People food for thought Part IX; Citrus fruits
In the previous entry titled "Palette's winter treats diary;February 14th,2011 ", you have seen our stumpy little dog "Palette" showed the strong love for the ruby red grapefruits I was snacking on.
In the winter time, back in Japan, I remember snacking on Mikan (Japanese mandarin Orange) with our family while watching TV with legs under the portable low heating table "Kotatsu". We usually grilled the Mikan by rotating them on top of the gas heater and peeled them while piping hot. We always had Mikan at home and ate them quite often.
I remember that my mother kept saying that citrus fruits like Mikan are very good for health and good source for Vitamin C and keep the cold away.
Coming over to the states, I saw the Orange "Clementine" ,which had similar appearance to familiar Mikan, but according to wikipedia website, those two are not the same variety of the orange.
You can read more on Japanese mandarin orange here at wikipedia website.
I like to use citrus in cooking,baking, not just snacking by itself ,and you will find some sort of citrus in our fridge, but my favorite so far is ruby red grapefruits. I think it is a little sweeter than regular grapefruits and, I like to nibble a lot feeling the eyes of envy on my side (Palette loves to sit and stare and lick her mouth,hinting that she wants one too!).
Do you have citrus fruits in your fridge as staple fruits? Did you know that citrus fruits are very good for your health? Many people know that citrus is good source of Vitamin C, but they are more than Vitamin C rich fruits.
Recently, I was reading the local newspaper and got to know more about citrus fruits and, I thought I would share it with you.
Super fruits "Citrus fruits" good for your health
According to article written by Jennifer Motl, cheapest time of the year for citrus fruits are when fruits peaks; February and March.So, now is the good time to save on healthy citrus fruits.
Jennifer states in the article that citrus fruits are not just good for vitamin C but also good for Folate and fiber.
Many people know that citrus fruit is good source of Vitamin C, but what does Vitamin C do to our body?
Vitamin C boost the immune system, helps to keep skin healthy and smooth. When people say "Eating citrus fruits keep doctors away" might have come from the fact that Vitamin C can boost the immune system. The stronger the immune system is, hard to get sick. That is understandable,isn't it?
Back in Japan, on and off, we had citrus bath. We put citrus fruits in meshed bag and put it in the hot water in the tub and I remember it smell so good.
It is similar idea to people here in the states put the bubble bath balls into the tub. Only difference is the tub is much deeper and things you put is citrus fruits instead of bubble bath balls. I have never asked why we had real fruits in the tub to my parents when bath time, but they may knew about connection between citrus fruits and skin health.
What I did not know was that Jennifer states in her article that Vitamin C also helps the body absorb iron from other food. So, if you were anemia, just like she suggests, eating citrus fruits can help absorb iron better.
Other than Vitamin C, citrus fruits are good source for fiber called "soluble fiber", which helps lower your bad cholesterol, and help regulating the bowel movement, and also good source for potassium.
When I hear fruits high in potassium,I would imagine "bananas", but apparently, citrus fruits have good amount of potassium (mineral) that helps blood pressure.
What surprised me most in her article is that, she states that there is a study done by Ohio state University on grapefruits and blood sugar level.
The study showed that grapefruits have chemical called "naringenin" that reduce the sugar level released by the liver.
Super fruits "Exotic Citrus fruits"
What got me interested most is that there seem to be berry-flavored blood orange called "Moro". I cannot imagine what the tastes will be like, but it will be something I would be interested in taste testing once.
Blood orange is, according to wikipedia website, it is smaller than average orange, and fruits fresh is blood color and the pigment of the color is due to antioxidants (anthocyanin) just like blueberry, purple carrots, purple cauliflower etc.. and as you have read in the previous entry titled "Palette's winter treats diary;February 14th,2011 ", antioxidant rich vegetables,fruits help you to protect against cancer,heart disease etc.
You can read more on blood orange at wikipedia website here .
Another one is the citrus called "Tangelo",which supposedly have flavor of grapefruits and tangerines and these grapefruits/tangerine flavored citrus "Tangelo" have knobby top. I have never seen these at local grocery so far.
