EAT FOR IMMUNITY

Our bodies have a remarkable ability to heal themselves and ward off illness if given the right foods.

A fully functioning immune system is one of the most vital aspects of a healthy body, helping to prevent and combat disease. However, for many people, the immune system does not function as effectively as it should, in some cases, the immune response fails to offer protection from disease, such as infection or cancer. In other 'cases, the Immune system actively turns against its host, triggering a range of autoimmune and other disorders, such as rheumatoid arthritis or allergies that are increasingly prevalent in the modern world.

Natural Defence

When it comes to maintaining good health, the immune system is the body's most precious asset. By helping the body to resist infection and avoid cancer, it offers protection against many of the world's most widespread and .deadliest diseases. Yet, despite modern scientific understanding and major advances in medical treatments, infection is still the commonest cause of illness and death worldwide. And cancer of the lung, stomach, breast; cervix, bowel and prostate continue to be scourges of the world - responsible for over two and a half million deaths' worldwide per year.

What is going wrong? Why hasn't our detailed knowledge of the immune system enabled us to enhance our body's defence mechanisms in a sustainable way? In the process of developing ever more powerful means of attacking and destroying micro-organisms and cancer cells, have we lost sight of the need to strengthen our innate protective systems and nurture our inner environment?

In the early 1950s, with antibiotic therapy, general vaccination programs, radical cancer surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy moving into the medical front line, it seemed clear to most people that scientific know-how was going to provide more effective solutions to disease than old-fashioned naturopathic methods designed to encourage the self-healing processes. Now, 50 years on, we are faced with the spectre of malaria and tuberculosis on the rise once again, new strains of drug-resistant superbugs outwitting our most powerful techniques, vaccinations that may harm as well as protect, a rising incidence of cancer and the engulfing tide of collapsed immunity that is AIDS.

History suggests that, when things go wrong, human beings have a tendency to continue doing what doesn't work – only doing it harder. Despite valuable short-term tactical advances in the management of infectious disease and cancer, we are signally failing in our strategic goal of improving world health in a sustainable manner. This is because we have attempted to usurp the power of the natural world, attacking it with crude weapons and losing ourselves in a maze of technical detail, instead of working with nature and doing everything we can to enhance our natural powers of healing and self-defence.

Just as the pioneers of microbiology - Didier Bechomp, Claude Bernard and Louis Pasteur - explained that micro-organisms should be thought of as agents of disease and not as causes, we need to understand that our detailed, valuable and hard-won knowledge of the process of immunity is not the same as an understanding of its purpose.

We have superimposed a dualistic male-oriented, warlike model on to the remarkable scientific observations we have made, and are assuming that life is a battle between ourselves and the microorganisms and cancer cells; that we inhabit a dog-eat-dog, kill-or-be-killed biological universe.

The effect has been to focus our attention on external factors, while neglecting an inward-looking, broader approach to healing that attempts to observe the interaction between the physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of self, and to understand how these affect health and our susceptibility to disease. As a result, we have developed a range of medical weapons that are becoming increasingly hazardous to use.

As a society, we seem to find it easier to spend out money on weapons and drugs rather than on good food, basic sanitation and clean water for those most at risk of disease. Therefore, we do not even keep faith with the knowledge that we do possess - that immunity is profoundly compromised by malnutrition; that the typical Pakistani diet and lifestyle lead to cardiovascular problems and cancer; that fear and stress create an internal bodily environment that is prone to disease and degeneration.

This is written in the knowledge that good health involves paying attention to body, mind and spirit, that the immune response is the fundamental physical process of healing, and that health and healing are encouraged and enhanced by good food. The medicinal value of food for warding off illness has been acknowledged for thousands of years. More recently, scientific research has discovered hundreds of beneficial nutrients in the foods we eat- By applying our knowledge of these nutrients and of how they work to our diet, we can eat foods that boost our immune system and so help protect ourselves against a host of ailments.

Walnut Squash With Red Pepper And Tomato

· Walnut squash helps protect against good food cancer, hear! disease and mental dysfunction. It aids normal blood cell function and encourages healthy skin, muscles and nerves.

· Red pepper boosts immunity and helps protect against cancer. It also helps maintain normal blood-fat levels and aids production of haemoglobin by the red blood cells. It encourages a healthy nervous system and may protect against asthma, migraine and depression.

