Little Known Nutrients You Can't Live Without

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Posted on: 2nd May 2014

If I were to ask you to name a nutrient that is SO vital to your health that you shouldn't be without it, what would you say?

    Vitamin C?
    The B vitamins?
    Omega-3 essential fatty acids?
    Protein?
    Calcium?
    Carbohydrates?
    Magnesium?
    Vitamin D?

All of the above are great answers.

But there are others that you might not think of...and they�re arguably just as important (and sometimes more important) than all
of those listed above.

And the interesting thing is, these nutrients are not to help nourish big parts of your body like your organs, bones or muscles.

Instead they are nourishment for the littlest, tiniest microscopic inhabitants inside of you.

I'm talking about a category of nutrients called "prebiotics" which are nourishment for your friendly intestinal flora.

They need to eat too!

All living things need nourishment to survive, and the beneficial bacteria (probiotics) that live in your intestines and make up
about 70% of your immune system are no exception. They need to be fed the nutrients that help make them thrive.

This is of utmost importance because there are literally trillions of probiotic bacteria inside of you.

And the more you nourish the probiotics in your gut, the better they will survive and ward off dangerous pathogens that you ingest,
and the healthier you will help your immune system to be.

This not only means that you will be less likely to catch colds and flu, but it also means your body may be stronger to fight and
resist major diseases like cancer.

And here's more great news...

Many prebiotics come from delicious foods and drinks!

Here are 9 foods & drinks that contain high amounts of prebiotics:

1- Fresh fruits and vegetables--unpeeled

Antioxidant compounds called phenols are found just under the skins of fruits and vegetables, and probiotics LOVE to eat phenols.

Plus, fruits and vegetables also contain soluble fiber which helps you in two ways.

First, your beneficial bacteria feed off the fiber. Then they produce short-chain fatty acids as wastes. These short-chain fatty acids
slow the growth of dangerous bacteria such as E. coli.

Second, you can have a much easier time when nature calls.

Just be sure to go organic as much as possible to avoid ingesting a bunch of pesticides and herbicides along with your phenols.

To help control the cost, shop at your local farmer�s market and/or check out Community Supported Agriculture shares at:

www.localharvent.org

2- Nut and seed mixes

A blend of nuts and seeds (without added sweeteners like honey or brown sugar) is the perfect prebiotic. Nuts and seeds are great sources
of fiber, protein and dietary phenols.

Just make sure to stay away from mixes that have candies or yogurt-covered nuts, because they add refined sugar (which ends up being food
for the HARMFUL bacteria in your gut). That defeats the purpose.

3- Dark berry juice

Juices that contain good levels of dietary phenols include those made from blueberries, raspberries, blackberries, cranberries,
pomegranates, cherries, and purple grapes.

The trick here is that you must be sure you're buying 100% real JUICE -- not a "juice drink" which can contain little or no real juice.
Read the label if you're not sure. If the first and second ingredients are water and sugar, forget it. It's not juice.

The only exception is cranberry juice cocktail. Pure cranberry juice is extremely tart for the average palate, and the added water and
sugar make it tasty without completely compromising the quality of the phenols from the cranberry juice.

4- Herbs and spices

Practically every herb and spice contains dietary phenols (and they're alkaline -- another big PLUS for your body), so spice things up
all you want!

The herb with the highest phenol count is oregano, so if you like Italian food, you're in luck. It's also delicious sprinkled over shrimp
scampi or saut�ed fish or chicken, or made in a Greek salad dressing with olive oil and fresh lemon juice.

Fresh herbs and spices have more dietary phenols than dried, but both are good food for your beneficial bacteria.

5- Oats

Oats are loaded with beta-glucan, which is a soluble fiber and an excellent prebiotic.

But all oats are not created equal! Stay away from those flavored instant oatmeal packets because they're typically loaded with refined
sugar. You don't want to turn your meal for your friendly bacteria into a feast for the UNfriendly ones.

And if gluten is a concern for you, be sure to look for oats that are labeled gluten free. Although oats don't inherently contain gluten,
they are frequently processed in the same plants as gluten grains and cross contamination is possible.

6- Legumes

Legumes include beans, lentils and peanuts. They're loaded with soluble fiber (as well as protein and minerals).

The dietary phenol count of beans is one of the highest per weight of any food in existence!

So go ahead and make some split pea soup, a batch of hummus or a pot of chili and feed your friendly microbes.

Here�s an easy and delicious recipe for you to try:

Lentil Soup
Serves: 8

    1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
    1 large Vidalia onion, chopped
    5 stalks celery, chopped
    6 carrots, peeled and chopped
    3 cloves garlic, chopped or pressed
    3 quarts vegetable or chicken broth or stock
    1 pound green lentils
    2 medium tomatoes, diced or 1 14 � ounce can diced tomatoes in juice
    Salt and pepper to taste
    Grated parmesan or Romano cheese for topping

Heat oil in a soup pot or Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add onions, celery and carrots; saut� until vegetables begin to brown,
about 10-15 minutes. Stir in garlic at cook for 2 minutes more.

Add broth, lentils and tomatoes and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover and simmer until lentils are tender, about 35-40
minutes.

Transfer 2 cups soup to a blender and puree until smooth. Return soup puree to pot; season with salt and pepper. Ladle into bowls and
top with grated cheese if desired.

7- Tea

Dietary phenols are extracted from tea leaves during the brewing process. It's best to use boiling water for brewing, but once the tea is
brewed, it can be served hot or iced without compromising the phenol count.

Green tea has the highest phenol content, with black tea a close second. Just be sure not to add too much sweetener as sugar will nourish
the bad guys in your gut.

Note that phenols are NOT found in herbal teas....so although they're good for you in many other ways, don't count on them to be a source of
prebiotics.

8- Red wine

I just made your day, didn't I?

Moderate consumption of red wine (1-2 glasses) not only helps reduce risk of cardiovascular disease, but red wine also has one of the highest
phenol contents of any food or drink.

That's because red wine is made not only with the pulp of the grapes, but also the skin and seeds. White wine uses only the pulp, so it's not
beneficial like red.

And ultimate dream come true for many:

9- Dark chocolate

Dark chocolate and cocoa powder are excellent sources of probiotic-nourishing dietary phenols. (Not so for milk chocolate because its processing
decreases the phenol content.)

The higher the cocoa content, the higher the phenols.

Now, this is NOT permission to have a Hershey's breakfast, Nestl�s lunch and Godiva dinner. But an occasional treat of a nice piece of dark
chocolate will make your tongue dance AND your beneficial bacteria happy.

There's strength in numbers

In addition to nourishing your friendly bacteria, it's also important to make sure to have a strong population of them to begin with.

SO many factors other than your intake of prebiotics can affect your population of probiotics--stress, medications (especially antibiotics and
antacids), toxins in the environment and lack of sleep can take their toll on your gut microbes.

So it's important to supplement with a high-quality multi-strain probiotic formula like Super Shield.

When you take care of your friendly bacteria, nourish them the way they need to be and help keep their numbers strong, trust me, they will
return the favor handsomely in ways that you can�t even imagine!

To Your Health,

Sherry Brescia
Natural Health Researcher
President, Holistic Blends, Creator of the Bestselling Great Taste No Pain System
Editor, Pain-Free Living

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