  • Plant- and nut-based milks are still dairy products – They are great subsitutes with their own benefits, but they’re not dairy products – they still have much lower levels of calcium and protein.
  • Lactose intolerance means avoiding all dairy products – There are still friendly dairy options for those with lactose intolerance.
  • Milk is low in other nutrients – The nutritional benefits of milk go beyond more than just calcium and protein. It also contains vitamins D and B12, which are necessary for the body’s development.

Adding Milk to Your Diet

There are more ways to adding milk than just drinking it by itself. You can also get the full benefits from milk by adding it into other food items, like cereal, coffee, or certain types of dishes that work well with having it in the recipe.

You can even get these benefits from dairy products, like cheese, butter, and yogurt, which are all different ways that milk is processed or prepared.

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Jul 11, 2019

Posted by | Comments Off on 4 Delicious Recipes with Beer

4 Delicious Recipes with Beer

Who says beer is just for washing down greasy food? Here are fantastic recipes with beer you can try at home.

Onion Soup with Beer

  • Ingredients: 1 bottle pale ale, 10 cups onions, 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, 1 tablespoon flour, ¼ cup butter, 4 cups chicken broth, 2 cups grated sharp cheddar, 6 pieces toasted baguette, salt, and ground black pepper
  • Preparation: In a saucepan over medium heat, melt butter and cook onions for 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper and add a dusting of flour. After 1 minute, stir in beer. Keep stirring and bring to a boil then pour broth. Bring to a boil again then simmer for 10 minutes. Season and add more broth if necessary. Meanwhile preheat broiler and transfer soup to oven-safe bowls. Place 1 baguette in each bowl and sprinkle with cheese. Place in baking sheets and broil until golden.

Beer Batter Fish and Chips

  • Ingredients: 1 filleted and halved tilapia, 3 tablespoons baking powder, 1 cup flour, 1 ½ bottles beer, 3 russet potatoes, 1 cup mayonnaise, 1 diced pickle, 2 ounces caper berries, 1 ounce pickle brine, ½ lemon juice, ground black pepper, vegetable oil, and sea salt
  • Preparation: To make a tartar sauce, combine mayonnaise, pickle, pickle brine, lemon juice, and caper berries in a bowl then season with pepper. Meanwhile, prepare the chips by rinsing the potato slices under running water. Strain while heating oil to 325°F. Blanche the fried until they’re just about done, then let cool.

Heat oil to 375°F then cook the fries again until golden brown. Drain excess oil and season with salt. Prepare fish by seasoning with salt and pepper. Combine flour, baking powder, salt, and black pepper in one bowl, then pour beer another. Dredge fish in flour and soak in batter. Heat oil in a pan to 350°F then cook fish for 5 to 6 minutes on each side.

Can Can Chicken

  • Ingredients: 4 pounds chicken, 12 ounces beer, 1 tablespoon salt, 1 teaspoon sugar, 1 teaspoon ground mustard, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, and 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
  • Preparation: In a bowl, combine salt, sugar, onion and garlic powder, cayenne pepper, paprika, and ground mustard. Loosen skin from the chicken then rub mixture all over the chicken including under the skin. Cover and refrigerate for 1 hour.

Cover baking pan with aluminum foil and place chicken and place a rack in the pan. Remove half the beer from the can and make additional holes. Place the can in the chicken rack and stand the chicken vertically. Grill while covered over medium heat for 1 ½ hours. Remove from grill and tent chicken in foil for 15 minutes before serving.

Spicy Chuck Wagon Beans

  • Ingredients: 1 cup beer, 1 tablespoon canola oil, 1 onion, 56 ounces baked beans, 45 ounces undrained chili beans, 30 ounces rinsed and drained black beans, 14 ounces cooked sausages, 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce, and 1 tablespoon hot pepper sauce
  • Preparation: In a Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat and sauté onion for 4 minutes. Stir in the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Simmer while uncovered for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.

