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dekoata4books |
Is dark chocolate really healthy for you? It's been advertised as being good for us, but it can be hard to tell what's real and what's not. If you're not sure whether the benefits you've heard about are really available from chocolate, here are some of the basics to help you decide.
Dark chocolate's primary benefit comes from flavonoids, a type of substance that falls under the umbrella of antioxidants. Many of the diseases we suffer from can be caused or aggravated by oxidant damage to our cells. Antioxidants can help reduce these problems, including some of the effects of aging, by preventing the completion of the oxidant reaction.
They capture damaging free radicals, and can be very beneficial to us. Some foods have more antioxidants than others. For instance, while they're present in strawberries, you'll find almost eight times as much of these chemicals in dark chocolate. Chocolate also has the ability to reduce blood pressure, since it contains nitric oxide, and may help with internal hormonal balances.
It's also been said that a small bar of chocolate daily can be good for your heart. That's because of the aforementioned blood pressure benefits, and also the fact that it can help reduce LDL (bad) cholesterol as much as ten percent. Chocolate also stimulates the production of endorphins and serotonin, contains caffeine, theobromine and other stimulants, and tastes good. That means it has a lot of appeal.
The downsides are that it takes a lot of chocolate to have a big effect, and chocolate is a fairly fatty food. A third of the fats in chocolate are monounsaturated, and two thirds are saturated and able to affect your cholesterol. Another problem is that this high fat content, combined with the sugar in chocolate, means weight gain is a possibility if you eat too much.
Studies have used about three and a half ounces of dark chocolate each day to determine its benefits. That translates into about four hundred calories. While that might not sound like much, consider that it's the same as eating two small doughnuts, and that an extra four hundred calories per day could result in a gain of almost a pound a week.
That means that if you're eating a lot of chocolate to get its benefits, you'll need to increase your activity level and adjust your diet accordingly to avoid weight gain. To keep from eating too much, take the time to taste and appreciate chocolate every time your consume it. These health benefits are also available only from dark chocolate with sixty-five percent or higher levels of cocoa.
Milk chocolate has much lower cocoa content and can't offer those health benefits, and white chocolate contains no cocoa at all. Chocolate bars made of pure chocolate or chocolate with minimal flavorings are the best choice. Avoid nougat, caramel, and similar fillings, which can reduce the benefits chocolate is offering.
Chris loves to write about all kinds of food particularly chocolates. Find out more about Dark Chocolates by visiting http://www.ultimatechocolateshoppe.com
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So this is my first blog.
Well where to start?
Maybe a bit of info about me.
I'm 15 years old and I've been a self harmer for the last 2 years. I have also been recently diagnosed with Bipolarity, finally I know what I am. A manic depressive.
Heres my story so far..
It started after a very rough patch with my parents which began when I was 7... and finally I snapped at News year eve 2007/08.
The new year started out with my beloved parents making me stand a couple of metres away from them after once again having a fight all about nothing. Bloody typical.
I was stranded in a strange place all alone hating my life and hating my parents. Of course the problems with my parents weren't the only trigger, life at school was becoming unbearable. I knew something had to happen to change my life, I couldn't go on living like this.
So when I got back to school I found out about self harming from a friend and well the idea sounded like it might work. So I started it, I can still remember the first cut now. Straight into the bone on my right wrist. Yes it hurt like hell but I found out I loved it. Sadly then the addiction started.
My cutting was in secret then and gradually got worse and worse, eventually just getting out of control. Then just to make things even better, the voice in my head then started talking to me which then brings me to that one day, the day I call my breakdown day, the day that I completely lost it. Imagine it, a young girl sitting on the floor in school, screaming and shouting scared out of my life. Teachers running, friends crying, no one had a clue what was wrong. I had to tell them. Then everyone found out. That was March 2008. Of course after that day everyone was more careful around me, however the cutting did not reduce or my emotions get any better. My teachers and parents decided that something should be done to help me.
So I then started counselling.
I've had counselling for the last two years to try and get over all my emotional problems. I had it from March 2008 to June 2009, and stopped just after my 14th birthday as then both myself and my counsellor felt I was okay, well okay enough to stand on my own two feet.
Thosetwo years were constant ups and downs, more cutting and less cutting, more fights and less fights. Things were sometimes great, but sometimes awful. Sadly though, the problem I went to counselling for in the first place never subsided. I was infact constantly cutting.
On the up side, this last year I luckily had an amazing year, one of the best years I've ever had. Great friends, alright family and the best boyfriend in the world.