· Tomatoes are packed with antioxidants, including vitamins A and C and lycopene. They improve the immune response while also helping to maintain energy levels- This combination makes tomatoes a useful addition lo the diet of those suffering from energy-compromising conditions such as caner and AIDS. They boost resistance to Infectious disease, encouraging wound healing and keeping the skin and mucous membranes in good condition.

Ingredients:

· One walnut squash, deseeded and peeled
· Two tablespoons of olive oil
· One red onion, chopped
· One garlic clove, chopped
· One red pepper, in strips
· Six ripe tomatoes, skinned and sliced
· Two tablespoons of tomato paste
· Two tablespoons of fresh (or two tea-spoons of dried) basil, chopped
· One teaspoon of paprika
· Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
· Two tablespoons of parsley, chopped, to garnish

Method:

1. Chop the squash into chunks. Heat the oil in a large pan, add the onion, garlic and squash, saute for two minutes, and then add the red pepper.

2. Heat through and then add the rest of the ingredients except the parsley. Cover and simmer for 20 minutes. Season, garnish with parsley and serve with rice.

From Good Food Magazine

Easy Way to Make Chicken Steam Roast

There are many kinds of roasts, such as, vegetable, fruit, beef, pork, and chickens roasts. Roasting isn’t necessarily a complicated technique to cook something, it’s just time consuming. The amount of time it takes for the food to finish cooking to your liking varies depending on the size, meat density and if you want it rare, medium rare, etc. Even though a big hunk of meat may seem a bit intimidating to someone, it isn’t anything to worry about.

One of the easiest ways to make a chicken steam roast is to use a pressure cooker. Before you do that, though, the chicken should have some flavoring added to it. Ginger/garlic paste, red chili powder, black pepper and lemon juice, along with a few other basic ingredients, are usually recommended for a great tasting chicken. Once that is finished, cut the chicken in a few places, to let the flavor sink in, and marinate for several hours over night.

When the next day arrives, drain the chicken and put it with the hot water in the same container together. Cover the pot or pressure cooker with a lid and let the steam cook the chicken for about fifteen to twenty minutes, or until done. Sometimes it is good to take small samples from the food as it is cooking to make sure that the flavor is turning out like you want. Just grab a fork and remove a small bit from the chicken every couple minutes, if you want.

How to Make Chicken Biryani

Chicken biryani is a very delicious meal from Asia, India and Pakistan in particular. To make chicken biryani, ingredients such as basmati rice, chicken, onion, cinnamon, cloves, cardamoms, cumin, nutmeg powder, turmeric, saffron, yogurt and garlic-ginger paste are used. Spices such as ghee, cinnamon, cloves and cardamoms are usually added to the list of ingredients for flavor.

Methods for creating this meal vary. One technique, however, is to take about half a kilo of flour add 1 to 2 cups of water and mix them together really well. When that is done, set the mixture off to the side as dough for later. Next, they take the chicken and marinate it in a combination of saffron, turmeric, chili powder, crushed onions and ginger-garlic paste. After that, the chicken is left to sit for about one hour to soak in the mixture.

Next, boil one and a half liter of water then add the rice along with the variety of spices previously mentioned. When the rice is about half done, drain the water and place a layer of rice in with the chicken. Then sprinkle on some saffron, fried onions and ghee. Remember the dough? Take that and seal the pot lid. Use the high cooking heat for about ten minutes then switch to reduced heat when it begins to sizzle.

Although the entire process takes a bit more time than other meals, it is well worth the effort. The end result turns out to be a very worth-while and scrumptious meal that all can enjoy.Enjoy your tasty Chicken biryani.

The “Green Diet”

There are many ideas on weight loss such as reducing calorie intake or exercising more. Others preach the effectiveness of a certain product or meals in convenient packets. Allow me to introduce green tea, proven to be effective for weight loss and general health care.

Green Tea works by decreasing LDL or as the health professionals label it, bad cholesterol and is highly linked with heart disease and strokes. Also, green tea increases HDL which is the useful counterpart of LDL. It is also shown to decrease the amount of fatty triglycerides in our body. In other words: you become slimmer the more green tea you consume.

