Tips To Reduce Sodium with low sodium diet, recipes & foods

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A key to healthy eating is choosing foods lower in salt and sodium. The current recommendation is to consume less than 2.4 grams (2,400 milligrams[mg] ) of sodium a day. That equals 6 grams (about 1 teaspoon) of table salt a day. The 6 grams include ALL salt and sodium consumed, including that used in cooking and at the table. For someone with high blood pressure, the doctor may advise eating less salt and sodium, as recent research has shown that people consuming diets of 1,500 mg of sodium had even better blood pressure lowering benefits. These lower-sodium diets also can keep blood pressure from rising and help blood pressure medicines work better.

Tips To Reduce Sodium:

* Use reduced sodium or no-salt-added products, such as no-salt-added
canned vegetables or dry cereals that have no added salt.

* Be "spicy" instead of "salty"-in cooking, flavor foods with variety
of herbs, spices, wine, lemon, lime, or vinegar. Be creative!

* Avoid the salt shaker on the table, or replace it with an herb
substitute.

* Eat more whole, unprocessed foods-choose fewer processed, canned,
and convenience foods.

* Avoid condiments such as soy sauce, teriyaki sauce, and MSG, or
use lower sodium versions.

* Read food labels to become aware of high sodium foods and to
select lowest sodium varieties. See tips below.

* Limit cured foods (such as bacon and ham), foods packed in brine
(such as pickles, pickled vegetables, olives, and sauerkraut), and
condiments such as mustard, horseradish, ketchup, and Worcestershire
sauce.

Modify recipes:

* Omit salt from recipes. Start by cutting amount of salt in half.

* Use lemon juice, vinegar, and herbs and spices to enhance flavor.

* Replace salt- and sodium-containing ingredients with lower sodium alternatives.

Low-Sodium Recipes [click here]

When eating out:

* Ask how foods are prepared. Ask that foods be prepared without
added salt, MSG, or salt-containing ingredients. Most restaurants
are willing to accommodate your request.

* Know the terms that indicate high sodium: pickled, soy sauce,
in broth, cured.

* Move the salt shaker away.

* Limit such condiments as mustard, ketchup, pickles, and sauces
with salt-containing ingredients.

* Choose fruits or vegetables, instead of salty snack foods.

The Dietary Usefulness of Inorganic vs. Organic Minerals

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Minerals are needed for many functions. For example, many vitamins and enzymes cannot function without minerals. Many hormonal responses need minerals to function.Minerals are needed for the proper composition of body fluids, the formation of bone and blood and in the maintenance of healthy nerve function. Therefore, a lack of minerals may lead to immobilization of many metabolic functions in the body.

The best way to get minerals is from food. Alarmingly, we know that foods today seldom contain enough essential minerals and trace elements. It is estimated "that only 15 percent of the unfarmed (unused) mineral supply remain in the soil after 100 years of traditional farming". (Crawford, p. 66). As a result health professionals recommend that we supplement with minerals and trace elements to offset the lack of minerals in our foods. However, we can easily become very confused within the broad world of supplemention, because of the different claims touting the benefits of one mineral supplement over the other. Should the mineral in a supplement form be a chelate, malate, picolinate, collidal, fumarate, ascorbate, etc....? 

Our answer to that question is very simple, "The best way to get minerals is from food!" The following paragraphs should explain why when it comes to minerals or any other nutrient, you should rely on whole foods to nourish your body.

First of all, it is important to explain the terms inorganic or organic mineral. The way elements in a compound are connected determines whether it is organic or inorganic. Here are some definitions:

When a mineral is chemically inorganic, it means that its chemical composition is without carbon. When a mineral is chemically organic, it means that its chemical composition is with carbon.

When minerals are labeled agriculturally inorganic, it means that the food grown is tainted with chemical fertilizers. When the mineral content of food is labeled agriculturally organic, it means that the food containing the minerals is grown without chemical fertilizers.

When a mineral is nutritionally organic, it means that it is chelated or bound to organic molecules. (Jensen, pp. 74-84)When a mineral is nutritionally inorganic, it means that it is without any organic (carbon-based) molecule.

Ted Morter in his book, Health and Wellness , defines organic minerals as easily broken apart and inorganic minerals as tightly held together (p. 62).

There is much controversy in the scientific community as to whether or not the body can utilize inorganic minerals in carrying out life processes. However, the vast majority of the scientific community recognizes that ONLY chemically and nutritionally organic food can adequately provide substances, including minerals, that can be utilized by the body at the cellular level (pp. 140-145).

As humans, there is only one way that we can fully access minerals on a cellular level and that is through the consumption of offerings from the plant kingdom. We do not possess the ability to perform photosynthesis, therefore we must rely on the plant kingdom to prepare (chemically assemble) our foods (ingredients) . Plants, through the process of photosynthesis attach enzymes to inorganic minerals found in soil or water and can make them living or organic minerals. In other words, the attached enzymes act as a "passport" to assist the transfer of the minerals into the cells of the human body and aid in the cells utilization of the delivered minerals. The key here is that the enzyme must be active and attached to the mineral in order for the body to utilize it.

