Go ahead – indulge in wine, chocolate and even coffee!
Drinking wine or coffee in moderation has senior health benefits. Studies show that one glass of wine a day can help prevent cardiovascular problems such as heart disease and strokes. Wine also helps prevent certain cancers, with red wines offering the highest antioxidant levels. Whole bean coffee also contains antioxidants and magnesium and studies indicate that drinking one or two cups of coffee a day may prevent Parkinsons’s disease, cirrhosis of the liver, colon cancer, and type 2 diabetes. The nutrients are retained when you grind whole coffee beans just before making your coffee.
Watch a video update from msnbc.com on the health benefits of coffee on the Vanderbilt University’s Institute for Coffee Studies website.
Dark chocolate lovers can now indulge without guilt. Quality chocolate containing 70% or more cocoa contains antioxidants that reduce blood pressure, lower cholesterol, help to slow the aging process and prevent cancer.
Read The Food You Crave: Luscious Recipes for a Healthy Life, by Ellie Krieger, RD or tune into “Healthy Appetite” on the Food Network and learn more about the senior health benefits of your favorite foods.
Other suggested reading
Small Changes, Big Results: A 12-Week Action Plan to a Better Life by Ellie Krieger and Kelly James-Enger
The Strang Cancer Prevention Center Cookbook by Laura J. Pensiero, RD, Michael P. Osborne, and Susan Oliveria
The Cancer Nutrition Center Handbook by Carolyn Katzin
For Health’s Sake: A Cancer Survivor’s Cookbook by Mylinda Butterworth
Discover the senior health benefits of figs – rich in fiber, caviar – packed with protein, iron and magnesium, olive oil – containing antioxidants that help prevent cancer and heart disease, and walnut oil – which offers the powerful combination of antioxidants and omega-3 fatty acids. Wild salmon is not only high is omega-3 fatty acids but contains antioxidants that can also slow the aging process.
Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies in La Jolla, CA found that dietary restriction – simply eating less – extends lifespan in many organisms and delays the onset of aging-related diseases, such as cancer.
Learn more on The Salk Institute for Biological Studies website.