Green tea also boosts antioxidants and anti-cancer agents in the body. This in effect boosts our immune strength, whilst regular use has proven to facilitate weight loss of up to five pounds a month. Another research paper indicates that green tea contains 50 times more benefits than various Vitamin E and C supplement in the market. Isn’t that something?

So how much green tea should I take?

Up to now, there has been no quoted limit to the daily intake of green tea. Some people have been drinking as much as twenty cups daily without any side effects. However, it is advised to consume more of the decaffeinated varieties. It has also been recommended to replace the daily intake of coffee, and it is advised to take a cup just before going to bed.

Preparing green tea

Preparation is very important. Smaller tea leaves boil faster, have better infusion and are preferred to tea bags. If you choose to use the bags instead, immerse them on a continuous basis to extract the maximum amount of antioxidants.

Tea leaves should be completely immersed in hot water and not left just floating on the top. Boil them for longer periods and use higher stepping times to maximise antioxidant extraction.
Finally do not add any sweetener to the tea as it dissipates completely the dietary benefits it contains. Should it be too bitter for your liking, try the herb “Stevia” instead.

Is Chicken Tikka as Popular as hamburgers?

Everyone basically knows what chicken is, but what about “tikka”? In Persian, the word tikka means “bits and pieces”. Knowing that, and putting it all together, tells us what the recipe is all about…bits of chicken! In South Asia, namely Pakistan and India, chicken tikka is popular because of its simplicity. Small chunks of chicken are marinated in special spices, placed on skewers and grilled. Easy, right? This meal is so very simple to fix that some even say that it is the equivalent to the American hamburger.

Since chicken tikka is said to have the same popularity as hamburgers, there has to be some sort of variety, right? As time goes by and people want a more unique taste, recipes start to experiment with different spices. One recipe may have more “hotter” spices while another creation might have less of a kick. There are many, many combinations!

One version of this simple dish is chicken tikka masala. Chicken tikka masala is a tasty gravy dish that is prepared, basically, the same exact way as chicken tikka. The only difference is that after the chicken is grilled, it is placed into thick creamy gravy. The sauce usually consists of many different kinds of spices, but ingredients such as coconut cream are occasionally added.

The end result of placing the skewer in the gravy creates a very yummy, smoky flavor. Mmm…makes my mouth water just thinking about it!

What Other Countries (Like Pakistan) Eat in the Morning

All over the world, people know that a healthy breakfast is one of the great ways to start off a day. In India and Pakistan, foods such a paratha, halwa puris and chana are common morning meals.

Originating in South Asia, paratha is a flatbread made out of whole-wheat flour. The process for making such a thing is simple. The ingredients are: two cups of whole-wheat flour, three tablespoons of melted butter, water, salt and one cup of vegetable/canola/sunflower cooking oil. To make paratha, start off by adding the butter to the flour. Knead the dough to a medium softness and divide into two inch balls. Roll out the balls until they are four inches in diameter, add oil and dust with flour. Fold in half, then half again so that it forms a triangle. Next, place the paratha into the griddle and cook for about 30 seconds before flipping it over. Repeat the process again for however many times you want.

Halwa and puris are two different things, but combined together, they can make a very delicious food. To make halwa (coconut halwa), you’ll need: 1 lb of shredded, frozen coconut, ½ C chana dal boiled, 1.5 teaspoon cardamom powder and sugar along with ½ C ground almond paste. For Puris: 5 C all purpose flour, 4 tablespoon melted ghee, ¾ - 1 C warm milk and water. Grind the coconut, knead the dough, divide everything into tiny balls, roll out the dough then fry in a griddle until satisfied. When preparing the food to be fried, apply water to the edges of the puris (outside covering that holds the halwa) and pinch it closed. It is also recommended not to brown the food and to remove them from the oil once they begin to float.

Pakistani Limo Pani ( lemonade)

Ingredients:

· water or soda 500 ml
· 3 tbps Lemon Juice (limo pani)
· sugar 1/4 cup
· salt 1/4 tsp.
· black pepper powder ( a pinch)
· Quarter cup of Crushed Ice
· Couple of Lemon slices to decorate

Methods:

· Mix all the ingredients in a blender except ice and blend.
· Put some ice in a long glass and add the blended lemon mixture.
· Enjoy your Pakistani Limo Pani