Tag Archives: salt

Iodine : The essential trace element that is essential for the normal growth and development.

Overview of the thyroid system (See Wikipedia:...
Image via Wikipedia

Iodine is a trace mineral and it is important for the development and function of the body. Iodine is necessary for good thyroid function as well as proper regulation of the glands.  Iodine is necessary for healthy skin, hair, nail and proper wounds healing.  Iodine is essential for health  because without proper amount of iodine in the body it cannot produce thyroid hormonesthyroxine (T4) and triiodothyronine (T3). These two hormones are extremely important for regulating metabolism in every cell and controlling metabolic rate in the body.

Most of the iodine content in the body is stored in the thyroid gland and the rest is found in other locations of the body, such as, blood, salivary glands, mammary glands, etc.  It also plays an important role in maintaining optimum energy levels of the body by ensuring optimum utilization of calories, without allowing them to be deposited as excess fats.  Other benefits of iodine are removal of toxins from the body and assistance for the system in utilizing calcium and silicon. Iodine can significantly reduce conditions like fibrosis, turgidity and breast tenderness. Iodine acts as a relief for fibrocystic diseases and is widely used even in therapies







Deficiency symptoms: Deficiency of iodine can have serious effects. The symptoms of iodine deficiency include Excessive sleepiness,  frustration, Rise in the cholesterol levels, Intolerance towards cold, swelling of the legs, depression, mental retardation, poor perception levels, rapid heart beat, goiter, abnormal weight gain, decreased fertility, coarse skin, chances of still birth in expectant mothers, constipation and fatigue. According to WHO reports, iodine deficiency is one of the leading causes of mental retardation all over.

Food Sources of Iodine: 

Iodine is present in large quantities in both marine plant and animals, including shellfish, white deep- water fish, and brown seaweed kelp, which can absorb iodine from sea water.  Bakers add iodine to bread dough as a stabilizing agent.

Fruits and Vegetable sources

Bladderwrack, Dulse, kelp, Irish Moss,  Red Marine algae,  Blue Green,  Hiziki, Arame, Wakame, and  all seaweed  contain dietary iodine. Asparagus, black walnut hulls,  cabbage, carrot, celery, chickweed, chlorella  cranberries,  cucumber, garlic,  grapes, lettuce,  lima beans,  mushrooms, navy bean,  orange,  pineapple, potatoes,  strawberries,  Swiss chard, summer squash, sesame seeds, soybeans, turnip greens , spinach, spirulina, watercress, white oak bark, are rich in iodine. Iodized salt is another important source of iodine.

In countries where iodine is deficient in the soil, rates of hypothyroidism, goiter and retarded growth from iodine deficiency are very high.

In developed countries, however, because iodine is added to table salt, iodine deficiencies are rare.

Drinking Water and Weight Loss : How To Lose Water Weight

What Is Water Weight?

To put it simply — It is the amount of water that the body holds on to. The tissues of a body can retain water molecules and this increases weight in them. It makes all the tissues look like they are bloated. The fingers, the ankles, the ribs, the face, the STOMACH, etc… they all look puffy. This means that the body will retain some extra pounds in the body, and there are a few reasons as to why a body gains these pounds from water.

Common reasons for increased water weight

1. Dehydration: The hardest concept to understand about this is that more water equals less. The simple explanation is that whenever dehydration takes place in a body, it means that the body comes into a sort of panic control mode. The next time you decide to drink some water, the body clings on to it; and hence, the body gains a lot of water weight. Basically, you drink water to lose weight.

2. Inactivity: A person sitting around idle doing nothing will cause the body to stick to a lot of extra water. Only by the regular movement of the body parts can the water be eliminated from the body causing water weight loss.

3. Hormonal Imbalance: During the period of menstruation, the hormonal imbalance causes the body to stick to a lot of extra weight, causing the process of stopping water retention to be a difficult task.

4. Side effects due to medication: Some of these drugs, like estrogen, causes you to hold on to a lot of water as a result of a side effect — Also making weight loss more difficult than it should be.

5. Sugar Levels in the body: The excess of sugar levels inside the body of an individual causes the insulin levels to be blocked, which then no longer allows the water molecules in a body to be flushed, thus making weight loss incredibly hard to get accomplish.

6. Salt content in the body: If the salt content in the body gets as high as possible then the flushing of water molecules become a bit too difficult which will then increase the overall water mass in your body.

How can drinking water and weight loss possibly be connected you ask? Weight loss is much more than calories in, calories out and water plays a big and crucial role in metabolism and hunger. Plus, drinking water to lose weight is easy!

Drinking water and weight loss – Raise your metabolism with water If the subject of metabolism is a little fuzzy for you, you’re probably not alone. It’s important to realize your metabolism isn’t a living breathing thing in your body, it is the result of many things going on which amounts to how fast waste can move through and out of your body and how efficiently your organs are performing.

The kidneys need sufficient water to function properly and if they aren’t allowed to meet their quota then the liver has to pick up the slack. When the liver is doing double the work it can’t concentrate on its main job: metabolizing fat. It still works on this, but now it can’t do it as quickly or as efficiently.

