Eating For Health

You may have heard the saying, “You are what you eat”.   Are there foods that promote healthier hair?   What do nutritionists and researchers say? Are there foods, nutrients that promote hair growth? Like any part of your body, your hair needs nutrients.   What foods provide some of these nutrients?   Not surprisingly, eating for good health can also mean eating for healthier hair.   As the registered dietitian , Samantha Cassetty, states, “Eating for optimal health and healthy hair go hand-in-hand”.   Some nutrients important for hair are some vitamins and minerals, antioxidants, and anti-inflammatory compounds in food.   Cassetty and others note these nutrients are especially important for a healthy hair and for hair growth: Vitamins A and C Biotin Iron Omega 3 fatty acids The Cleveland Clinic has an excellent article on The Best Vitamins and Supplements for Hair Growth .   The article highlights iron, biotin, vitamin A and omega-3 fatty acids.   Vitamin A - Why “A”?  

My daughter called me to ask me which is healthier, white rice or brown rice?   She had ordered some Chinese food and chose the brown rice.   Did she make the healthier choice?   Is brown rice healthier than white rice? In the U.S. we have two choices for rice, either white rice or brown rice.   Growing up we never ate brown rice.   We always ate the Minute white rice from the box.   Processing Both white and brown rice come from the same grain but white rice is much more processed.   There are 3 parts to grains – the bran, the germ and the endosperm.    Whole grains like brown rice contain all 3 parts of the grain.   Processed grains like white rice, have the bran and germ removed, leaving only the white endosperm part of the grain.   Brown Rice is more nutritious than white rice Because brown rice has all parts of the grain, brown rice provides more fiber, magnesium, phosphorus, selenium and manganese.   White rice is polished to remove the bran and germ which means a lo