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Jun 24, 2019

Posted by | Comments Off on How to Have a Healthier Relationship with Your Devices

How to Have a Healthier Relationship with Your Devices

In today’s fast paced world, many apps and programs designed today are done so with the purpose of catching your attention and making it hard to put your phone, tablet, or even your computer down. While this makes it easier to stay connected, there’s also a downside: not only does your sleep quality diminish as a result, but you also have a hard time focusing. Here’s how you can stop being so dependent on your devices and actually be able to enjoy them while still living a full life off-screen:

  1. Remove your favorite apps from your home screen

It’s easy to be tempted to check in with your favorite apps when they’re always just one tap away on your home screen, but big changes start small. Instead of always having them on your home screen, keep your favorite apps to the back pages and only have the most important apps (i.e. your Contacts, Messages) on priority.

  • Learn to turn off your app notifications

It seems so simple, but this little setting can mean the difference between constantly scrolling down news feeds and being able to look at anything else other than your glowing screen.

  • Change your screen to greyscale

Bright, flashy colors and designs do a lot when it comes to attracting and exciting users in order to draw them towards specific apps and programs, and make you more likely to check your news feeds. One advice you can take to keep yourself from checking your screen is to switch your phone’s color settings to grey scale. This reduces the triggers caused by bright, flashy colors and make you less tempted to use your favorite apps.

  • Charge your devices away from your bedroom

If you check your phone first thing in the morning and last thing before going to sleep at night, you want to wean yourself off of your devices by charging them either at the other end of your room or somewhere else in your home entirely, such as your living room.

  • Learn to leave your phone behind

If you consider yourself addicted to social media, the biggest step you can take is to start giving physical distance between you and your phone. You can start this by leaving your phone in your bag while doing menial tasks outdoors or working out, or even simply by doing something else offline, like reading a book or taking a short jog around the neighborhood. After a while, you’ll start to notice the details of the environment as well as the people around you, and you’ll spend more time away from your phone as a result.

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Jun 24, 2019

Posted by | Comments Off on Four Surprising Things about Sleep You Need to Know Right Now

Four Surprising Things about Sleep You Need to Know Right Now

Sleep plays a crucial role in your physical health as much as eating healthy and getting enough exercise, and a lot happens when you don’t get enough sleep. Aside from being cranky and groggy all day, you’re also less likely to be able to focus on important tasks or remember important details.

However, there’s more going on with your precious shut-eye moments other than what happens to your body while you doze off, such as the following:

1. Sleep-deprived brains play tricks

There are more ways your brain can mess with you the longer you go without sleep. Even staying up for twenty-four hours straight can already make you more irritable and anxious.

If you need to do complicated tasks that require a good amount of hand-eye coordination, you won’t be able to when you’ve been up all night – sleep deprived people often have worse hand-eye coordination than those who are intoxicated.

2. Devices distract – in more ways than one

It’s not just the light the compulsion to use your devices that make you lose sleep – it’s the very light your screens emit that’s responsible for this. Most screens emit blue light, which can interfere with the melatonin secretion in your brain.

To get a better night’s rest, it’s recommended that you stop looking at screens for at least two hours before you get to sleep. This allows your body’s natural clock to set in and make you feel tired on its own.

3. Naps are more important than you think

If you like dozing off every now and then because of various reasons, then there’s more reason to take a few power naps without apologizing to anyone.

In fact, many studies have found that even a short ten-minute nap can improve alertness and overall cognitive performance, which is great especially when you feel drained or are working late hours.

There are two types of naps you need to know about:

  • The “power nap” – This nap lasts between ten and twenty minutes, and works great in getting rid of that grogginess post-nap
  • The “hour nap” – This nap is longer, lasting between ninety to one hundred twenty minutes, but lets you have a full cycle of sleep and deal with mental processing much better

4. Any sleep is a lot better than no sleep

Many people are drawn to the appeal of staying productive and working non-stop until your body actually collapses from work, but just like running, you’ll eventually crash if you don’t take a break.

So if you happen to have some trouble focusing on a task at work, it might be better to take a few minutes of shut-eye to help you get back to it feeling a lot sharper than before.

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May 29, 2019

Posted by | Comments Off on Brain Boosters: Prevent Memory Loss with These Activities

Brain Boosters: Prevent Memory Loss with These Activities

Many young adults are concerned about eventually being more prone to memory loss later in their lives. Although there’s no guaranteed way that one can totally avoid it, health professionals suggest certain activities you can do to keep your mental health sharp and healthy even the old age.

