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Nutrition

Staying migraine-free with our diet

Eggs

Eggs

 In this chapter, we will be discussing how we can live a migraine-free life with our diet.

Migraine is a very painful and miserable type of headache. Migraine comes with a pulsating and throbbing pain in one part of the head. Other signs and symptoms include; nausea and vomiting, dizziness, and a high sensitivity to light and sound.

Some people can even tell when they are about to have a migraine because they see flashing light or zigzag lines, or they temporarily lose their vision. Other people may suspect a migraine is com­ing after they encounter something that commonly cause migraines. Many things can trigger a migraine, including anxiety, stress, lack of food or sleep, exposure to light and hormonal changes in women.

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Drugs can help prevent migraine attacks or relieve symptoms of attacks when they happen. Lifestyle changes and nutrition also help a lot in preventing future migraines.

Foods to include

Magnesium rich foods such as oatmeal and sweet potatoes.

Melatonin rich foods such as oats, cher­ries and sweet corn.

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Omega-3 fatty acid rich foods such as flaxseed, salmon, and herrings.

Riboflavin rich foods such as milk, eggs, and lean beef or pork.

Lifestyle modification

Cessation of cigarette smoking.

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Moderation of alcohol.

Adequate rest/ sleep; at least 7 hours a night.

Adequate water intake; at least 8 glasses a day.

Adequate stress management.

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Avoid very bright light and excessive noise.

Adequate exercise; at least 45 minutes a day for at least three times a week.

When migraines attack, they can distort our whole mood and prevent us from chas­ing our daily goals. That should never be taken lightly, and active application of the diets and lifestyle modifications mentioned above should be natural habits in our lives, to maintain that peace of mind we all deserve.

The writer Dr Bernice Korkor Asare is the CEO of Holistic Health Consult.

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“Your diet your health, your health your wealth”

E-mail: holistichealthconsultgh@gmail.com

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Nutrition

 Benefits of chocolate

Chocolate

 Antioxidants

Dark chocolate contains several compounds that possesses antioxidant prop­erties, such as flavanols and polyphenols. Antioxidants neutralise free radicals and prevent oxidative stress.

Oxidative stress refers to the damage that excessive amounts of free radicals can inflict on cells and tissues in the body.

Oxidative stress contributes to the natural aging pro­cess. Over time, the effects of ox­idative stress may also contribute to the development of a variety of diseas­es.

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Heart disease risk

Regularly eating dark chocolate helps reduce a person’s likelihood of develop­ing heart disease. Some of the compounds in dark chocolate, specifically flava­nols, affect two major risk factors for heart disease: high blood pressure and high cholesterol.

Blood pres­sure

The flavanols in dark chocolate stimulate nitric oxide pro­duction in the body. Nitric oxide causes blood ves­sels to dilate, or widen, which improves blood flow and lowers blood pressure.

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Cholesterol

Dark chocolate also con­tains certain compounds, such as polyphenols and theobromine that may lower levels of low-den­sity lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol in the body and increase lev­els of high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol. Doctors often refer to LDL cholesterol as “bad cholesterol” and HDL cholesterol as “good cholesterol.

Anti-inflamma­tory effects

Inflammation is part of the body’s natural immune response to germs and other harmful substances. However, chronic inflammation can damage cells and tissues and may increase the risk of some health conditions, including type 2 diabetes, arthritis, and certain types of cancer.

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Dark chocolate contains compounds with anti-inflam­matory properties that may help reduce inflammation in the body.

Insulin resistance

Insulin resistance occurs when the body’s cells stop responding to the hormone insulin. Insulin resistance can cause abnormally high levels of blood glucose, which can lead to prediabe­tes and type 2 diabetes.

Brain function

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Eating dark chocolate may improve brain function and help prevent neurode­generative conditions, such as Alzheimer’s disease and Parkinson’s disease.

The findings of a small 2018 study Trusted Source suggest that the flavanols present in dark chocolate may enhance neuroplasti­city, which is the brain’s ability to reorganise itself, particularly in response to injury and disease.

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Nutrition

Koose (fried cowpea bean cake)

Delicious Koose
Delicious Koose

Ingredients

• 300 grams of cowpea (dehusked) flour

• 200 ml of oil (for deep frying)

• 20 grams of ginger

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• 10 grams of fresh or dry hot pepper

• 50 grams of onion (op­tional)

• 2 tablespoonfuls of salt

• 1000 ml water

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Preparation

-Wash, peel ginger, hot pep­per, onion (Grind or blend)

-Mix water with cowpea flour and beat until mixture is fluffy

 -Add ground spices (ginger, hot pepper and onion) and salt to cowpea flour in bits and continue to beat

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-Add water and stir to mix evenly and to obtain a soft dropping consistency cooking

-Put oil on fire and add chopped onions

-Drop mixture by spoonfuls in the hot oil and fry, turn­ing occasionally until golden brown (frying may take about three minutes)

– Take the cakes from hot oil, drain in a colander and place on kitchen paper to extract excess oil

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• Serve hot with corn, millet or sorghum porridge or alone as a snack

 By Linda Abrefi Wadie

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