Now we know a lot more about citrus fruits, and they seem to be pretty healthy fruits we can have. However, when some sort of studies that says such such is good for such such, people tend to think "More is better", but I think "More is not always necessary be better". I believe variety and moderation.
To read a full article written by Jennifer Motl, please click here .
Citrus is not only good for your health, its usage is very versatile, and you can use them in all kinds of dishes/baked goods. It brighten up the flavor of the dish and its zest can add more depth in your dish.
If you use juice from citrus for your steak marinade, along with herbs,spices, it can also help break down the connective tissue in the meat, and you will get the tender meat.
My personal other use of lemon is to use as natural flea repel solution for our stumpy dog "Palette". It is something I learned from Dr Pitcairn's book titled "Natural Health for Dogs and cats" that lemon has insect repelling substance called "d-limonene", and I have been using it for 4 years. So far, I find no flea on Palette when I groom her first with flea comb.
Original solution in the book starts with 2 cups of water, but I found it a little too much because we have only one dog. So, I do not make the solution with the amount shown in the book but here is how I make it using Dr Pitcairn's ratio for the lemon solution.
<Lemon water solution for flea repellent>
1.Slice half a lemon, and put them in the bowl
2.Pour boiling water 1C over the lemon slices, cover it with saran and let it sit overnight
3. To the other bowl,set the kitchen sieve over and pour the lemon/water mixture and discard the rind,seed etc.
4. Pour the solution into a spray bottle and spray the solution to dogs as needed.
Of course, base of the good health of your dogs depends on good diet so, providing the healthy diet is important too.
I also keep cloud nine herbal dip that was diluted with water in the other spray bottle and spray it under doggy bed too.
** If you have cats in the house, tee tree oil and other essential oil are toxic to cats and, avoid using essential oil in your household.
Another personal other use of the lemon is to use for cleaning the microwave. I do not remember where I found the tip but, I cut the lemon in half,place it slice side down onto microwave safe plate and microwave 20-30 seconds. Then, wipe the microwave with warm lemon and wipe again with paper towel.
What are your ways to use the citrus fruits other than cooking,baking?
Do you have citrus fruits with your meal often?
In the winter time, back in Japan, I remember snacking on Mikan (Japanese mandarin Orange) with our family while watching TV with legs under the portable low heating table "Kotatsu". We usually grilled the Mikan by rotating them on top of the gas heater and peeled them while piping hot. We always had Mikan at home and ate them quite often.
I remember that my mother kept saying that citrus fruits like Mikan are very good for health and good source for Vitamin C and keep the cold away.
Coming over to the states, I saw the Orange "Clementine" ,which had similar appearance to familiar Mikan, but according to wikipedia website, those two are not the same variety of the orange.
You can read more on Japanese mandarin orange here at wikipedia website.
I like to use citrus in cooking,baking, not just snacking by itself ,and you will find some sort of citrus in our fridge, but my favorite so far is ruby red grapefruits. I think it is a little sweeter than regular grapefruits and, I like to nibble a lot feeling the eyes of envy on my side (Palette loves to sit and stare and lick her mouth,hinting that she wants one too!).
Do you have citrus fruits in your fridge as staple fruits? Did you know that citrus fruits are very good for your health? Many people know that citrus is good source of Vitamin C, but they are more than Vitamin C rich fruits.
Recently, I was reading the local newspaper and got to know more about citrus fruits and, I thought I would share it with you.
Super fruits "Citrus fruits" good for your health
According to article written by Jennifer Motl, cheapest time of the year for citrus fruits are when fruits peaks; February and March.So, now is the good time to save on healthy citrus fruits.
Jennifer states in the article that citrus fruits are not just good for vitamin C but also good for Folate and fiber.
Many people know that citrus fruit is good source of Vitamin C, but what does Vitamin C do to our body?
Vitamin C boost the immune system, helps to keep skin healthy and smooth. When people say "Eating citrus fruits keep doctors away" might have come from the fact that Vitamin C can boost the immune system. The stronger the immune system is, hard to get sick. That is understandable,isn't it?
Back in Japan, on and off, we had citrus bath. We put citrus fruits in meshed bag and put it in the hot water in the tub and I remember it smell so good.
