Pick a Pint to Reduce Inflammation

By Kelley Herring

A few weeks ago, I told you how fiber can help slash CRP - a marker of inflammation and a predictor of future heart disease and diabetes. Now new research shows that enjoying juicy, delicious strawberries can do the same thing.

In the Women's Health Study, researchers examined the relationship between eating strawberries and the risk of cardiovascular disease and CRP. They found that women who ate two or more servings of strawberries per week had a 14 percent lower risk of elevated CRP (3 mg/L or higher) than women who ate none.

Remember, strawberries are one of the crops most contaminated by pesticides, so be sure the ones you eat are organic. Just one cup of fresh or frozen organic strawberries - tossed on a salad, whirled into a smoothie, or enjoyed fresh from the carton - will give you those two inflammation-slashing servings.

It's Good to Know: The Dangers of Poppy Seed Bagels

If your new employer requires you to take a drug test, you'd better not eat any bagels or other baked goods with poppy seeds for breakfast that day. As few as three of the tiny seeds have been known to trigger positive results for opiates (which include heroin and morphine). If you forget, don't worry. You'll be able to request an additional test to clear your name.

(Source: Why Do Men Have Nipples?)

These articles appear courtesy of Early to Rise [Issue #2341, 04-28-08], the Internet's most popular health, wealth, and success e-zine. For a complimentary subscription, visit http://www.earlytorise.com/.