Following a healthy diet, be it for weight loss or for good health in general, sounds tedious and feels like taking a huge deviation from your daily life. But really, it isn’t so! Taking the healthy route can be as simple as using the ingredients already in your kitchen in the right way and for the right purpose.
Don’t believe us? Here are five of the many healthy ingredients you regularly find at home. Let’s tell you exactly how these foods will benefit you and why eating healthy is super easy.
Healthy Foods Already In Your Kitchen
1. Apple Cider Vinegar Improves Digestion
Apple cider vinegar is believed to stimulate the growth of good bacteria in the gut, kill the bad bacteria, and improve digestion. It improves insulin sensitivity and fights diabetes.1 Daily consumption of apple cider vinegar has even shown weight loss in obese individuals, partially by reducing their appetite. While diluting apple cider vinegar and drinking it is an option, the best way to use it is to add the vinegar as a dressing for dishes like salads. Do not drink more than 1–2 tbsp a day.
2. Yogurt Or Buttermilk Boosts Good Bacteria
Yogurt is an amazing probiotic that boosts the good bacteria in your gut and improves your digestion. Besides this, it also provides a rich level of proteins and nutrients like calcium and vitamin B-12.
Don’t like yogurt? Try buttermilk, which is also a probiotic. If you frequently suffer from gastrointestinal issues, buttermilk is your savior. This tasty drink cools down your digestive tract and helps to reduce heartburn. It also improves your digestion. To reap absolute benefits, drink a glass of buttermilk at the end of every meal. This will keep you from feeling stuffed and also speed up the digestion.
3. Coconut Oil Is Ideal For Hair Growth
Coconut oil is a popular ingredient in ayurvedic and other traditional medicines. The ideal dosage of coconut oil would be about 2 tbsp per day. But how does it help? Coconut oil is commonly used to treat skin irritations and for hair growth.
In terms of your health, using coconut oil in preparing foods is believed to reduce hunger and improve digestion. Oil pulling using the oil can remove harmful toxins in your mouth and provide dental care. It is a common remedy for arthritic patients as it reduces inflammation with its high level of antioxidants.2
4. Honey Treats Throat Infections
Honey is a common home remedy for ulcers and wounds. But that’s not it. Honey is a must-have ingredient to treat cough or any other form of throat irritation.3 It is antibacterial, antifungal, and believed to help alleviate gastrointestinal disorders. If honey is your only source of sugar in your diet, you can have up to 6 tsp a day. If not, balance the sugar intake accordingly.
5. Lemon Water Is Good For Weight Loss
You’ve probably heard a lot of people suggest drinking warm lemon water in the morning for weight loss. Ever wondered how it works? Drinking lemon water as soon as you wake up activates the digestive enzymes. This, in turn, improves the digestion of foods you eat later in the morning. But this isn’t just about weight loss! Drinking lemon water increases the absorption of nutrients from different foods in the body. Besides these, lemons are a good source of vitamin C and also reduce the risk of kidney stones.4
These are just five ingredients that we picked. But trust us when we say that most of the ingredients in your kitchen have a benefit of their own. The trick is to eat moderately, not binge on anything, eat on time, and exercise.
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