 

Any form of processing nature's foods (such as pasteurization, cooking, adding preservatives, etc.) breaks the bonds between the food components as well as destroys the enzymes. The result is inorganic or denatured food components and thus inorganic food. 

Raw foods have active enzymes and thus directly assist the production of life processes in the body. Because they have intact/active enzymes they are chemically organic. Enzymes are catalysts; in this case, the catalysts are substances which help the body work more efficiently in utlizing food for life maintaining purposes.

An example of an inorganic substance is table salt. It is simply sodium and chloride. No enzymes, thus it is enzymatically inactive and the body cannot use it. Our bodies cannot attach an enzyme to inorganic substances (minerals), except at great cost to our health.

Remember, it is only the plant kingdom, through its various living and developing processes, that can attach enzymes to inorganic substances and make them chemically bonded, active and organic. 

The plant kingdom utilizes sunshine, carbon dioxide, nitrogen, oxygen, water and inorganic minerals in the process of photosynthesis to feed itself and grow. The result is a living plant (food for our consumption) containing: Glucose, protein, fatty acids, minerals, enzymes, vitamins and water. Eating fruits, vegetables, seaweeds, seeds and nuts daily as staples in our diets will provide us with a set of usable nutrients that are reasonably complete for our needs.

Worried that you might not be getting certain types of minerals? The solution is for you to find foods that contain high amounts of those minerals and make"juice" out of those particular foods. This way you are getting chelated, assimilable and usable organic minerals the way mother nature intended us to have them. 

References: 

Crawford, Mark. (March, 1999). Minding Our Minerals. Healthy & Natural Journal. Jensen, Bernard. (1973). Empty Harvest. New York: Avery Publishing Group Inc. Morter, Ted. (2000). Health & Wellness. Hollywood, Florida: Frederick Fell Publishers, Inc. http://www.healthyf utures.net/ unlimited/

Vegetarian way to Varakh

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Jun 21, CANADA (SUN) — The ancient process for making varakh, which is contaminated by meat, has finally been reinvented.

In November 2005, the Sun ran a news article that came as a great surprise to many: who knew that the "Varakh on Indian Sweets is Contaminated"? We had frequently been served "prasadam" milk sweets at Sunday Feasts in ISKCON temples and in the homes of devotees, so it came as quite a shock to learn that the beautiful silver foils traditionally found on Indian sweets were actually contaminated with ox and cow remnants.

Because the glitter adds such an opulent note to sweets and fruits, varakh foils are very popular for making foodstuffs to be offered to the Deities more attractive. These silver-topped sweets are found in temples around the world, and in thousands of Indian "vegetarian" sweet shops. Varakh is also used in flavored syrups such kesar (saffron) syrup and in some Ayurvedic preparations.

While those partaking of varakh have undoubtedly marveled at the ingenuity of turning precious metal silver into such paper-thin edible foil, how many have actually investigated the manufacturing process? In fact, if devotees know the source and method of making varakh, they would never eat those silver-coated treats again.

Fortunately, a Jaipur entrepreneur, Mr. Surendra Karnavat, set out to solve this dilemma. Investing 15 years in personal research and experimentation, he has now refined a new manufacturing process for creating silver varakh that is pure and uncontaminated. The information provided on his website, which is summarized here, explains the nasty, demoniac process traditionally used to make varakh, and the revolutionary new method he has created to produce pure vegetarian varakh.

Varakh is not derived from animal sources. It begins with precious metals - relatively pure silver. Unfortunately, the traditional method of pounding the metals down into paper-thin foil involves pounding the materials on top of sheets of cow and ox intestines and calf leathers.

According to an article in Business India magazine, each year an astounding 275 tons of silver are beaten into varakh foil for sweets and Ayurvedic medicines like Chyavanprash. That's a whopping 2,75,000 kilograms! At current market rates, that's somewhere in the neighborhood of Rs. 165 Crore, or $40 million U.S. Dollars.

According to JainWorld.com, in order to process this wealth of silver, an even greater precious asset is expended - each year the varakh industry uses the intestines of 516,000 cows and the leather of 17,200 calves each year. Ox-gut are leathers used in the manufacturing process are obtained from slaughterhouses, and who knows where. In the filthy back alleys of Ahmedabad, Gujarat, and in other cities of India, the small thin strips of silver are hammered into glitter foil by being placed between layers of the ox-gut.

The disgusting reality behind the brilliance of varakh was discovered by science-minded individuals who tested the stuff, and discovered that the foils were contaminated by traces of cow and ox blood, mucous and excrement.