So, by drinking enough water you allow your liver to put all its energy into metabolizing fat and you can amp up your metabolism and avoid storing fat.

Drinking water and weight loss – Is it fat or are you just bloated?

Water weight tends to be another subject that the facts are unclear on, but chances are you are storing some water or possibly a lot.

Many people mistake water weight for fat because water weight will make you look bloated and puffy.

to better understand why the body stores water and how to lose it.

But simply put, you can lose water weight simply by drinking more water because the new water will flush out the old water that the body has been holding onto in survival mode.

It is also a good idea to stop eating salt and eat more raw, water rich foods.

Drinking water and weight loss – Are you really hungry or just thirsty?

Sometimes it’s actually hard to tell the difference and you can mistake one for the other. This is because the body knows food contains water, so if it can convince you to eat something it thinks it might get the water it’s actually after.

The problem often is that if you eat cooked food that has been dehydrated of its water then you’re making the problem worse. The body has to then supply the water to digest and metabolize any food that is void of the water nature created it with. Now you are even more dehydrated and will continue to eat but still receive no satisfaction.

The solution is to make sure you are always hydrated. Drink much more than the recommended eight glasses a day – 3 to 4 liters is best, depending on exercise levels and sweating, etc. – and stay away from cooked and salty foods the best you can. Your pee should be always be clear and going to the bathroom up to ten times a day isn’t too much. Your sleep might be interrupted a few times in the course of the night but it is for a good cause!

Drinking water to lose weight is easy so pour yourself a nice cold glass, squeeze in a lemon, and enjoy!

















How To Lose Water Weight

Want to lose up to ten pounds in one week? The key to learning how to lose water weight is knowing what to eat. The body holds onto water to dilute toxins so the only way to lose water weight is to stop eating the foods that are poisons to the body.


Here are the ways for how to lose water weight quickly.

No more salt, not even a grain

Banning salt from your diet is the number one way to easily shed water weight. Salt is not healthy and is much different from organic sodium found naturally in foods. The body always treats it as a toxin, no matter what form it is in (sea salt, kosher salt, etc.). Ever notice how thirsty you are after a salt laden meal like Chinese take out?

Losing water weight suddenly becomes effortless when you learn this, but it will take some exertion on your part to keep it out of your mouth.

Salt is in virtually everything that has been prepackaged, pre-made, or served in a restaurant, and this is why we unknowingly consume so much of it. The kidneys can only filter out up to a couple hundred milligrams a day so what happens to the rest?

Between breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks people can easily take in thousands of milligrams of sodium from salt. What the body can’t get rid of right away it will store in the body, mostly in the tissues where water can dilute it so that the organs are not harmed. This is why people who eat a lot of salt have swollen eyes with bags under them, swollen bellies and ankles and a host of other symptoms.

Get the sodium your body needs from organic sources such as tomatoes, cucumbers, and mangoes. Salt is inorganic and toxic to the body. Leave it in the ocean.


Eat less cooked and more raw

Raw food comes in the package nature intended. It is full of water and nutrients and nothing has been fooled around with. But take cooked food that has been heated and stripped of its water content, and the body runs into a problem.

The body must have water to digest food, utilize nutrients, virtually every process carried out by the body. This is why raw food is packed with water. Mother nature already knows this but we have forgotten.

So when cooked food enters you and there is no water, the body must supply it. So it in turn robs itself of water from other places but there is a price to be paid.

Now you become dehydrated and thirsty and the next time you drink any fluids the body is going to remember what it went through and try to protect itself in the future by holding onto any water you give it so that it is not strapped in a future emergency.

The same goes for other toxic “foods” like vinegar, garlic and onions, and alcohol.

Never underestimate the brilliance of your body. The name of the game is self preservation.

woman drinking water 01 jpg

Drink more water!

If you are looking for ways to learn how to lose water weight then don’t forget to simply drink more water so that the body knows it doesn’t have to hold onto it. When the body finally sees that water is plentiful and there won’t be a drought, it will flush the stored water out and use what it needs.

How much water is enough? Your urine should always be clear. If it is yellow, then you are already dehydrated. Strive to pee up to 9 to 10 times a day. It may seem like you are always hitting the toilet but it is a small price to pay for optimum health and the chance for the body to heal.

And remember, after a long night of sleeping, always drink 2-3 big glasses of water upon rising.

If you’ve always wondered how to lose water weight, then start eating the foods that let all that bloat go. Your face will look slimmer, your belly flatter, and you’ll be lighter and happier.

Immune System Booster – Food, Herbs and Activities

The Lymphatic System





Twelve Immune system boosters



antibody mediated immune response on black background

Antibody Response






cytotoxic response

Cellular Immune Response





T-Cell B-Cell communication

T-Cell B-Cell communication



Foods to Stregthen the Immune System



Anti-oxidants and the Immune System


Vitamin A

Vitamin C

Vitamin B Complex

Vitamin E






Almonds contain Vitamin E which is a natural immune system booster.

Whole Almonds







Green Tea in Open Infuser













Yoghurts with live and active cultures stimulate the immune system.

Common Kitchen Herbs and Spices


Immune System