Welcome to Fruit Tips

Blueberries, Super Fruit

Blueberries are being touted as a super antioxidant and staple of today's healthful diet. Blueberries added to your diet whenever possible can help reduce free radicals in your body and slow the oxidation process. Blueberries are also said to help improve your memory and even your balance.

Blueberries are also known to help you retain your vision and fight against Macular Degeneration. Many identify blueberries as a veritable fountain of youth.

Blueberries have a relatively short growing and harvesting season so some may be concerned about the price and availability of this food which is suggested as a staple. Whether fresh or frozen (and frozen are readily available and relatively inexpensive) blueberries can be added regularly to your diet. Frozen berries are still full of antioxidants and are quite convenient.

Using them in fruit salads, yogurts, healthy muffins, blending into smoothies or tossing a handful in your breakfast cereal will all help you retain youth and health.

Pomegranate Juice, What's The Hype About?

Pomegranate juice has become extremely popular due to the many reported health benefits. This juice is filled with a high level of antioxidants. Many fruits and vegetables contain antioxidants but the ones found in pomegranate are some of the most powerful antioxidants you can get.

Antioxidants fight off free radicals which can cause premature aging and disease such as cancer. Eating foods or drinking juice that's rich in antioxidants will not only fend off health problems but can improve the way you look and feel.

Pomegranate juice also tastes wonderful. It's readily available in your grocer's juice aisle but the most recommended version would be an organic one.

Goji Berries, Why Eat Them?

Goji berries are popular in the health food circuit. They come from Tibet and you can buy dehydrated berries in health food stores or online.

The Goji berry contains about 500 times more vitamin C than an orange!

These little berries also contain polysaccharides which helps to rejuvenate the hcg (human growth) hormone. People that live in the region where these berries are grown are reported to have much longer lifespans than average.

These berries can be eaten as a snack (they are yummy and taste like a sweetened cranberry), can be blended into smoothies or put into fruit salads to help improve your overall health and immune system functions.

How To Ripen Fruit Quickly

If you've brought food home from the grocery store that is still not quite ready to eat, you can speed up the ripening process by leaving food in a brown paper bag at room temperature.

Be sure to keep an eye on the fruit though, otherwise it could spoil before you have a chance to eat it.

Why Buy Organic Fruits and Vegetables?

Organic fruit can cost significantly more money than regular fruit and vegetables. Is it really neccesary to buy organic?

Food that is certified as organic assures its buyers that the food has not been exposed to harmful pesticides. Organic growers use natural and alternate methods of pest prevention beyond the chemical pesticides that have become common standards. As a result, you are getting healthier, better tasting produce that you know is grown in an area that has the utmost respect for the environment.

Because organic food isn't full of pesticides and is not genetically modified, the food is even healthier for you with higher vitamin concentrations and most people say that it tastes much better than non-organic. The majority of those who eat organic produce say that it's worth the extra pocket change to have peace of mind.

Don't swear off produce if you can't afford organic.
If you can not afford to eat organic produce, you should still eat regular fruits and vegetables but take care to wash them carefully.

Get More Fruit In Your Diet By Doing Smoothies.

A fruit smoothie is a tasty, healthy beverage that is like more like a treat than health food. This beverage tastes very much like a milkshake and can even feel like a meal replacement. If you pile fruit in front of your family, they may not want to eat it.
But, if you give them a thick, tasty drink to consume instead, they won't even suspect that you are trying to feed them health food.

A smoothie is a great way to get extra fruits and vegetables into your diet. And, you don't need to buy expensive mixes to make a great smoothie.

Here's a basic smoothie recipe. You can alter this with any fruit or toppings you like:

Blend regular milk or powdered milk, any flavored yogurt and a whole banana in a blender as your base.
Add any peeled and seedless fruits you like into the blender. You can also add protein powder or other supplements recomended by your healthcare provider.
Always using a banana in the base recipe, as it will ensure thickness.

Some great fruit combinations are:

• Strawberry/Banana
• Strawberry/Kiwi
• Pineapple and Melon
• Blueberry and Apple

This is a great way to use up overripened fruits as well as fruits that you have in your freezer.

Getting Kids To Eat More Fruit (Nature's Candy)

Children eat what they know. If you set your children up with healthy eating habits early on, you are setting them up for life
Here are some ways to add more fruit in your child's diet:

• Include fruit in their school lunch every day
• Make a fruit salad each week and serve it for breakfast, dessert or snacks. If it's in the fridge, prepared, they are more likely to eat it.
• Make muffins with fruit for snacks
• Make your own jam or preserves to use on pancakes or french toast instead of using table syrup

Ways To Use Up Excess Fruit

If you find you are throwing out more fruit than you eat, consider ways to use it up other than eating it plain. Fruit is expensive and also nutritious and there are many things you can do to extend the life or find more creative ways to get it into your daily diet.

• Add fruit to muffins, cakes or quickbreads. They can be a little on the riper side in most of these recipes anyway
• Make fruit jerky with a food dehydrator and make your own trail mix or fruit snacks for your children
  
• Freeze fruit to use in baking and smoothies later. Most fruit freezes exceptionally well and frozen fruit is just about as healthy as fresh fruit as far as vitamin concentrations go
  
• Make fruit smoothies as a great treat. They taste like a milkshake without the calories but with extra vitamins!
  

The Healing Powers Of Fresh Juice Fasting

If you are in search of a detoxification fast, you may want to consider a fresh juice fast. Anyone who wants to do a fast (refraining from eating for a certain amount of time) should talk to their doctor and get approval first.

A fast can rid your body of toxins and help you feel refreshed. A juice fast is a great way to do this.
When doing a juice fast, use fruits and vegetables and get advice from a health practitioner on the best combinations to use. There are many books and websites dedicated to juice fasting. Most recommend organic fruits and vegetables, most fasts include green vegetables that contain chlorophyll (which is believed to be a big component in the detoxification process)

Eating Fruit To Lose Weight

Adding fruit to your diet as a snack in place of typical 'junk food' snacks is a great way to increase your overall health and reduce your caloric intake.

Fruit does so many positive things for your health and tastes wonderful. When you are craving something sweet, have a piece of fruit or a fruit salad. Drinking fruit juice instead of soda pop can satisfy your thirst and your sweet tooth.

Fruit contains so much vitamins and fiber that if you eat it on a daily basis you will most likely shed extra pounds and inches as well as feel healthier and more energetic.