A few years ago, an animal rights group calling itself 'Beauty Without Cruelty' began to lobby Indian Airlines, who was pressured into preventing their caterers from providing varakh decorated sweets on board their flights. Today, many ask for sweets without varakh, having realized the cruelty involved in its preparation.

The Solution - Vegetarian Varakh from Kanishka

The new manufacturing process invented by Surendra Karnavat, and taken to market by his company, Kanishka Platinum Gold & Silver Products of Jaipur, Rajasthan, now makes 100% pure vegetarian varakh, in silver and gold, available to the public. Every aspect of animal contamination has been eliminated from the manufacturing process, and even human contamination has been decreased.

An place of the animal medium, Kanishka utilizes a special coated paper indigenously manufactured by the company. Even the machines used in the manufacturing process are built by Kanishka, who controls the process from start to finish.

Those wishing to purchase Kanishka vegetarian varakh can do so by contacting their distributor, Mr. Amrish Shah of Bhupendra & Company, at 09-428503902 or by email at saffronsupplier@yahoo.com. Additional information is available at Kskvarakh.com.

courtsey : the sampraday sun

varakh- the Non-Veg Foil on sweets

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In India, by law, every food item has to have a green dot on it, if it is vegetarian - and a maroon dot, if it is non-vegetarian. If a manufacturer is found to be cheating by mislabelling his product, the sentence is many years

in jail.

So, how have the mithai (sweets) people not been arrested so far? Milk has been treated as vegetarian to appease the powerful dairy lobby, but the silver foil or 'varakh' on each mithai cannot by any stretch of imagination be considered vegetarian.

'Beauty Without Cruelty', a Pune-based NGO that investigates into product ingredients, has produced a remarkable booklet on the varakh industry. Here is their report on how it is made.

*The varakh-makers select animals at the slaughterhouse. Each animal is felt for the softness of its skin before it is killed. This means that a substantial number of goat, sheep and cattle are killed specifically for the

industry.

Their skins are soaked in filthy, infested vats for 12 days to dehair them.  Then, workers peel away the epidermal layer, which they call jhilli, just under the top layer of the skin in a single piece. These layers are soaked for 30 minutes in another decoction to soften them and left to dry on wooden boards. Once these are dry, the workers cut out square pieces 19 cm by 15 cm. These pieces are made into pouches called auzaar and stacked into booklets. Each booklet has a cover of thick lamb suede called khol. Thin strips of silver called alagaa are placed inside the pouches. Workers now hit the booklet with wooden mallets for three hours to beat the silver inside into the ultra-thin varakh of a thickness less than one micron called '999'. This varakh is then sent to sweet shops*.

Here are the statistics that you should know. An animal's skin can make 20-25 pieces/pouches only. Each booklet has 360 pouches. One booklet is used to make 30,000 varakh pieces - less than the daily supply of a single big mithai shop.

About 12,500 animals are killed for one kg of varakh. Every year, 30,000 kg of varakh (30 tonnes) are eaten on mithai. 2.5 crore booklets are made by varakh companies that keep their slaughterhouse connection secret. But the truth is that not only is this industry killing animals furiously, much of the animal tissue that the booklet is made of remains in the varakh.

 Many try to bluff themselves by saying that the varakh is machine-made.

'Beauty Without Cruelty' has done a thorough investigation and found that there is not a single machine-made varakh piece in this country (or even the world).

On the web, there is one letter from a person, Jalandhra, claiming that he has a company which has "fully automatic machines manufactured with German collaboration to beat silver pieces in between a special Indian manufactured paper in a hygienic and controlled atmosphere run round the clock by qualified Engineers and experienced R&D team". Initially, we were importing the special paper from Germany.

But when I followed this up, no factory of the given name, or even address, was not found.The production of varakh is done mainly in north India: Patna, Bhagalpur, Muzaffarpur and Gaya (which is a Buddhist holy centre), in Bihar; Kanpur, Meerut and Varanasi (the holy city of Hindus) in Uttar Pradesh; and Jaipur, Indore, Ahmedabad and Mumbai. The booklets come to them from the slaughterhouses of Delhi, Lucknow, Agra and Ratlam.

Not only is varakh non-vegetarian, it is also very bad for your body - whether you are vegetarian or not. The silver cannot be digested; therefore, there are no benefits from its consumption . A study done in November 2005 by the Industrial Toxicology Research Centre in Lucknow on varakh says that the silver foil available in the market has toxic and carcinogenic metals in the thin silver foil like  nickel, lead, chromium and cadmium, which damages the body heavily.

Over half of the analysed silver foils had lower silver purity than the 99.9 per cent purity stipulated by the prevention of food adulteration act of India.

When such foil enters into the body, it releases heavy metals that can lead to cancer. The report also details the unhygienic conditions in which workers put silver in small leather bags and beat it into foil in filthy shops.

It is time we refused varakh-covered mithai, fruit or paan.

courtsey: yahoo groups