  1. Eat for Your Brain

Brain food is not just fruits and veggies. While these are healthy, you need satisfying and nutritionally balanced meals to keep your brain functioning at its full potential. Start your day with a power breakfast to fuel your mind. A good breakfast: an omelet with sidings of mixed berried and a whole wheat toast. Don’t skip meals as well. Make sure to eat three balanced meals a day.

  • Do Mental Exercises

The old adage that says “use it or lose it” holds true to your brain health. Working, reading, solving puzzles and honing new skills and talents are great ways to keep your brain challenged. Table games like chess, scrabble and Sudoku are just a few of the many activities you can do to exercise your cognitive functions.

  • Stay Socially Engaged

Mingling with people is good for your brain. The more connections you have, the better you are at preserving your mental functions and memory. Social interaction helps your memory as it helps lighten your mood. Being social not only helps avoid depression, but also in preserving a healthy memory. 

  • Stop Smoking

Smoking can speed up memory loss as you become older. If you do not smoke, then good for you. But if you do, now is the best time to quit. Smoking’s effect on the memory is likely due to the minor strokes it does to the brain. Over time, the effect of this can be detrimental to your brain’s health. Find professional help if you’re having trouble kicking the habit. 

  • Get Enough Sleep

If you do not sleep at least six hours each night, you’re encouraging your brain to be forgetful. One of the major negative effects of poor sleep habit is memory loss. Without ample amount of rest, the brain cannot store new information because it is overloaded. Get enough sleep so you feel refreshed and ready for the next day.

  • Get Moving

We just can’t stress enough the importance of exercise at every aspect of our lives, especially to our mental health. If you haven’t been to the gym ever since, start getting active by walking. Aim for at least half an hour of walking five days a week, and then slowly work yourself up. Exercising helps brain health by improving your focus, memory and thinking skills.

Nobody wants to develop dementia or Alzheimer’s disease later in life. Therefore, it is important to keep our brain healthy in order to maintain a youthful and healthy mental health.

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May 29, 2019

Posted by | Comments Off on 5 Things You Need to Know Before Starting Your Own Business

5 Things You Need to Know Before Starting Your Own Business

When embarking on a new business adventure, you need to be physically and mentally prepared. Maximize your chances of turning your scrappy start-up into a successful business enterprise by securing these five elements before your launch.

  1. Set your goals and know your audience

Every aspiring entrepreneur should ask themselves, “What do I want to do?” and “How do I want to do it?” Once you’ve answered these questions, you now have a purpose for your project. Clearly defining your goals will make it easier for you to create a step-by-step plan. Also, identify your audience. This will be your target market and you should focus on pleasing them and them only, and be aware that you cannot please anyone.

  • Learn to say ‘no’

Practice declining offers that you think doesn’t align with your values. Drawing the line when it comes to your business’ beliefs, vision and core values is critical to avoid compromising on things that matters a lot to you. Saying yes to everything and seeing money as your ultimate goal can be detrimental to your business’ integrity. Always go back to your advocacy every time an opportunity comes knocking in. It will always get you into the right track and the right opportunities will naturally open its doors for you.

  • Invest in the right people

It’s tempting to hire beginners, which usually comes with a cheaper cost. That being said, hiring more workers will get more jobs done, but that’s not always the case and is not the best solution. Actually, it can be counter-productive. Quality is more important than quantity, especially for start-ups who are still building their reputation.

  • Have enough stamina

You will need to work harder than you have ever worked to make sure your business succeeds. Working seven days a week and more than 12 hours a day will have to be your habit. Do not try to launch if you have existing chronic disease, is facing a major family problem or is not 100 percent dedicated into it. Make sure you are into this game for long-term and that you have the energy to get the job done before you even begin.

  • Create a support system

Whether it is your family, colleagues or close friends, do not forget to have a support team throughout this endeavor. These people will help you keep going and who can call you out whenever you’re doing things wrong. Build your own network and encourage collaboration instead of competition. Being around with the right people will make everything possible. 

The birthing stage of a business is always the most challenging. But as long as you have the passion and you are willing to adapt and learn, you have a bright future ahead of you in the world of business.

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