It is similar idea to people here in the states put the bubble bath balls into the tub. Only difference is the tub is much deeper and things you put is citrus fruits instead of bubble bath balls. I have never asked why we had real fruits in the tub to my parents when bath time, but they may knew about connection between citrus fruits and skin health.
What I did not know was that Jennifer states in her article that Vitamin C also helps the body absorb iron from other food. So, if you were anemia, just like she suggests, eating citrus fruits can help absorb iron better.
Other than Vitamin C, citrus fruits are good source for fiber called "soluble fiber", which helps lower your bad cholesterol, and help regulating the bowel movement, and also good source for potassium.
When I hear fruits high in potassium,I would imagine "bananas", but apparently, citrus fruits have good amount of potassium (mineral) that helps blood pressure.
What surprised me most in her article is that, she states that there is a study done by Ohio state University on grapefruits and blood sugar level.
The study showed that grapefruits have chemical called "naringenin" that reduce the sugar level released by the liver.
Super fruits "Exotic Citrus fruits"
What got me interested most is that there seem to be berry-flavored blood orange called "Moro". I cannot imagine what the tastes will be like, but it will be something I would be interested in taste testing once.
Blood orange is, according to wikipedia website, it is smaller than average orange, and fruits fresh is blood color and the pigment of the color is due to antioxidants (anthocyanin) just like blueberry, purple carrots, purple cauliflower etc.. and as you have read in the previous entry titled "Palette's winter treats diary;February 14th,2011 ", antioxidant rich vegetables,fruits help you to protect against cancer,heart disease etc.
You can read more on blood orange at wikipedia website here .
Another one is the citrus called "Tangelo",which supposedly have flavor of grapefruits and tangerines and these grapefruits/tangerine flavored citrus "Tangelo" have knobby top. I have never seen these at local grocery so far.
Now we know a lot more about citrus fruits, and they seem to be pretty healthy fruits we can have. However, when some sort of studies that says such such is good for such such, people tend to think "More is better", but I think "More is not always necessary be better". I believe variety and moderation.
To read a full article written by Jennifer Motl, please click here .
Citrus is not only good for your health, its usage is very versatile, and you can use them in all kinds of dishes/baked goods. It brighten up the flavor of the dish and its zest can add more depth in your dish.
If you use juice from citrus for your steak marinade, along with herbs,spices, it can also help break down the connective tissue in the meat, and you will get the tender meat.
My personal other use of lemon is to use as natural flea repel solution for our stumpy dog "Palette". It is something I learned from Dr Pitcairn's book titled "Natural Health for Dogs and cats" that lemon has insect repelling substance called "d-limonene", and I have been using it for 4 years. So far, I find no flea on Palette when I groom her first with flea comb.
Original solution in the book starts with 2 cups of water, but I found it a little too much because we have only one dog. So, I do not make the solution with the amount shown in the book but here is how I make it using Dr Pitcairn's ratio for the lemon solution.
<Lemon water solution for flea repellent>
1.Slice half a lemon, and put them in the bowl
2.Pour boiling water 1C over the lemon slices, cover it with saran and let it sit overnight
3. To the other bowl,set the kitchen sieve over and pour the lemon/water mixture and discard the rind,seed etc.
4. Pour the solution into a spray bottle and spray the solution to dogs as needed.
Of course, base of the good health of your dogs depends on good diet so, providing the healthy diet is important too.
I also keep cloud nine herbal dip that was diluted with water in the other spray bottle and spray it under doggy bed too.
** If you have cats in the house, tee tree oil and other essential oil are toxic to cats and, avoid using essential oil in your household.
Another personal other use of the lemon is to use for cleaning the microwave. I do not remember where I found the tip but, I cut the lemon in half,place it slice side down onto microwave safe plate and microwave 20-30 seconds. Then, wipe the microwave with warm lemon and wipe again with paper towel.
What are your ways to use the citrus fruits other than cooking,baking?
Do you have citrus fruits with your meal often?
Posted by yassy at 2/20/2011 2:09 PM 
Categories: People Health
Tags: lemon dogs citrus fruits health food
Categories: People Health
Tags: lemon dogs citrus fruits health food
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