Sadly I ruined all that. My friends all became extremely close to my boyfriend at the time (lets call him E.G) and well to be blunt I cheated on him, not only once of twice but three times. I know what your thinking, what a total slag! And I know.. I was. Who knows what the hell I was thinking.. I still don't even know now. After the first time he found I cheated, everything was relatively okay. After the second time he found out i'd cheated on him again, I not only lost him as my boyfriend, I also lost my "best friend" (lets call her A.B) and tried to commit suicide in the toilets, which as you can tell happily failed. After the third time I lost the last few close friends I had, as it involved my bestest friend of them all (lets call her M.G) and well to put it bluntly, completely lost my mind.
Imagine losing two of the most important people in your life, then realising your mistakes changing yourself but then something that you did when you were a bad person comes back and ruins everything that you'd somehow managed to save from the other incident.
It was one of the worst times in my life and I'm still trying to get over that. It was only a month ago when the third incident happened and I still cry about it.
Seeing all of them together, all still loving friends and having one thing in common, a huge raging hatred for me.
So some recent news.
This last month I've started the last year at school, year eleven, with hardly any close friends and an awful reputation. Ive started counselling again after the attempted suicide and my cutting. But this time its not just about my cutting and my moods but how I treat myself and others around me, mainly my supposed friends. I'm doing it because I'm scared of hurting the people I love again, they really didn't and don't deserve that. I am a bad person and I must change.
These next few months are going to be so hard, and I've been through so much already. I just have to keep strong, but then most people on here would probably understand how easy that is to say but just how hard it is to actually do.
I'm struggling at the moment and I feel more alone than ever. No one understands and it hurts. I feel numb. Numb inside and out. Cutting sets me free.
I have two sides to me. One side that wants to cut and another side that desperately wants to stop. Actually I have two sides to everything. I'm guessing that's just my manic depression. It kills me. I'm constantly fighting with myself and my emotions. I just don't know what to do anymore. I miss my old counsellor, I miss the old days where everything was better and easier.
I regret. I hurt. I miss so much. But I've learnt.
The last 2 - 3 weeks I've been constantly depressed but then this last weekend I had an episode of mania, not complete but only hypo-mania. Sadly today I was going up and down very quickly and well at the moment I'm just numb, not feeling anything. I can feel myself going down and I know that tonight is going to be awful.
Sorry that my first post is so long, I just wanted to get my story completely told.
Well I guess that is all for now.
Love you all.
Peace to you all.
Keep on smiling. Even if its just a fake one like mine. <3
”Why is it that when we are young, late September is an old way of Christmas? Do we think how we are older that Christmas is just around the corner at this time of year? Maybe I think too much?LOL but my consultant told me, "Use it or lose it" as diagnosed he first things go me before two Jahren.Solche me through my mind much more in these days and I find myself back to boyhood days thinking.
Seemed at that time much easier, harder? Yes! But simply
If there is one thing to say about this terrible disease is usually some of your best and oldest memories are usually the last to imagine gehen.Wie, solves this such a mess of feelings as I like to think that I many many happy memories of mein life early and lately (what I can think of) the sheer my favorite thought forget woman and my family met me with such dread a few days I actually afraid to shake.I had always this fear before my diagnosis, the I one day; wake up alone all of me and my whole life has been just a dream.
Then this goes only in said two years ago that it actually happen a strong possibility! Most of my memories corrode through this disease of the brain until I see all memories are unforgiving my childhood, when I'm happy. All this is driving me to as much as I can while I can for as long as I as can I refuse completely flat lie down to do this disease or roles,.
Yesterday Elaine and me out Memory Cafe we visited volunteer, and I was asked a few words about my illness (me? a Word?)Are you kidding me? LOL LOL) so try to raise awareness, I said that the word "Cancer" was only whispered or the big "C" then of course as we had, HIV or "Aids", which seemed to be only talked, in corners or even nicht.Jetzt the two issues are spoken, open and honest. WHY???Because we put it to the top of people's attention! We announced the fact that there is only one disease and not some fear! we to stand and more had to be done to terrible diseases as approved.
For this reason, people listened to, belongs to Government, and the generosity of people came to the top!You stood side by side be counted and made their donations are required and to finance research and hopefully someday a cure welcome.The result is what we today donated haben.Millionen of books used by the Government for the research and the words, cancer or HIV as often as any other Word.
So what's the word dementia?Why, in this day and age it's still only whispered about? why plowing Governments more money in a disease than another if they are all equally devastating? the answer is quite simple if you think about it! if not for the wonderful people, about the diseases mentioned campaign and take the message look us had to be more awareness would then raised the general public still talking about cancer and HIV in whisper!
The same applies for the word DEMETIA?Of course it does!And by raising awareness of as much as possible about DEMENTIA and all its problems you can enjoy dementia will be suffering, now and for the Zukunft.So come on guys, it worked for other diseases and I hope and pray that it works for this disease in my life and a cure is found.
HELP AWARENESS-RAISING.
As always, best wishes, Norrms and family xxxxxxxx
”